Daphne du Maurier

Dame Daphne du Maurier, Lady Browning, was an English novelist, biographer and playwright. Although du Maurier is classed as a romantic novelist, her stories have been described as "moody and resonant" with overtones of the paranormal. Her bestselling works were not at first taken seriously by critics, but they have since earned an enduring reputation for narrative craft. Many have been successfully adapted into films, including the novels Rebecca, Frenchman's Creek, My Cousin Rachel and Jamaica Inn. Du Maurier spent much of her life in Cornwall, where most of her works are set. As her fame increased, she became more reclusive.