The Loving Spirit

The debut novel from the National Book Award–winning author of Rebecca is a multigenerational saga about divided loyalties within a family of boat builders.

Growing up in a small seaside English village, Janet Coombe dreams of a life of adventure on the open sea. But as a woman born at the turn of the twentieth century, she does what is expected of her, marrying a shipwright named Thomas and raising children. But Janet’s yearning lives on in her son Joseph who, in a vessel bearing his mother’s name, turns to a seafaring life. His choice is not without struggles—romantic rivalry, familial estrangement, even madness. It’s not until his grown daughter returns to the English coast that the mantle Joseph carried in kinship with his mother Janet’s loving spirit is finally laid to rest. Set against the backdrop of war and social change in England, the incomparable Daphne du Maurier’s first novel is a powerful blend of romance, history, and adventure.  

“Du Maurier is in a class by herself.” —The New York Times

“Du Maurier created a scale by which modern women can measure their feelings.” —Stephen King, New York Times–bestselling of author 

“Daphne du Maurier has no equal.” —The Sunday Telegraph