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Having seen the 1973 film adaptation of "Don't Look Now" many years ago which completely freaked me out, I thought this would somewhat take the gloss off the reading experience simply because it contained one of the most shocking finales in history, but thankfully I needn't have worried. Although the other four short stories in this collection are every bit as chilling it's "Don't Look Now" that stands out from the rest as a terrifying masterpiece of slow-burning tension, which is spine-chilling as hell but also tender and intimate, a perfect distillation of the confusion and desire that attend grief for a married couple, which, as the story progresses, adventures forward through the winding streets of Venice with the logic of a nightmare. After the death of their daughter Venice to degree becomes a sort of haven for the healing process, well that's until a seriously creepy old psychic clairvoyant predicts some rather disturbing happenings. This is in essence a haunting ghost story which looks at the close affinity of a loving couple and the emotional reactions of losing a child. And it's here I will stop for reasons of not giving too much away!. All the stories are, in their own way, refusals of comfort with the one thing in common being that unpleasant things happen to people, and in one way or another, there is little chance of escapism, Du Maurier certainly knows how to hold ones attention, you may know what's coming but not necessarily in the direction that is anticipated and that's a strong attribute to have.
You could be settled into the most comfy chair on the planet, but once she starts to weave her web of unnerving horror, just don't expect to stay that way.