The reader had best forgive Miss du Maurier in advance for stretching the impersonation theme past the point of credulity. Such forgiveness would amount to an act of faith based upon the excellence of her past performances. It is not unrewarded.
John, a lonely Englishman, is overwhelmed by a sense of failure and futility, of not belonging. A lecturer on French history, he feels that the real meaning of history has escaped him because he has never been “close enough to people.” While on holiday in France he meets the physical replica of himself and is tricked into assuming the identity of the ruthless and irresponsible Frenchman, Jean de Gué, who uses him as a scapegoat.
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