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Brilliant as with every reread. This book is such a joy to read and Thursday Next is my favourite literary character.
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The heroine is a bit annoying in her waffling whining about 'the man she loved' but perhaps that makes it realistic. An unusual alternate world tale shaped by certain key events that turned out differently, some have unusual powers, and everyone is passionate about literature (really loved that aspect). The setting didn't feel well established before all the heavy action began. I do like the element of how Jane Eyre came to be the way it is.
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First read in August, 2006 In recent years this one has turned up on just about all "Top 50 Books" lists that I've seen. It sounded interesting, so I picked it up. And wow! SUCH a good book! It's about a man who's invented a machine that lets you enter books. Unfortunately, a criminal stole it and used it to kidnap Jane Eyre. Really brilliant book. I highly recommend it. (Original rating 5 stars).
Reread Nov 2013 Re-"read" this as an audiobook, and I'm not entirely sure it works in that media. At ...more
Reread Nov 2013 Re-"read" this as an audiobook, and I'm not entirely sure it works in that media. At ...more
Sadly, it was just okay. Even though Nancy Pearl and my friend since first grade both think this is a great book, I was very meh about it.
I did appreciate the plays on words that Fforde uses in names, like Paige Turner and the brothers Acheron and Hades Styx. This was a very literarily humorous book -- some of the characters' names (another one being Millon de Floss); lead-ins to each chapter that were selections from books in Thursday's world, like A Life in SpecOps and Thursday Next--A Biogra ...more
I did appreciate the plays on words that Fforde uses in names, like Paige Turner and the brothers Acheron and Hades Styx. This was a very literarily humorous book -- some of the characters' names (another one being Millon de Floss); lead-ins to each chapter that were selections from books in Thursday's world, like A Life in SpecOps and Thursday Next--A Biogra ...more
This book isn't without a certain charm, but I found it too weak to really sustain my interest. The protagonist lacks personality, it's ostensibly written in first person but keeps shifting into third person omniscient at random moments, and the villain is too self-consciously evil to be interesting. Also, I thought the altered version of Jane Eyre in The Eyre Affair was superior to the ending of the real book, so I spent the entire time futilely rooting for what I knew was the losing side.
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This witty literary mystery will delight word lovers and bibliophiles. Characters from great works of literature are being kidnapped, and literary detective Thursday Next is on the trail of the villain. The Eyre Affair is a quick-paced, quirky novel that is jam-packed with wordplay and sly references to enjoy.
I really enjoyed this book and eagerly went out to purchase the sequels. The problem with a series of books for me is that the first one is great, the second is good and after that I get tired of the whole thing. It's rare that I'll love the third or fourth as much as the first.
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It was fine. It's a "literary mystery" that was also sci fi & suspense & fantasy. The world of the book, where classic literature is the dominant pop culture, is fun. But in a book with that emphasis, I would have expected the actual nuts and bolts writing to be better.
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Jul 02, 2007
Wiltshire Hermit
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fiction,
books-about-books
Aug 10, 2007
Evan
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fantasy,
contemporary
Jan 02, 2008
Stella
marked it as to-read
Feb 12, 2008
Ann M
marked it as to-read
May 08, 2008
Paige
marked it as to-read
Oct 13, 2009
Zack
marked it as to-read
Oct 20, 2009
Shelley Giusti
marked it as to-read
Apr 21, 2011
Kelly
marked it as to-read
Dec 08, 2014
Annie
marked it as to-read
Oct 25, 2015
Mark
marked it as to-read
