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Suzanne
Rating:
Review
Just when I thought there were no original plots left, Jasper Fforde sprang “special operative” Thursday Next on me and had me laughing through all of her escapades. Next’s job is to investigate strange literary occurrences, and strange occurrences abound in this weird version of a literature-loving England. The Crimean War has been raging for over 100 years, book characters come to life in a parallel world, and time travel is a reality, at least for some people. Arch nemesis Acheron Hades kidnaps Jane Eyre from Bronte’s novel, and it’s Thursday Next to the rescue, in this “…mother of all ball-ups”! I don’t usually consider myself a fan of science fiction, but this book is different from what I normally think of as science fiction. Next is utterly likeable, brave, smart, and a rollicking good time! I didn’t want this book to end.
Best Line:
“Reality, to be sure, was beginning to bend.”
Kim
Rating:
Review
Thursday Next rocks! She’s the narrator/main character/my hero who definitely knows how to take care of business. Set in the surreal world of Great Britain in the 1980s, Thursday Next is a Special Operative for a specialized police force that handles “unusual” events ranging from literature forgery to elimination of vampires and werewolves (or SpecOps-17: Suckers and Biters Division). Thursday will chase after bad guys anywhere, even into the Charlotte Bronte classic, Jane Eyre, which creates quite the mental picture. Some of the names of the supporting characters are the best, such as Commander Braxton Hicks, Jack Schitt and evildoer Acheron Hades. And the play that Thursday and Landon attend, Shakespeare’s Richard III, had Rocky Horror Picture Show overtones that made me laugh out loud. This is a witty, fun book that I highly recommend.
Best Lines:
Thursday referring to her tumultuous relationship with her brother: “He had called me Doofus and smacked me on the back of my head every day for fifteen years. I had to break his nose to make him stop.” See…I told you she rocks!
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