Title: My Plain Jane (The Lady Janies #2)
Author: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, & Jodi Meadows
Publication Date: June 26, 2018
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 464
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Review for book 1
You may think you know the story. After a miserable childhood, penniless orphan Jane Eyre embarks on a new life as a governess at Thornfield Hall. There, she meets one dark, brooding Mr. Rochester. Despite their significant age gap (!) and his uneven temper (!!), they fall in love—and, Reader, she marries him. (!!!)
Or does she?
Prepare for an adventure of Gothic proportions, in which all is not as it seems, a certain gentleman is hiding more than skeletons in his closets, and one orphan Jane Eyre, aspiring author Charlotte Brontë, and supernatural investigator Alexander Blackwood are about to be drawn together on the most epic ghost hunt this side of Wuthering Heights.
First off, shame on me for not ever having read Jane Eyre before. I’m not really much of a classics person and I think I have my strict english teachers to blame for that. But after reading this book it really make me want to go out and grab Jane Eyre just so I can say that I’ve read that book as well.
Now that I got that off my chest… THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING!
From what I have heard people say this book follows most of the major plot points of Jane Eyre, but there is a bit of a twist. Our plain Jane is a seer. She can see and talk to ghosts. The supernatural element in this novel really added to the story line and added such a unique twist to the classic. I love it when authors can take a well-known story, keep it recognizable, and totally put their own spin on it!
I love how Charlotte Brontë had her own character in this book. For those of you who, like me and are oblivious when it comes to classics, Charlotte is the author of the original book, but in this book she is best friends with Jane and is slowly writing and coming up with ideas for the novel. If that made any sense at all. Even though Jane is supposed to be front and center I really feel like Charlotte steals the show. She is such a strong, smart, and independent character in a time period where that was generally frowned upon. It was also such a cool idea to see her develop her most famous work throughout the course of this book as she followed her friend through thick and thin.
The references! There were sooooo many of them that I couldn’t help but laugh out loud and share them with whomever was near me while I was reading. #Sorrynotsorry to my boyfriend and mom. It was their fault they sat near me lol. The best reference by far had to be the Princess Bride one! That has to be one of my top ten movies of all time which makes anything that much better if they reference it in any way shape or form. There was also a Scooby Doo reference that I almost missed if I hadn’t had to reread a bit because I was laughing so hard.
The romance in this book was on point. I’m not talking about Jane and Mr. Rochester so I won’t say who to avoid spoilers, but it was done so well. It felt very genuine and sweet. At times (you know if you’ve read the book) the romance had me crying, laughing, and begging for them to just admit their feelings for each other. And if there ever was another book that followed this one as an actual series there is another romance that I would’ve really liked to see how it panned out. Plus the adventures that couple could go on would be of epic proportions.
Now you don’t have to have read My Lady Jane to read this one as they both are separate books, but there is a little part you won’t get in the end of this book if you haven’t read My Lady Jane first. I love when authors do this kind of thing even if the books aren’t specifically in a series. Just having that little link almost makes the books that much better for me. And, of course, you don’t have to have read Jane Eyre first either. I haven’t burst into flames yet lol. I’m for sure going to read it now though!
So if you have a love for Jane Eyre or a love for Ghostbusters or you just want to have a good laugh this is definitely a book that you should pick up in the future! You definitely won’t regret it!
