The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde

 I met a new friend at our Ridgeview Ward, Shirla Snow. We immediately discovered that we have much in common: born two days apart, love to read, love Dickens, Austen, and the classics, for example. When she mentioned her favorites, she cited one by this author, Lost in a Good Book. When I went to her home to borrow it, she offered this one first, having forgotten that her favorite wasn't the first in a series. So she warned me it's a little different, and recommended I only take the first two, and to return for more if I like these. So, this is the first in the series. She also mentioned that it had been twenty years since she's read either one of them, and doesn't know if she'd still feel the same way about them. With all of this history, I was excited to give them a try.

I was swept away right at the beginning by the intelligent, witty, and literary allusion-filled text. As I read on, though, I realized this story involved fantasy and time travel and all sorts of other things that had me going, "Huh!" Lots of unexpected developments, too many characters to keep track of, but still, a witty and intelligent read. So I kept on. I learned to really like the heroine, Thursday Next. Every name is a hoot and is used for different puns and purposes all the time! There's a even a character named Braxton Hicks!!! At times I felt a little ignorant, knowing I was missing MANY of the obscure allusions. This is an author with lots of connections he wants his reader to make. It's almost a game with him; much of it tongue-in-cheek. Also lost on me were some of the British cultural references. 

The author's cleverness is amazing. Throughout the book, he alludes to the unsatisfying ending to Jane Eyre. And I kept thinking, do I remember it wrong? Finally, as all of the pieces come together, I realized the author was fooling me, and that his interpretation of how it all came together was the crux of the novel. He plays with the characters and gives some far-fetched sceenarios about how it all REALLY came togehter, which was the way I remembered.

It is a very fun romp! However, there were times and scenes that got a little redundant... It's a romp, a tumble, with lots of twists and turns. I'm curious about the next installment, because Thursday marries her long-time love at the end of this one, and I'm sure the marriage will be a rocky one! She's a great character who I will enjoy following for at least one more installment. I think there are two more; we'll see how long I last!