Is it possible for a book to be sweet, funny, awesome, and led by a cast of amazing narrators? Indeed it is, because that book is My Lady Jane.
When I first heard about it, I was skeptical. A comical retelling of Lady Jane Grey, written by three different authors? It sounded like a recipe for disaster. As it turned out, I’ve never read a better co-authored novel. The writing flowed so I couldn’t tell the authors apart and the chapters transitioned smoothly.
The plot was absolutely hilarious and witty. The comparisons to The Princess Bride were spot on. I appreciated that the humor wasn’t silly or crude (as I was afraid it would be), but clever and sarcastic.
Meet Jane. She’s about to marry a total stranger since her cousin, Edward VI, is dying, and she’s next in line for the throne, but all Jane wants to do is read her books. Meanwhile, Edward has problems of his own to worry about—there are plots to overthrow him, he’s slowly dying of “the Affliction,” and he’s never even kissed a girl!
There were ties to the original Jane Grey story, but the world was changed so that the courts raging against each other were “Verities” and “Eðians.” Eðians are people who possess the power to shape-shift into animals, but there are those in the court who deem them “beasts” and believe they should be burned at the stake.
So. Her husband was a horse.
And no one had told her.
I loved the slow-burn romance. Jane and Gifford, otherwise known as “G,” were total strangers upon their first meeting (at their wedding) and hated each other. Of course, they gradually learned to tolerate one another, though there were too many infuriating almost-kisses in my opinion (The Lady Janies could be so cruel!).
In their bedchamber, Jane set a pillow and blanket on the floor next to the bed.
“Jane, I cannot allow you to sleep on the floor,” G said gallantly.
She smiled. “The pillow and blanket are for you, my lord.”
From a book I didn’t expect much from, this turned out to be absolutely magical, adventurous, and heartwarming. I don’t see how anyone could fail to fall in love with this story and its wonderful characters.
No comments:
Post a Comment