The Eyre Affair by Fforde Jasper (11-Apr-2005) Paperback

What a wonderful, fantasy-fiction parody of "Jane Eyre!" Loved the concept of a Britain obsessed with literature rather than football and celebrities. The science involved is totally implausible, but that is hardly the point. The whole story is a romp through 19th-century British lit with satiric jabs at bureaucracy and politicians. A great read!

The entire Thursday Next series (of which this is the first book) is a whimsical delight. If you enjoy reading and thinking about readers, and you're ready for an absurdist take on literary detecting, then this is the series for you.

Excellent... very genre-crossing and lovely. I really, truly enjoyed this book... part detective story, part sci-fi, part fantasy, part romance, part fiction, and a wonderful homage to Jane Eyre. Looking forward to more of this series!

This is a delightful and often silly fantasy that's overflowing with puns and allusions to virtually everything you remember reading in college literature classes. It's not quite great, but worth the read. And for all the fantasy and time travel, I surprised myself by actually caring about these far-fetched but very human characters.

As the title of this review suggests "The Eyre Affair" was a quick and easy read that was enjoyable. Jasper Fford kept me entertained from the first page to the last. He combined mystery/science fiction with a literary classic, and made them flow together. I never would have imagined that "Jane Eyre" could be a science fiction novel before. I enjoyed the characters and how some were named ironically. The plot, without giving too much away, is about a man named Hades who has stolen the original copy of Jane Eyre and plans to kill her unless Thursday Next and the SpecOps team gives him what he wants.

The book was a fun read because I found myself thinking about it when I wasn't reading it, constantly wanting to know what was happening. The plot is a little tricky to grasp at first, and sometimes I had to go back and re-read the section that I missed. Even if you don't get all the literary references in the novel, it still will hold your attention. Plus it's a really good read if you like "Jane Eyre" but don't want to re-read for the 5th time. Or if you just need a break from it.

I think that, had I remembered all the classics I read at school many years ago, I would not have been so lost in this book. A knowledge of all the old classics will stand you in good stead here and sadly I am more a modern fiction reader because I'm sure I missed a great deal of humour. That fault lies with me alone.

Jasper Fforde writes well and I enjoyed the parts I could actually understand but as I am not a Shakespearean buff, many parts were a bit fogged up . The characters' names and place names confused me too. At times the characters were referred to by both names, at other times just first names and with all the other Welsh names thrown in which I cannot pronounce and therefore becomes difficult to remember, I had trouble keeping track of who was doing what, where.

I do feel feel that I've missed out on a good series but I am not going to buff up on the old classics just to "get" this book... or maybe when I have more time.

For anyone who has every fantasized about literally being able to go into a world in a book, or get to speak to the actual characters, this was fun. It got a bit repetitive for me, though, and I'm not sure I always get that British wit. Nonetheless Thursday Next was a fun heroine I have no doubt will go far in the final draft.

I loved this. Lots of allusions to other works and names were funny. I love that one of her credit card was a 'babbage' card. Obviously a tribute to the old store (deep in my wallet I still have my babbage card). I am looking forward to reading the next one. If it holds up to this promise, I may have found a good humorous series.

Jasper Fforde's book "The Eyre Affair", first in his Thursday Next series, tickles my fancy, my funny bone, and my curiousity. The alternate reality he has created never ceases to amaze and amuse me, and the characters feel very real, even when they're traveling through time or hunting vampires or encountering famous literary characters like Mr. Rochester. Oh, and the villains? Delightfully horrid, easy to loathe, and also far too much fun. More please!

Fforde tells a great story with some fun twists. I thoroughly enjoyed how he bent the rules of literature and enjoyed playing with the medium as he told the story. All in all, it was great fun and I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys mind-bending fiction, mysteries, and has a decent acquaintance with other classic novels.

Although I can't say that I whole heartedly enjoyed this book, there were some quite amusing parts to it. If you consider yourself an avid reader with a wide range of reading experience, you will at least be able to enjoy all the literary references with which this book abounds.

Unfortunately, I felt the book was really slow to take off. The first 2/3rds of the book is spent setting everything up. There are some clever references, some not so clever, and a few entertaining scenes (I was quite diverted by the scene in which "Richard the III" is performed a la Rocky Horror Picture Show,) but alas, the good parts are spread too thin. Really, how many times can "Jack Schitte" be considered funny? (about once, maybe) after that it just gets annoying. I literally had to force myself to keep reading, chapter by excruciatingly slow chapter.

Finally, around chapter 26, Fffoorrddee remembers that most commercially successful novels contain some sort of a plot, and he thankfully includes one for those of us who like a little narrative with our obscure literary references.

I actually like the "idea" of this book very much, and I wanted to like this book better than I did. A world where literature is taken very, very seriously, and people can literally jump into literary works and characters can jump out of them as well, but it just didn't quite thrill me. It was more like, "eh."

Finally, near the end, the story I was anticipating finally gets rolling; the part of the story the title of the book comes from. From that point on, it was much easier to keep reading.

So, in hon'or-of-the-two-people I actually know, that real-ly en&oyed this book much-more than I did, I will give it two &tars' in&tead of just one. Also, in hon'or of the part-played by Jane, Roch'ester, Mrs. Fair'fax, and Thorn&ield 'Hall, I'll let-the-two-stars stand. As much a& I would like-to-be-able to give-it-more stars, the dodo's just aren't cute' enough to car-ry this &how, (or even the hyphenating-book-worms.)

My local comic book store employee told me she dug this novel so I checked it out. It's kind of, but not exactly, an action-y mystery. It's not particularly deep, but it was enjoyable enough that I picked up the second book at a local used bookstore. One thing to note is that you do *not* have to have read "Jane Eyre" in order to enjoy this book.

This is the book that started my love affair with Jasper Fforde! I'd read a review in the LA Times, and was very intrigued. Evidently, friends thought I'd like it, too, because I got the book for Christmas. Since then, I've bought every new book in the series, for myself, and now, this copy for my niece. One good turn deserves another!

It's soo refreshing to read Science fiction wich is funny, witty, unassuming and devoid of the pervading gloomy and depressive ambiance which is often the hallmark of modern SF. A welcome change from some so called classic masterpiece which are boring to tears and pretentious, such as Babel-17 just to name that one. I look forward to read "lost in a good book".

Thursday Next is a wonderful heroine, and her strange family adds to the entertainment. Even if you don't ordinarily enjoy alternative histories, you may like this one. A little science fiction, a little mystery, and lots of humor. By the time I'd finished reading it, I simply had to dig out Jane Eyre for another reading. I'm back for a second round, having just finished the second book in the series--which was great fun as well.

By chance, I read the second volume in this series before I read this first one. And I enjoyed the second one more. So if you're a little disappointed with this first book, I would still give the next in the series a chance. I haven't tried the others yet, but perhaps I will. The price is a bit of a deterrent.

Anglophilia meets Douglas Adams in this ingratiating sci-fi/detective story involving heroine Thursday Next, a member of a special police squad which maintains the purity of literary texts. In Next's world, literature and history are malleable realms, as is time. When master criminal Acheron Hades kidnaps Jane Eyre, all of next's skills are required to save this masterpiece. Awful puns and incisive satire make this a joy to read.

Jasper Fforde is very funny. This series is well worth your time. He uses so many references to great literature (as well as poor literature) and it's caused me to go back and do some re-reading. The plot lines are mysteries/ adventure while at the same time revolving on how the story lines we all know are changed by Thursday Next and her counterparts to end up the way they are today, as she jumps from book world to book world. Read the Thursday Next books before the Nursery Crimes books.

Fun and silly and utterly delightful. A world that includes literary police, and time travel, What more could you want?
A mind that could invent these stories is amazing to me. The book got me at the mention of inventing an early sarcasm device.Not for everyone, but those who like it, love it.

This is the first of a fabulous series. So original, witty, and delightful. Fforde never misses a chance to make a humorous literary reference. He is wickedly funny and right on the money. This book is a must-have for anyone who ever read Eyre or loves literary humor.

This book is a roller coaster ride of good literary references...and comical in many places. Fjorde even manages to throw in a James Bond reference in a hilarious introduction of a high ranking official to the heroine of the story. I would not recommend this book to anyone who doesn't know the Chuzzlewit family, Dr. Who, and the writings of Charles Dickens. Thursday Next is a charming wreck. I love her. Dickensians, read away!

Impressive world building and I love the literary references and discussions throughout the book. It wasn't one that I could just motor through in one night, but it kept me engaged the entire time I was reading it.

... but I thought this book would have worked far better if it were aimed at the teenage market. Call me cynical, but I have an idea of how this book came to be published. The publishers wanted to cash in on all the adults who are reading the Harry Potter books on their own. So they combined English Lit with the sci-fi genre and they came up with the character Thursday Next, convinced they would have a sure-fire hit on their hands. Yes, there are clever literary allusions sprinkled throughout the book, although none that are too terribly challenging for anyone who has had an introductory high school class in English. Literature. Also, there are frustrating inconsistencies within the book. For instance, whenever Thursday's father appears in a scene from recent time travels, everybody freezes except for Thursday. Why? Her immunity to the "time freeze" is never explained. Is it a genetic thing? Also, with the Chronoguards ability to travel through time, why isn't the "Shakespeare-authorship" issue (a theme which, tiringly, runs throughout the book) already settled? I know that with the science fiction genre, one is not supposed to get too analytical, but let's at least remain consistent and "logical."

I started reading the Thursday Next series at the second book, Lost in a Good Book, and didn't circle back around to The Eyre Affair until I'd read everything else currently available. The series is great! I love Thursday, she's a very strong and believable heroin... but The Eyre Affair was a stretch for the first time novelist. He hadn't quite figured out yet who he wanted Thursday to be or how he wanted her world to work.

So I wouldn't start with this book or you'll miss loving the rest of the series.

A very quirky book. It portrays a world where historic events have been reconstructed (Britain is still at war with imperialistic Russia over the Crimea), where classic literary characters are the A-class celebs and society is governed by various grades of police. It helps if you're reasonably familiar with some classic English authors (Bronte, Jane Austen) so that the author's use of characters can be appreciated. The main character, Thursday Next, is well drawn and the author uses time travel intriguingly.

I really really liked this. 4.5 stars. Tough woman detective, some juicy Jane Eyre references at the end, quite entertaining, and inventive. Definitely calls to mind Gun, with Occasional Music by Jonathan Lethem but with a great female character to hang your hat on.

Zany and twisted. Great crafted flawed characters and plot lines decorate the pages of this fun multi-genre book. Mr. Fforde writes like a witty dream. Perfect escapist mystery and fantasy writing all rolled into one.

What a fun novel!! An alternate world where people can travel into books and change the most loved classics--including Jane Eyre. Thursday Next is a fun character, sort of a British version Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum--ballsy, brash, and brave. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves literature and suspensful mysteries.

Jasper Fforde is brilliant, his books are brilliant, and people who read his books are brilliant. (Not sure the causal relationship there). Do it, buy it, and buy a copy for everyone brilliant person you know.