Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, and Brodi Ashton have created something completely different with this book.
With the next book in the series coming out this month, My Plain Jane, I decided to catch up and read book one!
#1 My Lady Jane, already out
#2 My Plain Jane, June 26th 2018
#3 My Calamity Jane (release date TBD)
All I knew going into this book was that everyone I spoke to thought it was hysterical and a lot of fun. So I had pretty high hopes!
My Lady Jane follows the story of Edward (King of England), Jane (a bookworm noble), and Gifford (a second son that shapshifts). Already you can tell this book is not your standard fare. haha. Edward is dying, Jane is the the BFF cousin, and Gifford is the soon to be betrothed of Lady Jane. With all these factors, insanity ensues.
“Dedication
For everyone who knows there was enough room for Leonardo DiCaprio on that door.
And for England. We’re really sorry for what we’re about to do to your history.”
― Cynthia Hand, My Lady Jane
I fully admit this book took me a bit to get into. A new book usually gets the 5 chapter rule from me, but in this case I gave it a bit more as the reviews were so high. I’m so glad I did as the turning point for me on this book was chapter 7. Chapter 7 is when things are starting to connect and the plot reveals itself. So if you are going to give this book a go, and find you’re dragging a bit….give it till then. If you still don’t like, by all means stop there.
Things I loved~ the writing. The breaking of the 4th wall when the narrators speak directly to the reader is a lot of fun. Not only that, the entire butchery of the history is hysterical. So much is false but you know that going in. I’m at a loss of a way to describe this book except that it’s delightful chaos. Also, I’ve never read anything quite like it.
My Lady Jane is satire at it’s best. I felt like I was watching a fictional documentary that had B acting and I couldn’t look away. If this book were made into a movie, I’d watch it. It seems to have the witty comedy feel of the 80s and I LOVED THAT.
“Armies aren’t very good about carrying libraries with them. I can’t imagine why. We’d fight so much less if everyone would juste sit down and read”
― Cynthia Hand, My Lady Jane
So, things I didn’t quite love~ because it’s light-hearted and making fun of itself constantly, it was hard to get invested. Being invested and staying invested with all the humor was hard for me. At points I did stop and wonder why I was reading a book that makes fun of itself. The answer though is because that’s the point, it’s light-hearted. It’s simple fun.
- Overall Rating: 3 1/2 Stars
- Plot: 3 Stars
- Character Development: 3 Stars
- Dialogue: 4 Stars
- Writing: 4 Stars
Overall, I’d recommend this to anyone that enjoys 80’s humor and witty repartee. It reminded me a lot of The Princess Bride or movies filling that category. Readers that usually read multiple books at once, I think, would also enjoy this book as a ‘breather book’ between heavier novels. If you’re in the mood, give it a go!
~Ash
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