Rating: 
Summary: A fun story, but tries a bit too hard to be clever
Review: Imagine, if you will, a world in which literature receives the attention and following that spectator sports receives in our world today. Basically, the "pop culture" of our world is focused on classic literature in Fforde's world. Baconians and Marlovians get into fights about who actually wrote Shakespeare's plays, and vast numbers of John Milton imitators hold conventions. Intellectual property is taken so seriously that a division of the Special Operatives (SpecOps) is set aside just to sort out issues of whether or not original manuscripts are the real thing. These are the Literary Detectives, or the LiteraTecs, and the main character of the book is one of them."The Eyre Affair" is told from the perspective of Thursday Next, agent of SpecOps-27, working in London as the book begins. Thursday is a veteran of the Crimean War (which has gone on for over 100 years in this world, and continues still), and her father is an agent of the ChronoGuard. He tries to maintain consistency in the time-stream, and is usually successful. Early on in "The Eyre Affair," the original manuscript of Dickens' "Martin Chuzzlewit" is stolen, and we discover that a device has been invented which allows a person to actually enter the world of a book and experience it directly. These two plot points, at first unrelated, we soon come to learn have everything to do with one another. The villain of the book, a memorable character named Acheron Hades, has stolen the Chuzzlewit manuscript in order to wreak havoc on the story by altering it. Hades is perfectly evil, almost indestructible, and one of the most fun villains I've read in some time. He's perfectly happy to make mischief just for its own sake. The story works well overall, but what really made me want to read it were the details Fforde added to this word he created. Public Will-Speak kiosks which will perform quotes from Shakespeare when you put a coin in. A riot caused by Surrealists. And perhaps my favorite part of the whole book, a performance of "Richard III" performed by members of the audience, with full participation (and heckling) akin to what one finds with "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" in our world. This scene alone made the whole book worth reading for me. Literary references abound in "The Eyre Affair," pretty much ensuring it as a fun read for any well-read individual. Unfortunately, in parts Fforde tries a little too hard to be clever. For example, the naming of his characters got a bit annoying after a while, as it seemed that every character had to have a clever-sounding name. The main characters, Thursday Next and Acheron Hades, are prime examples, but far from the only ones. Secondary and tertiary characters with names like Braxton Hicks, Victor Analogy, and a vampire hunter named (you guessed it) Spike are only a few more. After a while, the "clever" character names became a bit much. Also, Fforde was more than willing to sacrifice a consistent story for his clever literary plays, as things which couldn't happen in a previous chapter suddenly did later, just to make some other clever jab at Dickens or Shakespeare. It was fun, but it didn't always make sense, even within the "rules" of its own world. There was an almost self-reflexive quality to "The Eyre Affair," as the book got near the end, as the reality of the story exists on several levels. At one point, there is a character trapped inside a Wordsworth poem, the manuscript of which is inside the world of "Jane Eyre," which is inside the story of "The Eyre Affair" itself. It almost makes the reader step back out of the novel for a moment and consider what they are reading and how they are interacting with it. Somoza's novel "The Athenian Murders" is the only book I've read to successfully pull off this sort of reader involvement, but "The Eyre Affair" does come close to it at a couple points in the story. I actually enjoyed "The Eyre Affair" quite a bit, despite its minor annoyances. In taking us into the world of "Jane Eyre" near the ending, it made me want to re-read the Bronte novel as we experienced characters in the context of their own world. Fforde's novel is clever and imaginative, even if it doesn't always make perfect sense. It's a book written with an old book-geek like me in mind.
Rating: 
Summary: INTRIGUING CONCEPT BUT NOT MY CUP OF TEA! (2.5 stars)
Review: Since JANE EYRE is one of my favorite books and since this novel got such great reviews, I decided to buy it. I have to give Jasper Fforde 5 stars for such a brilliant idea; an alternate reality in Great Britain during the early 1980's where people can jump into novels or poems (and, where characters can leave their existence in novels to jump into 'real life'). There are just too many other things going on: People traveling back and forth in time, the evil Goliath Corporation in charge of the country, wars lasting centuries, and the pet of choice: the extinct Do Do birds! There was very little character development (and I'm not counting the marvelous Rochester and Jane Eyre--their characters are already developed thanks to Charlotte Bronte) so there was no one I really cared about in this 'weird' novel. It was hard for me to follow this story, in fact every night I would have to re-read three or four pages just to 'catch-up.' I really don't want this review to be too scathing because the end of this story was just adorable; very creative--my favorite part of the book. Thank heaven that JANE EYRE finally had the happy ending that we all love!
Rating:
Summary: Slow start, great read
Review: Any book the proposes an alternate reality (dodos, airships, vampires etc.) is bound to take some getting used to. This book is no exception. Fortunately, it doesn't take long to become immersed in the new world and get caught up in the goings on. Even in the context of this different world (Tuesday's father is a wanted time traveller) the thriller aspects of the story keep us engaged. It's great fun following Tuesday's adventures as she tracks down the elusive villain. I'm looking forward to the next story!
Rating: 
Summary: I wanted so desperately to love this book.........
Review: but it simply isn't for me. I read half of both this book and Lost in a Good Book, and was completely disinterested in finishing. There is no "whodunit" to keep you guessing, and no character of sufficient interest. If you require an engaging character (and I do), this series may not be for you. I was drawn to the premise. The books are well-written. I appreciate the artistry. It's a good story. I'm all for word painting and suspension of belief in the right context, and Fforde does that beautifully, but I think this series is thin on character development. I realize, of course, that character development is not what this series is all about, and that it isn't important to a lot of people. If this doesn't bother you, then you will like these books. I, however, need a character. If I don't know the characters, I simply don't care what happens in the story. And I didn't.
Rating: 
Summary: Never would have guessed
Review: I just purchased this book quite randomly from a local store spotlighting bestsellers. I was looking for something to read and the library was closed, and my own collection was just too re-read. Thankfully I have found a new author, series etc. to be excited about. What caught my attention was the comparison to Douglas Adams one of my favorite authors. The Eyre Affair is comparable in zaniness, but the dash of literary trivia is great fun too. And then there is the crime-solving element, chasing that ultimate criminal. And the love story. And the alternate history (done very well, especially since I do not always tolerate this). Highly reccommended.
Rating:
Summary: From Cover to Cover
Review: This book was 100% exciting. I had the hardest time putting it down. I will admit when I heard about it, I wasn't too interested, but after the first few chapters, I was hooked. Jasper Fforde is a genius! This is the perfect book for any avid reader, any English literature fan, or any one who wants to read a good book. I would recommend reading Jane Eyre first, it will give you even more appreciation for this book.
Enjoy it!
Rating:
Summary: A witty fantasy and a great twist on classic literature
Review: Fforde's The Eyre Affair is one of the best fantasies that I have read in recent times. The basic premise of the book is a giant focus on classic literature, with the boundary between fiction and reality fluid, set in an alternate-history England. Fforde's writing style is very witty and never drags on; it made me keep wanting to turn the page and read "just" one more chapter before I went to bed (what I call the "Just one more" phenomenon). The "quotes" that he adds at the beginning of each chapter (from "books" such as a History of the Special Operatives, an autobiography of the heroine Thursday Next, and several others) are a good touch as well. There are only a few inherent flaws in the book, which can't be avoided. It's not absolutely necessary that one reads Jane Eyre by Bronte before reading this, but if you're familiar with the plot (and especially the ending) of that book, many of the references in the book to Eyre, the Bronte Society, the ending, St. John Rivers and Rochester will make such more sense. Also, at times, the internal logic of the book is a bit confusing, especially about the Prose Portal, Rochester's entry into reality, and Thursday Next's jaunts into fiction. All in all, though, this book is quite witty and deserves a read.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful fun
Review: At the risk of being called a radical postmodernist, I highly recommend this goofy thriller. Hard to characterize, it is at once a murder mystery, on another, science fiction, and yet again literary play on words. We are dropped in on the life of heroine Thursday Next, Special ops Detective for LiteraTec, lately involved in the theft of an original Martin Chuzzlewit (a book, not a person). She is called upon to help in the capture of an old nemesis, Acheron Hades, and is involved in murder most foul. Well, this is a long way from apprending illicit translations of Dr. Faustus, but it beats getting sent to the Crimea and getting an arm blown off. Bending time, crossing literary genres and encountering an array of colorful characers (including Jack Schitt, Braxton Hicks and uncle Mycroft), Next pursues Hades to Swindon, her birthplace. This is unadulterated fun, and a great summer page turner. It shows just how far one can take a plot by abandoning all reason. Part postmodern thriller, part literary excursion, you could do no better with a couple of hours by the pool than read this book.
Rating:
Summary: Well, in this book you don't want to know Jack. Really.
Review: The book has a clever premise, that novels can be "rewritten" from "inside the novel" via fantasy premises. That's fine. The inclusion of Jane Eyre is fine. What gets old, really old, and old fast, is the bad guy from the Arms Manufacturers, a guy named Jack ******. Yes, as the reader, you know Jack ******. This is drummed into you. Over and over and over again. sheesh. You note, however, I've given this 3 stars. I've read much worse, and the bit about Chuzzlewit, Rochester time-travelling (or something like that) and having a dad who works for the secret police who police the secret police police, but who is AWOL and wanted, etc, are all good, as is the constructed political climate and the fact that the heroine's brother died leading the Charge of the Light Brigade (hardly a spoiler, you'll be there instantly).
Rating:
Summary: Put this Next on your list of "must reads" (mellion108)
Review: Thursday Next is a literary agent of a different sort. Living in an alternate reality of 1985 England, Thursday works as a Special Operative (SO) in literary detection. It is her job to track down the deadbeats and dredges of society--those people who dare to harm or forge great literary works. You see, this is a society that is ga-ga over literature. Instead of drug pushers on the corner, you are more likely to find someone trying to sell you blackmarket, forged copies of Shakespeare's works. The job alone is daunting enough with little praise, but then enters the most vile and dangerous criminal of all, Acheron Hades
(his brother is Styx). Hades has phenomenal powers and is the smartest and most sociopathic of criminals. His goal is to kidnap great literary figures from original manuscripts in order to hold the world hostage to his demands. Thursday must use all the resources available to her including time travel and her eccentric genius uncle's inventions to track down the accursed Hades before he destroys these works of literary art.
It isn't often that I pick up a book by a first-time author and then proceed to shout its praises from the rooftops. But Jasper Fforde has created a world that is simply fascinating. A bit science fiction, a bit satire, a bit fantasy...there is everything here for the dedicated reader. I had heard that it was a good idea to re-read Jane Eyre before tackling this novel, but I had no problem following the storyline despite the fact that it has probably been at least 20 years since I read Jane Eyre. There are tons of literary allusions and in-jokes in this novel, but don't let that intimidate you. The fun here is in the story, the story, the story.
I have praised this book to other people so much that I have to be careful to avoid revealing spoilers and ruining it for others. Let's just say that I chuckled at many of the character names in the novel. I fell in love with the dodos that have been reintroduced to the world. I guffawed at the lisping vampire and the production of Richard III that was more like a midnight showing of "Rocky Horror." I also related to Thursday because her troubles and anxieties over her career, family, and love life. Mostly I just found myself in awe of a society that values literature over empty fame and fortune. There is a little bit of something for any reader in this book.
(mellion108 from Michigan)
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