Customer Reviews
Witty, Strange and Clever but not for everyone - By: C. Green, 10 Nov 2008 
First let me declare an interest here. For my sins I live & grew up within fifteen miles of Swindon. I therefore probably found many of the references to Fforde's fictional version of that town funnier than most people simply due to local knowledge, & this has undoubtedly had a positive impact on my opinion of the book as a whole.
Even without that personal connection however, I would almost certainly have given the Eyre Affair a generallly positive review. Simultaneously witty, weird & clever by equal measure it is an ambitious & bold debut novel that makes use of concepts that in less confident hands could have falllen flat on their faces. As it is not everything Fforde introduces worked for me (Vampires & the undead were a step too far in my opinion) but despite the generallly bizarre nature of his alternative 1985 I was happy to buy into most of the conceits on display.
The willingness to go along with the world Fforde has created was helped by the strength of the characters. Thursday Next, as heroine & narrator, is a recognisably human creation in a strange world & gives the reader a stable anchor point as they are introduced to a reality where fictional characters can leave books to enter the real world, the Crimean War has been ongoing for more than a century, the undead stalk the land & apparently Britain won the American war of independence (we still own Ohio at least). Other characters Thursday comes into contact with are equallly human, even if they don't have the opportunity to become so well rounded. Only the bad guys are alllowed to be over the top almost to the point of absurdity, but this suits the overalll feel of the book. After alll Archeron Hades' apparent indestructibility is in the best tradition of literary bad guys & the Eyre Affair is alll about playing with works of fiction.
Will I be back for more adventures with Thursday Next? As a latecomer to Fforde's world I found myself entertained but not bowled over by what I read & I doubt I will ever become a fanatical fan of his works. I did however, enjoy The Eyre Affair enough to add the next book in the series to my personal 'will read' list. Would I recommend the Eyre Affair to others? That would alll depend on their tolerance of deliberate wackiness. I don't think Fforde's work would appeal to everyone, but if you enjoy clever, witty & sometimes even exciting books about books then The Eyre Affair may well be for you
A LOT of fun... - By: Ivy L., 26 Aug 2008 Having read two of the Thursday Next books (and about to start my third), I'd just like to say that I agree with some of the points raised about characterisation being a little one-dimensional at times. However, I think that doesn't detract from the overalll fun & flavour of the book(s) at alll. I'm having a whale of a time in Jasper's world! The quirkiness is just right because there are enough real-world analogies to hang onto. Anyone know where I can get a re-engineered thylacine?
not quite as good as I thought it was going to be - By: Erastes, 11 Aug 2008 I had a lot of hype from people about the book, & while I did enjoy it, I thought it was a little misnamed as the main plot of the book wasn't about Jane Eyre, but other books too - perhaps it was considered to be more attention grabbing that the Little Dorrit scandal or something.
Thursday was a little blank for me, perhaps because it was a male writer? And I wasn't convinced by the overwhelming love with her & her man, but perhaps that's an arc to be continued. I'd certainly get the next one, though & see how it went.
Some reallly funny bits, but a lot of loose ends, & not reallly enough explanation of how things were done.
Not as good as I expected - By: Bookworm, 09 Aug 2008 
I reallly wanted to rave about this book, as its creative, innovative, unusual, witty & clever. But I found it hard to stick with & got bored; the story, plot & characters didn't grab me, & the style of writing began to irritate after a few pages. :(
Who you gotta call? - Thursday Next! - By: Weave, 19 May 2008 
My friend bought me 'The Eyre Affair' at the end of last year & I admit I was somewhat cautious about reading, I did not think I would enjoy it, well I was totallly WRONG!, I read it in 2 days & enjoyed it immensely.
Thursday Next is a great character, she does not hide her flaws, finds herself in situations that are slightly bizarre while worrying about her love life & the state of her hair. A laugh out loud book. I am officiallly hooked & I am currently reading 'Something Rotten', the 4th book in the series.
