One of my favorite books is Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë.  By “favorite”, I mean I have a copy wrapped up in plastic on top of the can opener in my earthquake/alien invasion/zombie apocalypse kit in case I have to rebuild civilization.  So any adaptation of Jane is going to have to work hard to make me happy.  Jenna is a very inventive take on Jane Eyre.  By far its strongest feature was the carefully developed society and culture. Sharon Shinn creates a culture which is completely distinct from that of Victorian England, but which still imposes many of the same limitation on Jenna that Jane experiences in Jane Eyre.  The book’s biggest flaw is that Jenna, while admirable, is simply not sufficiently fiery, layered, or interesting enough to fill in for Jane.

For a full length review, check out my entry over at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books.  You can also find my Jane Eyre TV and film adaptation round-up over there.  Toby Stephens, call me!

Jenna Starborn