My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, & Brodi Ashton

SYNOPSIS

You may think you know the story. After a miserable childhood, penniless orphan Jane Eyre embarks on a new life as a governess at Thornfield Hall. There, she meets one dark, brooding Mr. Rochester. Despite their significant age gap (!) and his uneven temper (!!), they fall in love—and, Reader, she marries him. (!!!)

Or does she?

Prepare for an adventure of Gothic proportions, in which all is not as it seems, a certain gentleman is hiding more than skeletons in his closets,

and one orphan Jane Eyre, aspiring author Charlotte Brontë, and supernatural investigator Alexander Blackwood are about to be drawn together on the most epic ghost hunt this side of Wuthering Heights. 

Synopsis from Goodreads

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PERSONAL REVIEW

I loved My Lady Jane and I was really excited to get my hands on a copy of My Plain Jane. Set in a different time, and with a very different writing tone, we are given a rewrite of the famous story of Jane Eyre...and of course there is the addition of a magical element – this time, we have ghosts! I’ve never read Jane Eyre, but I had a great time reading this rewrite of her very famous love story.

Distinctive POVs
I like that once again we are given multiple perspectives to bring us through the story. I really, really liked meeting Jane, Charlotte, and Alexander. I felt like they all had very distinctive characteristics and very important roles to play in the story. The hardest part with having numerous POVs is that it’s hard to make sure that each character has their own distinct voice and that their story move long at the same pace as other characters; that’s never been an issue for these authors. Once again, Hand, Meadows, and Ashton put their heads together to create these wonderful characters that we get the opportunity to really see grow, both individually and in their relationships with each other.

They Are Still the Tongue-In-Cheek Masters
Throughout My Plain Jane, I found myself constantly marking the pages and giggling when I noticed a reference to a contemporary source that has been placed back in time into this retelling of Jane Eyre. Definitely expect to see some tongue-in-cheek references to more modern books or shows, like when Mrs. Rochester explains the steps needed to attain Le Livre de l’esprit nd it sounds shocking like the tasks Harry Potter goes through at the end of The Philosophers Stone; or when the villain cries “I would’ve gotten away with it too, if it hadn’t been for you meddling...” (aka, every Scooby-Doo episode ever). These serve to give readers a little wink that the authors know what they were doing and they are having a little laugh on their end as well. (I also LOVED the reference to other famous literary romances in the wedding pages that Charlotte reads; a little nod to Jane Austen and Emily Brontë there).

A Fun (Paranormal) Retelling
I enjoyed this book because it doesn’t take itself seriously. Like My Lady Jane, this is meant to poke fun at some of the traditions and stories from history and try to give us some happy endings. I love that the authors aren’t afraid to add in some elements of the ridiculous (again, there are ghosts all over England) in order to give us a more entertaining story. The constant interjections of the authors themselves in the story only serves to remind us that they know it’s all a bit wacky, and we know it’s a bit wacky, but we’re all here for a good time.

So maybe one day I’ll pick up the actual version of Jane Eyre, but for now, this is definitely how I’ll be remembering her story! My Plain Jane is a lot of fun, especially if you were a fan of My Lady Jane, and it’s a great book to enjoy this summer. Let me know if you give it a read!

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FINAL RATING: 4/5