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kwthor's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Abandonment, Child abuse, Colonisation, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Bullying
spauffwrites's review against another edition
1.0
I read about 130 pages of this sci-fi retelling of Jane Eyre, but I couldn't make myself finish it. It has all the plot points and characters of Brontë's novel, but it lacks the graceful language that makes Jane Eyre so appealing. Jane is a passionate personality - her sci-fi counterpart, Jenna, is robotic.
clarabooksit's review against another edition
Couldn’t get into it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism
Moderate: Abandonment and Emotional abuse
groveperson's review against another edition
4.0
Really 3.5 stars. I think this Jane Eyre retelling is the best I've read. I found the the romance not quite believable; too much too soon, without the gradual development of the original. What I really liked was the interpretation of Jane's religiosity. Jane Eyre was a deeply religious book, something that is not often addressed in adaptations or reinterpretations. the translation into an equality-based religion, from which Jenna draws her strength, is very well done.
linguana's review against another edition
3.0
Full review at SFF Book Review
I love Jane Eyre. So any retelling would have a hard time convincing me - but the science fiction idea tickled my fancy and I dove right in.
This is a good book that stays very true to the original. Perhaps too much so. While the story of Jenna Starborn and Mr. Ravenbeck is almost as enchanting as that of the original Jane Eyre, there wasn't anything new brought to the table. The science fiction element was, to say the least, disappointing and took a background role.
It's worth the read but rather than a sci-fi version of Jane Eyre, this is just another Jane Eyre with a couple of hovercars and a space ship thrown in. Personally, I didn't feel the repercussions a society like this should have on characters and everyday life.
I love Jane Eyre. So any retelling would have a hard time convincing me - but the science fiction idea tickled my fancy and I dove right in.
This is a good book that stays very true to the original. Perhaps too much so. While the story of Jenna Starborn and Mr. Ravenbeck is almost as enchanting as that of the original Jane Eyre, there wasn't anything new brought to the table. The science fiction element was, to say the least, disappointing and took a background role.
It's worth the read but rather than a sci-fi version of Jane Eyre, this is just another Jane Eyre with a couple of hovercars and a space ship thrown in. Personally, I didn't feel the repercussions a society like this should have on characters and everyday life.
elenajohansen's review against another edition
3.0
A Jane Eyre retelling that may have crossed the nebulous border between "faithful" and "rote."
I love Jane Eyre, but I have only read it once, several years ago, so I was not alarmed when I saw from other reviews that it was "predictable" because it followed the plot of the original so closely. What I remember far more than the basic outline of the story was the memorable character of Jane herself and her lively narrative voice, and that is something I felt lacking in this effort. Jenna is not memorable to me the same way Jane was, and while she shares many of the same traits, there is something lacking in her portrayal to endear her to me the same way.
I believe the genre grafting of sci-fi onto this classic was only a partial success. Many of the new elements are suited to reframing the tale--a rigid system of official citizenship to underpin the class system of the society being the most well-fitting. But while I found the PanEquist religion interesting enough in its own right, I don't think it was a necessary inclusion for this story, and the question of humanity/cyborg balance on the individual level would have been better left for a work intending to explore it more deeply (as cyberpunk often did beforehand and even up until the time this novel was published, though less so lately.) The use of synthetic humanity to explain the source of the mad wife's madness I don't think has aged well, now that we're in a time when technology is ever more entwined with medicine.
The first word I thought of when I went to sum up what I felt was different about this novel in comparison to its source material was "soulless," which is unfortunate, given what I just objected to. But in a poetic sense if not a literal one, I think that position is defensible; this is a ghostly imprint of the original with a few new bits drawn in for flavor, but what it adds doesn't do much to disguise what it lost.
Given that Sharon Shinn has been one of my favorite authors for just over two decades, and that Jane Eyre became a favorite classic several years ago, I honestly expected more of this, but ultimately I think it's a bad match. Shinn is perfectly capable of writing both fantasy and sci-fi well, but adhering to the formal, flowery speech patterns and agonizing melodrama of Jane Eyre while attempting to create a shiny new sci-fi setting simply didn't work for me.
I love Jane Eyre, but I have only read it once, several years ago, so I was not alarmed when I saw from other reviews that it was "predictable" because it followed the plot of the original so closely. What I remember far more than the basic outline of the story was the memorable character of Jane herself and her lively narrative voice, and that is something I felt lacking in this effort. Jenna is not memorable to me the same way Jane was, and while she shares many of the same traits, there is something lacking in her portrayal to endear her to me the same way.
I believe the genre grafting of sci-fi onto this classic was only a partial success. Many of the new elements are suited to reframing the tale--a rigid system of official citizenship to underpin the class system of the society being the most well-fitting. But while I found the PanEquist religion interesting enough in its own right, I don't think it was a necessary inclusion for this story, and the question of humanity/cyborg balance on the individual level would have been better left for a work intending to explore it more deeply (as cyberpunk often did beforehand and even up until the time this novel was published, though less so lately.) The use of synthetic humanity to explain the source of the mad wife's madness I don't think has aged well, now that we're in a time when technology is ever more entwined with medicine.
The first word I thought of when I went to sum up what I felt was different about this novel in comparison to its source material was "soulless," which is unfortunate, given what I just objected to. But in a poetic sense if not a literal one, I think that position is defensible; this is a ghostly imprint of the original with a few new bits drawn in for flavor, but what it adds doesn't do much to disguise what it lost.
Given that Sharon Shinn has been one of my favorite authors for just over two decades, and that Jane Eyre became a favorite classic several years ago, I honestly expected more of this, but ultimately I think it's a bad match. Shinn is perfectly capable of writing both fantasy and sci-fi well, but adhering to the formal, flowery speech patterns and agonizing melodrama of Jane Eyre while attempting to create a shiny new sci-fi setting simply didn't work for me.
rosann's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed this book the first 100 pages or so and then I realized it was a sci-fi version of Jane Eyre - which only happened because I recently saw the latest movie version of Jane Eyre - and I kept reading thinking there would be some kind of twist or something unexpected, but no... it was kind of hard to push through the last of it knowing exactly what was going to happen! I thought the sci-fi setting was interesting and the best part of the book. For classic lovers who also like sci-fi only!!
rachel_abby_reads's review against another edition
4.0
This book is an updated science fiction retelling of Jane Eyre. It translated well because the author understood that the core of the story (as I see it) is not the romance, but the desire to live a principle centered life.
dlmoldovan's review against another edition
4.0
Jane Eyre in a sci-fi setting. Need I say more? This book was recommended by a friend, and I am glad that I gave it a shot because I really enjoyed it.