Jane Slayre: The Literary Classic with a Blood-Sucking Twist

Vampyres? Mr. Rochester? I'm in.

I have always been a fan of both the classics and paranormal fiction, but I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about them mashed together. Jane Slayre made up my mind for me. I love it! Sherrie Browning Erwin stays true to the writing style of the original, but skillfully works in an edgy paranormal flair.
(*Literary Purists, avert your eyes*) The paranormal elements actually make some of the Jane Slayre scenes more entertaining to read than the originals! This book has the same great characters and timeless romance, but with added entertainment value. You can't go wrong.
I highly recommend this book to anyone. And Literary Purists: it just might convince you, too.

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Surprisingly well done

This is the third of the recent group of classic romance/horror humor mash-ups I've read and it is the very best of them. It succeeds in being a fun, light read because it avoided the traps of the almost-good "Pride & Prejudice & Zombies" and the waste of paper and time that was "Sense & Sensibility & Sea-monsters". No cheap jokes, no junior high sex puns, no glaring and stupid mistakes in the additions, no missed opportunities, and no pointless, tedious grafting onto the original story. The humor is dry, understated, and dovetailed nicely with the original voice of the main character. That Ms. Browning not only has read Jane Eyre, but understood and appreciated it, was apparent in her handling of the original material. She maintained qualities of the original characters and, while indicating the humor of the new situations in which she placed them, she never ridiculed or insulted them (I particularly liked her transformation of Mr. Brocklehurst -- it was everything I could desire). I didn't have a single eye rolling moment and my curiosity about how the story would develop and end remained high until the last few pages answered all. Quite a good, fun, light summer read.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

A Good Mashup

First thing's first. If you are a Charlotte Brontë purist, you may not like or appreciate JANE SLAYRE by Charlotte Brontë and Sherri Browning Erwin. This story is similar to the original in the way 10 Things I Hate About You was similar to Taming of the Shrew; close enough to recognize the story, but that's about it. If you've ever read and liked these kind of adaptations before, I'm fairly certain you'll love this book. If you would rather keep Ms. Brontë's the story the way it is in your mind and don't want to experiment, don't read it.

That being said, I highly recommend this book. Full of the paranormal, this is like crack for those of us who love the classics but just can't seem to get enough dark and creepy in our books. From the first page you'll get hooked as we meet Jane Slayre and learn a little bit about the family she is living with. While her cousins weren't my favorite children in the original, they are hilarious in this adaptation. Hilarious, but certainly not nice. You see, Jane has the unfortunate circumstance of living with a bunch of vampires. Not really something that to stick on a resume or use to boost one's social status.

Like any good heroine in a paranormal story, Jane quickly learns that there is more to her history than she knew. She is a slayer, destined to hunt down creepy blood-suckers and end their miserable existence. All while wearing a dress and bonnet mind you. Can't have a girl's hair go frizzy, now can we.

Probably the best aspect of this story was the hilarity of the situation. I haven't read a whole lot of these adaptations, so the whole idea is still pretty fresh and new to me. I just loved that I could revisit a favorite story of mine with a brand new twist thrown in. Combine that with the fact that one of my favorite romances now has an edge of suspense to it and you've got one heck of a book.

Did I mention there are werewolves in JANE SLAYRE?

Oh yes, there are! Zombies, vampires, werewolves...a paranormal girl's dream come true!

Will Jane end up with Mr. Rochester? Will Mr. Rochester eat Jane? You'll have to read to find out!

Even if this didn't have the original classic to cling on to and use for publicity, this would still be a great book. It can easily stand on its own against any paranormal out there right now. Well, that's my opinion anyway.

What do you think Charlotte Brontë would say? I would hope she'd have a sense of humor and get a good giggle out of this story. I know I did.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Entertaining but not quite satisfying

The best I can say about Jane Slayre is that it's a fun, action-packed read. But I would advise fans of the original not to set their standards too high. Charlotte Bronte took her sweet time developing Jane and Mr. Rochester both individually and as a couple. She gave her readers the time to know them and care enough to root for them to end up together. But Irwin here has other factors in play (the fantasy element) so the rapport between the characters takes a back seat in favor of the fantasy elements. Irwin just wants to get back to the "good stuff" (vampire-slaying and whatnot) and does so by rushing through the relationship of Jane and Rochester, changing their characters in the process. At this point, the book becomes plot-driven instead of character-driven. Proud, steadfast Jane deteriorates into a weepy, lovesick teenager, while Rochester's Byronic hero qualities are toned down to make him more like a white knight and less like Bronte's complex antihero. Furthermore, being familiar with Jane Eyre, I found that some portions of Jane Slayre were copied, word-for-word, from the original novel. Every now and then, amid demon-slaying ventures and metaphorical dream sequences, a phrase or an entire paragraph directly pulled from Jane Eyre would jump out at me, and it felt out of place. The formal 19th-century dialect of Bronte's literary voice disrupted the rather whimsical fantasy element. In other words, Irwin and Bronte's writing styles don't quite mesh. Jane Slayre is an overall entertaining read. Despite the botched characterization and inconsistent writing style, this book does deliver its share of fun.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

A fun takeoff on the classic novel!

I admit that although I've watched Jane Eyre on Masterpiece Theater, I haven't yet read the book in full. This may sound odd, but after reading this offshoot of the classic novel, I'd like to read the original Jane Eyre.

With the vampyres, werewolves, and zombies, Jane Slayre is a playful adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's classic novel. Whether she's battling vampyres, zombies, or her growing attachment to Mr. Rochester, Jane Slayre is plucky, earnest, and endearing. I enjoyed the vampyre slayer aspects and didn't think that they detracted from the novel.

Overall, I'd recommend Jane Slayre to fans of Jane Eyre and to those looking for a new take on the old vampyre and monster novels. It's a fun, satisfying read!

ISBN-10: 1439191182 - Paperback
Publisher: Gallery; Original edition (April 13, 2010), 400 pages.
Review copy provided by the publisher.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

The past with a twist!

I received this book as part of Gallery & Pocket Books SciFi/Fantasy Blog Tour Group. It is the first book of its type that I've had the chance to read. I borrowed Pride and Prejudice and Zombies from the library earlier this year but was too bogged down by books I had committed to review to read it. Since I know they have a copy I plan to borrow it again once I have managed to whittle my pile down a bit. I wasn't sure if I was going to like this book, but really wanted to give it a try. I recall reading Jane Eyre in high school but can't really recall a great deal. This book made it a bit more exciting, breathed a new and different kind of life into it. I don't recall disliking the original and have been meaning for years to reread it. I have a copy of it in my personal library for that day when I decide to read it again.

The authors take on zombies, vampires and werewolves was interesting and really fits into a lot of the popular paranormal work I've seen lately. It was hard seeing Jane as an orphan living with her vampire aunt and cousins, being forced to stay awake at night and sleep during the day. Watching her grow and mature and live up to her name was an exciting adventure. This is a book I would recommend to friends and other readers. I am glad I had the opportunity to read it!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Bridget's Review

Being raised by vampyres doesn't change Jane's destiny as a slayer. She has a duty to rid the world of these creatures but it becomes a problem when she falls in love with a man who whose first wife is not only a werewolf, but also living in his home. In the end will love conquer all or will Jane be forced to live alone because of her responsibilities with the paranormal world?

I thought this book was fantastic! I really loved the twists and turns, it was almost like a roller coaster ride. Two thumbs up!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A Twist on Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë has to be one of my all time favorites classic books. So, I was excited to learn that someone took that book and made a paranormal out of it. Sherri Browning Erwin has made what I believe as a successful adaptation of the Jane Eyre. I enjoyed this book a lot.

I can also see why some people may not like it. The purists who hate to have a classic "messed" with might not have the same fun that I had with this book. The main story of Jane was altered a bit and not just by the paranormal parts. Jane had a more amiable time with the humans in her life than in the original book. Her fortitude seemed to come more from the frightening circumstances in her life before she was old enough to handle such things. Even Mr. Rochester was more likable from his introduction into Jane's life. It still was not a happy childhood, and Rochester is still forever the antagonist, but the main turning points in her life still held. It is as though a fan just tweaked parts of her life we would have all liked for our heroine. That I understand completely. :)

I do recommend this book for those who want to have a bit of fun with their classic version of Jane. Finding a new way to cheer for her. For those that are purists of classic literature, I suggest you pass this one and read the original Jane Eyre. I gave this book 4 stars and had fun reading it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Classic with a twist

Love it!!!

Total waste of time

As one other reviewer put it, "Mr. Rochester and Vampires - I'm in". I felt the same way. Jane Eyre is my favorite book of all time, and I was intrigued to see a new twist on a much-loved tale. Jeez, what a complete waste of my time. Yes, there are vampires, ghouls, and a werewolf in the book. But their inclusion in the story seems haphazard and serves no purpose in the plot at all. I am very disappointed.

Love this book!!!

No offense meant to Ms. Bronte, but this version is so much better than the original! I love how she keeps to the bones of the story, but changes small details. I hope Ms. Browning Erwin adapts another classic, I would love to read it!

Fun Read

Vampire and Werewolves make Victorian Literature so much more fun. Loved it.

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