Shades of Grey

It's different...from his NORMAL different

Jasper Fforde knows how to entertain. Normally he does this with absurdist humor, which has just enough collegiate literary banter to keep intelectuals, bibliophiles, and those looking for nothing more than a fun story and a smile, Happy. He took on more here.
The first several chapters were turning me off. I didn't laugh; I wasn't lost in imagination; I was trying to understand. There was a complex society and a complex relationship between father and son, that I knew would be pivotal to the story... but in my current mood I didnt care for that. I wanted the Ffun-Fforde part! So I skimmed, and I eventually found myself enamored with the main character and flipping backwards to see what I'd missed!
Don't skip any of this book. It's different for Jasper, but it will not dissapoint. The more you read the better it gets. This is a mystery, but not one that sets itself up in the first chapter; you get tiny hints and integral pieces well into the book. By the end, I promise you won't be dissapointed. Hopefully you'll be like me and petition our Mr Fforde to put out the sequel before all else!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Shades of Grey continues Fforde's streak

Everything by Jasper Fforde is always a delight to read. This is his first novel outside of the Book World universe he created and it is just as intriguing, gripping and intellectually stimulating as the other. There is so much information in every single sentence in Fforde's writing - whether it's plot development, humor or allusions - that you can truly immerse yourself in his writing.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Breath of Fresh Air

This was one of the first books I chose to purchase for my nook. I had never heard of either the author nor the book itself, but I have to say that it was a pleasant surprise in a sea of books that mostly share far too much in common.

Taking the dystopian future that George Orwell and Aldous Huxley focused on in their well-known works, Fforde has written a novel that is intriguing and compelling.

If I had to explain it to someone in the simplest way possible I would probably say "It's like 1984, but with color." The role that color plays in the story is huge, as it dominates every aspect of the society that the characters live in.

Our world is the past, theirs is the present. In this future, the vast amount of colors that we take for granted in seeing are obscured. People are segregated and assigned roles in society's castes by their ability to perceive varying colors; some are Greens, some are Reds, etc. Not only that, but within those color designations they are organized by how strongly they can see that color.

In this setting, the protagonists make their way to a town on the edge of society, both literally and figuratively. Here, they stumble upon a mystery that the townspeople are eager to gloss over, but there is more than what appears on the surface.

This book is not perfect (I really cringed at some of the romantic sentences), but it is very funny, and has left me in the unfortunate position of having to wait about 4 years for the sequel to come out. The wordplay is clever, including many subtle, and many not-so-subtle puns on color-themed words. I will definitely be checking out other works by Fforde.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great book!

Typical Jasper Fforde - wonderful to read, impossible to describe. I always enjoy seeing how he creates his alternate universes in such a believable way. If you are looking for a fun and funny book, this is a great choice.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

I love love love this book

I had to read it through a couple of times to really get the intricacies of the Colortocracy, but I really can't wait until the next one comes out. :)

Fantastic Book!

Fforde has created a highly original world inhabited by intriguing characters. Many dystopian novels are sober and solemn, and while that is definitely not a bad thing, this novel addresses the same issues, but in a darkly-comic way. I have never read anything quite like it and I loved every word.

horrible ending

i praise fforde for the creativity on the book, great read but the end was so dissappointing i wouldnt recommend friends to read

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great Book!

This book is so full of meaning, while being enjoyable! He does a reader proud and takes a dark, while enjoyable stab at society. Loved it. I found myself reading the first bit very slowly as you have to get your berrings in his fictional world, I am already ready to re-read so that I can catch every little detail. It is one I will keep forever.

This was a great read!

I think you should buy the book and read it. I can't wait for part two to come out. It is set up nicely to go in a few different directions, and I'm completely hooked into the ride. The characters are well done and I like how he sucks me up into the colorful world of Chromatacia with laughs and nice parallel and perpendicular ideas to entertain the mind. Write, type or dictate our second edition Mr Fforde and don't be late as you must do your part to better the Collective!

Original and Stimulating for a Satisfying Read

I just finished reading this book yesterday and I can't wait for the next book in the series to be published.

The characters are very interesting and represent the many sides of man. The plot is a cross between science fiction, fantasy and allegory. I can't wait to find out what the Emerald City represents in this new series.

The story discusses a past before the current color caste sytem was established. A past which includes books and persons that we are very familiar with but the characters can only guess at.

In this world a person's place and job in society is determined by the colors they are able to see. Color rules the world and determines who can marry whom, if you've been a good and compliant member of the collective. Original thinking is to be avoided while compliance and doing good for the community are rewarded. Those that cannot comform or ask too many questions lose merits. If they lose too many merits they are sent to be Rebooted.

I found this book very enjoyable and couldn't put it down! I found it refreshing that I couldn't predict the many plot twists.

Great book with innovative plot

I particularly recommend this book to those who enjoy quirky characters and find humor in life's details. On the surface more of a "quick read" than an "intellectual read", the twists of this dystopian society nevertheless left me contemplating the book for days afterwards.

Another Great Jasper Fforde Book

If you are already a fan of Mr Fforde, you will enjoy this book. While it is a departure from his other work, he maintains his writing style as he brings us into a new world of his creation.

It is hard to describe what type of book this is. There is a mystery that has to be solved, but there are times you forget about that and just enjoy learning about the characters, their lives and how this world works.

I can imagine that Mr Fforde has an encyclopedia that references how this world works. I would like to see it.

So glad I've found Jasper Fforde!

I loved this book! It was funny, intriguing, and it puts you into a new world. Perfect reading when you want to get away or just whenever. This was the first book I've read of Jasper Fforde and I plan to read the Thursday Next series and the Nursery Crimes. I'm so excited there will be two more in the Shadows of Grey series!

A Good read , great story and riveting plot- enjoy

Jasper FForde creates a whole new world centred around the color and density that the characters in the story can see. It is funny, zany and completely believable. The story has so many twists and turns that the plot is unexpected and enjoyable. Ultimately it is a criticism or reflection of a too well ordered society. Being myself color blind it took two readings for me to understand . This is a great read, a do not miss book with a great story. If you enjoyed this book try his others. I would begin with the Eyrs Affair, or Big Over Easy.

Jasper Fforde is at the top of his game!

Jasper Fforde is at the top of his game with Shades of Grey. In this glimpse into the future our world has become Chromatacia and land ruled by the Colortocracy. Social standing, jobs, and marriages are all decided based on what color and how much of it you can see. The story follows Eddie Russett, a Red on his way up in the world until he makes a mistake and gets sent to the Outer Fringes. There he meets Jane, a sarcastic Grey, who questions all the Rules and soon has Eddie looking at the world in a whole new way.

Fforde has created a stunningly complete new world with no detail lacking. His imagination has no bounds! The wit and sarcasm are hilarious, but there is a darker side to this book that gives the story an interesting depth.

I enjoyed Shades of Grey at least as much as Fforde's other books. If you are already a fan you will like this latest novel, if you've never read Jasper Fforde you are in for a treat! It definitely has its laugh out loud moments and I'm anxious to see where Eddie and Jane go next.

A "colorful" new Fforde

Shades of Grey: The Road to High Saffron is the first volume in a new series from bestselling author Jasper Fforde. The world conjured in this series is in some aspects like our own - there's tea, jam, bacon (if the Greys don't eat it all first), team sports, linoleum, forks and knives - but it is also quite different, particularly in respect to color (also, there aren't very many spoons). One's place and path in life is determined by one's ability to see colors in the visible light spectrum; Purples (and Ultraviolets) are upperclass with classes arranged in descending wavelength and Greys (those who see no color) at the bottom of the heap. This is the world of Eddie Russett, sent to East Carmine to conduct a chair census and learn some humility. But the Outer Fringes don't quite follow the Rules like Eddie is used to and he soon finds his well-planned life turned topsy-turvy in only a few days.

Shades of Grey is delightful and just what I expected of a Jasper Fforde novel - witty, clever, and absurd - so I was prepared to enjoy Eddie's story but there is a darkness to this novel. The dystopian world of Chromatacia is evocative of We, Brave New World, and 1984 with issues of class, self-determination, and freedom at the heart of the story. The suggestion that something sinister lurks at the heart of Chromatacia sets the stage for a fantastic story arc to carry through the next two books in the trilogy. I also greatly enjoyed Fforde's ability to build this world, making it understandable and believable to the reader, without resorting to stretches of exposition. Shades of Grey has a little something for everyone - action, romance, thrills, yucks - and it's a great book to start off the new year.

brilliant satire

It has been hundreds of years since the formation of the Colortocracy was formed to rule the world. The rules are 100 percent enforced with a rigid restrictiveness based on the color scale. What one sees is where one fits in this international color caste system.

Red Eddie Russett hopes to climb the chromatic ladder by marrying up a notch or two. However, when Eddie meets lowlife Grey masses Jane G-23; he is stunned by his attraction as she is so beneath his level. He is further stunned when he accompanies his father sent to the Outer Fringes as the Swatchman where he meets shunned historian, the Apocryphal who encourages Eddie to learn the truth behind the apocalyptic event from centuries ago that led to the color caste system. As Eddie seeks questions to what happened then and now, the Collective is after him as is Jane G-23.

This is a brilliant satire using the color spectrum to lampoon society. The story line is well written but the color of Jasper Fforde overwhelms all else including in some respects the plot, the underlying message and the hero as the audience will remain spellbound by the vivid descriptions even that of the Shades of Grey. Mr. Fforde is at his best with this super look at how we "see" the world.

Harriet Klausner

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