My Lady Jane
The Lady Janies #1
authors: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, & Jodi Meadows
Historical Fiction-Comedy
HarperTeen | June 7th 2016
About the Book:
Edward (long live the king) is the King of England. He’s also dying, which is inconvenient, as he’s only sixteen and he’d much rather be planning for his first kiss than considering who will inherit his crown…
Jane (reads too many books) is Edward’s cousin, and far more interested in books than romance. Unfortunately for Jane, Edward has arranged to marry her off to secure the line of succession. And there’s something a little odd about her intended…
Gifford (call him G) is a horse. That is, he’s an Eðian (eth-y-un, for the uninitiated). Every day at dawn he becomes a noble chestnut steed—but then he wakes at dusk with a mouthful of hay. It’s all very undignified.
The plot thickens as Edward, Jane, and G are drawn into a dangerous conspiracy. With the fate of the kingdom at stake, our heroes will have to engage in some conspiring of their own. But can they pull off their plan before it’s off with their heads?
Everyone loves My Lady Jane.
That’s just fact. I feel like this book is one I’ve seen repeatedly in lists ranging from any topics like “Funniest Book”, to all sorts of favorites list. I thought it was beyond time I actually give it a shot myself.
Don’t hate me… My feelings were tepid.
I even came close to putting it aside. I wouldn’t say I was going to “DNF” it, because I hate making snap judgments on popular books. However, I also felt like maybe I wasn’t the right audience for it. I went as far as removing it from my Kindle and starting another book, but the next morning I re-downloaded, and tried again. There were two reasons I wasn’t ready to say bye-bye. First, I was curious about G. Second, I felt like I was quitting too quickly. I picked it back up, and ended up finishing in a day.
My Lady Jane was well written. The authors definitely accomplished they’re goal in writing a highly entertaining fantastical retelling of Lady Jane Grey. I enjoyed the alternate reality full of magic. I also enjoyed reading a heroine who is truly a bookworm. Clearly one of the authors, or all three of them, know what it means to be truly obsessed with books.
Jane did things like carrying extra books, just in case she finished the one she was reading. She had wardrobes taken out of her bedroom in order to add bookshelves, because who can sleep in a room without books! When her beloved tomes are being held hostage, she would sacrifice anyone and anything in order to save them. She cried over a bent page. She was my kind of girl! I identify with that kind of biblio-passion.
I also really liked G. I mean, come on, essentially My Lady Jane contained my two childhood passions: Books and HORSES! If I could mash Jane and G into one, you would have the character that I’d want to be.
Basically, My Lady Jane had all the pieces necessary in a great read. And it was great. Finishing the book didn’t leave me confused as to why the book is so hyped. The opposite really. I can most definitely say why the story was given such an exciting reception. The issue was in how Birdie and My Lady Jane don’t share a similar type of humor.
I chuckled. I just didn’t guffaw.
Since I expected more laughter, and less silliness, I feel like I was slightly let down on a personal level. I’m very aware I’m the minority, so I highly recommend this read for pretty much everyone else. I’m sure you’ll love it.
Birdie Bookworm 
This is a perfect example of an honest opinion Wendy! I haven’t read it so far as I fear the humor just won’t work for me!
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I did snort a couple times, but it didn’t make me really lose myself in laughter like a handful of other books did. It was all a little goofy, I thought. Though I feel like I’m going to be stoned for saying it.
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I’m so with you about this book! I was so ready to enjoy this, and I just didn’t. I didn’t think it was funny as everyone said it was. I had such a hard time staying interested in the book too. I agree though, Jane was lovely to read about because I loved her passion for books; I was taking photos of passages because I thought they were so beautiful. But overall, I just couldn’t get into it. I read the second book, and I thought it was okay, I probably won’t read the third, but we’ll see!
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Oh my god, that makes me feel so good! It felt… ugh, I feel bad saying this, but it felt like it was just trying to hard. I found myself wanting to quote the bookworm stuff more than the jokes. I think I only chuckled twice. But, at least I’m not the only one!
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Yes! Exactly, I felt the same way when I posted my review. I felt bad that I didn’t love it as much as everyone else seemed to!
Oh that’s all I was quoting, bookworm stuff all the way. The jokes were lame 😅
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