Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters

Title: Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Jane Austen and Ben H. Winters
Genre: Fiction, Mashup, Classic, Horror
Rating: 2/5

As the title implies, this is Jane Austen's classic retold with a twist. Something has transformed the world's oceans and the creatures of the sea have mutated and now hunger for the flesh of man. Amongst all the tentacles and giant lobsters, can the Dashwood sisters find true love?

I was rather disappointed in Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. The premise was intriguing but the writing failed to live up to its promise. The connection between Austen's original and Winters' new scenes felt disjointed and I think Winters would have been better off writing something original. As well, there was a little too much repetition, especially in regards to how disgusting Colonel Brandon's mucous-covered tentacles were. By the fourth or fifth mention I just wanted to shout 'all right already, I get it.' I also found the way everyone looked down on Colonel Brandon and his cursed features contradictory once Winters introduced the idea that John Dashwood was undergoing experimentation in society's fight against sea monsters. However, there was one thing I really enjoyed, the addition of steampunk when Elinor and Marianne go to Sub-marine Station Beta, a London-like city based within a dome on the ocean floor.

Overall, Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters is not a book that I'd recommend. It's not that I hadn't expected it to be ridiculous, I did, but it was just too much so. I do hope that Pride and Prejudice and Zombies was better orchestrated as it's still on my to-be-read list.

The Jane Austen Book Club

Title: The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4/5

Six Californians (five women and one man) turn to Jane Austen to bring them together and help them deal with the obstacles that pop up in their lives over the course of six months.

I picked up The Jane Austen Book Club after it had been recommended to me by several friends. Apparently it was my kind of book. And I did really enjoy it. It is admittedly a very simple read though some of the Austen references will likely be lost on someone unfamiliar with her work. I really liked how Fowler split the book into sections instead of just continuing the narrative unstopped. Each section is devoted to a month, book and the character hosting the meeting that month. For example, Chapter One was March "in which we gather at Jocelyn's to discuss Emma." Interspersed with the book discussions, Fowler feeds the reader background information on the characters, how they met and important events that shaped the people they became. And by switching back and forth between the discussion and the character development, you never tire of either.

The characters are interesting, though I wish Fowler had spent more time developing them. There is so much hinted at that we never get to see, like Bernadette's many other husbands. The book's also a little deceptive in its appearance, the novel itself is only about 3/4 of the book, the rest is additional material like summaries of Austen's six books and suggested book club questions. I did really like the section in which Jane's friends and families comment on her books. Apparently her mother liked Pride & Prejudice better than Mansfield Park.

The Jane Austen Book Club is definitely a book I'll recommend to friends and something I think I'll give another read through some time in the future, probably the next time I read Pride & Prejudice. I also want to give Karen Joy Fowler's other works a try.