Bookish Thoughts: Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye

Of all of my many murders, committed for love and for better reasons, the first was the most important. ~ Opening of Jane Steele

Jane Steele by Lynday Faye

G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2016

Fiction (Historical); 416 pgs

Source: Gift from my husband

My husband gave me this book for Christmas one year after seeing it on my Christmas list. It had gotten good reviews and the tie-in to Jane Eyre was a sure sell for me. I hoped I would like it, but admit I was a bit weary given it was a twist on one of my all-time favorite novels.

I cannot even begin to tell you how much I loved this novel from the story itself to the references to Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. It is obvious Lyndsay Faye is paying homage to the original. This satirical take on the classic Jane Eyre could not have been more perfect. It is witty and charming, dark and suspenseful, and ever so dramatic with just the right amount of romance.

Jane Steele's life mirrors that of her favorite literary character in many ways. Only not so much in others, as Jane Steele will point out to the reader. Written in an autobiographical style, Jane often references Bronte's novel, comparing herself and her life to that of the novel's heroine. Orphaned at a young age, Jane finds herself at the mercy of an aunt who hates her and a lecherous cousin. Seeking escape, she agrees to attend a boarding school where life couldn't be more worse. After an unexpected turn of events, she and a friend flee to London where they do their best to get by. There may be a body or three--maybe more---that are left behind in Jane's wake. She isn't one to suffer being a victim easily, nor does she like to see those she cares about taken advantage of.

Jane has long seen herself as a sort of bad seed, on the path to hell for sure. She is guilty of murder and has little regret. When making a living as a writer of macabre "last confession" sold on the street, she comes across an ad for a governess at the very house she had once lived as a young girl. She had been led to believe the estate was hers by birthright and comes up with a plan to reclaim what should have been hers. And so on to Highgate House she goes under an assumed identity, taking up a post as the governess for a young Indian girl adopted by the master of the house, Mr. Thornfield, a former army doctor recently home from the Sikh Wars.

Jane soon learns that not everything is as it seems at Highgate House, the Sikh butler, Sardar Singh, is more than he appears, and there are secrets--dark secrets--that Jane is determined to uncover. The more she learns, the closer she and Mr. Thornfield grow. But with her past and his secrets, is it possible for them to find their happily ever after like Jane Eyre found with her Edward Rochester?

I was captivated by Lyndsay Faye's novel from the very first line and soon smitten with Jane Steele and her tale, even as cold as she could seem at times. The historical detail and the literary references make this novel all the better. I had not known much about the Sikh Wars before reading the novel, admittedly, but I soon found myself wanting to know more. I loved the more feminist twist on the Jane character and appreciated the research Faye went into to capture the time period so well.

While some may not appreciate a serial killing version of a beloved character, I was quite taken with this homage to one of my favorite novels. I look forward to exploring more of Lyndsay Faye's work.


For more information about the author and her books, visit her website. You can also find her on Twitter and Facebook.

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