What's Next for Thursday?

The Woman Who Died a Lot (Thursday Next #7) by Jasper Fforde (Viking hardcover, 20 October 2012).

Reviewed by Marlyn Beebe.

Thursday's had a rough time.  Injured in her last adventure, she[s been quietly recovering at home in Swindon, trying to ensure that her brilliant daughter Tuesday, now sixteen, has a somewhat normal life.  Her son Friday is dealing with the  dissolution of the Chronoguard and looking for a new direction for his life.  And then there's Jenny, the daughter who doesn't exist.

Now, hoping to get back into Bookworld SpecOps, she is instead offered the supposedly more prestigious position managing the All-You-Can-Eat-at-Fatso's Drink Not Included Library.  She's disappointed, but decides to make the best of it, when suddenly she realizes she's not herself but a temporary replacement created by the evil Goliath Corporation.

Running a library is difficult, especially when she has to explain to the board why she's not in favour of dawn raids for library fines and deal with militant Enid Blyton fans who want the books returned to their original non-politically-correct form.

Yes, the storyline is as confusing as it sounds.  That's one of the hallmarks of a Jasper Fforde novel.  Fforde plays fast and loose with time, existence, bureaucracy and religion, but he has a wonderful way with the English language and the many shades of meaning a single word can have.

It's probably best to read this series in order, beginning with The Eyre Affair (2001) in order to become accustomed to Fforde's unique writing style.


The Penguin Group has kindly offered  a hardcover copy of THE WOMAN WHO DIED A LOT for one of my readers.  Please comment below about Jasper Fforde and/or Thursday Next, and make sure to include contact information.  Entries from the US only, please.