2012 Puddly Awards
 
 
Follow us on TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on TumblrSubscribe to RSS

Recently Viewed clear list

Interviews | January 3, 2012

Jill Owens: IMG Naomi Benaron: The Powells.com Interview

1 comment By Jill Owens

Naomi BenaronRunning the Rift is the most recent winner of the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, as awarded by Barbara Kingsolver. It's also an... Continue »
  1. $17.47 Sale Hardcover add to wish list

    Running the Rift

    Naomi Benaron 9781616200428
spacer
Free Shipping!

Ships free on qualified orders.
$4.95
Used Hardcover
Ships in 1 to 3 days
Add to Wishlist
Qty Store Section
15 Burnside Science Fiction and Fantasy- A to Z

First Among Sequels (Thursday Next Mysteries #05)

by Jasper Fforde

First Among Sequels (Thursday Next Mysteries #05) Cover

ISBN13: 9780670038718
ISBN10: 0670038717
Condition: Standard
Dustjacket: Standard
All Product Details

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Literary sleuth Thursday Next is out to save literature in the fifth installment of Jasper Fforde's wildly popular series.

Beloved for his prodigious imagination, his satirical gifts, his literate humor, and sheer silliness, Jasper Fforde has delighted book lovers since Thursday Next first appeared in The Eyre Affair, a genre send-up hailed as an instant classic. Since the no-nonsense literary detective from Swindon made her debut, literature has never been quite the same. Neither have nursery rhymes, for that matter. With two successful books of the Nursery Crime series under his belt, Fforde takes up once again the brilliant adventures of his signature creation in the highly anticipated fifth installment of the Thursday Next series. And it's better than ever.

It's been fourteen years since Thursday pegged out at the 1988 SuperHoop, and Friday is now a difficult sixteen year old. However, Thursday's got bigger problems. Sherlock Holmes is killed at the Rheinback Falls and his series is stopped in its tracks. And before this can be corrected, Miss Marple dies suddenly in a car accident, bringing her series to a close as well. When Thursday receives a death threat clearly intended for her written self, she realizes what's going on — there is a serial killer on the loose in the Bookworld. And that's not all — the Goliath Corporation is trying to deregulate book travel. Naturally, Thursday must travel to the outer limits of acceptable narrative possibilities to triumph against increasing odds.

Packed with word play, bizarre and entertaining subplots, and old-fashioned suspense, Thursday's return is sure to be celebrated by Jasper's fanatical fans and the critics who have loved him since the beginning.

Review:

"Full of bizarre subplots, many of which don't go anywhere, bestseller Fforde's fifth novel to feature intrepid literary detective Thursday Next (after 2004's Something Rotten) blends elements of mystery, campy science fiction and screwball fantasy à la Terry Pratchett's Discworld. With the Stupidity Surplus reaching dangerously high levels all over England, Acme Carpets employee and undercover SpecOps investigator Next has her hands full trying to persuade her 16-year-old slacker son, Friday, to join the ChronoGuard, which deals with temporal stability; if Friday continues to sleep away his future, the end is near-for everyone. To complicate matters, a malicious apprentice begins making classic works of literature into reality book shows (Pride and Prejudice becomes The Bennets), a ruthless corporation tries to turn the Bookworld into a tourist trap, and the Cheese Enforcement Agency tries to bust Next for smuggling killer curd. The fate of the world may lie in a Longfellow poem. Fans of satiric literary humor are in for a treat." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Review:

"'Full of bizarre subplots, many of which don't go anywhere, bestseller Fforde's fifth novel to feature intrepid literary detective Thursday Next (after 2004's Something Rotten) blends elements of mystery, campy science fiction and screwball fantasy la Terry Pratchett's Discworld. With the Stupidity Surplus reaching dangerously high levels all over England, Acme Carpets employee and undercover SpecOps investigator Next has her hands full trying to persuade her 16-year-old slacker son, Friday, to join the ChronoGuard, which deals with temporal stability; if Friday continues to sleep away his future, the end is near — for everyone. To complicate matters, a malicious apprentice begins making classic works of literature into reality book shows (Pride and Prejudice becomes The Bennets), a ruthless corporation tries to turn the Bookworld into a tourist trap, and the Cheese Enforcement Agency tries to bust Next for smuggling killer curd. The fate of the world may lie in a Longfellow poem. Fans of satiric literary humor are in for a treat. (July)' Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Review:

"[A] tough call, but there's a good chance it's the best of Fforde's novels." Miami Herald
back to top

Video

About the Author

Jasper Fforde is the author of the bestselling Thursday Next series. The Fourth Bear is the second novel of Fforde's new Nursery Crime series.
back to top

What Our Readers Are Saying

Add a comment for a chance to win!
Average customer rating based on 2 comments:
pdxread, April 1, 2008 (view all comments by pdxread)
It's amazing to have different versions of Thursday Next -- don't we all wonder what we would have been like if we'd been "written" a slightly different way? I was especially intrigued to find them discussing the movement of pianos within Jane Austen at the same time I was watching the Masterpiece series of Austen's novels on PBS.
This is very good Fforde -- if you haven't read the others, start with The Eyre Affair and read right on to this one.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(1 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment
halofriendly, October 3, 2007 (view all comments by halofriendly)
Fforde keeps this entertaining series going with First Among Sequels and it's probably my favorite one yet. It's witty, it's funny and we get to experience three different Thursday Next characters! Highly recommended...
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(9 of 18 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment
View all 2 comments
back to top

Product Details

ISBN:
9780670038718
Subtitle:
A Thursday Next Novel
Author:
Fforde, Jasper
Publisher:
Viking Adult
Subject:
Mystery & Detective - General
Subject:
Women detectives
Subject:
Time travel
Copyright:
2007
Edition Description:
Viking
Series:
Thursday Next Novels
Series Volume:
05
Publication Date:
August 2007
Binding:
Hardback
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Y
Pages:
384
Dimensions:
1.00 in.
back to top

Other books you might like

  1. $2.50 Used Mass Market add to wish list

    The Good Fairies of New York

    Martin Millar 9780765358547
  2. $7.99 Google eBooks add to wish list

    Swordspoint

    Ellen Kushner 9780307418357
  3. $7.95 Used Trade Paper add to wish list

    The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear

    Walter Moers 9781585678440
  4. $7.99 Google eBooks add to wish list

    The Accidental Time Machine

    Joe Haldeman 9781440635656
  5. $19.95 New Trade Paper add to wish list

    Rumo & His Miraculous Adventures

    Walter Moers 9781585679362
  6. $8.65 Google eBooks add to wish list

    Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell

    Susanna Clarke 9781608195350
back to top

Related Aisles

First Among Sequels (Thursday Next Mysteries #05) Used Hardcover
0 stars - 0 reviews
$4.95 In Stock
Product details 384 pages Viking Books - English 9780670038718 Reviews:
"Publishers Weekly Review" by , "Full of bizarre subplots, many of which don't go anywhere, bestseller Fforde's fifth novel to feature intrepid literary detective Thursday Next (after 2004's Something Rotten) blends elements of mystery, campy science fiction and screwball fantasy à la Terry Pratchett's Discworld. With the Stupidity Surplus reaching dangerously high levels all over England, Acme Carpets employee and undercover SpecOps investigator Next has her hands full trying to persuade her 16-year-old slacker son, Friday, to join the ChronoGuard, which deals with temporal stability; if Friday continues to sleep away his future, the end is near-for everyone. To complicate matters, a malicious apprentice begins making classic works of literature into reality book shows (Pride and Prejudice becomes The Bennets), a ruthless corporation tries to turn the Bookworld into a tourist trap, and the Cheese Enforcement Agency tries to bust Next for smuggling killer curd. The fate of the world may lie in a Longfellow poem. Fans of satiric literary humor are in for a treat." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
"Publishers Weekly Review" by , "'Full of bizarre subplots, many of which don't go anywhere, bestseller Fforde's fifth novel to feature intrepid literary detective Thursday Next (after 2004's Something Rotten) blends elements of mystery, campy science fiction and screwball fantasy la Terry Pratchett's Discworld. With the Stupidity Surplus reaching dangerously high levels all over England, Acme Carpets employee and undercover SpecOps investigator Next has her hands full trying to persuade her 16-year-old slacker son, Friday, to join the ChronoGuard, which deals with temporal stability; if Friday continues to sleep away his future, the end is near — for everyone. To complicate matters, a malicious apprentice begins making classic works of literature into reality book shows (Pride and Prejudice becomes The Bennets), a ruthless corporation tries to turn the Bookworld into a tourist trap, and the Cheese Enforcement Agency tries to bust Next for smuggling killer curd. The fate of the world may lie in a Longfellow poem. Fans of satiric literary humor are in for a treat. (July)' Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
"Review" by , "[A] tough call, but there's a good chance it's the best of Fforde's novels."
spacer
spacer
  • back to top
Follow us on...


Powell's City of Books is an independent bookstore in Portland, Oregon, that fills a whole city block with more than a million new, used, and out of print books. Shop those shelves — plus literally millions more books, DVDs, and eBooks — here at Powells.com.