Synopses & Reviews
The beloved fantasy series comes full circle in the fourth adventure of literary detective Thursday Next...
Detective Thursday Next has had her fill of her responsibilities as the Bellman in Jurisfiction, enough with Emperor Zhark's pointlessly dramatic entrances, outbreaks of slapstick raging across pulp genres, and hacking her hair off to fill in for Joan of Arc. Packing up her son, Friday, Thursday returns to Swindon accompanied by none other than the dithering Danish prince Hamlet. Caring for both is more than a full-time job and Thursday decides it is definitely time to get her husband Landen back, if only to babysit. Luckily, those responsible for Landen's eradication, The Goliath Corporation formerly an oppressive multinational conglomerate, now an oppressive multinational religion have pledged to right the wrong.
But returning to SpecOps isn't a snap. When outlaw fictioneer Yorrick Kaine seeks to get himself elected dictator, he whips up a frenzy of anti-Danish sentiment and demands mass book burnings. The return of Swindon's patron saint bearing divine prophecies could spell the end of the world within five years, possibly faster if the laughably terrible Swindon Mallets don't win the Superhoop, the most important croquet tournament in the land. And if that's not bad enough, The Merry Wives of Windsor is becoming entangled with Hamlet. Can Thursday find a Shakespeare clone to stop this hostile takeover? Can she prevent the world from plunging into war? Can she vanquish Kaine before he realizes his dream of absolute power? And, most important, will she ever find reliable child care? Find out in this totally original, action-packed romp, sure to be another escapist thrill for Jasper Fforde's growing legion of fans.
Review
"Mr. Fforde's penchant for plotting knows no bounds, nor does his taste for awful puns...and his occasional silly streak....It's easy to be delighted by a writer who loves books so madly..." Janet Maslin, The New York Times
Review
"A novel in which anything can happen and no line of dialogue is too absurd....Bibliophiles will delight in the busy hodgepodge of literary references." Carmela Ciuraru, The Los Angeles Times
Review
"[I]mpressive, and arguably Fforde's best work to date. It is a compliment to the author's skill and creativity that his humor remains fresh and his central character gains depth." Robin Vidimos, Denver Post
Review
"Fforde delivers a potently political tale that tips its feathered cap at the coming election in America....Fforde is a tireless, almost manic creative spirit, and Something Rotten contains a new host of fantasy inventions..." John Freeman, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Synopsis
The Eyre Affair was a New York Times bestseller and a Book Sense 76 pick. The Well of Lost Plots appeared on the New York Times extended bestseller list and was a Los Angeles Times bestseller. Lost in a Good Book appeared on the New York Times extended bestseller list and was a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller. Jasper Fforde was named 2002 "It" Fantasy Author in Entertainment Weekly.
Synopsis
Two years after Thursday Next's Ultraworld adventure, the now ex-head of Jurisfiction returns home. But the Swindon to which Thursday returns is not the one she left, for something is rotten in the state of England.
Synopsis
The fourth installment in Jasper Ffordeandrsquo;s New York Times bestselling series follows literary detective Thursday Next on another adventure in her alternate reality of literature-obsessed England
The popularity of Jasper Ffordeandrsquo;s one-of-a-kind series of genre-bending blend of crime fiction, fantasy, and top-drawer literary entertainment builds with each new book. Now in the fourth installment, the resourceful literary detective Thursday Next returns to Swindon from the BookWorld accompanied by her son Friday and none other than the dithering Hamlet. But returning to SpecOps is no snapandmdash;as outlaw fictioner Yorrick Kaine plots for absolute power, the return of Swindonandrsquo;s patron saint foretells doom, and, if that isnandrsquo;t bad enough, The Merry Wives of Windsor is becoming entangled with Hamlet. Can Thursday find a Shakespeare clone to stop this hostile takeover? Can she vanquish Kaine and prevent the world from plunging into war? And will she ever find reliable child care? Find out in this totally original, action-packed romp, sure to be another escapist thrill for Jasper Ffordeandrsquo;s legions of fans. Thursdayandrsquo;s zany investigations continue with First Among Sequels. Look for the five other bestselling Thursday Next novels, including One of Our Thursdays is Missing and Jasper Ffordeandrsquo;s latest bestseller, The Woman Who Died A Lot. Visit jasperfforde.com for a ffull window into the Ffordian world!
Synopsis
The popularity of Jasper Ffordeandrsquo;s one-of-a-kind series builds with each new book. Now in the fourth installment, the resourceful literary detective Thursday Next returns to Swindon from the BookWorld accompanied by her son Friday and none other than the dithering Hamlet. But returning to SpecOps is no snapandmdash;as outlaw fictioner Yorrick Kaine plots for absolute power, the return of Swindonandrsquo;s patron saint foretells doom, and, if that isnandrsquo;t bad enough, The Merry Wives of Windsor is becoming entangled with Hamlet. Can Thursday find a Shakespeare clone to stop this hostile takeover? Can she vanquish Kaine and prevent the world from plunging into war? And will she ever find reliable child care? Find out in this totally original, action-packed romp, sure to be another escapist thrill for Jasper Ffordeandrsquo;s legions of fans.
Read Jasper Fforde's posts in the Penguin Blog
About the Author
Jasper Fforde is the author of The Well of Lost Plots, Lost in a Good Book, and The Eyre Affair, the first three books in the Thursday Next fantasy/detective series.