Full review can be found here

https://nordie.wordpress.com/2016/07/30/bookreviewsense-and-sensibility-and-sea-...

Not as good as P&P&Z; it felt like it was trying too hard and I don't think Sea Monsters had much of an appeal anyway. ( )

3.5 stars

This retelling of Jane Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility” adds in some additional... characters, adventure, etc. in the form of sea monsters! The Dashwoods – mother and three sisters – are put out of their house and must move to an island. Their son/brother inherited all the money, and though he initially intended (on a promise to his dying father) on providing his family with some money, his wife convinces him they can’t afford to. Anyway, while on the island, they still manage to visit with a lot of people, and to find men for the eldest two sisters, Elinor and Marianne, to fall in love with (in fact, Marianne has a choice of two men... though one has an odd facial/health issue in the form of tentacles).

It was a bit hard to keep the characters straight, between using first names or sometimes a title with last names (Mr. or Miss). I thought the book did pick up in the 2nd half and especially the last 1/3 with the sea monster and underwater action! I did enjoy those parts of the book, odd as they might have been. There were some good illustrations that were added to the book, as well. It helped me picture some of the odd sea creatures. It also included humourous book club discussion questions, which I quite enjoyed reading, as well. ( )

Let me start with this: I love Jane Austen's novels, and Sense and Sensibility is my favorite. Pride and Prejudice is my second favorite, and having absolutely adored Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies, I knew I had to read Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters.

The book started off well, drawing on Austen's original story and adding bits about sea monsters, and the event which pitted humans against fish. With an added mystery, the first half of the book was well-written, and a quirky version of my favorite novel.

That's when things went sour. I think the author just gave up. Where PP&Z was ridiculous in a way that made you laugh and cringe while still wanting to read more of the story in an unbelievably believable "what if" scenario, S&S&S was ridiculous. Just ridiculous. From the way characters behaved (after the first half, they were no longer true to Austen's beloved characters) to the ridiculous sports with fish and other sea notions, the book just...devolved. Into utter chaos.

I don't care how ridiculous or unbelievable a plot is. That's not the point. If you're writing it, you have to make me believe it. That's an author's job. Make me believe that fish have turned against humans and that humans are afraid of the water while still trying to overcome their fishy foes. Make me believe that society has changed, but don't just throw stuff in with a few characters half-heartedly arguing that something is wrong.

That's another issue. The inconsistencies. In the plot and in characters' behaviors.

And don't even get me started on the pirates...or Colonel Brandon.

The only thing I can think of is that this book was created, not to continue the quirky Austen classic stories, but merely for money. If I had paid for this book, I would demand a refund. As I borrowed it from the library, I'll let it stand. I didn't completely hate the book, because I enjoyed the first half, but I wouldn't read it again, and if it were made into a movie, I wouldn't watch it.

So, that's my long-winded review. I didn't hate it, but I certainly didn't love it either. ( )

In Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Ben H. Winters reworks Jane Austen's classic novel into a tale with monsters, steampunk elements, and a touch of H.P. Lovecraft. The basic plot follows that of Austen's novel, focusing on the Dashwood sisters, but they find themselves living in England after the Alteration, when all the life of the sea has grown hostile to humanity and giant mutations of common sea creatures stalk the ocean and the shore. Some of Winters' more interesting additions include Sub-Marine Station Beta, a giant undersea domed city in which British scientists work to tame the newly-aggressive denizens of the deep while the more cosmopolitan members of English society enjoy a higher standard of living than those on land. The city evokes aspects of Jules Verne and Eugene Smith's interior illustration is magnificent. Recalling H.P. Lovecraft, one of the Dashwood sisters finds herself attracted to a mystery on the island on which the family vacations and begins chanting in a strange, guttural language. She joins a group living in caves that worship "a pantheon of cruel and hidden monster-gods called the K'yaloh. The K'yaloh were an ancient race, older than man, older than beast, older than the Alteration, older than time itself. They laid in slumber, waiting for the day of waking. When they woke, all that we know would be destroyed" (pg. 331). These elements notwithstanding, Winter's Austen-pastiche retains less of the original compared to Seth Grahame-Smith's Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Due to that, it seems a parody of itself. Fans of the first Quirk Classics book will likely enjoy this, but it newcomers may not want to read this one first. ( )