Jane

I stopped and started this book too many times, because I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps I love Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte too much to have given this book a fair chance. It is not a bad book, but all it did was make me want to reread Jane Eyre! I will recommend this book to any teen girl who is looking for an intense and drama-filled book, because this story is intense and dramatic. The characters are fleshed out, and Jane's POV is very relatable to every girl/woman who never felt pretty or strong enough. I just can't say that I loved it. It was like drinking a Diet Coke when I really wanted a regular Coke. It tastes similar to Jane Eyre, but in the end, it just wasn't.

I love Jane Eyre and was very intrigued at a modern retelling. Lindner somehow manages to capture the feel of Charlotte Bronte's narrative style through the voice of Jane Moore.

I honestly wasn't sure I would like this. There are so many things about the original story that I was certain couldn't translate believably to the modern day. And yet... there is suspension of disbelief, but then there has to be in any fiction.

I sped through this and while reading the book, the story lived dreamily in my head after I had put the book down to go about my day, and I couldn't wait to get back to it.

Fabulous.

I adore Jane Eyre, so I was prepared to be disappointed by this modern adaptation. My verdict? Not bad. (Light years better than the latest film version starring Michael Fassbender) Elements of the plot that are problematic in the original become downright ridiculous in the modern world. This spills over into the character development – or rather, the lack thereof.

For a truly superior adaptation of Jane Eyre, you must read Jenna Starborn by Sharon Shinn… I must admit I like it better than the original and the science fiction setting makes all the plot problems completely feasible.

I couldn't live here with you and your new wife, and watch myself become nothing to you...because that's what would happen, and I couldn't stand it. Do you think because I'm...ordinary...that I don't have feelings?" I could hear my voice rising, carrying across the field, but for once I didn't care what the world thought of me. "Because I do have feelings, and if I were beautiful and talented and famous, I'd make it as hard for you to leave me as it is for me to leave you."

Jane's past was a tragic one even before the sudden death of both her parents. As a pale comparison to a beautiful older sister and an overly praised brother, love and happiness were never things to be found at home. With her parents' death, Jane is forced to abandon show more her dreams of an education and seek employment before the close of the semester leaves her homeless. When a position as a nanny is offered to Jane she is unable to say no to the income, or to the home the new job would provide- a rich, lavish home on the country estate of a world famous musician.

Nico Rathburn is an international rock sensation in the midst of planning his return to the stage. The life of a rock star is always fuel for any tabloid, and Nico's past filled with drugs, the very public end of his marriage, a bitter breakup with a rising pop star and the birth of his daughter have fanned the flame of scandal for many years.

When sensible, level headed Jane takes on the task of caring for his daughter, her straight forward honesty and practicality is just what Nico needs in his new, more somber life. Both desperately in need of real friendship and feeling, a heated romance soon develops between them. But of all the scandals Nico has been involved in over the course of his career, the newspapers have yet to discover the deep, dark secret that exists in his very home- a secret that could shock the world, finish his career and cost him Jane's love.

Whenever an author takes on the retelling of a classic, one can only imagine the fear and tension that surrounds her as she waits to see how her vision is received. She could easily offend lovers of the classic, snub the original author's vision and alienate herself (and the story) from a new generation of readers. In short, if you've read the real thing, an adaptation, poorly done, can be much more disastrous than if the author had simply written a bad original novel. Or worse it could result in that horrible American Idol moment where Simon Cowell frowns and asks why the singer couldn't be bothered to try to make the song his own or berates him for making it too closely resembling the original.

This is the apprehension I felt when I first heard about Jane but after having devoured the book in a few short hours, I can tell you that I'm just so damned proud of Lindner's work. She more than pulled it off.

Have you read Jane Eyre? If you have you know it's a dark, depressing story full of so much self loathing it makes you want to spit but it's so damned romantic and everyone is just so emotionally tortured that you LOVE IT. And while Lindner stayed remarkably close to the original story- with it's tragedy, mystery and brooding leading man, our modern Jane is the story's real hero. When faced with Nico's horrible secret and lies, she has enough sense to say to hell with this and take care of herself- more importantly, remove herself from an absolutely retched situation and let that man handle his own CRAP. She's the poster child for ever poor college student who's ever lived on ramen noodles and worked a crap job to pay for an education and I adore her for not letting her heart get in the way of just plain good sense. The romantic in me so wanted her to enjoy the love that she very desperately needed to find and the single gal in me wanted to bring her a pizza and self help books with titles like "You Don't Need That Shit" and "Don't Go Back To Him Until He is a Wrecked Pitiful Shell of a Man and Begs You."

I loved her. I loved the romance between two people who were so very much in need of real love. Even knowing what Nico's secret was, the build up and suspense was handled masterfully. I couldn't wait for the shock to come. I loved watching as Jane gained some much needed self-acceptance and was able to approach this love as a self-assured, mature woman.

But while I'm glad she got everything she deserved, between you and me, I wanted to stick my fist in Nico's eye. In his defense I wanted to stick it in River's too. show less

Um, hello April Lindner. You might just be my new favorite person.

Let me stop gushing a minute and start this review. Before I start though, I should let you all know that I started this book when I went to bed at 10pm last night. I read until about 2:30am. I went to sleep just after an infamous spooky scene that bore strong resemblances to the original Jane Eyre. I woke up at 5am to a crash (it was thunder) but I couldn't see outside and thought for sure there was a crazy woman in my room. Since I was awake.. and had my light on.. I dove right back into the book and finished it at 8am this morning.

I savored.. no, that's not right, I got drunk on every single word. If you are a fan of Jane Eyre, you might be like me and be a bit show more hesitant to pick this book up. I mean, modern re-telling? Rock star? Serious? But y'all, it worked. April Lindner didn't give us some hokey rock-star, teenage wanna-be in Jane, what she gave us is a seriously flawed, adult, real character for Mr. Rochester... and Jane, she was perfect. That's all I'll say.

Everything worked - and if you are like me and are a bit hesitant to rush out and buy a book by a debut author, especially when you know it's a retelling of a favorite story, then let me encourage you to at least check it out from the library, enter the contests giving it away or, you know..take a chance like I did and just buy it. It's worth it! show less

Following the death of her parents in a car accident, Jane Moore is forced to drop out of Sarah Lawrence after her freshman year and work as a nanny. The agency sends her to work for international rock star Nico Rathburn, caring for his five year old daughter at his mansion in Connecticut, Thornfield Park. Despite her own serious nature, Jane finds herself drawn to her intriguing employer. But there is a dark mystery lurking at Thornfield Park that threatens Jane's safety and her blossoming relationship with Nico.

Lindner's novel is a brilliant modern re-telling of Jane Eyre. She brilliantly captures the Gothic novel's romance and mystery and transposes the characters to the present quite well. Jane is still a serious and strong heroine show more with firm convictions. While having the male lead as a rock star might initially seem an odd choice, it actually works really well and Nico is just as an intriguing character as Mr. Rochester. My only quibble requires a spoiler warning, so skip ahead if you haven't read Jane Eyre. SPOILER: The only detail that I felt fell a little false in the modern context was the marriage proposal. While it is necessary for several of the later major plot points, I had difficulty swallowing the quick turn around from being in a relationship to being engaged, which made more sense in the 19th century than in the 21st. However, my general love for Jane Eyre helped me swallow it a little easier and the novel still works well despite this minor flaw. END SPOILER. An excellent read for those who love Jane Eyre and also a great introduction to Jane Eyre who might struggle with the linguistic quirks of the original. Very much recommended. show less

I've never read Jane Eyre. It's been one of those books that I always meant to pick up, but never have. April Lindner's new spin on this story had me so enthralled that as soon as I closed the last page, (I was at work) I walked straight out to the shelf and grabbed a copy of Jane Eyre.

Jane Moore has just had to drop out of Sarah Lawrence college due to lack of funds---her parents have just been in a fatal car accident and left everything of value to her two older siblings. With a solid promise to herself to work her way back to school, she lands in the office of Discriminating Nannies, Inc. to find a job to get her back on her feet. Little does she know, this will be her ticket to something amazing. Discriminating Nannies, Inc. is show more looking for the exact right person to fill a very special nanny position. They need someone who is trustworthy, doesn't pay attention to tabloid stories, and can be absolutely discreet---they think Jane fits the bill perfectly.

Jane has been given the job of nanny to the 5-year-old daughter of rock star, Nico Rathburn. Now Jane us not into music, but even she knows this name. Known for some serious bad-boy antics in his earlier days, Jane has no idea what to expect in her new position. When she arrives, he is away and she quickly bonds with his daughter,Maddy, and the head of the household staff, Lucia. When she finally meets Nico, they get off to a rocky, awkward start but then slowly grow to be friends.

Both Jane and Nico are fascinating complex characters. Through little flashbacks we get to see a bit of Jane's family history. Her family life was pretty harsh, with a mother who always made it clear that having Jane was an "unwelcome surprise", a vain, selfish sister who ignored her, and a brother who abused her, her only love and protection came from her father, but he was seldom around. It's easy to see where Jane's lack of self-confidence come from. Still, she shows some strength and spark when it comes to sticking up for herself, even against the big intimidating rock star. She is very goal driven, determined to get her life back in order. She speaks her mind when it's important. It's also interesting how she handles her own feelings,...for anyone, I think, it would take a lot to walk away from something they care so much about, to save herself. It was beautiful to see her grow throughout the story into someone with the strength to stand up to her own past.

Nico is an interesting mess, and you can see how his long time stardom has affected his actions and the way he interacts with Jane. He is a bit bossy at times and tends to handle his feelings all wrong. But overall, he is this amazing, loving person who has just gotten a little sidetracked along the way. I can't say much more without given too much away!

I think Lindner's decision to make him a rock icon was the perfect way to translate a classic story from the 1800s into something that can catch the interest and fascination of readers today. After all, can you imagine yourself as the nanny to a famous person's child---the strange goings on that you would have to deal with in the household of a star?

I, for one, loved this book, but as I said, I haven't read Jane Eyre. I think many lovers of Jane Eyre were wary about seeing this story retold, worried it wouldn't hold up the integrity of the original. So for those of your who are worried, I'm directing your to an awesome YA book reviews blog who has read Jane Eyre and Jane, and loved it! Check it out here:
Carol's Prints: Jane Eyre Gets a Makeover.

Definitely give this one shot---you won't be disappointed in this great love story! show less