Review – Lost in a Good Book (Thursday Next, Book 2) by Jasper Fforde (5/5 stars)

Reading level: Adult
Genre: Fantasy/Mystery
Paperback: 399 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books
Release Date:  February 24th, 2004
ISBN-13: 978-0142004036
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Thursday Next series
Source: Swapped through paperbackswap.com
Rating: 5/5 stars

This is the second book in the Thursday Next series.  So far there are five books in this series with a sixth book “One of Our Thursdays is Missing” schedule for a March 2011 release date.  This was a wonderful book.  Not a super easy read, but very different from anything else I have ever read.  You got a society very focused on books and book crime, time travel, travel through books, a little fantasy, a little mystery, a little sci-fi, and a lot of humor.  A great addition to this series.  I liked it even better than the first book in the series “The Eyre Affair“.

Thursday Next is newly wed to Landon and has recently found out she is pregnant.  Well of course this is when all hell breaks loose.  Goliath Corporation wants Thursday to retrieve Jack Shitte from “The Raven” where she left him; in order to convince her to do this they have eradicated her husband Landon.  Now Thursday is the only one who remembers Landon ever existed.  On top of this a rare Shakespeare play has turned up, someone is trying to kill Thursday with a plethora of coincidences, and Thursday’s father is popping in occasionally to let Thursday know the world is about to end any day and only Thursday can fix it.  Thursday is determined to reinstate her husband and stop the end of the world, as well as stay alive herself.  Thursday’s efforts will take her deep into the department of Jurisfiction; where she learns that the literary landscape is deeper than she ever knew.

To say that a lot happens in this book is an understatement; this book is packed with intertwining plots and many strange coincidences.  It will have you laughing out loud a number of times, and also engage your mind as you try not to miss any of the strange references and follow the entangled plot.  That being said this was not a fast read, but it was a very engaging, entertaining, and clever read.

I am just flabbergasted at how well Fforde creates this amazing world and makes it engaging and not at all confusing.  We learn a lot more about Thursday’s world and the introduction of Jurisfiction adds a whole new dimension to the story.  We are also learning a lot more about Thursday herself and about what makes her such an extraordinary character.  A lot of depth was added to both the world and the characters in this book and I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about them both.

Overall a wonderful book.  The plot is complex, the world and  characters more filled out, very funny and engaging.  I just loved it.  I can’t wait to read the next book in this series The Well of Lost Plots.  I will mention though that this is not a fast read, type of book, it does take a bit of effort to follow all the jokes and the complex plot…still trust me the effort is well worth it.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge Book List
– The 100+ Book Reading Challenge