Bargain Ebook: Jane by April Lindner and Some Other Titles

Jane by April Lindner is another recent bargain priced ebook, this time a modern retelling of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, the classic novel that is often likened to both Bluebeard and Beauty and the Beast.

Book description for Lindner's Jane:

Forced to drop out of an esteemed East Coast college after the sudden death of her parents, Jane Moore takes a nanny job at Thornfield Park, the estate of Nico Rathburn, a world-famous rock star on the brink of a huge comeback. Practical and independent, Jane reluctantly becomes entranced by her magnetic and brooding employer and finds herself in the midst of a forbidden romance.

But there's a mystery at Thornfield, and Jane's much-envied relationship with Nico is soon tested by an agonizing secret from his past. Torn between her feelings for Nico and his fateful secret, Jane must decide: Does being true to herself mean giving up on true love?

An irresistible romance interwoven with a darkly engrossing mystery, this contemporary retelling of the beloved classic Jane Eyre promises to enchant a new generation of readers.

About the Author

April Lindner is an Associate Professor of English at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia. Her poetry collection, Skin, received the Walt McDonald First-Book Prize in Poetry, and her poems have been featured in many anthologies and textbooks. She holds an MFA in writing from Sarah Lawrence College and a PhD in English from the University of Cincinnati. Jane is her debut novel.

  

There has been a recent surge in Jane Eyre retellings (see The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey, too) as well as some retellings of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca, another twist on Bluebeard, for YA readers, such as New Girl by Paige Harbison and Frost by Marianna Baer. These I am listing here have been some of the better reviewed ones. There is also a Rebecca film in development. (I wonder if it will use the Hitchcock version of the twist or du Maurier's original which is much more powerful, isn't it?) We had a new Jane Eyre film last year (more disappointing than not), but I imagine there may be another in a few more years, too. Rebecca, probably thanks to rights issues, has escaped having as many film interpretations.

I am curious about all of these although I admit my enjoyment and even tolerance for Rebecca has lessened with my increasing age. Jane Eyre is still dear to me, but Rebecca disturbs me in ways it never did previously. And yet I am fascinated with these novels as authors try to make the stories contemporary, just as I am always fascinated my fairy tale retellings. The stories resonate and we explore. No, the originals are usually the better, but sometimes we see something we didn't see before, especially in the hands of a talented author.