BOOK REVIEW: MY LADY JANE BY CYNTHIA HAND, BRODI ASHTON, AND JODI MEADOWS

"'You love me?' she whispered.
'The very instant I saw you, my heart flew to your service,' he said.
'Really?'
'No,' he admitted. 'Not exactly. But it's a good line, am I right?'"

Royalty! Drama! Betrayal! Romance! Humour! People Morphing into Animals! My Lady Jane is your classic Girl Meets Boy, Girl Marries Boy, Girl Finds Out Said Boy is a Horse, Shenanigans Ensue kind of story.

The more I think about this book, the more I love it.

My Lady Jane is just so damn fun. It kinda reminds me of Guardians of the Galaxy in the way that it doesn't take itself too seriously, but still manages to make you genuinely invested in its characters and their plot lines. It knows when to be funny, it knows when to be serious, and it never veers off too much in one direction, making the story lighthearted but still grounded. The characters are marvelously charming, and very hard not to love. We have Jane, who is smart, level-headed, and SO VERY BOOKISH; Gifford who is hilarious and so so sweet; and finally, Edward, who is sarcastic, willing to learn, and just very teenager-y (in all the good and angsty ways). The character dynamics are also a joy to read, the banter consistently and confidently hilarious. It catches you off guard in the best and most unexpected of times. And with such a peculiar twist to a historical fiction narrative—including people who can morph into all sorts of strange animals—and wonderfully self-aware narrators, the story shines even more. Having characters morph into these animals that were representative of them kinda felt like Patronuses 2.0, and also allowed for some weird, undeniably comical scenes between certain characters.

All in all, My Lady Jane was the refreshing, entertaining read I was looking for, and then some.