My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

Pages: 491

Intended Audience: Mature tweens and up

Genre: Historical / Fantasy

Notes for Parents: Contains a few mature scenes.

The Back Cover

Lady Jane Grey, sixteen, is about to be married to a total stranger—and caught up in an insidious plot to rob her cousin, King Edward, of his throne. But that’s the least of Jane’s problems.

She’s about to become Queen of England.

Like that could go wrong.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This appears to be the first in a series that will explore famous Janes. The next one is title My Plain Jane and will be a ghost story about Charlotte Bronte and Jane Eyre. It’s set to be released June 2018.

What’s good?

This is the story of Lady Jane Grey who was queen of England for nine days in 1553 after her dying cousin, King Edward VI, removed his own sisters from succession and nominated Jane to take his place. However, this is not the historical version of that story. It’s a light-hearted, fantasy-laced parody of the family drama that took place in the Tudor era. Standing in for the Catholic versus Protestant conflict is the age-old story of shapeshifters versus non-shapeshifters. The story is told from three viewpoints (by three different authors). Jane is a strong, stubborn, compulsive woman; Gifford, who prefers being called G, has a secret; and Edward, the dying King of England, is about to learn several truths that will turn his world upside down. There are power struggles and Shakespeare quotes, and plenty of romance, humor, betrayal, danger, adventure, and fight scenes.

Best Part: Horse jokes.

What isn’t good?

Despite being almost five hundred pages, the story moves quickly. However, interruptions by the “narrators” are totally unnecessary and more often than not disrupt the flow of action. There are a few parts where the storytelling drags, and some distracting editing errors. Gifford’s refusal to tell the truth about where he goes is annoying since the truth is way better than the falsehood. And the big battle with the Great White Bear seemed pointless.

Worst part: “God’s teeth!”

Recommendation ☺☺☺☻☻ (3/5)

My Lady Jane was entertaining. It was witty and dramatic, and a bit ridiculous. There was nothing profound or unexpected, but it was fun. You can’t expect any kind of historical accuracy, but you can enjoy the ride. Recommended.

Hand, Cynthia, Brodi Ashton. Jodi Meadows. My Lady Jane. New York: HarperTeen, 2016.