My Lady Jane

My Lady Jane
Written by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows
Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Romance
Published November 1st 2016
416 Pages
Thank you to Walker Books Australia
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★★★★
Edward is the King of England. He’s also dying, which is inconvenient as he’s only sixteen and he’d much rather be planning for his first kiss than considering who will inherit his crown…

Jane who reads too many books is Edward’s cousin, and far more interested in books than romance. Unfortunately for Jane, Edward has arranged to marry her off to secure the line of succession. And there’s something a little odd about her intended…

Gifford is a horse. That is, he’s an Eðian. Every day at dawn he becomes a noble chestnut steed, but then he wakes at dusk with a mouthful of hay. It’s all very undignified.

The plot thickens as Edward, Jane, and Gifford are drawn into a dangerous conspiracy. With the fate of the kingdom at stake, our heroes will have to engage in some conspiring of their own. But can they pull off their plan before it’s off with their heads?
A kingdom is on the verge of collapse, Verities and Eðian have formed a divide while sixteen year old King Edward has been diagnosed with the Affliction. leaving the young Prince with mere months to live. With his trusted adviser Dudley, Edward will need to determine the royal line of succession, bypassing his sisters to name his beneficiary as the firstborn son of his dearest friend and cousin, Lady Jane Grey.

First he must find her a husband.

Sixteen year old Lady Jane Grey is a spirited young woman, self educated through her love of reading. Determined and opinionated, Lady Jane has no intention of marrying despite her mother's insistence but how can she refuse her dearest Edward's request?

From sunrise to sunset, Gifford Dudley is a horse. Literally. An Eðian who believes he is cursed, Gifford succumbs to his father's demands and prepares to marry the headstrong young woman. Jane believes Gifford is little more than a philanderer, Gifford believes Jane is far more trouble than she's worth but as the two begin to appreciate one another and the injustice of the world around them, Jane is named as Edwards heir, bypassing his own sisters and ensuring the first Queen of England's place in history.

My Thoughts

My Lady Jane was absolutely delightful, an alternate history of the first Queen of England infused with a touch of fantasy and hilarity. It was incredibly charming and follows the narrative of Lady Jane Grey, the young King Edward and Jane's betrothed Gifford, a chestnut steed. Lady Jane Grey is a fiercely passionate girl in an era in which men dominate and the fairer sex marry, bear children and master the art of needlepoint. But the sixteen year old only wants to explore fantastically worlds through reading. Although Jane harbours resentment for Gifford, the exploration of their relationship was so incredibly lovely. Both Jane and Gifford find common ground through the atrocities of hardship of the lowly class England and a mutual respect for one another begins their tentative romance and entwined narrative.
I fail to see an upside, except for the possibility that I will one day need a quick escape, in which case it will be useful to have a fast horse.
'No horse jokes,' he said.
'My lord, I apologise for the horse joke. If you put down the book unharmed, I will give you a carrot.'
He brandished the book at her. 'Was that a horse joke?'
'Neigh.'
'Was that a horse joke?'
King Edward has been ruler of England since the tender age of nine years old and until now, has left the fate of his Kingdom to his trusted adviser Dudley. Edward has been diagnosed with the Affliction, a life sentence in which he will never see his seventeenth birthday. Or share his first kiss. Edward is incredibly naive and entitled but throughout the storyline, his narrative matures and he begins to understand the responsibility of leading a country through civil unrest. 

The relationships within My Lady Jane were absolutely charming. Jane's friendship with Edward was lovely, the two cousins having grown up with one another and forming a wonderful friendship despite their differences. Being of the era where women are seen as fragile and delicate, Edward wishes for his dear friend Jane to be taken care of, never mind that the tenacious Jane is a perfectly capable young woman of her own devices. Being unmarried and independent is scandalous and reluctantly, Jane agrees to marry rather than deny Edward's last wishes. But Jane is unaware of Gifford's condition.

The romance between Jane and Gifford was delicate, tender and their sarcastic exchanges were absolutely hilarious. But beneath the banter, Gifford begins to care for Jane and despite the overwhelming sexism of the era, Jane is his equal. 


Within fiction, the reader is a silent observer and authorial intrusion often feels jarring. In My Lady Jane, it's made apparent that it's an alternative historical retelling but yet the charming authorial annotations are a constant reminder. It was unnecessary and a little too slapstick unfortunately. 

Although an alternative history, My Lady Jane explores historical figures such as King Edward, Queen Elizabeth and Mary Queen of Scots. The Royal dynasty is wonderfully created as a complex network of deceit and deception, infused with humour and animal enchantment. Although occasionally the humour misfired, it was an entertaining and engaging read that captured my attention until the final page.

30 comments

  1. I love the sound of this book...I love Tudor books and this sounds really funny. I bought it a couple of weeks ago and I can't wait to read it!

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    1. Looking forward to seeing what you think of it. It's wonderfully entertaining!

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  2. I gave this the same rating! I thought was really cute, and highly exceeded my expectations. It showed up in my OwlCrate, otherwise I would never have picked it up. I'm glad I did!

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    1. It's wonderful isn't it, a real surprise as I didn't think it would have been so entertaining and thought three authors might have clashed in terms of style of writing, but it was was brilliant. So glad you enjoyed it too!

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  3. I am so glad you enjoyed this book! I got sent it by the publisher a few weeks ago, and I'm really excited to read it. I've heard loads of people rave about how funny it is, so I'm hoping I will feel the same way! It seems like such a fun read so I hope to get round to it soon. Lovely review! ♥

    Denise | The Bibliolater

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    1. It's so incredibly entertaining Denise and the fantasy elements worked wonderfully within the historical storyline. Looking forward to reading your thoughts.

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  4. Oh my gosh this sounds hilarious and adorable and I want a copy right now!!

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    1. And Lady Jane is such a brilliant character too Sarah. Strong, fiercely independent and so, so funny.

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  5. Wow the synopsis made guess the book is funny and reading your review that this book is hilarious made me want to read this one. I will add it to my TBR. Thanks Kelly :)

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    1. I think you'll absolutely love this one Hana, it's very loosely based on the English empire, but infused with fantasy and hilarity. I really enjoyed it.

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  6. Haaaa, I giggled at your quotes! This is so utterly adorable and funny!!

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    1. It is absolutely adorable! I think you'd love this Verushka, I didn't want it to end!

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  7. I don't know what authorial intrusion are o.o oops.
    But thats a lot of horse jokes, heh it looks really cute and funny. Thank you for sharing the quotes, feels like an endearing read.

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    1. It's basically when you're reading a story and the narrator will address the reader directly by calling attention to a specific point. They typically use terms like dear reader or gentle reader. Usually for me it can seem a little jarring, because it often interrupts the storyline. But overall, it's such a lovely read. I really enjoyed it.

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  8. Yay that you enjoyed this! I was curious but like...eep, I've heard it's pretty slapstick. Which generally I don't love. 😂 I think it's cool to do alternate history though and I don't see much of that around, SO YAY ANYWAY. And the horse joke quote was hilarious.😂

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    1. Only in places though, just when the authors address the reader mainly. But the characters are all absolutely brilliant. Jane is sassy and headstrong and all round lovely. The romance is more of a budding friendship with loads of banter, totally your thing.

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  9. Oh, you have a different cover! I hadn't seen this one before. It's fun. I really want to read this one. I MUST get my hands on it soon as every review I've read has been positive. Plus, it seems really amusing and I LOVE humor in books.

    -Lauren

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    1. I must admit Lauren, I love the US cover more. It's the cut out font on there, it annoys me. It's brilliantly entertaining though, I hadn't expected to love it as much as I did. I can't wait to see what you think of it.

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  10. Oh, this sounds like such a cute read. I'd not heard of it before!

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    1. It's wonderful Melissa, definitely one for the TBR pile.

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  11. I've heard so many wonderful things about this so I am so glad you enjoyed it so much Kelly! It sounds like it's a wonderful combination of humor and history. Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous review! <3

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    1. I think you'll adore this one Zoe, the rich yet alternative history was written wonderfully well. I loved the fantasy elements too, which usually would have bothered me. Such an awesome read!

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  12. Pretty sure I bought the ebook off Amazon, because I have heard nothing but great things about this. And honestly, I wasn't expecting the humor. I thought it would be a serious alternate historical fiction, but I am really glad to see that wasn't the case!

    Also, it kind of reminds me a bit of Pride and Prejudice? Am I wrong? Does it allude to it?

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    1. It doesn't reference it directly, but it takes cues from Elizabeth Bennet and what a wonderful character she was. It was just so lovely, it really surprised me.

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  13. This book is hilarious and I loved the spin on history. The authorial intrusions were actually enjoyable and the characters so charming. Glad to see you enjoyed it too!

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  14. I like books in historic settings. It does read a bit like Austen from the review. :)

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  15. I LOVED this book, and enjoyed the way the authors added a twist to the original story. Gotta agree that all the relationships in this book are wonderfully portrayed. Also, that cover is so hilarious. I want a copy for my collection, haha. Great review, Kelly!

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  16. I’m not a fan of “dear reader” addressing, but this sounds like an adorable and funny read overall. I hope I’ll be able to enjoy this story despite this minor issue. Lovely review, Kelly.

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  17. this Book Sounds Absolutely Hilarious! I mean I was Wondering what The Whole Horse Thing Was About but It Makes Sense now. I haVe Nfi Whats GoinG On With My Phone Keyboard, wtf. Great Review!

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  18. I've heard this is hilarious so I can't wait to read it! It's been on my TBR for ages but I just haven't been able to get around to it!

    xx Anisha (https://sprinkledpages.blogspot.com.au/)

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