Thursday has left the Bookworld after 2 years and is transitioning back to the real world and not without a fair few hurdles. Goliath is aiming for classification as a religion, Kaine is one step away from ruling all of the UK as a dictator, Danish books are being rounded up and burned by order of the government and in her absence, Thursday was convicted of cheese smuggling. Her husband is still eradicated and she's 20k pounds in the hole on her overdraft. Oh, and she has to keep an eye on Hamlet, who came out of Bookworld with her so he could find himself.
Oh, so many things to love about this book. In no particular order and without spoilers:
- Pickwick. Pickwick is always worth loving but Fforde makes her so expressive with so very few words. She made me laugh out loud at least once.
- This is not the book to be in if you're Danish. Lots of satirical comedy surrounding the sudden discrimination against Danes (especially in the chapter headings). Because some of my best friends in the world are Danish, I think I find it a lot funnier than some might; Fforde just nails it.
- Neanderthals get a lot more page time.
- The fight in the hanger. No spoilers, but I'll just say it was masterful literary chess.
- The fate of the world might truly rest on the outcome of a game.
This is the book that wraps up more than a couple of story arcs. Lots of answers and very few questions remaining. I'll admit I missed the footnoterphone more than I would have thought, and I truly prefer the shenanigans of Bookworld over the shenanigans of Real Life. Not really a surprise. There was a bit that I think went too far and felt too convenient, but I can't even hint at it without spoilers so I'll leave it at that.
The ending of Something Rotten is what got that last 1/2 star out of me. It was... well, just read it for yourself. If you're a Thursday Next fan, I expect it will get you in the same place.