A review by editrix
Becoming Jane Eyre by Sheila Kohler

This was just okay. I was bothered by a lot of things (the shift in perspectives to minor characters who illuminate nothing; the lack of creative arc or any urgency; the sneaking suspicion that this was just highbrow fan fiction), but there were some pretty turns of phrases here and there. (“The wide four-poster bed with its diaphanous hangings looks like a ship about to sail.”) The lack of emotional dynamic range was...odd; it felt like the entire book was told in monotone, which is surprising given that the subject was literature known for its high drama.

I chose this as a treading-water book while I waited for something better to arrive in the mail, and it turned out to be just that. I was in the water moving my arms and legs around, and I definitely felt wet, but I didn’t really go anywhere.