A review by sadtomato
John Eyre by Mimi Matthews

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

I have a love-hate relationship with Jane Eyre's retellings because it is one of my favorite books of all time and it was very formative for me when I read it as a teenager. I like the dark side of this a lot, the mix with Dracula (another favorite of mine) is really interesting and I think it works well in the story. I have mixed feelings with the gender change in the characters because although I like to see a strong female character who takes charge of her destiny, John's character inevitably falls a little short and that's not something I felt with the original Jane (maybe because of her leaving Edward and assessing herself, a part of the story not included here). I also miss the playful banter in their relationship, one of the things I love the most on the original book, and the moral dilemma who John here doesn't confront. All in all I enjoy this well enough and it's a commendable effort and an interesting new point of view of a classic. 
Note: I enthusiastically recommend reading Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys if the way Bertha is portrayed in Jane Eyre doesn't sit well with you. Beautiful book.