A review by reneegallo
Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Jane Austen, Ben H. Winters

4.0

I picked up this book instead of Pride & Prejudice & Zombies based on another friends review of the two and I really enjoyed reading SSSM.

Winters had a strong vision of the alternate world for SSSM in which all of the ocean's creatures will viciously attack if given the opportunity. What I find wonderful is that the story is still Austin's story. He doesn't bother trying to fill you in with back story as to why the sea is full of vicious predators he just sets it up that this is their world and has been such for a while.

The "new text" is well integrated into the original, it's not as if extra bits about sea monsters were tacked in between Austin's text. Instead he resets many of the locations (including a city under the sea) and really creates a new world where a young woman is looking for a husband but also perfectly capably of fending off an attack by the Devonshire Fang Beast.

I enjoyed it enough that if he were to write another book set in this world with the "evil ocean" I would probably pick it up just to explore the world a little more.