The Woman Who Died a Lot

Book 7 of the Thursday Next comic fantasy/alternate history series features the intrepid literary detective still striving to maintain order in the multiverse future. Narrator Emily Gray is the ideal foil for Jasper Fforde's quirky parody--her measured pacing and genteel British accent give a "straight man" quality to her performance. Gray delivers Fforde's fantasies with subdued hilarity. But the story line becomes somewhat mired in the author's improbable descriptions, parallel realities, and political expoundings. Retired from Bookworld's SpecOps, Thursday becomes the new librarian in Swindon, but corporate and military threats force her back into active duty to save the fictional day. Thought-provoking, imaginative humor and literary allusions abound, but the story is strongly linked to events in the previous novels, which should precede this listening experience. A.W. (c) AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine