Jane Slayre

April 12, 2010
Another entry in the growing genre of horror mashups (ranging from Pride and Prejudice and Zombies to Queen Victoria: Demon Hunter), this volume takes Brontë's classic and turns the Reed family into vampires, Jane Eyre's classmates at Lowood into zombies, and Bertha Rochester into something far more dangerous than a madwoman. While Jane herself remains much the same, the supernatural additions prove highly amusing, turning the gothic elements of the original up to eleven while preserving the story's post-Victorian coming-of-age conventions. Despite her whimsical and irreverent modifications, Erwin displays great affection for Brontë and her characters; the undeniable spark between Erwin's Jane and Rochester is made all the more delightful by Jane's plucky fearlessness in the face of evil. With the possible exception of purists, fans of Jane Eyre will find much to love, with moments of laugh-out-loud hilarity; horror fans unfamiliar with the original will also be pleased, though they'll miss out on some of the comic nuance.