Jane Bites Back: A Novel [Paperback]

Michael Thomas Ford (Author)

Book Description

Release date: December 29, 2009

Two hundred years after her death, Jane Austen is still surrounded by the literature she loves—but now it's because she's the owner of Flyleaf Books in a sleepy college town in Upstate New York. Every day she watches her novels fly off the shelves—along with dozens of unauthorized sequels, spin-offs, and adaptations. Jane may be undead, but her books have taken on a life of their own.

To make matters worse, the manuscript she finished just before being turned into a vampire has been rejected by publishers—116 times. Jane longs to let the world know who she is, but when a sudden twist of fate thrusts her back into the spotlight, she must hide her real identity—and fend off a dark man from her past while juggling two modern suitors. Will the inimitable Jane Austen be able to keep her cool in this comedy of manners, or will she show everyone what a woman with a sharp wit and an even sharper set of fangs can do?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ford's (Last Summer) fang-tastic satire of the Jane Austen craze catches up with “Elizabeth Jane Fairfax,” the undead 233-year-old author and owner of an upstate New York book store. She's disgusted by the Pride and Prejudice knockoffs that fly out of her store (poor Jane hasn't seen a royalty check in almost 200 years), and her last manuscript's been rejected by 116 publishers. Things start to look up when she finally gets a deal for the book, but two problems arise as she's promoting Constance: Lord Byron, who turned Jane, wants her back; and Violet Grey, a vitriolic Brontë blogger, accuses Jane of stealing Charlotte Brontë's last unsold manuscript. Ford's Jane is a very fun and funny heroine to root for as she endures the indignities of publishing and bookselling, fends off danger and (perhaps) finds love. Her hilarious smack downs with Violet hint of more madness to come in this first of a series. (Jan.)
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Review

"A hilarious send-up of vampire novels, the Austen industry, and one immortal author's complete inability to find a publisher—Jane would have loved it!"—Stephanie Barron, author of the Jane Austen mysteries

"It's impossible not to love Ford's sharp-witted, sharp-fanged Jane Austen (and I'm not just saying that because she spares my life in Chapter Six)."—Seth Grahame-Smith, author of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

“Fang-tastic …Ford’s Jane is a very fun and funny heroine to root for as she endures the indignities of publishing and bookselling, fends off danger and (perhaps) finds love. Her hilarious smack downs with Violet hint of more madness to come in this first of a series.”—Publishers Weekly
 
“Ford approvingly cites Seth Grahame-Smith’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, but his own mashup is better integrated, more knowledgeable about Austen and considerably funnier.”—Kirkus Reviews
 
“In this clever paranormal tale…Ford has created warm, witty characters that will appeal to both Janeites and vampire fanciers. Literary humor and intriguing snippets from Jane's book are the icing on the cake. Two more books are promised in this series, so readers who fall under Jane's spell will be eagerly awaiting her next adventure.”—Library Journal
 
“Michael Thomas Ford has struck gold….The plot is inventive and funny, and the story progresses with the kind of light touch that compares favorably to the…Stephanie Meyer Twilight series. Ford manages to strike just the right tone…and consistently delights.”—Bay Area Reporter
 
“Few authors can deliver [Austen’s] dry, deft and wickedly funny style. Michael Thomas Ford is one of them….Light, campy and a bit Buffyish….The literary and historical references really shine.”—Austenprose
 
"Ford gives us an authentic, sympathetic and witty Jane Austen as a modern-day vampire….An inventive mashup plot coupled with creative storytelling and amusing dialogue make this story a delightful read."—Romantic Times
 
“Hilarious….I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and know you will too!”—Vampire Librarian
 
“Such a fun read. I especially love to imagine Austen duking it out with fellow literary blood-suckers, both literal and figurative.”—Book Bitch
 
“I must admit I started this story prepared to dislike it (too many Jane related novels), and then found I was enjoying it! It has a little bit of something for everyone. You will enjoy it, too.”—Romance Reviews Today
 
“A rollicking good read.”—Dirty Laundry
 
“A confection of a novel.”—The Advocate
 
“In the past year, I have read quite a few Jane Austen spin-offs, but none quite as original as Jane Bites Back by Michael Thomas Ford….Incredibly readable, extremely funny, and highly entertaining.”—Booking Mama
 
“FIVE STARS!”—Huntress Reviews

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; Original edition (December 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345513657
• ISBN-13: 978-0345513656
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #791,359 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Thomas Ford is the author of more than fifty books in genres ranging from humor to horror, literary fiction to nonfiction. His work for adult readers includes the best-selling novels What We Remember, Changing Tides, Full Circle, Looking for It and Last Summer, and his five essay collections in the "Trials of My Queer Life" series. As a writer for young adults he is the author of Suicide Notes and Z (forthcoming in 2010), and under the name Isobel Bird he wrote the popular "Circle of Three" series. In 2009 he signed a 3-book deal with Random House for a series featuring Jane Austen as a modern-day vampire. The first book in the series, Jane Bites Back, will be published in January, 2010. His work has been nominated for 11 Lambda Literary Awards, twice winning for Best Humor Book and twice for Best Romance Novel. He was also nominated for a Horror Writers Association Bram Stoker Award (for his novel The Dollhouse That Time Forgot) and a Gaylactic Spectrum Award (for his short story "Night of the Werepuss").

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A modern Gothic novel full of Janeite lore and paranormal hijinx December 30, 2009

By Laurel Ann VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

Jane Austen's novels brim with irony, witticism, and in the end, a gentle reprove or two. It is why I love her writing. Few authors can deliver this dry, deft and wickedly funny style. Michael Thomas Ford is one of them.

His latest novel Jane Bites Back is more than a gentle joke, it is a sly wink at the Austen and vampire industry. The clever title alone tells us that Ford has more than a keen sense of humor. The story concept is even better. Nearly two hundred years after her reputed death and burial at Winchester Cathedral in 1817, Jane Austen is actually not dead, but a vampire living in Brakeston, a small university town in upper-state New York. As the owner of Flyleaf Books she watches with irritation and frustration as other less talented writers make a killing off her novels and characters with sequels, spin-offs and absurd self help books. To add insult to injury, Constance, the last novel that she wrote before her turning remains unpublished after two hundred years and 116 rejections.

Jane's quiet country life is comfortable but unfulfilling. She has retained her anonymity over the centuries ironically adopting the name of Jane Fairfax, one of her characters in her novel Emma who is also orphaned but a highly accomplished young lady hiding secrets. She enjoys her friendship with her young shop assistant Lucy who reminds her of her dear sister Cassandra and is both flattered and annoyed by the attentions of Walter, a local carpenter/contractor who restores vintage homes and would like to do the same with Jane's heart. Two surprising events change her life dramatically: a legitimate offer to publish her novel, and the return of a former paramour, the mad, bad and dangerous to know poet Lord Byron who seduced and then turned her two hundred years ago. The first she is elated over. The second she reflects upon falling for his entrapment with regret and horror exclaiming in a typical ironic quip...

'Men, she thought. The downfall of women since Adam blamed Eve for that stupid apple. She wondered briefly if it was too late to become a lesbian. "I'm sure they have just as difficult a time of it," she said to the empty room. "Love is dangerous for everyone."'

Our Jane is no namby pamby vegetarian vampire. A proper Regency lady she follows decorum, feeds off human blood only to stay alive, and mind you, in the most discreet fashion. Like the unpropitious characters in her novels who are in need of a dressing down, she chooses victims based on their bad behavior, never taking or turning anyone. She also enjoys a few human indulgences such as drinking wine, eating chocolate ice cream, living with a cat named Tom and an infatuation with actor Richard Mansfield, the pattering comic baritone of the D'Olyly Carte opera company, tra la. When her life gets too challenging, she closes her eyes and thinks of England.

Light, campy and a bit Buffyish, Jane Bites Back is a modern Gothic novel full of Janeite lore and paranormal hijinx that the "sick and wicked" side of Jane Austen would find quite amusing. The literary and historical references really shine. Happily, a certain Bronte scholar gets her cumuppance in a drawing room throw-down which we have been patiently waiting 150 years for and bad boy Byron's romantic and vampiric dalliances are thwarted by our light, bright and sparkly vampire heroine.

Read with tongue-in-cheek and a full glass of suspended disbelief, you will chortle and guffaw until the last bite. This Janeite was truly "glamoured."

Laurel Ann, Austenprose

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Book 1. Very creative. December 30, 2009

By Detra Fitch

Format:Paperback

Jane Austen is still alive today as a vampire. She goes by the name of Jane Fairfax now. She is the owner of a book store in small Brakeston, New York. No one knows she is Austen or that she is a vampire; not even her friendly assistant, Lucy Sebring. Jane keeps mortal men at bay for fear of becoming attached to one and eventually losing him when he dies of old age. She does not need the extra heartache. This includes Walter Fletcher, to whom Jane considers a close friend and refuses dates with.

Jane has kept a manuscript that she now dreams of publishing under her new name. She feels irritated enough that she does not receive royalty checks on the numerous spin-offs of her work, but the continuous rejection notices of her new book is even worse. Jane is about to give up when Kelly Littlejohn, senior editor for a small publishing company, offers her a contract. The book is getting rave reviews and Jane is back in the spotlight. She is thrilled until the famous poet that changed her (unwillingly) into a vampire walks into her store, intending to sweep her off her feet again. To make matters even worse, a noted scholar is accusing Jane of plagiarism.

***** FIVE STARS! This is one of the most thoroughly entertaining stories I have read in the past few years! I feel that the author succeeded in capturing Jane Austen's proper personality, as well as in how the legendary author would have reacted had she found herself an immortal vampire. Michael Thomas Ford has crafted a vivid, charming and witty tale to delight readers of any age. Absolutely fantastic! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A ridiculous concept, entertainingly rendered December 30, 2009

By Angela Buonfiglio

Format:Paperback

Deft storytelling and good pacing enhance this crazy, original tale. "Original" might seem a funny word to use with regard to a Jane Austen-based storyline, but this book doesn't even attempt to mimic Austen's style and that's what makes it enjoyable. It presents Jane Austen, vampire, who has adapted to modern life and sees life's absurdities. She is instantly likable and so is this book. Great fun!