Review: Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore
Kristin Cashore, author of Fire, Graceling and Bitterblue has been absent from the writing world for a time. I almost forgot about her, and I definitely didn’t expect this ambitious, genre-bending book from her as her followup to the world Graceling started years ago. It’s got almost everything you could ask for in a book. There’s a satisfying and surprisingly heartwarming friendship between Jane and former tutor Kiran, romances with Kiran’s twin brother Ravi and staff member Ivy. It’s got spies, art forgery, biological weapons, beautiful rooms, paintings as portals, a missing stepmother, spaceships, pirates, a sweet dog. The list goes on and on and on. And on and on.
In a word, Jane, Unlimited is ambitious.
Ambitious af.
And it works.
It really, really works.
After the sudden death of her Aunt Magnolia in an Antarctic expedition, Jane’s life has hit a wall until she receives an invitation from Kiran Thrash to visit her legendary estate, Tu Reviens. Fulfilling a promise to Magnolia to never turn down an invitation to the island, Jane goes eagerly to live indefinitely as the mansion’s inhabitants prepare for a massive gala. It’s as lush as you can imagine, a total dream to visit (it will easily top your list of fictional worlds to inhabit, despite a particular foray that’s less enchanting and more horrifying).
Eventually Jane reaches a break in the story that allows it to branch off into different narrative possibilities. Kristin Cashore will tell you in the Author’s Note that Unlimited began as a choose-your-adventure story (which would have been incredible, if you ask me) and evolved into the novel we’ve got today. Besides the thrill of seeing where each path will take Jane, it’s also fun to see how her character grows and expands with each choice. All the endings are possible, but though they’re all endings, it’s impossible to say which is the ending. Did Jane fulfill only one? Or is it somehow possible she encountered them all?
Who knows? Draw your own conclusions, but it’s a must read, and one of the best books this year.
Rating: 5/5 Stars
*I read an ARC so I didn’t get to enjoy any of the maps available in the finished copies, but I got a peek at work last night, and they are lovely.
