Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters

Quirk Classics has a second hit on their hands with the adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. In Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Ben H. Winters throws the Dashwood sisters in with Sea Monsters and Pirates, they even stay at an underwater colony for a while!

After Mr. Henry Dashwood is eaten by a Hammerhead, Norland Park becomes the property of his son, Mr. John Dashwood. John's wife is not a very hospitable woman, and almost immediately encourages Henry's widow and daughters to find someplace else to live. They are offered Barton Cottage on Pestilent Island where Marianne is rescued from an octopus by the Mr. Willoughby. Shortly after he abruptly leaves the island, Elinor and Marianne are invited to spend some time at Sub Station Beta where they are forced to fight off man eating lobsters before the Station collapses.

Meanwhile, Margaret befriends creatures on the island whose description almost reminds me of Gollom from the Lord of the Rings movies. Poor Colonel Brandon is not only unattractive, he's hideous, but finds a little bit of hope when Mr. Willoughby breaks Marianne's heart. Between the pirates, sea monsters, and people who aren't who they appear to be, it's nothing short of a miracle that the lovely Dashwood sisters are able to find their happily ever afters!

While I found this book slightly easier to put down that PPZ, I still thought it was a good read, and definitely recommend it.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Seth Grahame-Smith took a classic, and added an unexpected twist. When I first heard about the book, I had absolutely no interest in reading it. I've never read any of Jane Austen's books, but have seen a couple of the movies made from her books, and I'm not a huge zombie fan. I simply ran out of things to read, so I thought I'd give Pride and Prejudice and Zombies a chance. I loved it!

The first line is a great hook; "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains." It's just so absurd that you can't help but want to find out what's going on! Most of the text is Jane Austen's original work. Seth Grahame-Smith just tossed in a few zombies here and there, and enhanced the characters' personalities a bit and taken them to the extreme.

A plague has been sweeping through England, threatening all who live there. Even a small scratch can turn a person into one of the unfortunates. Luckily, that is rarely a problem. The zombies are generally slow moving and clumsy, as is the plague itself, as Charlotte Collins finds out. Changing from a living person to a zombie takes months. If a person is already dead and buried, the change happens much faster. Especially in the wet season when it's easier to claw through the dirt.

While Mrs. Bennett is more concerned with whether or not her daughters marry well, Jane and, especially, Elizabeth know what their main focus should be - keeping Longbourne and the surrounding areas safe. Can they find love and be ferocious fighters at the same time? You should definitely read this book and find out!

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