Reviews with content warning for Infidelity - Jane Eyre

I have always loved Jane Eyre, from my first read to my experience with it now. And while my perspective on things have changed, I still thoroughly enjoyed my time with it.

This book is told in a kind of memoir/autobiography style and is about a woman named Jane Eyre and her life focusing on her childhood to her early adulthood and all of the things she goes through and befall her during that time.

The writing of this book never ceases to impress me. I love how simplistic it is and yet how complex at the same time. It reads very well and sucks you in to the point where you're Jane. I always love it when that happens in books. The pacing is also well done. It doesn't really drag and I always found myself wanting to know what was going to happen next.

The plot, while simple, also has a quite suspenseful feeling to it as well. It's primarily about Jane - from her early years with her awful family, to her time in school and her employment with the illustrious Mr. Rochester and finally with St. John. It's all fascinating and I loved watching Jane grow as a character and watch her interactions with every character in the book. And the themes are great - family, love (and the different types of love that are basically embodied in each of the characters), gender roles and feminism of the day. I just loved the themes of this book

The setting is mostly in England in different institutions and houses. It's also very much a Gothic style book which means it has some eerie and creepy elements to it and I thought all of that was done really well.

Finally, the characters. I love Jane. She's one of my favorite characters period. I thought her growth throughout the book was great, I love how independent and outspoken she is and yet also how she fits the gender roles expected of her at the same time. I loved seeing her interact with everyone around her and how they shaped her into the woman she becomes. I also still like Mr. Rochester. My opinion has changed on him quite a bit from my initial read, but look he's the biggest drama king - the smallest inconvenience and his life was over. I also had a different perspective on St. John as well. I found I liked him more, but I also was so mad at him by the end again, but this time I understood him more. I frankly still think Jane should've stayed single - both of the choices she was presented with have pros and cons and ultimately are unhealthy. Even in the end, while they're on more equal footing, there are aspects of it I'm still not 100% sold on. Overall though, I had a really good time with it and I love the journey the characters go on.

Overall, I still really enjoy Jane Eyre and it's one I'll reread over and over again over the years.

Content Warnings

silver_valkyrie_reads's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

2022 re-read:
I still love this book. I noticed more parallels and contrasts between St John and Mr Rochester on this read through--some of them are distinctly more flattering to Mr Rochester than St John.

Original review:
I've lost track of how many times exactly I've re-read this book since I first discovered it as a teenager, but I know it has been quite a few times. Admittedly, part of the appeal is simply to the gooshy romantic side of my personality that I pretend to keep hidden, but I also love some of the other themes of this book--both that there are times when conscience must overrule feelings and that there are times when it is important to include your feelings in decisions rather than simply succumb to apparent logic.

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