Review
When I first started reading 4 Janes by Marian Yee, I didn’t quite know what to expect. I had read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë while studying English in college. That story, plus Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys, sticks with me to this day, nearly 20 years later. So the premise of this reimagining, how Jane’s life might have turned out if she never married Rochester, was quite intriguing. Plus, I had no idea how the time travel plot point would fit in. Nevertheless, I agreed to review it. And I’m so glad I did.
Readers don’t have to read Jane Eyre to enjoy this book. But they will undoubtedly get way more out of 4 Janes if they do. Additionally, much of the story centers around the Vietnam war. Two of the “Janes” had their lives shaped and defined by the horrific conflict. Consequently, having some background knowledge and familiarity with its history will also elevate the reading experience.
The Jane in this story experiences life beyond anything she could have imagined, traveling through time and space. And most of those experiences are heartbreaking and tragic. As Trang, she experiences unrequited love and is burdened with a secret that hurts her soul. As the Jane that Brontë created, she endures unimaginable loss. She also fights constraints all too familiar as a wife of Rochester. And Vinh, poor Vinh, struggles with finding his place in the world, with his identity, in a life that he never had control of.
The author’s writing style and prose delivers such an emotional impact. I couldn’t count the quotable lines that will stick with me for probably as long as the original story. Even though I couldn’t relate to any of the characters in terms of cultural background or life events, I could easily connect with them through the author’s talented storytelling. 4 Janes highlights the tragic and far-reaching aftermath of war, as well as the victims of overzealous and devoted Christians. And once readers follow the trail and connect the dots along the way, they won’t be able to put the book down until the final page.
Marian Yee joins the Cantina Book Club Podcast to discuss the historical events that brought this story to life, and her experience as a debut author. Keep an ear out for the interview and preorder 4 Janes, available June 30.
Book
Jane Eyre is a missionary’s wife.
A bookseller in Vietnam.
A time traveler.
A hero in a modern gothic tale.
What if Jane’s story didn’t end with her marriage to Edward Rochester? What if she never married him at all?
In one lifetime, Jane travels to India and Burma as Mrs. St. John Rivers. In another, she’s Trang, a young woman selling books in Vietnam, vying for the love of the local priest. Yet another picks up where Brontë left her, now grieving the loss of her child and crossing time and space to find him. And finally, a young Vietnamese-American man searching for himself in Boston, a tutor whose relationship with a veteran feels strangely, achingly familiar…
Each thread tells Jane’s story in sweeping, heartbreaking shades of loss, vulnerability, yearning, and the fierce love of mother and child that withstands time and space. While she may long for something more out of a life she didn’t get to choose, she can still decide what to make of it.
