In this latest book by Jasper Fforde, a sequel to “First Among Sequels”, Thursday Next (literary detective) goes missing. It’s up to the “written” Thursday to track her down and get Book World back on an even keel and ready to deal with the impact of the dastardly (or is it?) eReader. Ably assisted by Sprockett, her butler (definitely not a robot), confused by Mrs Malaprop, annoyed by Pickwick, undermined by Carmine and threatened by the Men in Plaid, Thursday takes us on a fast paced spin around Fiction Island, drawing out villains and solving “a plot so fiendish it threatens the very Book World itself”.

Verdict: To borrow from my review of one of Fforde’s earlier books, “eccentric characters, quirky, complex plot… definitely odd… in other words, it‘s a typical Jasper Fforde book.This book had me amused, bemused and confused – sometimes all in the same sentence. I’d need to read the book at least a dozen times to be able to explain the plot, assuming I understood it…and I’m not sure I did. But that doesn’t matter – Fforde’s writing and grammar should be a lesson to us all. And his books should reassure all readers that being bonkers isn’t always a bad thing. Enjoy! *****