“Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” by Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith
I bought Pride and Prejudice and Zombies right when it came out, then it sat on my shelf for years. The idea was amusing, but the slew of horror/classic mashups that followed made me less inclined to begin even the first one. Seeking a light read in between books of The Brothers Karamazov, I picked it up and enjoyed it.
Much of the prose is Austen’s own, which I thought would make for a fast read, given my familiarity with the text. For whatever reason, though, I did not fly through this. I was charmed and amused by the zombie twists that were woven into the text. I especially liked this book’s take on Elizabeth and Darcy’s meeting at the parsonage, and the reason Darcy gave for separating Bingley from Jane.
I was less enchanted with the overt sexual innuendos. It also departed from Austen’s text by doing a lot of ’splaining. What Austen leaves for the reader to infer, Grahame-Smith sometimes spells out. I think he also included some elements from the 1995 P & P miniseries that weren’t Austen’s own. These all made for a slower, less enjoyable romp than it might have been. Still, diverting and entertaining enough.