My Lady Jane

A bit long, but surely worth the read, My Lady Jane is a wonderful novel with a most interesting concept; namely, an YA historical retelling with bits of fantasy and a lot of romance. It is a captivating read that brings the reader compelling characters, a fun plot, and a (what I think we could call) “magical system” that both makes sense and is as amusing as, say, Pullman's dæmons—I mean, I guess we all agree that being an Eðian would be almost as good as having a dæmon, don't we?

My favorite character was the main protagonist and title character, Jane, up until I realized Bess is THE Queen Elizabeth I of England, whom I love, so I felt obliged to change that. Jane is my favorite out of the three narrators, though; but rest assured that they're all great in their own ways—Edward has one of the most solid character arcs I've ever seen in YA novels, even though his love story with Gracie is highly extra. If you like History and fun, magical retellings, this is one you won't regret picking up.