Something Rotten cover art

Something Rotten

Thursday Next, Book 4

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Something Rotten

By: Jasper Fforde
Narrated by: Emily Gray
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About this listen

Thursday Next, Head of JurisFiction and ex-SpecOps agent, returns to her native Swindon accompanied by a child of two, a pair of dodos and Hamlet, who is on a fact-finding mission in the real world.

Thursday has been despatched to capture escaped Fictioneer Yorrick Kaine but even so, now seems as good a time as any to retrieve her husband Landen from his state of eradication at the hands of the Chronoguard.

It’s not going to be easy. Thursday’s former colleagues at the department of Literary Detectives want her to investigate a spate of cloned Shakespeares, the Goliath Corporation are planning to switch to a new Faith based corporate management system and the Neanderthals feel she might be the Chosen One who will lead them to genetic self-determination.

With help from Hamlet, her uncle and time-travelling father, Thursday faces the toughest adventure of her career. Where is the missing President-for-life George Formby? Why is it imperative for the Swindon Mallets to win the World Croquet League final? And why is it so difficult to find reliable childcare?

©2004 Jasper Fforde (P)2004 Recorded Books Fantasy Science Fiction Fiction Funny Witty

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All stars
Most relevant  
As the titla says, at last we can listen to the complete Thursday Next series. For ages I've had books 1 to 3 & held off from getting book 6, seeing how this and book 5 (First Among Sequels) have not been available. This was particularly galling as the series is really two "four-book" sets where the storylines in books 1 to 4 come to a full conclusion in this book, wrapping up certain character arcs that I won't divulge here in case of ruining the story.

We have a different narrator for this book (Emily Gray as opposed to Gabrielle Kruger who did books 1 to 3). I was a bit unsure about her narration to begin with, and her "male" voices can be a bit archetypal at times. Still, I had no problem with knowing who was speaking, and soon I had forgotten the transition to a new narrator (kind of like a Doctor regenerating in Dr Who, or a new James Bond taking over in a way). One thing I *did* find a tiny bit annoying was that the second part of the character name "Schitt-Hause" was pronounced "hawse" when I am fairly certain the idea was for it to be "house" as a continuation of the puns that Jasper Fforde had put in for this family in the earlier books.

The concept of the "footnoter-phone" comments was a little hard to translate into a linear narration, but the editors seemed to have come up with a reasonable way of doing this without ruining the flow.

Overall the story cracks along like the earlier books, and rounds off the first set of Thursday Next stories nicely. Emily Gray did a good job, and I thoroughly recommend this (but read/listen to the first three books first!)

Thursday Next, complete at last!

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Rounds up all the questions posed throughout the series.
Well read, though i did prefer the other reader earlier on with the more intimate smiley tone. Pleased i bought it

Great end to the series

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This book is one of jasper ffords greatest triumph (in my opinion).
This book has it all!!!! Classic misdirection, clever plot twists, a moving story and an amazing end 🤩

🧐😏😥😆

5 star magic

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I am hooked on these stories, the reference to literary works and the characters is inspired. Great sense of humour. I want a Dodo as a pet too!

Growing to love these novels

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An excellent read. Really cleverly written. The best book so far in the series. Funny, sad and happy!

Something Rotten, an excellent read.

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Really good audio book kept me listening start to finish would highly recommend the narrator makes for real easy listening

Awesome!

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Despite the fact that I have read the Thursday next stories in completely the wrong order, I do really like the world and characters Jasper Forde has created, and I think this is the best Thursday Next story so far.
Maybe it's slightly less funny that others in the series, it has a bit more drama and pathos in it, particularly the scenes involving the chimera's and Thursday at her own deathbed are really very sad.
Yes i know everyone is present at their own death bed, but this is Thursday Next so there are two of her. Confused? Read the story, it all makes sense in the end.
I have just one problem with this audio book and it's more of a problem with me than of the book. By sheer chance all of the Thursday Next audio books I've read have been narrated by Gabrielle Kruger and so she, to me, is Thursday Next. Emily Gray does a good job and she sounds a lot like Gabrielle Kruger, but she isn't Gabrielle Kruger and so for the first few chapters I was thinking, who is this impostor that has replaced Thursday Next? But I got over this and learned to live with it, but I still think Gabrielle Kruger is the authoritative Thursday Next.

The best Thursday Next story yet!

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I love everything Jasper has written and love Thursday Next. so clever and enjoyable, I live near Swindon so the local references are an additional feature.

the crazy story line is so clever and fun

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On the whole, a good listen. The visual jokes with the different fonts are necessarily diluted because of the medium, but represented very well. The only thing I think that doesn't work is Friday's Loren Ipsum. The narrator makes it sound like very hard work whereas it should be more conversational. A little pre-prep would have made it a lot smoother.

Decent recording with one thing needing improvement

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Just incredible! I loved every bit of it and Fforde never disappoints. I definitely recommend it!

AMAZING!!

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