This book is courtesy of the "Free Books" pile outside a *certain Simpson College English professor's* office. And while I have NOTHING more to say about this professor, I will say this about _The Eyre Affair_: This novel is packed with literary allusions, and while some of the plot turns are overdone, it's a fast read and at times intriguing; detective Thursday Next chases the evil Acheron Hades through a series of canonical texts, including, obviously, _Jane Eyre_. There is an unconvincing romance shoehorned into the plot, but when she's traveling solo, Next is interesting to follow.