Well, I think it's official; Charlotte Bronte is my least favorite Bronte sister. I much prefer Anne's style of writing, and I much prefer Emily's characters and storylines.
Jane Eyre seemed realllllly drawn out. I was bored through the majority of it. For about the first hundred pages, I was okay - the writing seemed solid, and I was enjoying it. But by the end of the book I really couldn't wait to be done.
In the beginning, Jane Eyre seemed like she'd be so much more of a fun character; as a child she was a lot more passionate and indignant. Then she grows up into a wussy lady; she lets her employers walk all over her, talk down to her, and she's okay with it. She rarely lets her emotions get the best of her (making her seem frigid and emotionless), and she's constantly lecturing herself - it got really tiresome. She seemed to want to do the right thing though, so she gets points for that.
As for Edward Rochester... I just don't get it. He was kind of a jerk. He really just seemed to use Jane as a sounding board for when he felt talking; he usually just talked at her instead of with her. (And, she made a great doormat and put up with it). Now, I did feel bad for him - he had some crap luck early in life, and that sucks. But there's no real reason for his arrogance and self-centeredness.
The whole "mystery" aspect of the story was enjoyable - probably the only thing that kept me reading on.
Maybe I'll try this again like 20 years down the road and have a change of heart, but as for now I just wasn't that impressed.
2 stars
~Sarah