Red Side Story is the second novel of a two- (some predict three-) volume series by Jasper Fforde. Back on April 26 I reviewed the first volume, Shades of Grey. Why the delay, you ask?

Talk to the Boston Public Library about it. They finally let me borrow and therefore read a copy of Red Side Story.

I enjoyed both — a lot. But here’s the thing. Even though the second volume opens mere days after the first one ends, these are very different books. The first is a light, amusing fantasy more than it is science fiction; the sequel is much darker, much more serious, even somber in many places. It still has a sense of humor and still shows Fforde’s wonderful imagination, but the dystopia comes to the fore much more explicitly. Now Brave New World is more explicit as the inspiration, edging toward 1984 — but a lot funnier.

Don’t try to read Red Side Story without reading Shades of Grey first. You will just be confused, unless you read it very slowly and try to make sense of everything as you go.

Nah, don’t do that; just read them in order.

Suppose you follow my advice. Suppose you’ve read the first volume by now, and you are about to start the second. The real question you surely have is what about all those unanswered questions you came up with while reading Shades of Grey, including this one. (Sometimes one just has to throw in a recursive observation.) Without hinting at any spoilers, I can at least say that a majority of my questions were answered, but definitely not all of them.

So will there be a third volume? Or is this a two-volume trilogy? The two do combine to form a satisfying narrative without a third volume, but it would be nice to have my remaining questions answered, wouldn’t it?

Categories: Books