• One of Our Thursdays is Missing

  • A Novel
  • By: Jasper Fforde
  • Narrated by: Emily Gray
  • Length: 11 hrs and 57 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (942 ratings)

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One of Our Thursdays is Missing

By: Jasper Fforde
Narrated by: Emily Gray
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Editorial reviews

Over the past decade, British novelist Jasper Fforde has established himself as the undisputed master of metafictional suspense stories. Though he is now in the middle of several completely different series of books, the original series of Thursday Next novels continues to be the crown jewel in his career. One of Our Thursdays Is Missing is the sixth book in this series as well as the second book in the sub-series known as BookWorld, a sub-series for which Fforde has said he plans to write two additional books. So this sixth effort is deeply embedded within the mythology and history of the Ffordian universe, but can also stand alone as a less than troublesome listen for those unfamiliar with the previous adventures of Thursday Next.

Emily Gray once again assumes the daunting task of Fforde’s enormous cast of well-known literary characters, and once again proves equal to such a tremendous challenge. Gray also narrated the first book in this sub-series, as well as two other Nextian Fforde novels. At this point, the Real Thursday Next has mostly retired from both literary celebrity and private investigation. When she goes missing, the Written Thursday must step up to take on the Real Thursday’s quirky assortment of obligations, from peace talks between Comedy and Romance genres to side-stepping the agents of mega-corporation Goliath, as well as quietly launch the investigation to find the Real Thursday. Only the Written Thursday is of course not as quick-witted and savvy as the Real Thursday, and mishaps abound.

The acrobatic narration required for this most recent installment is a feat that Gray accomplishes with remarkable dexterity and precision. Fforde’s broadly wicked sense of humor is not lost whatsoever in the telling, and Gray deftly lands his volley of intelligent punch lines with a loving familiarity that neither resorts to the cheesy nor beats a dead horse. Also worth paying special attention to is her interpretation of the Written Thursday’s new sidekick, Sprocket, an obsolete mechanical man who serves as her butler when they are not busy being on the run from a diverse set of mysterious enemies. Fforde is ultimately trying to address the important matter of what constitutes a happy ending, and uses all his beloved old tricks to sort out the answer. Emily Gray fortunately keeps pace with him every thrilling step of the way. Megan Volpert

Publisher's summary

Deftly blending such genres as mystery, science fiction, and classic literature, Jasper Fforde’s gleefully irreverent New York Times best-selling Thursday Next novels defy categorization. In this sixth installment, the threat of all-out Genre war looms over BookWorld. But with the real Thursday Next retired in the real world, the Council of Genres has no other choice than to tap the fictional Thursday to save the day. Her mission as emissary is to prevent the brewing war—but her task is made more difficult by a hidden foe manipulating events.

©2011 Jasper Fforde (P)2011 Recorded Books, LLC

What listeners say about One of Our Thursdays is Missing

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

slow start but ends well

this book is entirely about the written Thursday. the first 30 mins to and hour are torture and there is way to much description. once you get past that, it's quite fun.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great - but you need to "get" the premise!

So this is a whole different universe - there is Book World and the regular world. In the regular world, Thursday Next is "on vacation" and no one can find her! In the BookWorld, the Council of Genres asks the fictional Thursday Next to step into all of the "real" Thursday's jobs! It was a VERY fun ride. I'd absolutely use this as an intro into the world of Thursday Next. “AUDIBLE 20 REVIEW SWEEPSTAKES ENTRY”

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not the best in the series

I love, love, love this series but this installment just didn’t do it for me. One, the written Thursday is a bit boring and two, the author took the absurdities to an absurd level that ceased to be entertaining. As always, though, the narration was superb!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Very meta and a slow starter.

I see where Fforde is going with the book but it really was sub par for a Thursday Next book.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Not all that I hoped for

I downloaded this book without even reading the description, because I have enjoyed all of the other Thursday books. Sadly aside from a few cameo appearances by Spike, Landon and Commander Bradshaw, NONE of my favorite characters appear - no Cheshire Cat, no Stigg, no anybody! After I got over the lack of all I have come to love and expect of this series, I was able to enjoy the book, though Thursday 5 is such a ditherer at the start tnat I nearly put the book down! Overall, not a bad read, but I was hopeful of so much more.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I love Jasper Fforde

What made the experience of listening to One of Our Thursdays is Missing the most enjoyable?

The narrator is amazing. I love her and her lovely English accent. I also love the pithy and literary humor. It is very amusing for an avid reader.

What did you like best about this story?

It is a very creative story and actually sort of how I have always viewed books, as a different, parrallel universe where the characters are actually alive and living their own lives when not acting in their book as it is being read. I love the idea that there are people who can jump in and out of the world.

What about Emily Gray’s performance did you like?

She is amazing. One of the best.

Who was the most memorable character of One of Our Thursdays is Missing and why?

I love all of the characters. Of course I love Thursday and her gram. I also always love her father jumping in and out of her life asking her bizarre questions about historical timeline. I also loved Pickwick in this story.

Any additional comments?

Jasper Fforde needs to write more books faster! I love this series and the Jack Spratt Nursery Crimes series. He is one of my favorites.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

But what about the kittens?

A number of people were disappointed with this but I prefer to think Fforde was just exploring some inevitable possibilities. After all, he had completed a glorious 5-novel story arc and set up no end of intriguing questions about the book world. These questions had to be addressed. And the key question is what does it all look like from the written-Thursday's point of view?

Admittedly, it's not my favorite book in the series. From a narrative perspective, large chunks of it feel maddeningly slow. But narrative pace has never been the prime attraction of this series for me. It's all about the inventiveness of the ideas and the quirky book references. And in this regard, Fforde does not disappoint.

Things pick up a bit as the book progresses. The "written characters" become more interesting as they are forced to grow as characters. I suppose "character development" was another book problem Fforde was interested in exploring.

There's even a scene that is genuinely touching where written-Thursday meets real-Thursday's family.

But the kittens? Well, for that you'll just have to read the book. And I didn't even mention the puppies...

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Always a fan of Jasper Fforde

Always a fan of Jasper Fforde. Emily Grey had a habit of using the same voice cadence for several characters, but overall her performance was wonderful.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great fun for lovers of literature and wordplay

great narrator; fun story as usual; makes me laugh out loud at times; convoluted plot

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Jasper Fforde does it again

What isn't there to love about Jasper Fforde? Another great addition to the Thursday Next series.

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