More than likely my last book of 2020 and it is a new twist on one of my all time favorite books - Jane Eyre. It’s Jane Eyre in 21st century Alabama with all the Real Housewives vibes.😉.
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In this modern retelling, Jane is a dog walker in an upscale Alabama neighborhood. She “accidentally on purpose” gets herself attached to the recent rich widower, Eddie, whose wife mysteriously disappeared less than a year ago. However, this Jane is no innocent person - she has a history she is trying to hide and in the meantime, is trying to cement her place in this beautiful house and weave her way into this new, rich life. What could go wrong? Hmmm, well it doesn’t take long for Jane to realize that there is a lot hidden beneath the surface.😳.
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For those that have read Jane Eyre, you know what happens and the title of this book gives some of it away. This is a fast read, fun read but it may not be as memorable as the original. It’s a quick and fun thriller with lots of people who are all downright nasty. Make sure to read the OG Jane Eyre if your interest is piqued. The Wife Upstairs comes out on January 5th. Thanks to @netgalley for this copy so I could read and review. ⭐️⭐️⭐️.
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I liked this book. I didn't know who to root for or who to dislike. When I picked who I was rooting for or who I disliked the author did a wonderful job of quickly confusing me. Lots of twist and turns.

While I really enjoyed this storyline and it's nod to Jane Eyre, I have found that for myself I don't care for the trope of "I think your life is better than mine, so I'm gonna take what I want (steal) anyway because I *deserve* it since I had such a bad life."

Jane makes her moves to move from dog walker to the new Mrs. Rochester. I'm from the South and loved identifying with some of the mentions of some of the universities big into football as well as how some southern women act and what they say. Lots of twists and turns and you are guessing until the end. I had a feeling as to who did "the thing" (no spoilers) about 75% of the way in but I wasn't sure how it was going to pan out. A solid thriller with twists.

The Wife Upstairs is a very well written thriller. The plot has many twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. A must read. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and Netgalley and this is my unbiased review.

I’ve read a lot of books, but I haven’t read many of the classics. This book is described as a modern day retelling of Jane Eyre, which didn’t mean much to me, as I didn’t know much about that story. Nonetheless, I was still super excited to read this story as it sounded super good! I enjoyed the story, and was hooked until the end as I wanted to see how it all played out, however I didn’t find it quite as twisty and suspenseful as I had hoped and expected. It was still a good read though!

The Wife Upstairs is described as a retelling of the classic Jane Eyre, which I can't speak to because I haven't read it (I know! I actually have never read most of the "classics" and I still consider myself a reading enthusiast...)

 So while I don't know if that holds up, this was a total page-turner for me and kept me guessing until the end. I loved being immersed in the upscale Thornfield Estates community where nothing is at it first appears. We meet Jane, the main character, who is thrust into a romantic relationship (or is it?!) with Eddie( a new widow...maybe?) and the unreliable narratives keep you guessing throughout.

I enjoy a book with flawed characters and I love getting deeply immersed in the storyline and histories of the individuals. Who is telling the truth and what is really going on? The Wife Upstairs had the perfect amount of dark humor and I just found this one to be completely captivating. I alternated reading and listening to this on audiobook and highly recommend both formats. 4.5 Stars.

Thank you to LibroFM and St. Martin's press for the advanced copies. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was able to read this book thanks to NetGalley. I absolutely loved it. I started one night before bed thinking I’d read 2 or 3 chapters and I read almost half of the book before I fell asleep.

Jane is a girl with a past who is been in town in Birmingham AL. She envies the wealthy women and men she works for walking their dogs. One day she meets a handsome widower and they quickly start to date. His wife died in a drowning accident with her best friend but was never found. But is she really dead? This book was a major page turner and so suspenseful. I will be highly recommending it to my friends and family. Thanks again to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book..

I loved this book! I finished it in 24 hours. I couldn’t put it down! I had to find out what happened. I love that’s it’s a Jane eyre retelling too. Jane eyre wasn’t my favorite classic, but this made up for it!

A very imaginative take on Jane Eyre, where you feel like you already have the answers, but the twists take you down a different path. Suspenseful and surprising.

Jane is broke, but hopes that her job as a dog walker for the aflluent residents of Thornfield Estates will change that somehow. Then one day, it does. She meets recently widowed Eddie, and they have a whirlwind courtship and soon she is planning their wedding. The only problem is Eddie's former wife, Bea, who just won't stay gone. She is everywhere Jane turns. When new evidence comes to light about the circumstances surrounding Bea's death, Jane's happily ever after may not happen after all.
This book was so good. I couldn't put it down. The story alternates between Jane and Bea, until the two storylines combine into one. It is perfect for fans of Gillian Flynn and Samantha Downing. This is definitely a must-read!

Popular and prolific YA author Rachel Hawkins has now branched out with her first adult novel, The Wife Upstairs, a fun, exciting, page turner that has been rightfully billed as a 21st century Jane Eyre twisted into a domestic thriller.

Set in a current day affluent suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, The Wife Upstairs introduces us to Jane. Jane is new to Birmingham, and to us, the readers, she makes it clear that her name is not really Jane but explains that sometimes it is best if we leave our pasts in the past and let them be history. Whoever she was before, currently she is Jane and though she is broke now, she has become a dog-walker in a ritzy gated community. Jane operates under the idea that rich people always want what their neighbours have, so she has watched her dog-walking business grow and grow, neighbour by neighbour.

While dog-walking, Jane meets Eddie Rochester, who is a bit of a mystery to his upscale neighbours, having been recently widowed when his wife and her best friend disappeared in the lake following a boating accident. Jane sees the opportunity she has been looking for when she meets wealthy, handsome, lonely Eddie and soon the only dog she is walking is her own dog (well, Jane and Eddie’s dog) through the posh suburban neighbourhood. As their relationship grows, however, Jane finds her life haunted by the stories of Eddie’s previous wife, Bea. The bored housewives in the neighbourhood, who seem to want to gossip about almost anyone are surprisingly tight-lipped when it comes to speaking of Bea or her friend Blanche, depriving Jane of the information she is craving, to help her understand the life Eddie and Bea had prior to Bea’s death. There are also lingering questions about he boating accident itself, and what exactly happened that night.

While our story begins from Jane’s perspective, Hawkins flips the script (more than once) and switches up who we the reader get each section of the story from. We get a lot more information this way, as opposed to having everything come from only one character, but at the same time we get a much more personal view of the story, including tons of neighbourhood gossip, than we would if the entire story were told through a third person omniscient narrator. This storytelling device works perfectly in The Wife Upstairs and will keep you glued to the pages.

Hawkins has said that, “Twisting Jane Eyre’s famous love triangle into a domestic thriller set in the contemporary South is easily the most fun I’ve ever had as a writer,” and the fun she had very clearly shows through. What was great fun for Hawkins to write will also be great fun for readers to read!

3.5 stars

I’ve enjoyed Rachel’s YA, so there was no way I was going to miss this jump into thrillers. I’ll admit that I haven’t read Jane Eyre, so I can’t comment on the retelling aspect.

I was intrigued by Jane. She’s been on her own her entire life, so there’s a warped sense of what’s right and wrong. Or maybe it’s that she’s knows what’s wrong, but puts her wants first. Eddie was charming and it was easy to see how the two of them fit together. The rest of the characters are introduced in a shallow way and stay that way: they’re sources of information, nothing more.

Plot wise it was instantly captivating. I was hooked at this idea of a sort of con-artist unknowingly unraveling a mystery while looking for a new life. There are a few POVs and time shifts and it was an interesting way to keep me guessing. The story was quite a slow build up, with the last couple of chapters ramping up to a satisfying epilogue.

Overall, it was a quick and enjoyable read. I look forward to more from Rachel in this genre.

**Huge thanks to St. Martin’s Press for providing the arc free of charge**

WOW This book wasn't even on my radar until a friend invited me to a Reader Meet Writer event with the Author the beginning of January. So I went and snagged the book from Netgalley and I couldn't read it fast enough. The description of this book sounded intriguing but talk about twists and turns! Every time I thought it would be predictable, it threw me a curve.
Totally looking forward to connecting with the Author on this one and reading more of her works.
Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martins press and the Author Rachel Hawkins for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The old adage "Be careful what you wish for" was never truer than in this story! The author does a good job with development of the individual characters to advance an almost unbelievable story. I thought I had this one figured out but a big surprise was in store!

I recommend to any Gone Girl fans. This domestic thriller follows plain Jane who is trying to get away from her past and falls for a wealthy widow. Felt like a modern-day Rebecca.

A modern day reimagination of Jane Eyre set in the South, this thriller will keep you turning pages as fast as you can right through the end.

Jane -- not her real name -- is an almost homeless dog walker in an extremely well-to-do neighborhood, trying to improve her lot in life. When she meets Eddie -- who rushes out to buy a dog for her to walk -- she sees her chance. And even when she finds out his wife and his wife's best friend are both recently missing and presumed dead, it doesn't slow down her pursuit of a better life for herself, no matter what strange noises she hears from the attic...

Readers of Jane Eyre will figure out the main outline of this story from start to finish -- which was both really interesting (to see how the author would update it) but also made it fairly easy to figure out the ending. If you haven't read Jane Eyre, I think the ending will be a big twist, it's just not a surprise if you already know what happens.

I read this book in less than two days -- and it would have been less if my children would stop asking for meals -- so it's definitely a book that will hook you.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for my honest review. It has not influenced my opinion.

I admit, I was skeptical about The Wife Upstairs because yet another Jane Eyre update? But wow! It was a really fun read, with Jane turned into a main character I totally adored (the snark! it was outstanding!) and Bea, the Mrs. Rochester who was absolutely fascinating and very, very not a woman to cross. As a thriller, this is absolutely a quick and very hard to put down read but I think the best thing about it is that it's perfect for teens and adults who are interested in Jane Erye (or assigned it) but can't get into the original. The Wife Upstairs will absolutely get people to read the original but it's also strong enough to stand on its own. Definitely recommended, especially if you like strong female characters who can and do whatever it takes to get what they want. (Jane!!!)

by Rachel Hawkins

TW

(Full disclosure: I have somehow managed to get this far in life without having read _Jane Eyre_.)

This thriller is supposed to be an updated version of a very classic book, and it was excellent. If this were to be released in the summer, I would definitely call it a perfect beach read.

Jane walks dogs in a fancy neighborhood for money. When she meets Eddie Rochester, she knows her life is about to change for the better. However, gossip flows abundantly in Thornfield Estates, and soon Jane begins to question her choices.

I don’t know how the original classic ends, but I know the basics, so I thought I knew how the ending would go. NOPE. Since you know some certain things from the beginning, you think it might fall flat, but it doesn’t. Hawkins does an excellent job of keeping you surprised.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Hawkins is a successful American author of many YA novels including the Hex Hall and Rebel Belle series. This is first adult thriller. Jane is a young woman, down on her luck, making a living by walking dogs in a wealthy neighbourhood. When she is almost run down by Eddie, a wealthy and recent widower, sparks fly and it looks like Jane's luck has turned. What she does not know, however, is that Eddie's wife did not die in a tragic boating accident with her best friend as people believe, but is locked in a soundproofed panic room in their large home. This psychological thriller is very entertaining and a good recommendation for fans of the genre.

This was an enjoyable and twisty southern gothic retelling of Jane Eyre. I enjoyed all the little nods to the original story as well as the twists to make it updated. It wasn’t the best written book I’ve ever read but certainly easy to read and fun. Definitely a bit unpredictable, even if you’re familiar with Jane Eyre.