I absolutely love this dramatic, twisty domestic thriller that seems to be inspired by the classic Jane Eyre. In this modern interpretation, Jane is a dog-walker in an upscale neighborhood in Birmingham, Alabama but has dreams of a better life. She meets Eddie Rochester, a handsome man in the neighborhood who romantically buys a dog for an excuse to contact Jane again. Soon the two are inseparable and that’s when the roller coaster ride begins!

The book goes back and forth between the points-of-view of Jane’s and of Eddie’s wife Bea who is presumed dead. Bea disappeared from a boat with her best friend and is presumed dead and her story is told in things she has written down in a journal of sorts. Not until close to the end do we get a short part of the story told from Eddie’s point-of-view but those words help explain some of the questions I had about why Eddie made some of the decisions he did. I don’t want to say too much and spoil the story for others, but I will say that shocking revelations begin in Part II of the book and keep coming from then on. I like the ending, even though it seemed a little abrupt in the way everything is wrapped up. I’ve given the book 4.5 stars because this is a good story who gets better and better as it progresses and the next plot twist occurs.

I received this ebook from NetGalley through the courtesy of St. Martin’s Press. An advance copy was provided to me at no cost, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

As a professor of Victorian literature, how could I not read a retelling of the class novel by Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre will forever be a favorite read and as such, I was excited to dive into Rachel Hawkins' The Wife Upstairs. I was hoping that due to the title, that "the madwoman in the attic" would take the starring role. Bertha has always been a problematic character that was written during (and a reflection of) the height of British Imperialism, so why seek out a revision of Bertha as an empowered, independent, and even heroic? Hawkins, however, had very different plans for Bertha -- as well as Rochester, Helen, and of course, Jane. While the novel played with the romance convention, dabbled in the classism, and how poverty unequally impacts women, The Wife Upstairs takes on an entirely separate identity of its own. I enjoyed how Hawkins played with convention and then added a few twists for good measure. Overall, an entertaining read for an audience that does not necessarily need to be acquainted with Jane to enjoy the narrative.

Jane Eyre set in the deep south? Ok you have my attention. Now throw in some really unlikeable characters and I will certainly take the bait. Leave me guessing until the very end, well now you have me hook, line and sinker.

Our story involves the ultra fancy Alabama neighborhood's plain Jane dogwalker. But who is Jane actually, do we ever know? She catches the eye of the recently-widowed Eddie Rochester. His wife Bea (crazy wealthy from her successful business) and her bestie Blanche, died in a terrible boating accident bodies never recovered (uh huh). Eddie quickly moves Jane in and well down the rabbit hole we go.

This book has more secrets and surprises than most domestic thrillers these days. Every turn around the mansion and there is something new we discover from one of our 3 narrators. They are all super unreliable and really unlikeable. But this is all good with me, I love these details. There were some flow issues and a couple parts that bugged me with the pacing. Overall this was a great 4.5 star read for me. I switched back and forth between audio and ebook. I enjoyed the narration.

Thank you to Rachel Hawkins, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely LOVED this book!!! The twists were incredible, and I enjoyed the character build up. Great book!! I’d love to read more by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins.

Jane recently moved to Birmingham,Alabama and started a new job as a dog-walker in an upscale rich development, Thornfield Estates. She is fleeing from her own sordid past, looking to get lost in a self-absorbed country club society. She is a kleptomaniac, but luckily, the rich housewives won’t miss a thing she takes. When she meets Eddie Rochester, she instantly falls in love and gets swept up in winning his heart. However, Eddie is hiding secrets of his own. His wife, Bea, is missing and her best friend, Blanche has been murdered. What happened to Bea and Blanche? Did Eddie have anything to do with it?

This book is a creative retelling of Jane Eyre with a modern twist. With hints of B.A. Paris creepiness, Hawkins cleverly weaves her own spin on a classic rags to riches story. While I was at first intrigued by the plot, it dragged on a bit longer than I would have liked without enough twists and turns to keep my interest. When the twists finally arrived, I accurately predicted the reveals too easily. Whether it was because I have also read Jane Eyre, or just too many thrillers, I wish that there were more aha moments. I do want to credit Hawkins with her originality in reworking Jane Eyre characters to fit into their new roles in this book. Beware, Jane Eyre fans, Adele is a dog! A slow-burn thriller with lots of scam artists and scoundrels, you must read it to find out who will come out on top!

3.5/5 stars

Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for the opportunity. My review opinion is my own.
I am a fan of the author's former writing and enjoyed this delicious fun suspenseful read. This has all the elements of a perfect thriller, a cheating husband, a small town in the South and great charcters. I highly recommend this book for your reading enjoyment.

Our main charcter Jayne is down on her luck. She is a dog walker in a affluent neighborhood in the South. She supplements her income stealing from her rich clients and has no remorse about her thievery. This is a clue for the reader to her charcter. She finds an opportunity to change her life forever and her status when she becomes interested in a rich widower and he is interested in her enough to pursue a relationship. However he is hiding secrets about his first wife and her untimely death . Jayne soon realizes that the wife will never be forgotten and her life may not be the fairy tale she hoped for.

I loved this book and Jayne as a smart savvy survivor. The charcters all add to the atmospheric Southern setting and the mystery deepens throughout much to the reader's enjoyment. A wonderful fun escape read perfect for these pandemic times.

Jane is a Birmingham transplant running from her past. She works at the local coffee shop and walks dogs in a swanky neighborhood. Jane likes to lift items from her clients houses to see if she can get away with it, plus needs the money for rent and to survive.
Eddie is a recently widowed man who tries to plow Jane over with his car, by accident, but luckily she is not hurt. It is a chance meeting, or is it? Slowly they fall for each other and the secrets each are trying to hide come out, and it is quite a ride.
I am off to find other books by this author - she paints quite a picture on the ride that is The Wife Upstairs.

This was such a good read - what a creative and different plot! The main character was mysterious in a way that had my guessing her next move and always being wrong. I loved that the author told the story in a way that felt like you knew what was going on, until another twist happened. Would definitely recommend!

This book was okay but it felt like a story I’ve already read and very derivative of other works like Gone Girl. The character development was also very underwhelming and I never felt invested enough to truly cared what happened to any of them.

Spoiler alert!!!

We first meet Jane as a dogwalker with a dark past. She starts stealing little things from the wealthy homes she works for. Then she sets her eyes on the biggest prize of them all, Eddie Rochester, recently widowed. His wife Bea and her best friend Blanche died in a tragic boating accident. Eddie & Jane's romance heats up quickly and he asks her to move in and marry her. Jane begins to become suspicious of her fiancee when Bea and Blanche's deaths are deemed murders.

SPOILER!!! We then learn that only Blanche is dead. Eddie is hiding Bea in a panic room he had built in the house. A full year he was hiding Bea and she survived on apples, water, and cheese cracker sandwiches??? Something was missing for me! I had a hard time believing this.

If you haven't read Jane Eyre you'll love this modern gothic-ish lightly spooky novel.
If you have read Jane Eyre and remember it well you'll be able to predict this well and it won't be as exciting.

I love Jane Eyre and it's slow burn romance, but the romance between Jane and Eddie here felt so forced and fake. I got bored of everyone and just wanted Bea to get a little more time in the story🤷🏻‍♀️.

A decent quiet thriller, but nothing exciting or fresh.

One of my favorite books of 2020! As a huge Jane Eyre lover, I was skeptical as I started The Wife Upstairs, but one chapter in and I was hooked. Unlike the original, this novel centers around a "heroine" who was flawed and possessed, at time, questionable morals explained away by her rough childhood. I loved the character development of Jane, Eddie, and Bea, and Hawkins' use of multiple narrators makes the book even more engrossing. I highly recommend this book!

An excellent and twisty modern retelling of Jane Eyre, the classic Gothic novel by Charlotte Brontë.

This is such a fun, twisted take on Jane Eyre. Don’t expect to read about the characters you know, though! It’s a great domestic thriller with fun callbacks to the classic and a perfect Southern setting.

”I’m just a girl who got caught up in other people’s bullshit.”

This quote basically sums up the majority of this book. I’ve read and enjoyed a few of Hawkins' YA novels, so I was excited to read an adult thriller from her. However, I wasn’t impressed with this book.

I was expecting something gothic and full of mystery, but I received none of that in The Wife Upstairs. I feel like we were teased with Jane’s “secret” throughout the book only for it to be lackluster. To be honest, I found Jane to be lackluster. But not just her, everyone in this book. We were given one dimensional characters with no dept to them at all. I didn’t care about them and thought they were all terrible.

What also made this underwhelming was the big reveal and the ending. While it wasn’t as boring as Jane’s secret, I felt like I was waiting for more. As soon as I finished reading, the first thought that came to mind was “that’s it?”. Basically, my thoughts about the whole book.

All in all, I was disappointed. Maybe if you are a fan of Hawkins' writing or Jane Eyre retellings then give this a read.

This was a very cleverly crafted plot. There are so many twists and the entire story is a roller coaster ride. Get ready for a shock!
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Jane is a dog walker with a past that she wants to leave behind her. As Jane starts to meet people in the rich neighborhood, she becomes friends with the people within. One day she bumps into Eddie, while walking a dog, they become involved. Jane now has the life she has dreamed of having, Eddie is hiding something from his past as well. As Jane starts learning about Eddie’s ex wife Bea, she becomes skeptical about her death and how it actually occurred.. Was it Eddie or someone else. What she doesn’t know will shock her to her core. This book was a bit predictable but had some great twists and turns. Definitely one to pick up this winter. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and #Netgalley for providing me with an ARC.

Deception is the name of the game in The Wife Upstairs. Jane wants security and safety after a life of neither. She is shrewd and calculating. However, after she hooks up,with Eddie she encounters people who are even more calculating than she. I liked this book. It was sordid, twisted, and sinister. Readers will think the actual culprit is a few different people. Hawkins writes a twisted tale of manipulation and ambition. Read it and see of the title fits the plot.

Jane while working as a dog-walker meets Eddie and they fall for each other rather too quickly. She then finds more about his supposedly dead wife Bea. From there, she finds more unexpected information but it's all about how she is going to handle the crazy situation she ends up in. Will she even make it out alive?

Pros:
Interesting take on Jane Eyre
Great twists and suspense
Quick read
Rich Southern society

My only issue is that the ending felt slightly let down as I was waiting for some major twist that no one would even guess but it ended rather too nicely. Also expected Jane’s past to catch up on her but it was almost nothing.

Shades of Jane Eyre and Rebecca!

Jane is walking dogs for a living, wishing for more after escaping a sad life and a mysterious circumstance. When she is almost hit by the car of Eddie Rochester, things look up. Poor Eddie lost his wife and her best friend, both missing and presumed dead, so he is ripe for the picking. You have to look beyond the facade of the perfect neighborhood and the perfect man. Jane starts to see a different side to Eddie. What about his "missing" wife Bea? Was she who everyone thought she was?

I did figure out early on the what and the why. That did not deter from me really enjoying as I read along. It was slow moving. Do not expect a fast paced story. It lingers with you on the page, leading to the final climax. A very enjoyable way to spend the time.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an advance copy of this book.