Name: The Wife Upstairs
ISBN: 9780008377533

Rachel Hawkins

‘I was completely blown away by The Wife Upstairs. This is a compulsive, irresistible retelling of Jane Eyre with a modern, noir twist – and wow, does it work’ Samantha Downing, bestselling author of My Lovely Wife

The Wife Upstairs

'I was completely blown away by The Wife Upstairs. This is a compulsive, irresistible retelling of Jane Eyre with a modern, noir twist - and wow, does it work' Samantha Downing, bestselling author of My Lovely Wife You never know what secrets are hiding behind closed doors... When Jane, a broke dog-walker newly arrived in town, meets Eddie Rochester, she can't believe her luck. Eddie is handsome, rich and lives alone in an opulent mansion since his beloved wife drowned in a boating accident a year ago. Eddie can give Jane everything she's always wanted: stability, acceptance, and a picture-perfect life. But what Jane doesn't know is that Eddie is keeping a secret - a big secret. And when the truth comes out, the consequences could be far deadlier than anyone could have imagined... A delicious twist on a Gothic classic, The Wife Upstairs is perfect for fans of Lucy Foley, Ruth Ware and Shari Lapena. 'A sharp, fresh twist on a classic in this darkly funny, suspenseful story of murder, ambition, and love. Creepy and fast-paced...kept me on the edge of my seat from the first page to the very last' bestselling author Megan Miranda 'The Wife Upstairs is everything I'd hoped-sharp, smart, tricky and fast-paced' Kelly Harms, author of The Overdue Life of Amy Byler

This felt too simplified for what it was trying to retell / re-imagine. Perhaps its biggest pitfall is trying to build up the complexity of the characters via flashbacks and switching POV's (and I know some of them and the diary entries are used for misdirection but come on - why would Eddie need a POV then?) There is so little to this book that without them, if it had tried to build actual mystery and suspense, it would have been only about 200 pages long.

And it could have been good if it had focused on Jane and made her less passive; if it had woven the mystery into the main story; if it had actually bothered to develop the characters. Instead it chose to be just another Southern thriller about a girl with a fake name, running from her past, that is not even atmospheric.

This felt too simplified for what it was trying to retell / re-imagine. Perhaps its biggest pitfall is trying to build up the complexity of the characters via flashbacks and switching POV's (and I know some of them and the diary entries are used for misdirection but come on - why would Eddie need a POV then?) There is so little to this book that without them, if it had tried to build actual mystery and suspense, it would have been only about 200 pages long.

And it could have been good if it had focused on Jane and made her less passive; if it had woven the mystery into the main story; if it had actually bothered to develop the characters. Instead it chose to be just another Southern thriller about a girl with a fake name, running from her past, that is not even atmospheric.

Instant New York Times and USA Today Bestseller “Compulsively readable...a gothic thriller laced with arsenic.” ––EW One of the Most Anticipated Books of 2021: CNN • Newsweek • Vulture • PopSugar • Parade • BuzzFeed • E!Online • TimeOut • Woman's Day • Goodreads • She Reads • Good Housekeeping • CrimeReads • Frolic • Hello! • Mystery and Suspense January 2021 Indie Next Pick and #1 LibraryReads Pick A delicious twist on a Gothic classic, The Wife Upstairs pairs Southern charm with atmospheric domestic suspense, perfect for fans of B.A. Paris and Megan Miranda. Meet Jane. Newly arrived to Birmingham, Alabama, Jane is a broke dog-walker in Thornfield Estates––a gated community full of McMansions, shiny SUVs, and bored housewives. The kind of place where no one will notice if Jane lifts the discarded tchotchkes and jewelry off the side tables of her well-heeled clients. Where no one will think to ask if Jane is her real name. But her luck changes when she meets Eddie Rochester. Recently widowed, Eddie is Thornfield Estates’ most mysterious resident. His wife, Bea, drowned in a boating accident with her best friend, their bodies lost to the deep. Jane can’t help but see an opportunity in Eddie––not only is he rich, brooding, and handsome, he could also offer her the kind of protection she’s always yearned for. Yet as Jane and Eddie fall for each other, Jane is increasingly haunted by the legend of Bea, an ambitious beauty with a rags-to-riches origin story, who launched a wildly successful southern lifestyle brand. How can she, plain Jane, ever measure up? And can she win Eddie’s heart before her past––or his––catches up to her? With delicious suspense, incisive wit, and a fresh, feminist sensibility, The Wife Upstairs flips the script on a timeless tale of forbidden romance, ill-advised attraction, and a wife who just won’t stay buried. In this vivid reimagining of one of literature’s most twisted love triangles, which Mrs. Rochester will get her happy ending?

A Novel

I was looking for a typical fun trashy thriller but this was just terrible

mehrsa

Eva Ströberg

The wife upstairs - Rachel Hawkins
.
⭐️⭐️
.
Meh. This book is so hyped on goodreads but I had a suspicion that it would be meh. I was curious tho because I did like the Gone Girl (the book, not the film), and some other thriller. But this one is truly a meh experience despite all the excitements and plot twists promised in the book
.
Plain Jane, a dogwalker in a rich neighbourhood in Alabama meets Eddie, a handsome, rich man while dogwalking. It turns out Eddie’s wife was gone missing, presumably dead 👀. Jane itself has dodgy secrets that she tried to keep so it’s a book with secrets all around that are supposed to be mindblowing 🤯 but not really 🫤
.
#rachelhawkins #thewifeupstairs #bookstagram #2023reads #currentlyreading

Marcy Pursell 

** spoiler alert **
           A mix of Gone Girl meets A Simple Favor meets Sharp Objects, and something all its own. Not my usual genre, but definitely kept me intrigued to know what was happening, and the last third of the book had me dying to know how it would end. Fast chapters and sections told from different points of view kept me intrigued too.

This book is messy, awful characters, predictable twists but I was still entertained. 

Megan BV

Jule

1. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did a really good job. Her southern drawl was very entertaining

2. I haven’t read Jane Eyre and apparently this is a retelling. So to me the story was new and therefore interesting.

 Meaning that this review is only helpful for this combo:
Audiobook + no prior Jane Eyre knowledge

Mia Caven

The title literally gives everything away so it’s not even a thriller that’s shocking or has you on the edge of your seat. It’s more like a news article that tells u in the title what it’s about and you’re just reading about what happened. It’s a well written book, nothing fantastical, and a decent story/plot that I genuinely didn’t mind reading it but it’s not mind blowing at all.

Jenna Wooten

It starts out with good build up, I liked the main character and reminded me a lot of the beginning of Verity. The twist in the middle is wild- but then again, the title gave away one of the main plot twists, which I’m not sure why the author chose that. Hated the ending. It ended too abruptly and had no closure.

Caitlin Moore

3⭐️

Writing: 4.5⭐️
Plot: 3.5⭐️
Character development: 2⭐️

This didn’t come full circle for me, however I enjoyed reading it. I feel like there should have been just one more chapter to finish everything up.

The perfect easy read. Full of twists, a tiny bit predictable but not enough to ever make you sure you knew what was coming next. So consuming that I wanted to finish the story and find out who the real murderer was as soon as I read the first chapter.

Macy M

I didn’t see the twist coming, which made it good to me. Cheesy, but not in a bad way

Ariel Correa

Midori Kobayashi

having read so many domestic thrillers i knew exactly what i was getting into- i just needed a thriller fix. but holy shit man this felt like a contemporary romance half the time and even the reveals happen- it's just shabby with so many loopholes. a modern day take on jane eyre is supposed to be more interesting than this shitshow. thoroughly disappointed:/

Kristen Claiborn

Rags to riches...ish. I liked it. It didn't blow my mind, but I loved how everybody was a bad guy.

I expected more of a twist and the ending just felt bland or unfinished to me (yes I did also read the alternate ending) I think the epilogue would’ve been better if it was either Eddie or Bea’s POV or even keeping it as Jane but in a much more solid opinion of what she thinks happened to Eddie and Bea or some clue evidence that leads her to her solid opinion about them. I think we also needed to see more of Bea’s wickedness a little earlier on and not almost all at once. But I was a decent read. 

Lizeth Esmeralda

Molly Morgan

Eh, this book was fine. It was a fun little read. The wife, was upstairs. Seems wile that she was upstairs and the only noise Jane heard was some thumping.. twice. Jane wasn't very perceptive once inside Eddie's house, when she had been so aware of her surroundings when dog walking for his neighbors.

All in all, the twists and turns in this book are subpar BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, I liked the ending. The mystery of the ending was satisfying to me. This book entertained me and I had a good time retelling it to my partner as I read.

Stef

Just from the title you can expect what the twist. The thing that I love from this book how the author writing style can hook reader from start of the page and the plot going fast. I just don't like the characters kinda blant and don't have any developmen. :) 

Aku juga ngga begitu suka dengan trope cerita nya bawa-bawa insta love and rush relationship, aku ga ngerasa ada chemistry relationship nya si suami-istri atau suami with mistress nya. Kalau dibandingkan dengan Jane Eyre, hubungan percintaan nya disini kayak ya flat datar aja, dan aku juga ga merasa thrilling sampai di ending. Endingnya udah kayak penurunan dan terlalu buru-buru juga. 

The best point versi audiobooknya enak banget. Bisa bayangin gimana cast-cast nya, dan sifat-sifat karakternya digambarkan well done dari narasi aktor & aktris nya, Kalau ada mencari Thriller romance, terinspirasi dari karya klasik mungkin bisa dicoba, siapa tau cocok. ^.^


  "Bea had always believed that a man who overestimates his intelligence is a man who can be easily manipulated. Turns out, he’s also a man who can be really dangerous."

Izza

3.5 stars | everyone’s in this book is unlikeable and seriously effed up. Plot was alright.

It was a really good book that kept you engaged and thinking the entire time 

Christy Talley

Jessica Lynn

the only reason i give this book three stars: the popsicle? banana.

Cheri McElroy

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Umm...that was crazy! A southern retelling of Jane Eyre, with twisty, unlikeable characters. 

Jane is a dog walker in ritzy Thornfield Estates, running from her past. Eddie Rochester is wealthy and grieving his wife Bea’s recent death. They fall in love...or do they? And always before them is Bea.

This was a fun ride that didn't take its retelling too seriously. A great ride.

Sven Test

2.0x speed for the first 28% and 2.5x speed for the rest of the book. | Wow wow wow! I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book. The narration alone hooked me, so I’m glad for that. The story itself blew me away. 

We have a woman, Jane, wanting to leave her past behind. She ends up getting a job as a dog walker at a very rich neighborhood. She’s always admired this one specific house, wondering who lives there, until one day, the owner of the house almost ran her over. From that point on, her life slowly starts to change. 

From the moment Eddie is introduced, I was intrigued. He was...different than anyone in the neighborhood, and there was something underneath that called out to me. His relationship with Jane was one I really liked reading about. Honestly, this book has quite the romance being built up, and obviously, as a romance lover, I was here for it. 

But this is a thriller and things can’t be all happy go lucky. As Jane starts to learn more about Eddie and his dead wife, Bea, the more she feels like she’s living in the shadows of Bea. I wish Jane had stayed more true to herself than try to be someone else. In the end, that’s why Eddie liked her. 

Without saying too much, I did not expect that ending! I did figure out the reveal, but not the ending! Like, what the heck?! 

All I can say is I’ve read Rachel Hawkins books for the young adult genre, but I’m definitely keeping an eye out for her as a mystery/thriller writer.

Turtle lover

Kaitlyn Cortez

This wasn’t so much of a thriller as I thought it would be. Felt very predictable and a very quick read.

Whitney Pickle

Such an easy, quick read that's hard to put down. That ending, whoa! Didn't see that coming!!

The Wife Upstairs

Reviews

Highlights