Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books of all time and, I’m disappointed to say, I do not feel as though this reimagining did it justice at all. It had none of Jane Eyre’s complex and interesting characters - I found these versions unlikeable and tedious. The plot had promise, but for me, the execution was not done well.

The Other Wife by Juliet Bell is a clever retelling of Jane Eyre including Edward Rochester as the bad guy. The elements are all there except the bulk of it takes place on a ranch in the wilds of the outback in Australia. It begins with both Jane and Betty (Elizabeth) as children, treated as orphans when maybe they were not. It was painful to read as they both grew up in home where they were undervalued and treated cruelly. I was hurtful to see them used by the people in their lives. It was especially difficult to see Edward, bitter and cold, close himself off from what might have been true happiness.

This was a clever adaptation show some points of view beyond those of just Jane, as in the original. There are always so many possibilities for peoples' motivations that he emotions and behaviors here opened the reader up to new interpretations of a book they thought they new. Betty (Elizabeth) was the product of an interracial marriage in England. When her mother had a nervous breakdown and had to be hospitalized, her father was left with no options so he checked her into an orphanage, apparently believing that he could retrieve her at any point. From there, she was sent to Australia with a load of orphans. She was sent to a loving mother, who sadly perished leaving her alone with an older brother and heartless father. Jane was taken by child welfare from a commune where she lived with her mother and given, by child welfare to an unpleasant aunt who had two unpleasant children. From there she was sent to boarding school where she spent fourteen years. Both were clearly drawn characters, born of the cruelty of their lives but somehow coming out at the other end.

This was a thoughtful and thought-provoking book. I highly recommend it although would recommend reading the original first. If that is not possible, this is a stand-alone piece of woman's fiction.

I was given a free ARC of The Other Wife in exchange for a fair and honest review. #netgalley #theotherwife

My Thoughts

I am a Bronte fan, so this combined modern adaptation/retelling looked inviting. To place a Jane Eyre type character in outback Australia 1980s sounded a clever undertaking. So whilst it is not necessary to have read Bronte’s original, it does make for a more engaging comparison to be made. Despite what would be obvious necessary changes, it would be intriguing to see how this fateful tale would unfold in new contemporary rural circumstances.

Told through the viewpoints of both Jane and Betty (aka Bertha), Bell provides the reader with significant background details of both women. Both stories contain great sadness with childhoods filled with abandonment and therefore, some understanding of the present day woman current in the narrative, becomes clear. My first problem here is that, I never felt I fully understood, or was provided, with the reasons for Betty’s anxiety/madness. Innuendo was insufficient for me to appreciate this crucial factor and combine that with her obvious lucid moments, I often found myself confused.

‘Edward thought she was mad. Grace thought she was mad.’

Then there is Rochester. Never ever could he be viewed as likable from the original, but here he was absolutely despicable. Not much more to say but a really unlikeable character from beginning to end. I liked that ‘Thornfield’ was in remote outback Australia - but was that because it fit nicely as a modern adaptation? I don’t have a problem with adaptations veering from the original and although many of the incidences could be likened, there were just as many that were different. Especially the ending.

What I did struggle with was the overall theme of terrible male characters and the use of sex as power in a wide range of scenarios and rather fanatically. I hated the silly quips such as, ‘Maybe the father will fall in love with me and ask me to marry him, like in The Sound of Music’ - good grief! Finally, to be honest, I did not enjoy the writing style - rather disjointed at times which may be the result of me learning that the author, Juliet Bell, is in fact the collaborative pen name of authors Janet Gover and Alison May.

‘We are of this land. We know how to wait. We should go on strike like the Gurindji.’ ‘How long do we wait? It took ’em ten years at Wave Hill.’

I held such hope for this tale as I truly believed that they had all the components necessary to write a really good adaptation. Sadly, it totally missed the mark for me as key points just did not add up.



This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release

This is an adaptation/rethinking of the famous Jane Eyre novel - this time set in Australia. Since I have never read Jane Eyre, I didn't find the fact that this is an adaptation distracting and I enjoyed this book. I loved the two women in the book (Betty and Jane). Bell created a despicable scoundrel with Edward, a character we love to hate. Overall, I got caught up in this book and would definitely read others by Juliet Bell!

Having been 'forced' to read Jane Eyre as a teenager for my GCSEs, i wasn't too keen on the book. But I reread it in my twenties and saw it in a different light. So I was intrigued by this book which offered a modern retelling in a very different setting.

Sadly I couldn't engage with the characters, who needed more dimensions than offered in this retelling. The author slavishly followed the steps of the original as a tick-list, rather than interpreting the events and updating them in an original fashion.

Sadly, this book misses the mark and just didn't work for me. Perhaps I am not one for a modern retelling but this didn't resonate at all.

This is my honest opinion---I hated this book and could not finish it. The author proports that it is a rewriting of Jane Eyre. Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books, and I take offense that this novel was in any way compared to the original. The story is narrated by 2 women and gets confusing. Not only that, one of the characters keeps changing her name. I get the feeling, too, that the author hates men because every man in the novel was mean, nasty and misogynistic. I cannot in any way recommend this book.

Set in Australia, this novel was inspired by Jane Eyre. An unusual idea and one that works pretty well. I like spin off books from the classics, but probably personally prefer those that continue the original or provide the back story rather than modernise the classic.
If you like historic epic novels, you will probably like this. I have some friends I will certainly be recommending this book to. It wasn’t entirely my cup of tea, but I can see it’s appeal. (Having said that, I very much enjoyed the reworked ending.)
Thank you #Netgalley and Juliet Bell for giving me the opportunity to read and review #TheOtherWife.

This is a modern version of the classic Jane Eyre. I am a fan of the original but unfortunately I felt like there was something missing in this re-telling. I couldn't get absorbed into the story and felt the characters could have been fleshed out a little more because I didn't really take to any of them.

This is a reimagining of Jane Eyre set in 1980s Australia.
The focus is on the two women - Betty (who was sent to Australia on board a ship, quite possibly against her father's wishes) and Jane (who was sent to live with an abusive aunt after her mother was arrested). Both had heartbreakingly bad childhoods which feed into who they become when they grow up.
Rochester is a weak man who has had power and responsibility thrust upon him. He can't handle it and blames others when he fails.
His daughter Adele is lightly drawn, a child trapped in a world of adult schemes.
Thornfield is set in the Australian outback, which is even more isolated than rural Yorkshire.

This is very much a re-imagining rather than an adaptation. There are several differences from the original, even though most of the elements are kept the same. The ending is significantly different. I like the new ending very much more than the original.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

Amazing book. Loved it from beginning to end.
Well written which kept me captivated throughout.
I will definitely be reading other books by this author

I may be one of the few who have not read Jane Eyre. Prior to reading this novel, I read a few reviews and others were comparing it to the original Jane Eyre. I was able to dive in with a clear head and I didn’t compare this story with any other. I can honestly say that I truly enjoyed The Other Wife. I loved Jane, Betty and despised Edward!
My historical fiction taste usually goes back prior to the 60’s and 80’s so in my mind this story was in another timeframe.
I will definitely be looking forward to reading more from Juliet Bell. Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read for an honest review.

Jane Eyre has always been one of my favorite novels and I understand why there's been a spate of fan fiction lately where the tale has been set in different locales (the Hamptons and now Australia.). If you haven't read that book or if it's faded in your mind, you'll enjoy this more than I did. It's not Bell's fault- she writes well and she's changed things up, especially the end, but I can't quite get the original out of my head. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC.

I am probably one of the few people who does not like Jane Eyre so I was unsure what to expect from The Other Wife.
The story is set in Australia with Jane's storyline very similar to the original. It felt like each event was being ticked off one by one. We also meet Betty, who at an early age, was seperated from her family in England, transported to Australia and adopted by a new family.. For me, neither character was fleshed out and It was impossible to empathise with either woman. I did enjoy the ending which differs from Jane Eyre as I feel it was a far more fitting end for Rochester.

Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books of all time, I were stranded on a deserted island, it would be with me. So when I saw that this book was a 20th century retelling of the story I wasn’t sure what to expect. Transported from 19th century England to mid twentieth century Australia, most of the characters have the same names and the plot lines are quite similar, maybe too similar. I didn’t feel the same connection to Jane, she was a little too undeveloped for my taste. The best past of the book, and the one place the book takes a major diversion from the original, is the ending. The ending is all about female empowerment, and it’s really very well done.