I didn’t enjoy this book. I felt the author went over the top in trying to create “atmosphere” from page one. I normally like retellings of classics but this one fell flat. I didn’t like that Jane and Rochester had the same names as the original either. Felt painstakingly heavy and moody. But in an unearned sort of way.

Solid 4 stars.

Jane has come to town with a shady past. She is the local dog walker for the rich, where she meets Eddie. Eddie is a recent widower of his wife and her best friend that had been murdered.

Told from different points of view, the story unfolds. There are few good twists reveled throughout which kept the pages turning.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and honestly review!

This modern retelling of Jane Eyre has enough new content to keep readers guessing. And when the story twists, it really twists! Readers go back and forth so many times we got whiplash, and there’s still no clear answer at the end of who the most insane person was. Very, very readable.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

What a fun, modern retelling of a classic! There was plenty of intrigue to keep me entertained from beginning to end as there are several subplots revolving around the main characters of the story. Each character has more than one side and you have to read to keep reading to figure them out! This was a fast reading, dark, twisty thriller. I did see some of the things coming but it didn't take away from my enjoyment. Would definitely read more from Rachel Hawkins!

A few of the characters in this book are highly unlikable but that does not detract from this twisty story. Things are not always as they seem, trust your gut! This will keep you guessing and I thought the cover was great. Highly recommended. Rachel Hawkins does not disappoint when she writes! I loved it!

Thanks to Netgalley, Rachel Hawkins and St Martins Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 1/5/21

I could not put The Wife Upstairs down! This is a great thriller if you're looking for an escape. The ending of this book is perfect!!

Jane, a former foster child, becomes a dog walker in a high-end neighborhood in Birmingham, AL. One day, Jane is nearly run over by Eddie, a recent widower under strange circumstances. What begins as an innocent friendship turns into a whirlwind romance, but neither Eddie nor Jane are who they seem. Neither is the wife that supposedly drowned as a result of a horrible boating accident which also took the life of her best friend. Secrets and lies abound in this spellbinding story that will leave you reeling as you reach the final chapter.
What impressed me most about this book was the layering of secrets that are peeled away one at a time. As soon as one surprise is revealed, another mystery is identified. I couldn’t put this book down.

Read this book in one day- had my attention from the beginning!

Suspenseful., kept me guessing until the very end. Has a Gone Girl sort of feel to it. One thing that did annoy me was that anytime anyone went anywhere they’d bump into someone they knew ?? Every. Time!! So small, but also gave you the vibe of how creepy and connected this little neighborhood was. Leaves you guessing, even in the end, the fate of some characters.

Overall- great mystery with all of the fun elements... cheating, murder mystery, rich lifestyle, secrets. Thanks to NetGalley for the early access !

I really enjoyed this fun domestic thriller with lots of great twists, based VERY loosely on Jane Eyre. The major characters all have significant flaws, yet they are likable to varying degrees and it all definitely kept my interest throughout. I was a little unsure that I liked the ending at first, but on rereading it I felt it held up well and kind of grew on me. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book.

Suburban thrillers are my favorite guilty pleasure. For some reason reading about well to do families and their secrets keeps me entertained for hours.

The Wife Upstairs was a very entertaining and thought provoking read. The most common item in these books is that people don't know each other as well as they think they do. Most everyone harbors a secret that if released will become a life altering disease all its own.

Jane is new in town. Attempting to make a fresh start isn't as easy as it seems. She's living with a roommate that she can't stand and is working for wealthy families that don't deserve what they have. Something she makes clear with her little hobby. All of that changes one fateful day.

Being with Eddie is a dream. No longer is she working for the wealthy, but she's friends and neighbors with them. While life is currently like a dream Jane is having a hard time with her new life. She's constantly feeling compared to Bea, Eddie's first wife.

While Jane tries to cement herself into her new life she can't help but feel like something isn't quite right. Something isn't as it seems and she won't stop until she figures out what exactly is going on.

An intriguing story that definitely ended different than I had anticipated.

A thrilling, modern spin on a gothic classic!! Drawing inspiration from Jane Eyre, this delicious story includes little details that pay tribute to the original story and will leave lovers of the classic feeling giddy. The author expertly weaves these details into a twisty thriller/suspense novel that is one wild ride. You may know Jane Eyre but you won’t be able to predict what happens when “Jane”, a broke dog-walker, crosses paths with the wealthy Eddie Rochester in a small Alabama town where everyone seems to be hiding something.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing me with an e-galley in exchange for an honest review!

Rachel Hawkins' latest does not disappoint! This was a page turner for me, I just loved everything about this psychological domestic thriller. I was so absorbed in the storyline, it was quirky, dark and suspenseful.

How far do you go to make your dreams come true? For Jane, the end justifies the means as she’s trying to find her way in this life.

Jane has been trying to make ends meet by walking the wealthy’s dogs in their beautiful neighborhood. Things are so ho-hum she has to make her own excitement until she meets Eddie. Life is then flipped for her.

Jane loves her new life but is haunted by Bea everywhere she goes. What happened to her? Was Eddie involved?

Grab this book and settle in to take on Jane’s life.

I loved the situation and the characters in this novel. It reminded me about Gone Girl, taking the husband/wife conflicts and surprise reveals in an interesting direction. I won't say more, except to say that two wives go missing near the novel's opening, and of course the husbands are considered suspects.

It all takes place in a wealthy suburb of Birmingham Alabama, when a wayward woman comes to town and befriends many of the neighbors as a dog walker. Unfortunately, she has a past, and you get to find that out during the course of the book. The plot points are all believable, sad to say, and will keep you engaged and think about the conflicts you have had with your own circle of friends. I highly recommend this book.

I absolutely loved everything about this crazy creative thriller from beginning to end. I will give nothing away.

ane is a dog walker for wealthy clients in a Georgia suburb. It is there; she meets Eddie Rochester.

Eddie is handsome and also single. His wife Bea and her best friend Blanche died in an accident at a lake. Eventually, things progress, and. Jane f finds herself living with Eddie and engaged to be married.

The story is told mostly from Jane’s point of view, But its seamless moves from present-day to the past to fill in the blanks. Everyone in this story had secrets, Jane, Eddie, Bea, and Blanche. Other character's stories unfold as the plot progresses, adding intrigue and suspense to the plot.

I couldn't put this book down. The plot and the characters sucked me in from the first page to the last word.

This was a very creative but modern retelling if one of my favorite classic books, Jane Eyre. It wasn’t as great as the source, but it was an interesting 21st century adaptation. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy in exchange for review.

4.5/5

I don't usually read thrillers, but when I do I am pretty easily surprised. Because I spend so little time in this genre I haven't become familiar with certain plots and various twists that people who love this category have come to spot a mile away. That being said...nothing here was surprising.

I should also mention that I've never read Jane Eyre, so while this book is supposedly a modern retelling of that story, that meant nothing to me as I am not familiar with the original.

The characters are all fairly cardboard and fit perfectly into their assigned character descriptions.

Jane (not her real name) - Rough and tumble young woman who grew up in the system and thinks she's FAR more clever than she actually is but anyone with half a brain can see right through her. Harboring a secret that, once revealed, is a COMPLETE let-down and barely a secret worth hiding.

Eddie - Super hunky and charmingly rich widower who plucks Jane from her mundane life as neighborhood dog-walker and gives her the life she's always dreamed about. Also harboring a secret that kind of doesn't make sense.

Bea (not her real name) - Perfectly perfect cliched (supposedly dead) wife of Eddie who may not have been as perfect as everyone thought she was....and also may not be dead.

Blanche - Another perfectly cliched rich and bored housewife and best friend to Bea. Unhappy with her marriage (though we never know why) and jealous of all Bea's success. Very much dead.

Tripp/Emily/ Various Neighbors - A blend of superficial people who add very little to the story and are pretty much interchangeable.

As for the ending...yeah, I saw it coming, and given how little of this genre I actually read, that's pretty sad. None of it made much sense...I really don't want to give anything away, but the actions and reactions of some of the characters were just so completely unbelievable, and the will at the end made no sense, but whatever.

I'm giving this three stars because, while I didn't find it particularly original or shocking, it is an extremely readable book. You won't love the characters, but you won't dislike them so much that you don't want to continue. Not a horrible way to past the time.

My favorite book of all time is Jane Eyre. So when I saw that this book was a contemporary retelling of Jane Eyre, I had to read it! If you haven't read Jane Eyre, I think you would still enjoy this book. But I think one would appreciate it more if you have read it because of all the references to it. The author uses many names and similar scenarios that are in Jane Eyre.

For example, the main character is named Jane, her love interest is Eddie Rochester, and surprise, Eddie's assumed to be dead wife likes to be called Bea, but her real name is Bertha! And the title doesn't lie, Bea is hidden away upstairs! Also, instead of Jane being a governess to a young girl named Adele, our modern Jane is a dog walker for Eddie's pooch which is named Adele of course!

This is a fun, light read with a nice twist of the Jane Eyre story. Instead of English gothic, it's southern gothic as it takes place in Birmingham, Alabama. Jane falls in love with Eddie who is rich, handsome, and charming., but he also has his dark moments and a horrific temper. This Jane isn't as sweet and innocent as the original Jane. Everyone has secrets in this version, including Jane, Eddie, and Bea. Everyone in the community believes that Bea drowned in a boating accident along with her best friend. But Bea's body was never found and her friend might have actually been murdered. Will Jane be in danger next, and why is Bea locked away upstairs? You'll have to read this book to find out!

I am probably not the target audience for this book, but I did finish the whole thing. This book is definitely plot-based, and the characters feel like caricatures. Of all of the rotating POVs, I found Bea's the most intriguing. A lot of the book was difficult to believe, ranging from plot points to character motivation. Still, the book has a great sense of pacing, and depending on your tolerance for the characters and the plot itself, it's definitely a page-turner. The plot reminds me of something that could be a LIfetime movie. Not for me, but I can definitely see other people enjoying this book if this is the sort of style and read that appeals to them.