I loved this Southern take similar to Jane Eyre. I live near Birmingham, Alabama so the story was set in very familiar territory. That made it interesting to me to hear local places, shops and areas mentioned. Jane is a very likeable character even though you realize she is out to con Eddie. It seems she may be the one in trouble herself. A good read for Summer, the story is intriguing and keeps you guessing.

One of my favorite all time books is Jane Eyre and this book takes the classic story but gives it a modern spin. “Jane” is trying to escape her former life and falls into a job as a dog walker in an upscale neighborhood. This is where she meets him... Eddie.... the one she just feels connected to. Her past is not perfect but neither is his. What really happened to his dead wife who was never found? It is a great book and must read!

I devoured this book in less than 24 hours. It’s that good and reminds me a lot of Ruth Ware’s “twists and turns” style of storytelling. I highly recommend this one.

"The Wife Upstairs" was a good thriller. There was something shady and untrustworthy about every one of the characters that kept me reading. Overall worth reading.

Thank you, St. Martin's Press, Rachel Hawkins and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Where do I begin with this novel chock full of seemingly unredeemable characters who swirl around the murders of two friends and southern socialites in upscale Alabama? The book has many "I didn't see that coming!" moments and the characters are never what they seem to be, Each player in the quickly unwinding plot are all hiding secrets with hidden angst and motivating fear. "Jane Eyre-esque", this novel is a fun read and will keep you coming back to escape into the crazy world of a "real housewives" drama with murder on the side. With southern charm front of house and lying and deceit working being the scenes this book begins with a dog walker catapulted into the world of designer lives and dastardly deeds.

5/5 for this book. I loved it! Jane arrives in Thornfield Estates and becomes a dog walker to the rich and bored surburban housewives. She meets the attractive, recently widowed Eddie and falls in love - with him or what his money can give her. Eddie's wife and best friend went missing in a mysterious boating accident.

The story follows Eddie and Jane as they both have secrets in their past they dont want others to know about. The book keeps you guessing the entire time.

A modern retelling of Jane Eyre with a little bit of DuMaurier's Rebecca thrown in. I liked the concept behind the story and it was clever to have the story told from three viewpoints: Jane's , Eddie's, and Bea's. You got a more complete story with more details explained. Kudos to Hawkins for throwing in a lot of little details from Jane Eyre down to the dog Adele. The only thing was that Jane wasn't very likeable and you didn't root for her or her relationship with Eddie. Still an enjoyable read and some good twists (although if you know Jane Eyre you already know one). Thanks to #NetGalley for the ARC and the opportunity to read and review this book.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3410790306?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Loved it!

Pretty Woman meets Jane Eyre- told from multiple POV’s.

“Whatever souls were made of, mine and Jane’s were the same.”

Jane Bell recently moved to Birmingham, Alabama to start over. Broke and living in a crappy apartment, she gets a job as a dog walker in a fancy neighborhood called Thornfield Estates, a beautiful gated community. There she meets Eddie Rochester- handsome, rich, and recently widowed. As Jane and Eddie become closer, she learns Eddie’s wife Bea died in a tragic boating accident with her best friend less than a year ago. But was it an accident? As the story progresses, Jane learns the truth about Bea, and faces secrets of her own.

Fast paced and binge-worthy! Fans of Ruth Ware and Lisa Jewell will enjoy this!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC!

An intricate plot from many different directions, which left me wondering who of the characters I felt like I could trust!

Rated E for exceeds expectations. I've never been wild about Jane Eyre, but couldn't resist this modern take. Hawkins did a great job updating the parts of the story that haven't aged well and still managed a good twist (difficult with a story we all already know).

As soon as you start reading this book you know the main character is going to be an interesting one!’ Full of drama and thrill... you won’t want to put it down. Go read!

Good read, wasn’t crazy about the characters. There were a lot of details, the plot began well, yet I tired of reading about shallow women and minute details of their jewelry and yoga outfits. Jane wished to have a cushy shallow life too, but stealing from her clients and scamming others was a real turn off. By the last 10% of the book I was ready for it to end and was bored with the “did he/did she” dialogue. I found most of the characters more exasperating than interesting.
Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. .

Enjoyed all of the twists and turns. The story sucked me in to the plot and kept me reading because I had to know how it would turn out in the end.

This book was fantastic! I loved how the true story unfolded and getting sneak peeks of Bea’s life throughout the book. Jane’s story has me hooked from the beginning and loved the twist at the end.

This book was so good! I loved how the story was written from a variety of different perspectives. I still don't feel like I trust "Jane" and didn't love that she ended up with all of Bea's hard earned money. Jane was a thief and a gold digger and she got rewarded for it?? The book kept me entertained though and I read it in one day. I'll definitely look for more books by rachel Hawkins..

Didn't love it. The characters were boring. Pass. Would not recommend....didn't like Jane Eyre either.

The Wife Upstairs starts out simple with Jane the dog walker, but becomes slowly complicated by Jane’s twisted life.
A new man she meets walking the dogs seems to be the man of her dreams, but is she and he really everything they appear to be appear to be? And what is that knocking Jane hears upstairs?
Be prepared to be over your head, and out of your comfort zone with Rachel Hawkins in The Wife Upstairs.

Really enjoyed this new book by Rachel Hawkins. Jane is a dog walker who moved to Birmingham, Alabama who is looking for something more. She meets Eddie and sparks fly. She is then thrust into a world of rich housewives and giant houses. Although the mysterious death of Eddie's ex-wive looms. The novel kept me turning pages and was extra fun since I'm from Birmingham, so I knew all the places and atmospheres. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good suspenseful mystery.

Wow...this was a good one that definitely exceeded my expectations!

Jane is a new arrival in Alabama. She’s broke, and lives with a roommate in a dump of a town. She ends up dog-walking for the elite in a beautiful gated community. On one of her walks, she meets Eddie. He’s a recently widowed man whose wife, along with her best friend, drowned during a “girls weekend”. Their bodies were never discovered. Jane and Eddie fall in love. As their romance quickly escalates, Jane can’t help but hear the town gossip and wonder if Eddie’s marriage wasn’t as perfect as he depicted. Jane also has a past that she doesn’t want anyone to find out...least of all Eddie.

I completely devoured this book! There were some twists that I could see coming, but even more that took me by surprise. I love the writing style of author Rachel Hawkins. It’s very smooth and easy to get lost in her descriptions, characters lines, and imagery. It’s just a fun book that reveals secrets at a perfect pace. That made it very hard for me to put down.

⚠️ CAUTION: This is a modern twist on JANE EYRE, a novel I’ve heard about, but never read. I was also unfamiliar with details of the plot. There is at least one Goodreads review for this book that doesn’t use a spoiler alert before revealing one of the twists. According to the reviewer, spoilers aren’t needed for a book based on a book published in 1847. I absolutely do not agree with that. FYI in case anyone reads additional reviews before reading this novel. If you aren’t familiar with Jane Eyre and don’t want to be spoiled, proceed with caution.

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

A story told by the points of view of Bea, Eddie, and Jane, The Wife Upstairs is a excellent suspense with a lot of twists and turns.
Thank you St. Martins Press, Rachel Hawkins, and Netgalley for ARC.