At first I didn't think I would like this book but you get interested and have to see where it takes you. Overall this book was a good read especially if you like dogs and I recommend it for romance lovers. I was shocked that she took stuff from the dog's owners, how in the world? I would be missing my stuff! Try it out and see what you think. I do think our patrons would enjoy it. I think they lean towards more suspense but you never know.

Another audio book I couldn't get on with unfortunately, k would definitely enjoy this as a book thoigh

I’ve never been a big Jane Eyre fan so I wasn’t sure about a retelling but I heard good things and decided to give it a try. This was fully of unlikeable characters which won’t be for everyone but it was intriguing and the twists kept me interested til the end.

When it builds to this reveal that is really just a farce! I loved it! It was entertaining from beginning to end and I loved the twisty directions it went. This was a book I listened to but slowed down to speed to make sure I soaked up every word. It had so many possibilities and was building all these angles the story could have led us down so I wanted to make sure I was prepared for each and was trying to make that educated guess before the reveal that I ended up getting utterly wrong.

I received a free audio edition of this modern novel from Netgalley, Rachel Hawkins, and MacMillan Audio along with narrators Emily Shaffer, Kirby Heyborne, and Lauren Fortgang. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. This was an interesting look at Southern Charm, and redefines our concept of 'smart women'.

Set in the busy Alabama city of Birmingham and featuring men and women of the upper echelon of the social set, the book held my interest but I found the concept of someone living downstairs of an entrapped woman for many months while those living below have not a clue a bit too much to swallow. Still, an interesting look into Birmingham society. This was my first audiobook experience and I must say that frequent use of the f-word in a written text is much less jarring than that delivered orally.

This modern retelling of Jane Eyre was okay. I wasn't crazy about it and if I'm being honest I feel like it leaned pretty heavily on someone knowing the story of Jane Eyre already so that it didn't have to do as much background and character development. That being said I don't have a major complaint with it either. The writing was clear and concise and it had good pacing.

The Wife Upstairs was a quick suspenseful read. The book was mentioned to be a twist on the classic Jane Eyre, which I did see the similarities but didn't find it as good. The author left the ending at quite a cliffhanger which made me think back to my younger days or you choose the ending. I would definitely recommend.

My review will be broken into 2 pieces. I received this book in audio form to review.
Story review: This is a very interesting story that kept me guessing until the end. It certainly didn't turn out the way I thought it would. I was a little confused in a couple places but it was eventually explained and actually just added to the intrigue. I would definitely recommend this book.

Audio review: This was my first experience with an audio book and I find I do not like this medium. I listened while using my exercycle and while sewing. On the exercycle it did hold my attention but while sewing I found that my mind drifted off to other things. The reader used different voices for the different characters but it was hard for me to follow them. I also thought it took much longer to get through the book. I can read myself much faster than listening to someone else read aloud. And I prefer to assign my own voices in my head to the different characters. I found the audio book so annoying that by chapter 14 I borrowed the e-book from the library and finished it in one day.

The Wife Upstairs was a very enjoyable book! It follows a woman, Jane (which isn't her real name), as she meets a widower. She sees his wealth and decides this is the life she wants and she will get it for herself. Gradually the story unfolds as to what happened to his missing, and declared dead, wife in a lot of twisty revelations.

I personally love a book with multiple points of view, so I loved that about this book. It really played out well and helped the story move along in the perfect way. Rachel Hawkins did a great job at making you go back and forth on what you think actually happened the night Eddie's wife went missing.

If you love a book that keeps you wanting more and suspense added in with that, read The Wife Upstairs.

This is a quick, thrilling read that had me hooked on the various characters’ stories from the beginning. Although the ending was a bit predictable I enjoyed the story nevertheless. Great narrator.

I just could not get into this book. The narrator had varying speeds and it was difficult to follow along with the story. I was disappointed because I have heard so many positive things about this book. I will have to get it in an actual book format to try again.

This was a really solid Jane Eyre retelling. It took me a good 10% to get into the book but eventually I settled into the story and narration and was taken on a wild ride by Rachel Hawkins. This fast paced book made reading a breeze and the writing was incredibly vivid, which helped me sink further into the story. Overall, this was definitely one of the better thrillers that I’ve read in awhile and the Jane Eyre connections only made it better.

Here is what’s classic. Jane, who is not really Jane, is hiding out from something, while happily, ok that is an exaggeration, walking dogs in a sedate suburban town for a bunch of snarky, gossipy women whose husbands are no better. She sets her sights on someone who is hard to take her eyes off. While Jane is more accustomed to pull-out couch-surfing, she is determined to make this McMansion-background dreamscape her own. But the price she is going to pay is destined to be high.

Jane is determined to make a go of things with Mr. Rochester (see where I’m going with this) and the more she learns about his dead wife, she wonders if she can compete.

THE WIFE UPSTAIRS gave me all the creeps and had me constantly wondering what's up with all of these unlikeable characters. Which is what I wanted. Which is why I kept reading. And, as they say in the South, y'all, that ending.

I can’t say I loved this book, but I didn’t hate it either. I liked the premise of the story. It just seemed to take a long time to get anywhere. The main character is unlikeable. Several times the past that she is running from (including police involvement) is hinted at but once it is revealed turns out to be nothing significant. It took me several tries to get into reading the book, yet there were times when I couldn’t wait to get back to it. I didn’t like the ending. It was too superficial and felt thrown together to meet a deadline.

I enjoyed the narration with the exception of the voice of Emily. It grated on my nerves. Fortunately, she didn’t have a lot of dialogue.

I would say that this book is worth a read (or listen), just don’t expect it to knock your socks off.


I received an ARC through St. Martin Press and Macmillan Audio. This in no way affects my opinion or rating of this book. I am voluntarily submitting this review and am under no obligation to do so.

This was a really fun, twisty and suspenseful mystery. I really enjoyed both the characters and the story. This modern take on a classic felt fresh and contemporary.

Jane, the main character, was complex and interesting. She herself is a bit of a mystery--she has a past she is hiding from, and she is looking for a way to escape her current humdrum existence. The mysterious Eddie might be her ticket to a better life, but he is haunted by the recent death of his wife. Jane and Eddie start to fall for each other, but with both of them hiding secrets can they really build a life together?

This is a fun, quick and escapist read. It has plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. The narrator is excellent. The story requires some suspension of disbelief, and there were some scenarios that I just didn't find believable. It detracted a little from my enjoyment of the story, but overall I would recommend it.

It's taken me several days after finishing this book to decide how to rate it. While a 3 star doesn't seem great, I will recommend this book and follow the author because overall it was engaging. It fell short for me on two counts. One, there is no redeemable character - not a one. Even the dogs were obnoxious. For me there are likable a-holes but I couldn't find one here. Eventually, they grew on me like mold but I still longed to cheer for someone. Two, it was predictable. The ending did have a twist but not enough to have me gaping. Again, I liked it and would recommend it but wish I could say I loved it.

Many thanks to Netgalley for providing my review copy.

Wow. Just wow. It isn't often that I get to the last hour of the book and think, oh I didn't think of that. This book was described as a Jane Eyre modern retelling and I'd challenge that a bit. More like inspired by Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre is more accurate. The Gothic feel of Jane Eyre is lost a bit on the modern potty mouth, unlikable main character and we think we know each character and they each get tossed around until we can see the real picture. So good. I read Hawkins' Hex Hall and it reads similar to this actually, just toned down for YAs. I enjoyed all the little details in this re-imagining of Jane Eyre.

I saw a bunch of people raving about this book so I decided that I had to read this book. First off I have to saw that the narrator did a good job. It is not her fault that I did not like this book. I found the characters to be very annoying t the fact that I found them to get on my nerves. Yet, I pushed past it as much as I could. I will give the story some props that it does get better with the intrigue in the latter part of the story but no real surprises there. I could see where the story was heading. I will have to say that this hyped book did not do it for me.

This is a modern retelling of Jane Eyre with lots of twists to it. I absolutely adored this book and think it would be equally enjoyable to someone who hasn’t read Jane Eyre, but for me having read both I just was in bookworm bliss. Some of the twists were predictable to me because I read a lot of thrillers, but despite this I still completely loved it.

This is a hugely enjoyable and smartly done re-casting of Jane Eyre into present day Alabama. The move from 19th century Gothic to contemporary Southern Gothic is surprisingly successful and the author makes many clever tweaks to characters and plot that will entertain those who know their Bronte but it stands alone just fine if you don’t.

Jane has moved about a lot since she had to leave Arizona and is currently sharing a dingy apartment with creepy John Rivers. She’s built up a dog walking business in the very upmarket Thornfield Estate and while on one of these walks, she meets handsome widow Eddie Rochester. Just 6 months ago, his wife Bea and her best friend Blanche Ingram had gone missing, presumed drowned at the Rochesters’ lake house.

Ms Hawkins manages to hit all the signature points of <i>Jane Eyre</i>, though often in twisted and unexpected ways: I enjoyed the transition of the original Mr Rochester’s ward Adele into a red setter puppy. But above all of that, this is a terrifically atmospheric thriller with some nifty twists and Jane is a hardnosed independent young woman who works hard to get what she wants.

I wasn’t completely wowed by the narrators of the audiobook. Jane’s reader has a slightly metallic/robot element to her voice and Eddie just sounds wrong, but this only slightly detracted from a very pleasurable listening experience.