3.5 stars, listened on audio. The narrator was great. The story was predictable; I’ve never read Jane Eyre so can’t speak to how close it is to that book.

You can read the summary of this book on many websites, so I’m not going to get into retelling the story here. There were a few shortcomings, such as the improbability of a person taking food and drink to someone living upstairs and the other person living there actually not realizing this was being done. But the story was a good thrill ride! The unfolding of the characters was done very well and was extremely fascinating to watch them develop. There were many twists and turns throughout the story, some anticipated and others surprising. The ending left you wondering, but not in the way that you’d expect a sequel to finish up the storyline. The wondering left you thinking about the story and the characters just like it would be in real life...no happily ever after and tied up with a bow. I like that kind of ending, it’s like real life! Enjoy!
I would like to thank NetGalley for an audio copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I usually hate retellings of original stories, but this one hooked me from the get-go. It was such a pleasurable read. I could not put it down. A new modern take on an amazing classic. This made me want to read Jane Eyre again. Jane (if that is her real name) is a dog walker for a wealthy widower or so she thinks. He falls for her, sees himself in her, but has a crazy secret. He's keeping his wife upstairs. She's not dead. Shocker. I didn't really think it was as predictable as everyone says. Most people are giving very average scores, but I thought it was absolutely amazing. I couldn't wait to figure out the real story behind the wife upstairs. This is a definite recommendation for any thriller fan.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for this advanced reader's copy for an honest review.

The Wife Upstairs is a modern retelling of Jane Eyre. It is filled with narcissists, with each character being more dislikeable than the last.

Jane is the local dog walker. While walking in the neighborhood, she meets wealthy, charming, and handsome Eddie Rochester. He's conveniently a widower; his wife B (actually Bertha) and her best friend, Blanche, tragically fell off their boat and perished during a girls' weekend. Sadly, their bodies were never found. Predictably, Jane and Eddie fall in love. You'll have to read the book to discover the rest.

I would highly recommend this title to anyone who loved The Last Mrs. Parrish, and anyone looking for a creepy psychological thriller.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received a free digital copy of this title to review from Net Galley.

#TheWifeUpstairs#NetGalley

I’m super confused by other reviews that this book is a copy/almost no differences from Jane Eyre.

I must have read a totally different Jane Eyre than other reviewers saying this is the same but in modern times.

The only thing this boon has in common:
A wife being kept ( no spoilers) against her will
Names being reused

Not for me. Don’t advertise something as a retelling when this is a super super super loose retelling as in taking names and a broad theme.

Thank you Macmillan and Netgalley for an advance copy for my thoughts.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this early.

So the start of the book definitely didn't pull me in right away. I also wasn't a fan of the narrator that did Jane, but that didn't affect my review. Still giving it a chance some slow books have turned into my favorites. Jane also annoyed me during the beginning, like what was wrong with her? A little creepy, she and Eddie are just weird characters.

Slow beginning, good middle, and then a slow ending. Eddie always gave me creepy vibes, and I never trusted him. Also, I never liked Bea either, she seemed nice at first but you can tell she was a manipulator.

As we got closer to the end honestly the more bored I got. Then we go to the very end and wow! I really was not ready for the plot twist. The last hour was honestly the best out of the whole book, and wish the rest of it was that entertaining.

I really enjoyed this book! I was nervous that it was overhyped but that was not the case at all. I highly recommend it! I also enjoyed the narration.

Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for the arc of this audiobook this book was weird to me the plot twists were good and the ending was good but the beginning I was confused most of the time but i still enjoyed it

The Wife Upstairs was a delicious thriller! It was a very similar (vanilla version) of A Simple Favor and Verity (Colleen Hoover.). I especially liked the setting - a ritzy neighborhood of Mountain Brook, in Birmingham, Alabama - as an Auburn graduate I am familiar with this areas and some of the the stereotypes from the book. I found the concept very interesting and fast paced, an appreciated that all of the main characters were fighters trying to survive or make a name for themselves. I do wish there was a little more of Jane’s back story, I found it very interesting and did find the ending to run kind of flat. Overall, a fun and exciting read!

I'll have to say that this is my very first read by Rachel Hawkins and I was not disappointed! I had a little snafu where I think my audiobook was skipping around, so I re-started it and started enjoying it that much more the second time around!

There were some very interesting characters, and a very diverse set of characters which made me want to follow their stories. I feel like I was rooting on the people that I shouldn't have been, and disliked the people that I should have, but I think that's what made the story great!

The actual story was killer...all puns intended! HAHA! But seriously, it's not your every day cookie cutter mystery or domestic thriller. It took you in a couple of different directions throughout, with the ending totally out in left field, wondering how in the world you go there! I LOVED IT!!!!

The Wife Upstairs was narrated by a trio of excellent narrators: Emily Shaffer, Kirby Heyborne, and Lauren Fortang. I have loved listening to Kirby Heyborne, but I must admit, most of the books I've listened him in before were either soft romance, or even maybe like a Christian genre, so to listen to him in this book took him to a new level to me that honestly I wondered if he was capable of...HE IS! I always LOVE when books have multiple narrators because it helps you identify characters and stick with their story easier and this book was no exception! Sometimes I will listen to a book solely on the who the narrator is because I truly believe that a narrator(s) can make or break a book! These guys definitely helps make this book!

Overall, the story was thrilling and entertaining, and took me to places I never thought it would, and never saw coming! It had a great element of surprise, with a great stack of characters and narrators, that just totally make The Wife Upstairs an absolute 5-star read for me, for sure!

I would like to take a moment to thank the author, Rachel Hawkins, the publisher, Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in return for an honest and unbiased review!

I’ve seen some mixed reviews on this one, but I really enjoyed it! Highlighted as a modern twist on Jane Eyre, the story line was suspenseful, but not too intense. It definitely kept me wanting to know what was going to happen next! I did find the character of Jane to be a little over the top pessimistic and dramatic in the beginning of the story but as the story unfolded, I couldn’t help but be drawn in! I love stories with unreliable narrators too!
I listened to the audiobook and it was well done- I appreciated the multiple narrators to differentiate among the different points of view in the story. I think this book translates well to an audiobook. If you’re looking for an interesting, suspenseful quick read, I definitely recommend The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins!

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for gifting me the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

As I finished this book I had many emotions. If there hadn't been a reference to a rewriting of Jane Eyre I may have enjoyed it more. The locations and names are the same or similar, and a few poorly linked relationships, but beyond that this book is more an attempted who done it, or a Real Housewives of Birmingham. I believe it's hard to enjoy a book when you don't really like any of the characters. Jane was plotting to score the big fish, who she thought was Eddie, turns out he might not be the nicest of people. Bea, the dearly departed wife gave Jane a lot to live up to. Typical unreliable narrator, but this book didn't live up to the hype.

I really enjoyed the parallel to "the other Jane book".

I do feel like there were maybe some gaps in this book. I enjoyed this book, but I'm feeling a little flat at the end. Expecting/wanting just one more twist.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Author/Rachel Hawkins for the opportunity to review this Advance Read Copy in exchange for an honest review.

The first 3/4 of the book was very enjoyable ... quick and light reading But, the last part of the book disappointed me. I alternated between reading the ebook and listening to the audiobook provided to me by NetGalley.

I received an AOC of the audiobook from NetGalley. It was a great read/listen. Solid 4 stairs. Suspenseful, interesting, and fast paced. My only issue is with the voices of the characters on the audiobook. There are many characters, and their southern drawl is awful and made me cringe every time! Other then that I fully enjoyed the book.

Jane, our dog-walking protagonist, is working in an upscale neighborhood when she accepts a new client: Eddie Rochester -- rich, hot and widowed. The pair quickly fall in love and she adopts Eddie's widow's life of charity and status. But questions linger about Eddie's wife. How did she die? And why was her body never recovered? Jane is slowly drawn into the mystery -- and so will be the readers of this book. The twists were excellent and kept you wanting more. I recommend this book for people who liked "Gone Girl," "The Silent Patient," and "The Couple Next Door."

I liked this retelling of Jane Eyre, it's been a long while since I'd read the original so I treated this as a new to me story even though I remembered the basics of the original. I enjoyed the storytelling and I thought it was interesting that Jane wasn't very likable. The narration really added to my enjoyment. The southern accents were well done and not over the top.
I highly recommend.

I received an arc of this book from the [publisher in exchange for an honest review. A must read for anyone who loves suspense and fast paced drama...this was jaw dropping!

Maybe it was the amount of F-bombs dropped, maybe it was the rich people behaving badly that I couldn’t care less about, I don’t know, but this book was not for me.

I can appreciate that it is a modern retelling of Jane Eyre, but I just didn’t care about any of the very unlikeable characters and the thriller aspects weren’t that surprising to me.

I read some of the physical copy and listened to the audiobook. The narrators were great and if this is a book for you, the narration was well done. There were multiple narrators - one for each perspective we get in the book and they all did a great job.

Thank you to Net Galley for the advanced listening copy. All opinions are my own.

Looking for a new read with twists and turns aplenty? Then, you may want to pick up The Wife Upstairs, by Rachel Hawkins. The Wife Upstairs has been described as a modern Jane Eyre retelling. However, I went into this without reading the classic, and now have moved that up on my TBR list. I listened to the audiobook version and enjoyed hearing this told in the voices of the main characters. (Could have done without all the *f words, though!). The main character is aptly named Jane and narrates most of the novel. What took me by surprise is how much I disliked the characters, but still wanted to keep hearing the story! The main characters are cold and calculating liars, who have each remade themselves into the persona of who they want the outside world to believe they are. They do not have a conscience, believing their terrible actions are justifiable. Just when you start to believe, or feel sorry for one of them, Hawkins turns their story upside down and you realize everything you just heard was a lie. A less vague final ending would have left me feeling a bit more satisfied, but I did not subtract that from my rating. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for gifting me this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.