A queer sequel-retelling of Jane Eyre that was smart, feminist, and kept me on my toes. I was fully hooked into the story and the characters. The only part that lost me was the end. Nan shows up, apparently having guessed what was going to happen to Adele, and rescues her in exactly the way she needs to be rescued... how could she have known? It's never explained, and it's the only part that really kicked me out of the story.

Overall, a fantastic read!

Thank you NetGalley for this eARC. Although I hated it, so maybe not.

No. No. No. No. If you love Jane Eyre, do not read this book. I am flabbergasted at all the 5 stars reviews of this blasphemous trash.

Jane Eyre is one of my all-time favorite books so imagine my excitement when I saw a YA Jane Eyre spin-off. And it was about Adele becoming a vigilante against men who hurt women in Victorian London?! I was ecstatic.

I enjoyed the first third of the book that told the story of Adele’s early life and her perspective of the events of Jane Eyre. I appreciated that it addressed some of the issues of the original novel (mainly Rochester keeping his wife locked in the attack). But then she goes to London and the story starts to unravel (at least in my opinion). After her first accidental murder, I was hoping to see her really embrace her darkness (that she talked about quite a bit when recalling her childhood) and would go full Jack-the-Ripper-vengeance-queen on shitty men she stops from hurting women. Does that not sound like a better plot than whatever this drivel was? Instead, she becomes a petty thief…? And we’re supposed to think she’s a vigilante hero because she robs drunk men and pawns their shit? Even her romance with Nan felt underdeveloped, although props for bisexual rep in Victorian England.

But then. Then. We have her return to see her Papa on his deathbed and he’s an absolute disgusting creep?! We’re supposed to believe that (1) Jane Eyre would not see through Rochester’s facade if he was in fact a huge fucking pervert, but (2) that Rochester has been writing her love letters as his cousin and has been waiting until she was old enough to marry her?! And leave Jane and their children to go live in the Caribbean with his daughter-wife? What in the everloving hell were the author and publisher thinking? Why not just dig up Charlotte Brontë and spit on her corpse? I think we can all agree, in our 21st century wisdom, that Rochester was not the best man. But to take a character that said "I ask you to pass through life at my side--to be my second self, and best earthly companion” and turn him into this is unforgivable. No. No. No. No. I can safely say that I will never read anything written by this author again and will discourage everyone from picking up this garbage.

Also, I’m not being this harsh because I dislike retellings of classics. There are several that do a magnificent job of retelling the story in a new and more modern way, while still maintaining the original charm of beloved characters. Tirzah Price’s Jane Austen Murder Mystery series is a great example of this.

I thought it was okay! On the one hand I love the idea of a girl gang during Victorian times taking revenge on men, sign me right up. On the other hand I thought putting it as a sequel of sorts to Jane Eyre forced Cornwell into concentrating on that story instead of developing the really interesting one. I'd like to have read this book without that connection, because I think it'd be stronger.

I want to keep this review of Betsy Cornwell's Reader, I Murdered Him brief. Let me just say that Reader, I Murdered him is a surprising and delightful, if at times disturbing, piece of feminist vigilante revenge fiction set in Victorian England and featuring Adele: the ward of Mr. Rochester for whom Jane Eyre was hired as a governess in the novel Jane Eyre. Cornwell's version of Adele is precocious and unflinching, starkly aware of the inequities between the sexes. To see Jane Eyre retold through Adele's eyes is powerful, and Adele grows into her own power as she moves away from Rochester and Eyre and into life among a boarding school community of other young women, all very conscious of the way success or failure on the marriage market will determine the conditions of the remainder of their lives. With Adele speaking truths everyone recognizes and no one wants to talk about, these young women begin finding ways to create lives they might once have thought impossible.

If you've read Eyre, Reader, I Murdered him will offer you a valuable companion to the perspectives and realities played out by Jane and Rochester. Even if you haven't read Eyre, you'll be able to appreciate the reversal of power Adele seeks to create.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher; the opinions are my own.

I read this as apart of my October spooky reads and it did not disappoint. The main character is such a strong female influence and made me laugh with her antics. I loved being sucked into the book and can’t wait to read more from the author

This is a blatantly biased review because I am a massive Jane Eyre fan. Do with that what you will, but I absolutely adore this queer extension of Jane Eyre featuring Adele. Honestly, Adele is such a forgetful character in the original Jane Eyre, all things considered, so it took me by surprise that I fell so easily into her story. Adele brings such a unique angle to this prim and proper tale. For a girl normally praised for being a picture perfect ward, she brings undeniable grit and tenacity to every situation she finds herself in. Her thought process, decisions, and reactions are relatable and at times feel like the only logical way to go about things, which is great because I can’t stand having to extend belief to account or character’s behavior.
<spoiler>If I were trying to find a criticism, and let me make it clear that I am not, I would say that Adele is not as murderous as the publisher’s summary makes her out to be. Adele embodies more of the idea of a man killer than a practiced one. But that criticism pales in comparison to my ultimate joy: validation that Rochester is actually a total piece of shit. I never understood why Jane was so taken by him in the first place and his character arc in this story just feeds the flames of hatred I feel for this man.</spoiler>
Thank you to NetGalley, Betsy Cornwell, and HarperCollins Children's Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

First and foremost, as soon as I saw the title I hoped there was at least a small Jane Eyre connection and I was not disappointed. I love the gothic feel of Jane Eyre and am always drawn to things that may be tied to it.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that Adele was in fact the main character and while the beginning was slow, I appreciated the look at her younger story and how she got to where she was.

I did really enjoy the darkness to this story and how deep it went. As much as I love the original Jane Eyre, we all know it has it's problems - and that Rochester is not the prince Jane necessarily made him to be.

This book did have some slow spots that did impact the reading journey, but the overall story made up for those little bumps in the road. I loved the dark, gothic feel of it and the story was very satisfying overall with Adele playing both a hero and villian.

Jane Eyre is my favorite book of all time so I was intrigued by the premise of this book. Unfortunately, maybe due to my love for the original, this did not work for me. Adele doesn't so much commit murder as she does act in self-defense a couple of times so the title was a bit misleading. I also found Cornwell's depiction of Jane to be out of character (would they woman who survived the Reeds, the horrors of Lowood, and took to the moors rather than be Rochester's mistress really dismiss what Adele was experiencing at school and in her own home?). An interesting premise but disappointing execution.

I was instantly drawn in by the premise of Reader, I Murdered Him, and in some ways was a bit let down.

Queer historical romances with a mystery twist usually are an instant hit with me, but there were a few things that I had some trouble with. Overall, the story was pretty fun and I really liked some of the characters - especially Nan - but I didn't feel like Adele really was properly developed. In some ways she felt more like caricature than a fully fleshed character as we jumped from plot point to plot point.

This book was more like an afternoon snack than something I could really sink my teeth into - not necessarily a bad thing, but not quite what I was expecting.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Clarion Books for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

<b>Note:</b> I received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley.

Adele grew up in the shadows--first watching from backstage at her mother's Parisian dance halls, then wandering around the gloomy, haunted rooms of her father's manor. When she's finally sent away to boarding school in London, she's happy to enter the brightly lit world of society girls and their wealthy suitors.

Yet there are shadows there, too. Many of the men that try to charm Adele's new friends do so with dark intentions. After a violent assault, she turns to a roguish young con woman for help. Together, they become vigilantes meeting out justice. But can Adele save herself from the same fate as those she protects?

I went in with really high hopes for this book, the synopsis was intriguing. I just did not get it. Adele was a perplexing character, I did not understand her personality or why she would do the things she did. Her background should have prepared her for the more intense life she came upon rather than the shy little rabbit she started to portray. Yes, she was getting justice eventually but her conflicting personality type had me perplexed.

This ARC was given to us is for our full honest review. We would like to thank NETGALLY and Clarion books for the opportunity to review this book.

A historical fiction loosely based in the world of Jane Eyre. We focus on Adele, the ward of Mr. Rochester after she left her mother to live with Mr. Rochester in England where he is tasked with bringing up Adele in the English way. There Adele begins boarding school and when one of her friends is harmed Adele takes her fate into her own hands after saving her friend. Eventually becoming a vigilante in her own right and trying to make the women around her feel safe.

2.5/5

This story overall left a lot to be desired. It felt like the characters were overall flat. The passing of time in this world felt awkward and the actual time of Adele taking on the role of being a vigilante was minimal at most. This book is written in a style of a letter to the reader. It read less like a novel and more like a recanting of a story with lots of depth and details missing. Overall this book left a lot to be desired. The pacing was odd and it was difficult to connect with the characters.

The title of this book was the first thing that caught my attention. I immediately picked up on the reference to Jane Eyre's reader, I married him. Once I started, the rest of the book was worth the read. It was an interesting adaptation and continuation of the story of Jane Eyre. I like that is shifted the main character from Jane to Adele, who was often quite overlooked in the original novel. I also loved reading about empowered women looking out for other women. Thanks to Clarion Books and NetGalley for the e-ARC.

Rating: 3.5* of five, rounded down

First, read this:
<blockquote>“Why do you think, when women tell the stories of their lives, they end with marriage? It is not a happily ever after, ch&eacute;rie, only the end of happiness?”</blockquote>

In its bitter essence, <I>Jane Eyre</i> is a terrible, horrifying account of a cruel and controlling man's determined efforts to get the twisted things he most desired from the women he surrounded himself with. They had little choice in the matter. He exerted a charm, I'm told, in his "masterful" handling of them. I don't see it, myownself...Bertha or Jane, makes little difference, he was an archetypal narcissist in pursuit of minions.

I honestly forgot Ad&egrave;le's existence in the original. Not a single scintilla of memory creased my cranium about her...how typical...and thus, when I got this book, I was in essence introduced to her for the first time. Her story is very affecting. I think it's a great shame that Ad&egrave;le came into my awareness as a victim. Yes, she uses her victimhood to achieve something good as the Villainess, righter of wrongs and leveler of abusers. But there's a passage where her treatment of a loving soul, and her response to a shocking and disgusting betrayal, that just...rang so hollow to me. Her drive was always mitigated by her fears, as whose is not?, but her behavior is hard for me to mentally count as redemptive.

The resolution of the story is condign. It didn't hit the wrong notes so much as it simply played them too fast, too loud, and failed thus to distract me from my edge of unbelief. It's a fine book to give to your feminist granddaughter or romantically challenged niece.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of "Reader, I Murdered Him" in exchange for an honest review. Getting to see another side of Adele, when that's not something I ever thought would happen, was a gift. Watching her try to navigate the world was captivating. I would have liked to see more of the romance development, and some parts feel fairly slow, but ultimately I would recommend this.

Reader, I Murdered Him is a book I have been unable to get out of my brain. This is a twisty, dark, and intensely Gothic spectacle of a book.

Right from the opening, author Betsy Cornwell had me in the palm of her hand. This was a genuinely chilling moment where the ethics are murky and the lines are blurred, so of course, I was hooked. Immediately, we have that sense of the vigilante style of revenge and justice, causing many debates and dilemmas surrounding that increasingly treacherous tightrope. It is a blood tinged and atmospheric moment that draws you in and from there, you becomes evermore ensnared in this twisted spider’s web. The plot constantly kept me on my toes, with so many excellent twists and turns. Before beginning, I was also unaware of a retelling aspect to the story that adds an exquisitely literary layer to the events. I will not reveal anything, as I think you should go in unaware but it is just perfect. There is a familiarity and an ease to everything, but there is never a reliance on the original source. For me, it added to that Gothic atmosphere and helped further weave the world around you. It also adds another twist to the original story, critiquing it intensely and revealing the problematic ideologies underpinning it. In particular, it exposes the abuse inflicted by its romantic hero on the women around him. The subtext of the women he discards in the original are firmly brought to light, placing their narrative centre stage. Cromwell questions why these women were sidelined, bringing in questions of race, gender and respectability politics of the period that still resonate today. This is no mere retelling, this is a wholly new beast, one full of spite and brimming over with anger.

In fact, the exploration of female anger here is ferociously fantastic. There has historically been so much control and regulation over women’s emotions, innately tied to patriarchal structures of control and abuse. To be hysterical is to be overly feminine and that outward display of emotion is still intrinsically tied to sexist ideas of gender. It is obscene to display that burning rage most women hold within themselves. Cornwell lets that fly free, with anger at the intense displays of abuse and power on show in this book. There are some truly despicable moments, which just hit you like a ton of bricks, but sadly they are all too recognisable. The repeated abuse of power and privilege by men in this world finds that pit in your stomach as you recognise the patterns of behaviour. This adds an extra layer to the vigilantism that takes place, where a place of privilege is used to fight for those who are less able to defend themselves. It complicates the morality of the situation and this is discussed on-page, with plenty of thought-provoking moments. Also, I cannot review this book adequately without mentioning how damn sapphic it is. The romance here is such a joy and it is pretty beautiful, if also complicated and nuanced. There is a clash of class dynamics here and a touch of dubious ethics. You get lost in the whirlwind of chemistry, dialogue and moments charged with that undeniable undercurrent of something exceptional.

Reader, I Murdered Him is like lightning in a bottle, dark and dangerous but you are still entirely captivated by it. Its retelling aspects are superbly executed, bringing marginalised narratives to the centre and blending them into bloody new territory.

An interesting and fairly worthy continuation of Jane Eyre from the point of view of Adele. A good one to recommend to older teens who have just read Jane Eyre, and are like, "I liked the character of Jane Eyre, but Rochester though?!? I mean...."

An LGBTQ Victorian Vigilantism - pretty awesome. Essentially a retelling and/or continuation of Jane Eyre so for those who aren’t aware of the setting/time it definitely may be tough to follow, BUT that doesn’t take away from the premise and it’s amazing development.
Overall, I’m for anythinf where it’s a bad ass girl knowing her worth!

Special thanks to Rylee Warner from Spark Point Studio for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 3.5 stars

The title is what immediately drew me in and the synopsis is what really piqued my interest. I really enjoyed this concept and although there were some elements that, if done better, would've made me love this story, I still think the author did a great job with it. This was darkly entertaining and had some really great powerful moments.

First of all, I want to point out that this book is about an original character from Jane Eyre. I'm one of the few who still hasn't read it yet, so that didn't impact my reading in any way, although it made me curious about how people who read and loved the book would feel about this ending. I will say that if you want to read Jane Eyre, you might want to skip this book until then because the first part of it essentially summarises the events of that story and would definitely be considered spoilers!

Cornwell set the atmosphere for this book very well! There's a creeping sense of foreboding and darkness that steadily builds as the story progresses. From a young age, Adele has witnessed countless instances of the horrible ways women get treated by the people around them; particularly, by the men in their lives. She saw this in the way her mother and the other girls at Moulin were treated by their clientele, the way her father treated his first wife and herself, and then in the way the entitled society men treated all the women around them, especially her closest society friends. This story enraged me and I often found myself nodding in agreement because YES, there is so much about this story, regardless of the time period, that is so damn relatable and it’s devastating that it’s so.

The story is told through Adele’s first-person perspective as she recounts the events of her life until the present day and she speaks directly to her audience, the reader. I didn’t mind this perspective but I admit that I thought it’d move the story along at a faster pace and that there’d be a stronger sense of emotional attachment/understanding. Sadly, I felt there was often quite an emotional disconnect between Adele and her story and that made it fall a bit flat (IMHO) but it also made the escalation of events less realistic. That said, I did like Adele’s character. For most of her childhood, she was a silent observer of situations that most adults wouldn't want children noticing and because of that, she develops a strong sense of people. She's sharp, compassionate and kind but she's also desperately lonely and has a jealous streak that she struggles with occasionally, especially when it came to motherly attention/affection. I particularly loved the camaraderie between her and the girls at the boarding school. Hannah, Felicity and Charlotte were the ones she was closest to and I loved the strong emphasis on supportive friendships and girls-supporting-girls. Pitting girls/women against each other is one of my least favourite tropes(?), so I was chuffed that all the relationships were very positive. It would’ve been even better if the secondary characters were given page time instead of simply serving as props to push Adele’s story along because she was doing all of this for them to begin with.

Another thing I found slightly underwhelming was the ending. While everything was ultimately neatly wrapped up, it felt very rushed compared to the rest of the book! I wish Cornwell spent more time expanding on Adele’s feelings about what happened rather than jumping straight into that “happy ending”. After all that she experiences though, Adele definitely deserved that ending! Overall, although I didn’t enjoy this as much as I had hoped to, I still thought the concept was excellent and I think the author did a good job of highlighting social issues through this story about murder and vengeance!

“Reader, I Murdered Him” by: Betsy Cornwall

Have you ever read a book that at its conclusion you desired to hug it and dance around in glee at the fate of its heroine/hero, or, in this book’s case, it’s villainess?

Adele Varens. You might remember her as the ward of Rochester in Jane Eyre’s care. Her story takes place during Victorian England. She is the child of a dancer at Le Moulin Rouge and, potentially, Rochester.

In this time and place, the best a woman could hope for was to be married off to a much older man with money who hopefully wasn’t cruel. It was fait accompli. Adele is no exception. Sent to a boarding school to be taught to be a perfect little wife, Adele struggles with her fate and her sexuality.

And then, reader, she murdered him.

Who is the, “him”? Read to find out.

I HIGHLY recommend this book. I loved how rounded Adele was as a character. She had struggles, and love. Friends and foes. And oh the end! I won’t say what happens because you need to find out for yourself. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Blog:
A YA romp told from the perspective of Mr. Rochester’s ward gives a new view of both Jane Eyre and London’s queer underground.

Summary:
Adéle grew up watching her mother dance in Le Moulin in Paris but soon found herself sent away to England with the man her mother said was her father. Mr. Rochester. Soon she meets her governess Jane Eyre and begins her own series of adventures.

Review:
If you have a love/hate relationship with Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, then this book is for you. If you love your YA with sapphic romance in period costumes, then get this book immediately.

The thing about Jane Eyre is…Mr. Rochester is terrible. Yet she’s still attracted to him. (This was beautifully summed up in the web comic Hark! A Vagrant). Shifting to Adéle’s perspective gives a whole new angle on just how deliciously insidious Mr. Rochester is. Adéle does not pull any punches when it comes to him. It’s downright cathartic for everyone who tears their hair out about Jane’s love for him.

There’s much more in this story than a shift of perspective on Jane Eyre though. Adéle is well-rounded, and we have entire chapters where Mr. Rochester and Jane aren’t mentioned at all or only in passing. My favorite part is when Adéle goes to a finishing school in London, because this is when the sapphic subtext becomes blatant. Adéle has the hots for more than one other teenage girl. (Both of whom are excellent choices, by the way). There’s cross-dressing! There’s scuttling around on the streets of London late at night in widow’s clothes! But also Adéle has feelings for Mr. Rochester’s nephew she’s been exchanging letters with since she first came to England. What to do. what to do. I loved seeing representation of a bisexual woman who leans more in a certain direction usually. I really like that even though she is capable of attraction to men that the sexist society fizzles it for her, making her a bisexual that leans toward women. What a fun twist on what we usually see in period pieces with fluid sexuality.

The book does start slow. The first chapter in Le Moulin was rough with overly flowery language and stirred up drama. But this drops out as Adéle ages and comes into her own. Perhaps some of this was meant to show how she is a little too idealistic in how she remembers her early years. I suspect the first chapter may have served better as flashbacks from her early time in England, rather than linear.

Please do take a moment to check out the content notes on StoryGraph. The ones listed as of the day I was writing this post are accurate.

Overall, this is a fun twist on Jane Eyre that gives agency to Mr. Rochester’s ward Adéle. Come for the twist, stay for the YA sapphic heart-throbbing.

GoodReads:
Overall, this is a fun twist on Jane Eyre that gives agency to Mr. Rochester's ward Adéle. Come for the twist, stay for the YA sapphic heart-throbing.

Check out my full review.

*I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.*

Instagram:
I loved this YA romp gold from the perspective of Mr. Rochester’s ears. It gives a new view of both Jane Eyre and London’s queer underground. Thanks to NetGalley for the free copy in exchange for my honest review. #bookalicious #booksinthewild #avidreader #bookaesthetic #whatimreading #sapphicbooks