The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins - Jane Eyre July 2021

 

I loved this book!!!! I saved it for my Jane-Eyre-July-2021 - a month where I take time to read adaptations or retellings of my beloved classic - Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. Whenever I see a remake, I ask for a copy, borrow, or buy. In this case I was lucky enough to be sent the Advanced Reader Copy from St. Martin's Press.  It was my very first Jane Eyre inspired read of this month, and wow, did it deliver! 

This is the first book (honestly) that I've read in which all of the characters are beyond unlikeable, more like - despicable! From rich and spoiled housewives, to conniving roommates, to a handsome-but-suspect widower, to frienemies, to one plain-little sticky-fingered dog-walking Jane.

I loved the modern take on this book. I loved the references to the classic with the similar names (and/or surnames), loved  "Reader, I....."  I won't tell you, it's too good. I laughed out loud when I read it. 

This story wound up being profusely different than Jane Eyre in many ways, but I loved all of the allusions to the original story. I loved the multiple perspectives. I loved the deviance, the sneakiness, and the reprehensible, yet intriguing characters. Not one was really trustworthy or decent, not really even Jane.

 I loved the ending. I didn't see that twist coming, and it was so satisifying. I flew through the bulk of the book today, but started it on the 4th of July, which ironically, is a date / scene mentioned in the book. Gotta love it when that happens! This book was really so much fun, so addictive, so immersive, even if you are not a fan of Jane Eyre. Seriously, give it a read for a quick, fun, and clever summer thriller!