? Review: The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

Posted on February 22, 2021 by Nadene @ Totally Addicted to Reading in Reviews / 28 Comments

At the time I listened to The Wife Upstairs, I did not know it was a retelling of Jane Eyre. Not that it would have made much of a difference, as I never read Jane Eyre.Β 

I had an interesting time with this twisty and diabolical tale. The deeper I went into the story, I thought I knew how it would all play out. It turned out I was way off mark.Β 

The story introduces Jane, (not her actual name) a broke dog walker, with an affinity for taking things which don’t belong to her. She recently moved to Birmingham, Alabama, where she walks dogs in the affluent Thorton Estates. One day while carrying out her job she met Eddie, a charming and of course rich widower. This made him the perfect candidate to aid in uplifting her social status. Eddie’s wife Bea along with her best friend died in a boating accident a year ago and their bodies have yet to be found. However, Eddie is ready to move on and Jane provided the perfect opportunity.

Jane proved to be a calculating and rather captivating character. I had an interesting time being in her head. Her actions and thoughts never ceased to amaze me.

Personally, I had a hard time buying into the relationship between Eddie and Jane. First off, I didn’t trust him. He gave off some real negative vibes.

As the story progressed, the events surrounding the fatal boat accident came to light. The revelations proved quite shocking.

Even paced and compelling, the story made it difficult to set my listening device aside. I would definitely read more from this author.

I enjoyed the narration, which involved the use of three narrators. Namely Lauren Fortgang, Kirby Hayborne, and Emily Shaffer. This was my first time listening to all three, and I thought they did an excellent job in bringing the story to life.

Overall, The Wife Upstairs was an engaging listen and one I would recommend readers/listeners looking for a twisty ride.Β 

Story Evaluation
Plot
4.5
Characters
4.5
World Building
5
Writing Style
5
Pacing
5
Cover
4.5
Narrator (Audio)
5
Enjoyment
4
Ending
4
Overall: One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarHalf a Star

[bctt tweet=”The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins delivered a compelling, addictive and twisty tale, which readers/listeners of thrilling stories would enjoy. #psyhcologicalthriller, #newrelease #audio” username=”TtlyAdd2Reading”]

About Rachel Hawkins

Rachel HawkinsΒ is a former teacher who left teaching to take a chance and get serious about finishing that book she’d always wanted to write. Her first book, Hex Hall, was the result of that leap of faith. She’s a graduate of Auburn University in Alabama and lives with her husband and son in Alabama.

Nadene @ Totally Addicted to Reading
Follow Me
Latest posts by Nadene @ Totally Addicted to Reading (see all)
Please follow and like:
INSTAGRAM
TWITTER
Visit Us
Follow Me
Follow by Email
RSS
Nadene @ Totally Addicted to Reading

Tags:

Divider

Leave a Reply

(Enter your URL then click here to include a link to one of your blog posts.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

28 responses to “? Review: The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

  1. Robin Loves Reading

    Excellent review. I read the Kindle version of this book. I’m interested to see how the audio version would sound.

  2. I love that this was so twisty that it surprised you good. πŸ™‚ I’ve listened to Kirby Hayborne and liked his voice, but the others are new to me. Fun that it’s a Jane Eyre retelling.