The Wife Upstairs Book Review: A Thriller and Gripping Escape from the Past

The Wife Upstairs is a 2021 mystery thriller and Rachel Hawkins's adult debut novel. It is a modern adaptation of the classic Jane Eyre story that most thriller fans know and love.

This novel depicts the thrilling encounter between Jane Bell, who seeks a fresh start in Birmingham, and Eddie Rochester, a widower whose wife vanished with her best friend and is presumed deceased. Jane and Eddie experience an immediate and profound connection from the moment they meet, leading to the development of a romantic relationship. Jane considers herself fortunate to have this chance to leave behind her troubled past and begin anew. However, she is haunted by a disturbing presence-the supposed deceased wife of Eddie-who becomes increasingly prominent as their respective pasts resurface.

Author

Rachel Hawkins, who was previously a high school English teacher, is a talented writer who brings us to the suspenseful yet exciting world of The Wife Upstairs. With her smart and unique twists, she successfully wins the hearts of thriller fans, especially those who love the classic from which this novel is adapted. She is famous for her work, the Hex Hall Trilogy, which is a YA fiction paranormal romance series.

Theme

The Wife Upstairs showcases themes of escaping the past and reinventing oneself. In this story, the characters Eddie, Jane, and Bea want to leave behind their troubled pasts and begin again. However, they soon realize that it's not easy to escape their pasts, and their attempts to change often have unexpected results.

All three characters want to distance themselves from their past traumas and start fresh. Eddie feels embarrassed about his humble background and wants to create a new identity. Burdened by their painful histories, Jane and Bea, on the other hand, go to great lengths to hide who they really are. This results in complicated consequences that they won't be able to undo; thus, the suspense and thriller elements of the story.

However, as the story progresses, they learn that true freedom doesn't come from running away from the past. Instead, it comes from embracing their shared humanity and forming genuine connections with others. Through their experiences and the consequences they face, they realize the importance of honesty, vulnerability, and acceptance.

Characters

In this novel, Hawkins features three well-written main characters with different, intriguing, and riveting backgrounds. Their conflicting yet somehow relatable past forms the inner conflict in the novel that makes these characters take extreme actions, sometimes at the expense of others, and withdraw from social interactions. However, as the story unfolds, they come to realize that their pasts cannot be completely abandoned and that genuine freedom can only be attained through meaningful human connections.

Here are the three central characters that serve as the backbone of the novel:

Jane Bell

Jane is a 23-year-old Phoenix native who grew up in an orphanage. She has a kleptomaniac tendency, which helps her get by on top of her pay as a dog walker. She is a young woman with a dark and painful past who moved to Birmingham, Alabama, hoping to start a new life. She is witty and ambitious, attempting to secure a comfortable and stable life with the rich man, Eddie, whom she just met when she was walking dogs in the Thornfield Estates.

Eddie Rochester

Eddie is a rich, handsome, and recently-widowed man since her wife, Bea, disappeared during a boat ride with her friend. He is a mysterious resident of Thornfield Estates who is also an object of gossip among his neighbors. Despite Jane's attraction to him, she suspects that Eddie, just like her, holds many secrets she'll dig into and discover throughout the story.

Bea Rochester

Bea is the presumed dead wife of Eddie, whose body is supposed to be buried deep in the lake. However, it is revealed that she is actually imprisoned in the panic room on the third floor of their house. She believes that Eddi killed her friend, Blanche.

Plot

Bea Rochester, Eddie Rochester's wife, and her friend Blanche Ingraham mysteriously vanish from the Rochester lake house. Soon after their disappearance, Jane Bell, a Phoenix native seeking a fresh start, meets Eddie and experiences an immediate attraction between them. As their relationship deepens, Jane becomes aware of the presumed deaths of Bea and Blanche, along with the enigmatic secrets surrounding their disappearance.

Jane then decides to move in with Eddie and form friendships with their neighbors, leading to her knowing about the past relationship between Eddie and Bea. Then she started to face blackmail from her ex-roommate, John Rivers, who threatened her with revealing her past. Also, suspicion grows as Jane uncovers Eddie's potential involvement in Blanche's murder. And as the narration shifts into Bea's perspective, it is revealed that she is actually alive in the panic room, where Eddie confines her and where she writes about her suspicions and past actions.

As the story takes its turns, Jane confronts John, revealing her true identity as Helen Burns, and puts an end to his blackmail. On the other hand, in a daring attempt, Bea seduces Eddie from within the panic room so she can run away. She succeeds in luring him to have sex but fails to escape.

And as Jane and Eddie plan their wedding while Bea continues to record her secrets, Jane eventually discovers Bea's journal, unlocks the panic room, and confronts Eddie. Eddie then finally reveals the truth, and Jane takes decisive action by locking him inside. A fire breaks out, resulting in the deaths of both Bea and Eddie. Inheriting Bea's fortune, Jane relocates to North Carolina, embarking on a fresh start.

POV & Writing Style

Hawkins employs a first-person point of view in narrating this story that alternates between the three key characters' perspectives: Jane, Bea, and Eddie. Through this, the readers can gain closer insights into the shared experiences of the three, which helps add depth and suspense to the novel.

The novel comprises vivid imagery that highlights the fast-paced and action-packed chapters. The author also used amazing and well-picked parallels from the classic contemporary domestic noir and gothic pieces, which is a great element in the novel that many readers would enjoy.

Notable Quotes

Apart from the novel's fascinating and nerve-wracking storyline, it also imparts us with important words and lessons that readers will remember long after they have finished the story. Here are a few examples:

"Watch people's eyes more than you listened to what they said. Mouths were good at lying, but eyes usually told the truth."

"That's what you do when people threaten you, Jane. When they try to fuck you over. You don't give in to them, you don't give them what they want, you remind them that you're the one in charge, you're making the rules."

"I've learned the hard way that wanting more is what fucks you in the end."

Final Thoughts

The Wife Upstairs is a delicious and modern take on retelling Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre. It has the right amount of suspense and witty explosives that hook the readers deep into the story. Its intriguing and intoxicating twists make it difficult for readers to put it down.

So if you are looking for throbbing and adrenaline-pumping suspense, this novel will undoubtedly give you a delightful and thrilling experience while reading! Check out and read Rachel Hawkins's The Wife Upstairs and satisfy your cravings for a thriller fix!

FAQs

Q: What is The Wife Upstairs novel all about?

A: The Wife Upstairs is a thrilling story of the broke and desperate Jane and the rich and recently widowed Eddie where an ill-fated attraction brought them together and their dark past surface, including the truth about Eddie's previous wife, Bea.

Q: Who is the author of The Wife Upstairs?

A: Rachel Hawkins is the outstanding author behind the compelling mysterious novel, The Wife Upstairs.

Q: What genre does the novel The Wife Upstairs fall under?

A: The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins is a suspense-thriller mystery novel.