Best of Psychological Thrillers: The Wife Upstairs | Rachel Hawkins (book review)

As I’ve been pondering on what books make my list of “Best of Psychological Thrillers,” I’m looking for the ones that stand out in my mind, even years later. When I think about fun, innovative, memorable psychological thrillers, Rachel Hawkins’ The Wife Upstairs comes straight to mind. This is a modern reimagining of Jane Eyre that has been perverted, flipped on its head, and yet somehow still has perfect nods to the original. I promise, no matter how many reimaginings of Jane Eyre you’ve read, you’ve never met a Jane quite like this one!

What is The Wife Upstairs about?

Meet Jane, a broke dogwalker for the furry four-legged friends of the affluent Thornfield Estates. Jane is new to Birmingham and completely broke. Surrounded by McMansions, shiny cars, and opulent homes, no one will notice if Jane takes a piece of jewelry or other items here or there. She needs the money, and it’s not like anyone notices the dogwalker.

Until she meets Eddie Rochester. Handsome, wealthy, and warm, Jane is smitten. And it seems Eddie may be as well when he asks her out on a date. In a place like Thornfield Estates where gossip is basically currency, Eddie attracts the most of anyone. Six months ago his beautiful wife Bea and her best friend Blanche died in a boating accident. Their bodies weren’t found, but everyone knows they couldn’t have survived.

Where some may see red flags, Jane sees an opportunity. She needs someone to provide the security she’s looking for, and Eddie seems to be just that person. It’s a whirlwind romance between Eddie and Jane, and it’s not long before he invites her to move into his mansion (causing a new wave of gossip with the bored housewives of Thornfield Estates).

Jane can’t stop wondering about his late wife, Bea. The owner of a southern lifestyle brand, Bea was beautiful, polished, and elegant—things Jane is not. No one knows who Jane really is, not even Eddie. And she won’t let them find out—she’ll do anything to protect her secrets. But it seems Eddie may have secrets in his past as well that are threatening to ruin their happiness. Can Eddie and Jane outrun their pasts before it catches up to them?

What did I think of The Wife Upstairs?

Whatever you expect from this book, think again. Surprising, jaw-dropping, delightfully salacious, and darkly humorous—I promise this is not your college lit course’s Jane Eyre. Reading this book feels like riding a roller coaster with your hands up, when your heart is in your throat, and you feel that exhilarating terror of being completely out of control.

What did I think of Jane?

Jane is an absolutely wild and hilarious character. Her moral compass doesn’t exactly point due north, but there is still something sympathetic about Jane. The problem is, Jane isn’t the most reliable narrator. She has a lot of secrets, starting with the face that her name isn’t really Jane. So who is she and where did she come from? When people ask her those social questions, Jane evades or lies when she can’t get out of it. She keeps the details vague unless she has to.

Jane has a little problem with kleptomania. At first, it seems this is fueled by her need for some cash. After all, the guy whose apartment she is staying at is a complete creep. She’ll do anything to get away. So, what’s her explanation after she moves into Eddie’s mansion in Thornfield Estates? Jane spies a bangle on another woman that she admires, and now she has the money to buy it. But Jane doesn’t want her own bangle, she wants the one off the woman’s wrist.

Jane’s little thievery problem is just one of many wild characteristics you’ll learn about her as you read this book. The people of Thornfield Estates are so privileged and shallow that you can’t help but side with Jane even though she’s absolutely in the wrong. And there are plenty of interesting characters aside from Jane to go around.

What did I think of the other characters?

Jane may be obsessed with the mysterious figure of Bea, but so was I. The more I learned about Bea, the more fascinating she was. Bea is successful, beautiful, and aspirational. Her taste is exquisite, as evidenced by her successful lifestyle brand, Southern Manors. But that’s not the full story about Bea. More than one person hints that Bea stole her style from Blanche. And from what we learn, Bea and Blanche were the ultimate frenemies—besties one minute and throwing shade the next. Who was Bea really?

I was also intrigued by Eddie. Though in some ways he’s a bland, handsome millionaire—he surprised me too. He falls for Jane, who admits she is completely plain. Plain Jane. Eddie seems to like that, though. He follows Jane around like a lovesick puppy and compliments her on how different she is from his late wife. From everything Jane can tell, Eddie loved Bea. What really went down between them in their marriage?

How does it relate to Jane Eyre?

If you haven’t read the original book, Jane Eyre, you were likely still able to ascertain from the title of this book where Bea is and what may have happened to her after that boating accident. I won’t spoil the details, but I will say that you will get to hear from Bea and her back story will shock you. I loved getting to know Bea—she was such a mysterious figure for the first few chapters, and I wondered what truth (if any) there was to the rumors circulating around her, Blanche, and their accident. There were so many versions of Bea shared through gossip, but none of them fully capture her as a character.

The book only loosely follows the source material, but there are enough nods to it that you’ll definitely know what inspired it. The names, for starters. Also the whole new wife moves in but maybe the other wife is somewhere around, too. There’s even a twisted version of the iconic line, “Reader, I married him.” Even if you haven’t read Jane Eyre, that line has surely made it’s way to you before. I won’t say how it is used here, but that was one of my favorite little tidbits. An homage to a classic!

Final Thoughts

This was the second time I read The Wife Upstairs and the book was as twisty as I remembered, but I forgot how funny and devious this version of Jane is! Plain Jane in looks, but certainly not inside. Jane is one of those characters (in both the source text and this one) who people underestimate. She may not be stunning, rich, or charismatic, but that is her super power. Jane flies under people’s B.S. radar. They never see the real Jane because they think she’s beneath them. Jane has plenty of tricks up her sleeve, and maybe your bracelet too—underestimate her at your own peril!

A fun, wild, over-the-top thriller with fantastic characters and memorable twists. This book is wonderful and remains in my top psychological thrillers of all time!

If you liked The Wife Upstairs, what should you read next?

About the Book

A delicious twist on a Gothic classic, The Wife Upstairs pairs Southern charm with atmospheric domestic suspense, perfect for fans of B.A. Paris and Megan Miranda.

Meet Jane. Newly arrived to Birmingham, Alabama, Jane is a broke dog-walker in Thornfield Estates––a gated community full of McMansions, shiny SUVs, and bored housewives. The kind of place where no one will notice if Jane lifts the discarded tchotchkes and jewelry off the side tables of her well-heeled clients. Where no one will think to ask if Jane is her real name.

But her luck changes when she meets Eddie Rochester. Recently widowed, Eddie is Thornfield Estates’ most mysterious resident. His wife, Bea, drowned in a boating accident with her best friend, their bodies lost to the deep. Jane can’t help but see an opportunity in Eddie––not only is he rich, brooding, and handsome, he could also offer her the kind of protection she’s always yearned for.

Yet as Jane and Eddie fall for each other, Jane is increasingly haunted by the legend of Bea, an ambitious beauty with a rags-to-riches origin story, who launched a wildly successful southern lifestyle brand. How can she, plain Jane, ever measure up? And can she win Eddie’s heart before her past––or his––catches up to her?

With delicious suspense, incisive wit, and a fresh, feminist sensibility, The Wife Upstairs flips the script on a timeless tale of forbidden romance, ill-advised attraction, and a wife who just won’t stay buried. In this vivid reimagining of one of literature’s most twisted love triangles, which Mrs. Rochester will get her happy ending?