The wife upstairs [Large Print]

Título:

Autor:

Hawkins, Rachel, 1979- author.

Inspired by: Brontë, Charlotte, 1816-1855. Jane Eyre.

ISBN:

9781432885236

Edición:

Large print edition.

Información de publicación:

Thorndike Press, a part of Gale, a Cengage Company,

Descripción física:

463 pages (large print) ; 23 cm.

Serie:

Thorndike Press large print basic

Thorndike Press large print basic series.

Síntesis:

Jane is a broke dog-walker in Thornfield Estates--a gated community full of McMansions, shiny SUVs, and bored housewives. Then 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. Jane can't help but see an opportunity in Eddie, who is rich, brooding, and handsome. Yet as Jane and Eddie fall for each other, Jane is increasingly haunted by the legend of Bea, an ambitious beauty 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?

Autor añadido:

Inspired by: Brontë, Charlotte, 1816-1855. Jane Eyre.

Fecha de publicación:

2021

2020

Término geográfico:

Alabama -- Fiction.

Reservas:

Disponible:*

Biblioteca	Tipo de material	Signatura	Estado
Búsqueda… Englewood	Large Print Book	LP FIC HAWKINS	Búsqueda… Desconocido
Búsqueda… Punta Gorda	Large Print Book	LP FIC HAWKINS	Búsqueda… Desconocido

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Resumen

A delicious twist on a Gothic classic, Rachel Hawkins's 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?

Reseñas (4)

Reseña de Publisher's Weekly

YA author Hawkins (Her Royal Highness) makes her adult debut with this spirited reboot of Jane Eyre. Shortly after starting to walk dogs in tony Thornfield Estates, a gated community in Birmingham, Ala., the penniless young woman calling herself Jane meets dashing recent widower Eddie Rochester--whose wealthy wife, Bea Mason, went missing and was presumed drowned in a boating mishap, along with her BFF Blanche Ingraham, six months earlier. Sparks fly, but plain Jane has a tough time living up to the legend of the glamorous Bea, who created the Southern Manors lifestyle brand. Then Blanche's body is found, and it's clear from the massive skull fracture that her death was no accident. As the police reopen their probe, an increasingly concerned Jane starts investigating Bea's fate and what part, if any, Eddie played. Hawkins shows real wit in outsider Jane's sharp-eyed take on the entitled ladies of Thornfield Estates, but the mercenarily motivated characters will put off some readers. Nonetheless, this suspenseful domestic thriller will keep readers turning the pages. Agent: Holly Root, Root Literary. (Jan.)

Kirkus Review

Jane Eyre gets a modern, Alabama-based reboot in Hawkins' latest thriller. Dog walker to the elite and sometime petty thief, Jane will do what she must to survive. Growing up as a witness to violence in various foster homes, she's tougher than she looks. Then she meets Eddie Rochester, who's recently lost his wife, Bertha, and his wife's best friend, Blanche Ingraham, in a tragic boating accident, their bodies never found. Dating Eddie gives Jane the social capital to move from dog walker to equal within the neighborhood, and soon, copying the style and mannerisms of the status-conscious women around her, she is welcome on their committees and at their parties. Bea Rochester, who was the glossy creator of a fashion brand, gets her own sections of the story as well. Given the names, it quickly becomes clear that Hawkins is basing the novel on Jane Eyre. While reimagining the classics is always fair game, there must be a point to it; that is, the original text must in some way enhance or add complexity or interest to the new text, and vice versa. In this case, Hawkins' novel falls short. Given the title and all the existing criticism of Charlotte Brontë's original, Hawkins had the opportunity to explore the ideas of feminism and exoticism through a 21st-century lens; to critique ideas of masculine strength and mental health; to overlay a more complex idea of family and parenting and status. Instead, the characters are themselves mere caricatures whose only claims to having layers are the names they share with the originals. The Gothic creepiness is mostly lost; the subtext is nonexistent; and perhaps worst of all, Jane, though never perhaps a heroine to emulate, loses the opportunity to change and evolve. With no one to feel for, or even cheer for, the novel offers little true enjoyment and never really takes off as an original mystery. Skip this one and read Wide Sargasso Sea instead. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Reseña de Booklist

In her adult debut, YA author Hawkins (Royals, 2018) twists together the suspense and storytelling of Jane Eyre with the atmosphere, tension, and odd characters of a Southern-gothic novel into a tale of a young woman trying to escape her past. Jane walks the dogs of the rich socialites of Birmingham's Thornfield Estates, understanding she's an outsider. That is, until she meets Eddie Rochester. Eddie can give her everything she ever wanted. But as they prepare to marry, the death of Eddie's first wife, Bea, and her best friend, Blanche, hangs over them, until Jane discovers that Bea may not be as much a part of Eddie's past as she'd thought. The bleak setting provides the appropriate mood to each of Jane's discoveries, leading to well-plotted surprises that may not be entirely shocking, especially for fans of Charlotte Brontë's work. First-person narration by Jane allows for a slow reveal of her past, and occasional perspectives from other characters provide clues to their motivations. An altogether sinister novel that will make readers of Jennifer McMahon, Ruth Ware, and Donna Tartt shudder.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Expect a lot of media coverage of (and therefore a lot of demand for) this Southern-gothic Jane Eyre adaptation.

Library Journal Review

In her first adult title, YA author Hawkins presents a twisted Jane Eyre, reimagined and set in a modern-day affluent gated community in Birmingham, AL. Penniless Jane is a dog walker whose wealthy customers include Eddie Rochester, a widower who has recently lost his wife, Bea, to a mysterious drowning accident. Strangely, Bea's body has not been found. Jane falls in love with the rich and handsome Mr. Rochester and moves in with him. She is obsessed by thoughts of the successful and beautiful Bea and wonders if Eddie will ever love her as intensely. Narrators Emily Shaffer, Kirby Heyborne, and Lauren Fortgang do an excellent job reading this gripping and intriguing mystery. Patrons who have read Jane Eyre will enjoy the similarities between the two books and be delightfully surprised by the unexpected twists in the modern story. VERDICT This well-narrated, suspenseful psychological thriller is recommended for the audiobook collections of all public libraries.--Ilka Gordon, Beachwood, OH

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Resumen

Resumen

Reseñas (4)

Reseña de Publisher's Weekly

Kirkus Review

Reseña de Booklist

Library Journal Review

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