Reviews

Reader, I Murdered Him by Betsy Cornwell

ninas_unread_bookshelf's review against another edition

2.0

I preordered the paperback version of this book back in May and eagerly awaited its release for five months. I started reading it almost as soon as it arrived in the mail. I quickly found it to be an interesting expansion of a literary world I had come to know and love. I brought it with me everywhere I knew I would have a moment to read. I enjoyed reading about Adele Varens because it meant I was connecting again with the beloved Jane Eyre. However, I almost stopped reading this book completely when I reached the final four chapters. The way Cornwell completely obliterated Rochester’s character left me feeling extremely upset. Was he a perfect man? No, of course not because no man is perfect. But he was not the monster that Cornwell made him out to be. Yes, I know this is a fictional story and therefore a fictional character, and Cornwell was well within her rights to interpret and expand upon the original story in any way she deemed appropriate, but I personally was just left feeling distraught because it felt like one of my favorite classics had been attacked and was left potentially tarnished in my mind.

easemily's review against another edition

4.0

This book kicked ass. It was just basically about this boss girl who went to a private school and then just was a bad ass the whole time. It was fun AND she’s queer. It was just fun and mystery-ish but not too intense. It definitely was a nice read, maybe would’ve been more of a winter read than a summer one, but alas I still liked it.

amydieg's review against another edition

DNF. At 20% in basically nothing has happened but then I’m expected to believe that Jane Eyre, of all people, does not believe a terrible headmaster tried to take advantage of Adele? No thanks.

steffi_88's review against another edition

emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

matchamaker's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

The first half of this book was 10/10, chef’s kiss amazing. I love an insightful reimagining of a classic, an exploration of characters that had disappeared into the background. I loved how the author continued examining the themes of child abuse, loneliness, and dependency that are found in Jane Eyre.

Unfortunately, the story became utterly bewildering in the second half. Adele fancies herself a protector of girls because… she steals trinkets from men? And it’s not an unreliable-narrator-descends-into-madness thing like I thought at first. I’m sure other readers will take issue with the final twist and resolution, but I’m more disappointed in how poorly supported it was, rather than the events in principle: I hadn’t been given enough throughout the story in order to believe it’s ending. 

noxaqualis's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

bethregi's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

elizabetheby's review against another edition

dark sad

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

2.5

spottledot's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

bookishrealm's review against another edition

2.0

This was not it. I think I was anticipating so much more and that ending did not help.

Reader, I Murdered Him is a YA historical mystery/re-telling loosely based on Jane Eyre. It follows main character Adele as she is sent to an all-girls boarding school. In a strange turn of events, Adele becomes a vigilante of sorts to assist in protecting those who seemingly cannot protect themselves.

What Worked: There wasn't much that I enjoyed the book to be honest. I think that there were some important conversations about the agency of women or lack thereof; however, outside of that there isn't much that I would state that I enjoyed.

What Didn't Work: Oh, where do I begin? This book was SO SLOW. I made it through 50 percent of the book before anything truly happened. Even after Adele became of vigilante, it felt as though there was more talking and planning then action. However, the icing on the cake for me as a reader was the ending. While I can't provide exact context because of spoilers, I will say that it was extremely disturbing. I didn't see it coming and it honestly disgusted me. According to other reviewers (because I haven't read the original source material), it was out of the character's normal behavior and something that readers of Jane Eyre found disturbing. Regardless of my familiarity with the original material, I still found it to be disturbing as well.

Overall, this isn't one that I would actively recommend to anyone.