Jane & Edward by Melodie Edwards – A Book Review

Spoiler-Free Overview

Jane Raine has been working just to survive her whole life, ever since her father passed away. She’s been tossed around the foster system, and eventually ended up as a waitress in the suburbs. She’s perfected the concept of fitting in and just getting by.

That is until she overhears her coworkers talking about getting a degree as a legal secretary, and the plan for Jane to escape her trapped life begins. She excels at her courses, and ends up getting hired to be the legal secretary of one of the owning partners of Rosen, Haythe & Thornfield LLP. Only this job isn’t all that easy. Edward Rosen, her boss, is a volatile, chaotic, and demanding man. But Jane isn’t deterred and has dealt with far worse in her life. With the promise of financial stability and escaping the trappings of her life, Jane is determined to see this job through.

Over the months, Edward and Jane gain an understanding of each other. Jane refuses to back down to Edward’s grumpy disposition, and Edward sees a strong-willed woman who excels at her job.

When their relationship progresses to more than just coworkers, they tentatively explore what that could be. 

Liz’s Thoughts and Feelings

The gentle flow from callous to playful bickering to romance was masterfully done. Just like Jane Eyre. The writing in this book is more flowery and descriptive, reminiscent of a classic writing style that brings up the emotions that Jane Eyre does. 

The characters in this book are exquisite. Rosen feels so much like Rochester I think I’ll always be picturing them both when reading either book. Jane embodies the stoic nature but also longing and hopefulness of Jane Eyre. On top of it, the side characters really pull from the original text. Adele feels like Adele from Jane Eyre even though she’s older and is more of a mentor to Jane in Jane & Edward. 

The romance, dear lord, the romance in this book. The dance scene gave me more butterflies than any kiss or sex scene has in a long time. And, oh my goodness, the stairwell scene. The acknowledgement of Edward’s power over Jane and how he’d never want to put her in a bad position makes me fall in love with this fictional man.

There’s also this lingering dread after Jane and Edward get together. Because just like Jane Eyre, you know there’s something bad coming. It’s like any romance book if the couple gets together too early and there’s too many pages left. Something bad has to be coming. But you already know what it is as the reader because you know Jane Eyre, the real question is how is this author going to change that outcome for this book.

What’s so lovely is that Melodie Edwards doesn’t change a lot, as far as the spirit of the original book. The second half of the book really empowers Jane, and shows her growing to trust and believe in herself. She stands up to Daniel, and understands that love is really worth the uncertainty of it.

Now, if you haven’t read Jane Eyre, you might not like some elements of the book, which I won’t mention because it would be a spoiler. But, for those of us that love the original, this book had to incorporate those elements or else it wouldn’t be an honest reimagining, and I’d have felt cheated.

Overall, I’m going to read this book again. As I write this review, I already want to reread it. Jane and Edward’s romance is beautiful and genuine and heartwarming.