Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye

At the beginning of the Victorian era, Jane Steele is growing up at Highgate House the despised niece of her Aunt Patience. Then, she makes her first kill and flees to school before being caught. Eventually, Steele discovers her favorite book, Jane Eyre, and although her circumstances closely mirror that of her favorite book character, Steele isn't about to follow meekly in Eyre's footsteps, becoming a victim time and time again. Jane Steele is going to make sure the violent, the cruel, and the worst dregs of society will get their just desserts.

After fleeing school for London, Jane notices a posting for governess at her former childhood home. Jane's mother always said she would be the rightful heir of Highgate House, so Jane sets off to take the measure of this supposed new heir. Once there, Jane quickly finds herself falling in love with her young charge and eventually the master of the house. But this new household is a place of many secrets, and Jane risks having her own deadly indiscretions exposed while she pieces together the mysteries of those around her. Will she be able to solve all the puzzles before her lethal past comes back to haunt her?

Lyndsay Faye impeccably recreates the world of Jane Eyre, while revamping her main protagonist into a smart and witty executioner, and the amount of research Faye conducted is readily apparent in the gritty Victorian London details as well as the history of the First Anglo-Sikh War in India. For those who enjoy clever thrillers with droll characters or for anyone who enjoys suspenseful historicals, Jane Steele, is an exceptional read that will captivate from Jane's first confession:

"Reader, I murdered him."