Netflix viewers in Eswatini can now watch His & Hers, a six-part adaptation of Alice Feeney’s 2020 bestseller, bringing a small-town murder mystery to the screen with twists, suspense, and dark family secrets. The series has drawn attention for its complex characters and binge-worthy storytelling. I watched the series yesterday and would rate it 9 out of 10 for the suspense and plot twists.
The story opens with a shocking scene: a woman lies bloodied on the bonnet of a car deep in the woods. Another woman arrives home covered in blood, gasping for air and for wine, scrubbing her hands before clearing her apartment of all evidence. A voiceover declares there are two sides to every story, signaling the series’ focus on deception.
Jon Bernthal stars as Detective Jack Harper, tasked with investigating the murder, while Tessa Thompson plays Anna, a former TV anchor who returns to her hometown to cover the case. Anna aims to reclaim her career after losing her previous position to a younger rival while grieving the death of her child. Jack and Anna are estranged spouses, adding tension to both their personal and professional lives. Anna also seduces her rival’s husband, Richard (Pablo Schreiber), who works as her cameraman.
The murder victim, Rachel Hopkins (Jamie Tisdale, with Isabelle Kusman as her teen version), was known for being cruel in school, and flashbacks reveal her manipulative behavior. A growing list of suspects includes Anna herself, Jack, Rachel’s husband Clyde (Chris Bauer), and others connected to past betrayals. Jack’s alcoholic sister Zoe (Marin Ireland) and Anna’s aging mother Alice (Crystal Fox), whose failing memory hides key secrets, further complicate the investigation.
The series introduces Lexy Jones (Rebecca Rittenhouse), an Atlanta TV anchor secretly Catherine Kelly, who Anna initially suspects of killing her former high-school tormentors. Lexy’s plans to target Anna are thwarted by Priya (Sunita Mani), Jack’s police partner, who saves her life. However, a year later, Anna discovers the truth: Alice, her mother, was behind the murders all along.
Alice’s motive stems from a traumatic event on Anna’s 16th birthday, when Anna and her friends were attacked. Teenage Rachel, Helen, and Zoe orchestrated the assault while Catherine (Lexy) fled. Years later, Anna loses her baby while in Alice’s care. Seeking revenge for the assault and protecting her daughter, Alice murders Rachel, Helen, and Zoe, framing Lexy by planting evidence.
Director William Oldroyd calls the adaptation a “love letter” to a mother’s protective instincts, noting the careful construction of suspense, believability, and emotional depth. Thompson, also executive producer, says the series keeps viewers guessing while exploring trauma, loss, and resilience.
Clues to Alice’s identity are subtle. She exploits perceptions of age and gender, behaving erratically in public, leaving bare footprints at crime scenes, and manipulating others to misread the evidence. Oldroyd and the creative team planted hints throughout the series, allowing attentive viewers to piece together her culpability without revealing the twist too early.
The series also sensitively portrays Anna as a survivor of sexual assault, showing how she channels trauma into ambition, control, and resilience, while keeping her experience secret from her mother and Jack. Thompson hopes Anna’s story encourages conversations about abuse and helps viewers feel seen.
Other key plotlines include Catherine’s own dark history. Catherine’s sister Andrea dies in an asthma-related incident after Catherine tampers with her inhaler, a tragic event that leads her to reinvent herself as Lexy. She loses weight, changes her style, and takes a new name, hiding her identity from Anna almost 20 years later.
The final episodes feature violent confrontations between Anna, Richard, and Lexy. Lexy attempts to shoot Anna, but Jack intervenes, and Priya fatally shoots Lexy, though Richard insists his late wife was innocent. Anna ultimately reads a letter from her mother, understanding that the murders were committed out of maternal protection, bringing her back home and reuniting the family. Despite the revelations, Anna and Jack retain some secrets from one another, leaving a lingering tension.
His & Hers is now streaming on Netflix, offering a suspenseful, twist-filled thriller with complex family dynamics, revenge, and buried secrets that unravel over six gripping episodes.
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