Book Review / Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

A New York Times Notable Book (2020)
Best Book of 2020: Guardian, Financial Times, Literary Hub, and NPR

Drawing on Maggie O'Farrell's long-term fascination with the little-known story behind Shakespeare's most enigmatic play, HAMNET is a luminous portrait of a marriage, at its heart the loss of a beloved child.

Warwickshire in the 1580s. Agnes is a woman as feared as she is sought after for her unusual gifts. She settles with her husband in Henley street, Stratford, and has three children: a daughter, Susanna, and then twins, Hamnet and Judith. The boy, Hamnet, dies in 1596, aged eleven. Four years or so later, the husband writes a play called Hamlet.

Award-winning author Maggie O'Farrell's new novel breathes full-blooded life into the story of a loss usually consigned to literary footnotes, and provides an unforgettable vindication of Agnes, a woman intriguingly absent from history.
 

Published:     31st March 2020
Publisher:  Tinder Press
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Bought

 

MY REVIEW

 

I really wanted to love this book.  I had seen this book everywhere, both on the internet and in real life, and the story intrigued me.  It is not a story that I would normally pick up but I wanted to give it a go.  I believe this story is fiction but based very losely on Shakespeare's son Hamnet.  I don't know much about Shakespeare honestly and wanted to learn more. 

What I didn't like about this novel, honestly, was the writing.  There was nothing wrong it with it, technically, but it was just not for me.  I found that I could not keep my head in the story and if I put it down for any length of time I found myself forgetting what had happened before and having to go back a few pages as a reminder.  I think this is more of a case of it me not the author.

What I did enjoy with this story was following Agnes and Hamnet (and also his sister) and experiencing Warwickshire in the 1580s.  Its not an era that I have read much of but found it very intriguing.  The character of Agnes was my favourite to follow out of all the characters in this story.  She is very much portrayed as that woman on the outside that was probably a witch and she should be very careful.  I do love as bit of a witchy aspect to a story. 

Would recommend if you do like reading historical novels.