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august_ambrosia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
oh my god. easy 5 stars. ignore how long it took me to finish this book i was trying not to get invested and sob (it didnt work btw) but ooohh my god. o'farrell writes so BEAUTIFULLY. this is lyrical prose on another level. absolutely adored it i wanted to underline and highlight so many sections but alas i was reading in a library book. but i will be ordering my own !!!!! just... spellbinding. the way she describes everything so vividly, its like i can smell and see and touch everything. everyone feels so alive. the little note that the midwife had a jar of pennies at the bottom of the garden. we dont know her name but we know she wont tell anyone about them. everyone is SO ALIVE!!!!!!!!!!! there was something so terrible about reading it knowing the ending. (the ending that is on the blurb, btw. i didnt go in with any other 'spoilers') but its a beautiful exploration of grief and siblinghood and love!!!! and complex relationships, and flawed people, and a whole world is created with the tenderness of the descriptions. the cats and the boy with the monkey with the fleas. susanna!!!! the other women, and agnes. and the way we are told how to pronounce her name. and the horror with which the glover's son falls to the ground after reading his sister's letter about his daughter's illness. the description of grief is heart wrenching tbh. won't ever forget the passage where agnes considers her three children. susanna? at the neighbour's house. judith? upstairs. and hamnet? (he is dead) and hamnet? (he is dead, he is dead.) but hamnet? where is he? (and his lifeless body rests in her arms.)
but i will end this long, rambly review by just saying. ohhh hamnet. dearest hamnet. it shall not be. he wills it so. its a story about a boy who, full with love and life, does the impossible. and meets the inevitable.
but i will end this long, rambly review by just saying. ohhh hamnet. dearest hamnet. it shall not be. he wills it so. its a story about a boy who, full with love and life, does the impossible. and meets the inevitable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Grief, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Child abuse and Infidelity
Minor: Sexual content
bellaa's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
it didn't give me that five star feeling
once again reinforcing that I have no specific taste, highly recommend this if you are ok with child death and absolutely no plot
I wish I could upload pictures so y'all could see the way I absolutely sobbed atthe description of his father coming upon the scene of his death, seeing Judith alive and being so happy, then realizing who was missing . as my mom said, "you need some happy"
my happy is not having to read the words "william shakespeare" throughout this entire book
once again reinforcing that I have no specific taste, highly recommend this if you are ok with child death and absolutely no plot
I wish I could upload pictures so y'all could see the way I absolutely sobbed at
my happy is not having to read the words "william shakespeare" throughout this entire book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Infidelity, Pregnancy, Animal death, Miscarriage, and Death of parent
tw// shakespearedmellifera's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Minor: Infidelity
artmuseam's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
a heartbreaking piece of fiction that tackles with grief during the plague. i did not expect to cry so many times throughout this book, and yet the writing seemed to know exactly how to get the waterworks going :,) as someone who isn’t really a fan of shakespeare (not that i have anything against him—just not interested enough) i thought this book did great in pulling someone like me into a fictional twist of shakespeare’s life before his rise to fame and the pov from his wife. i genuinely loved agnes as a character and following her story truly put me through some highs and lows. i may need to cleanse my broken soul after finishing this story—the sadness is too much for me to bear. 4/5 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Chronic illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Child death
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Infidelity
ivyroseopal's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Grief, Blood, and Physical abuse
Minor: Miscarriage and Infidelity
schorlett's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Medical content, Death, Child death, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Violence, Death of parent, Mental illness, Infidelity, and Physical abuse
Minor: Abortion and Abandonment
iris3271's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual content, Death, Child death, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Death of parent, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Physical abuse
Minor: Body horror
fanchera's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic, Grief, Child death, Death, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Infidelity
clea's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Grief, Child death, Pregnancy, and Physical abuse
Minor: Death of parent, Medical content, and Infidelity
_maia3_'s review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
I have very mixed feelings about this novel.
On one hand, despite what many have said, I actually enjoyed the flowery prose (even if the plot did move slowly from time to time), and the drama of the novel is well-developed. It's definitely a vibes-over-plot book, but I don't tend to mind that, and enjoyed the small historical details the novel had to offer. The flashbacks in the first half are well-executed and tension is kept measured throughout. O'Farrell writes poignantly on love and grief, especially the effects it has on different people.
On the other, I was and still am very conflicted about the fictionalisation of real people, especially when they are as 1) iconic and 2) scant with historical evidence as Anna Hathaway, her children, and William Shakespeare. The ending was the worst offender I feel, as even though the story wrapped up satisfyingly, it felt lukewarm given the knowledge that most of us have going into the novel - this is Shakespeare. Named or not, this novel exists as a comment on his legacy somehow, and I don't know how to marry it with my enjoyment of the novel.
That is to say however that I did, in fact, enjoy the novel - a lot of these are personal gripes that will probably not impact others. This is a good piece of historical fiction that I would happily recommend, but not for those who are looking for anything concrete or definitive on the Shakespeares, as, as O'Farrell herself puts it, the novel is a product of her own "idle speculation".
On one hand, despite what many have said, I actually enjoyed the flowery prose (even if the plot did move slowly from time to time), and the drama of the novel is well-developed. It's definitely a vibes-over-plot book, but I don't tend to mind that, and enjoyed the small historical details the novel had to offer. The flashbacks in the first half are well-executed and tension is kept measured throughout. O'Farrell writes poignantly on love and grief, especially the effects it has on different people.
On the other, I was and still am very conflicted about the fictionalisation of real people, especially when they are as 1) iconic and 2) scant with historical evidence as Anna Hathaway, her children, and William Shakespeare. The ending was the worst offender I feel, as even though the story wrapped up satisfyingly, it felt lukewarm given the knowledge that most of us have going into the novel - this is Shakespeare. Named or not, this novel exists as a comment on his legacy somehow, and I don't know how to marry it with my enjoyment of the novel.
That is to say however that I did, in fact, enjoy the novel - a lot of these are personal gripes that will probably not impact others. This is a good piece of historical fiction that I would happily recommend, but not for those who are looking for anything concrete or definitive on the Shakespeares, as, as O'Farrell herself puts it, the novel is a product of her own "idle speculation".
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Grief
Moderate: Child abuse and Misogyny
Minor: Infidelity, Sexual content, and Animal death