Reviews

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

joshsimp's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

kelceyxreads's review against another edition

5.0

I loved this book! It wasn't one that I poured through in one afternoon, but that isn't because it wasn't great - it's because the writing was so beautiful and poetic that I wanted to take the time to appreciate it properly. I think O'Farrell does a wonderful job of turning Agnes into a real person with real feelings of grief, love, and loss. She is a character who blends the otherworldly and the natural in a beautiful way that turns the trope of a 'witchy' woman on its head. Her relationship with her husband, who cleverly goes unnamed but is so obviously known, is one of a marriage tested - and it feels so achingly realistic. The story of the flea was enthralling, and any author who can make that story as interesting as that has amazing talent!

Sometimes toggling through two timelines can be confusing but this book does so beautifully. Each narrative was clear and strong, and I felt like the form was a real benefit to the story. Grief and the endlessness of time are described beautifully here. Overall, that is my word for this book: beautiful.

szuum's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Grief, Misogyny, and Child death

Moderate: Sexual content, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Infidelity

mieleiele's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

_sarah_s's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

kayode's review against another edition

emotional reflective tense 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

5.0

Truly a page-turner, a wonderfully written story with detailed characters and very fluid writing. 

deborahvan3's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

fflur_jones's review against another edition

4.0

A stunning novel. The plot itself is not very action driven so took me a while to get into it but this works well in the context of the book. The real standout of this book is the writing. O'Farrell captures the world so beautifully through her words (one of my favourite sentences was when she described plums as having "red gold jackets near to bursting with sweetness"). Agnes' and other characters' grief is so vivid that for most of the book your heart aches for what is inevitably going to happen and then for all that has happened once it takes place.
If you're looking for an action driven story I wouldn't recommend but if you want to read pages and pages of exquisite writing this is definitely the book for you!

fantasynovel's review against another edition

3.0

beautiful but super fucking boring

lindsayaunderwood's review against another edition

4.0

Trigger warning for loss of a child.

I really loved this female perspective and reimagined idea of Shakespeare’s life. I’m no Bill expert, but this was a very interesting concept!