Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Hamnet

I'm so glad I finally read this one!! It wasn't what I was expecting...but was somehow better than what I was expecting.

That being said, I don't think this book is for everyone. There's a lot of descriptive writing and "flowery" language, the plot moves very slowly, the omniscient POV bounces from person to person—if that's not your thing, you'll probably get annoyed and frustrated with this story. But I found myself captivated by the language and fully immersed into the setting the author was describing. From the beginning, you know where this story is going, you know what's going to happen, there are no surprises, and yet...you are right there with this family, on the edge of your seat, waiting to see how they react, what they will say, how they will feel. I don't know what it was about this book that grabbed me so. If I described the characters to you, none of them would be unique; maybe the most interesting thing about them is that the name William Shakespeare never appears in the story, as if, though he is the most famous person of his family, he takes a backseat here to the rest of them, so their emotions and actions can carry more weight. And yet, for the last half of this book, I couldn't put it down.

I'm not going to tell you to read it because, like I said above, I don't think it's for everyone. But if you're fascinated by the Shakespeare family, if you like being grabbed by a mysterious element in a book, if any of the above appealed to you, if you're also obsessed by this cover—don't hesitate to read this book.

Content Warnings

a_robin_reads's review against another edition

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reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.0

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Information:

Read an English physical copy from the library
switched over to the Dutch audiobook from Storytel

Buddy read this with Jovana

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Review:

Just okay for me.

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Review previously placed on my blog:

I'm currently reading Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell. I'm reading a physical copy from the library for a buddy read. I'm reading this for a challenge video of reading outside my comfort zone with the topic historical fiction.

I'm not enjoying this so far. The writing is easier then I expected and pretty good. The story itself though is pretty boring to be honest. The "suspencefull" thing in the book was already mentioned on the back in the summary, so that suspence is already gone. The rest is just a little all over the place. Hope I will enjoy it more, but we shall see.

It became a bit better after the first part. There were just some things that really bothered me. For my full review: check out my youtube channel. 3 stars

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Content Warnings

bodiesinbooks's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

claudiamacpherson's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Did I buy this (partly) because it’s just an absolutely beautiful cover? Yes. But I love historical fiction and this was beautifully, heartbreakingly good. Maggie O’Farrell’s writing style was wonderfully descriptive and felt almost dreamy. I often don’t like when stories jump around in time, but it didn’t bother me in this book.

I especially loved the chapter tracing the plague from a monkey in the Middle East to Italy and finally to England. I love when books deal with big or important historical events by breaking them down to the tiniest actions, and this was an amazing example.

I found it fascinating that O’Farrell managed to write the entire book (or almost the entire book? I don’t remember exactly) without ever mentioning the name William Shakespeare. It was such a good way to keep the reader’s attention on his role as a father rather than a literary icon.

Happy ending meter (no specific spoilers, just the vibe—although this is historical fiction so you really should know the ending already): Sad, but also a little bittersweet. I love the idea of tragedy and loss being turned into something beautiful, as so many artists have done.

Content Warnings

ophelia_reads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring 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

5.0

First third felt slow. Second third was painful but powerful. The ending was gorgeous and felt like a great payoff for the time spent on the first two thirds. This was my first Maggie O’Farrell book and it makes me want to read more. Her protagonist (not the title character) is thoughtfully crafted and easy to empathize with. I love how she handled Shakespeare, the character who I expected to dominate the narrative (I was wrong.)

Content Warnings

bretagnereads's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

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