Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

My Rating: 4.9

England, 1580: The Black Death creeps across the land, an ever-present threat, infecting the healthy, the sick, the old and the young alike. The end of days is near, but life always goes on. A young Latin tutor—penniless and bullied by a violent father—falls in love with an extraordinary, eccentric young woman. Agnes is a wild creature who walks her family’s land with a falcon on her glove and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer, understanding plants and potions better than she does people. Once she settles with her husband on Henley Street in Stratford-upon-Avon, she becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband, whose career on the London stage is just taking off when his beloved young son succumbs to sudden fever.

I thought I loved plot driven books but again, O'Farrell is pulling me in with another character driven book that I couldn't put down. The writing was so vivid that I literally had dreams about this book. It pulled me  in and made me want more. The scenes of grief shredded me. The writing was gorgeous and brought the characters, particularly Agnes, to life. It made me feel like I was walking through 1580 England. I loved that they never named Shakespeare but referred to him as Agnes' husband or the children's father. Knowing this piece of Shakespeare's history has me rethinking many of Shakespeare's plays and their inspiration. I loved the Marriage Portrait and I think that O'Farrell hit it out of the park again. I absolutely love her writing style.