Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell (Review)

Format: Paperback

Source: Library

Publisher: Tinder Press

Genres: Historical Fiction

Publication Date: 1st April 2021

Synopsis/Blurb (Taken from Goodreads):

“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.”

My Thoughts & Review

Right so, I had no interest in reading this book but after seeing so many glowing reviews, and being recommended this book over and over again by some friends, I decided to give finally give it a go.

So, when I first started reading this book I fell in love with O’Farrell’s writing style and even found the storyline interesting and could really see why so many were loving this book, but sadly that all came crashing down as I continued to read on and by the halfway point I started to find it more and more difficult to pick up after putting it down. In all honesty I should have probably DNF-ed this one, but I really did want to find out what all the hype was about after already committing so much time on it.

The main reason for me is that I lost interest in the story, personally I found the majority of the story flat and slow. There were a few places in between where my interest peaked a bit but overall I just wanted to be done with it.

As for the characters, I wasn’t really a fan of them either. Again, I personally found them underdeveloped and rather flat, which made it hard for me to care about any of them even Hamnet.

I can see why so many readers have fallen in love with this book but unfortunately this one just wasn’t for me, and personally I feel like this one was the way too overhyped. Now although I may not have loved this one, I’ve definitely not been put off reading more from this author especially as I have enjoyed the first book I ever read from her back in 2018.

My Rating