This is the story of Shakespeare's wife, her past, how she became his wife, the story of their children and how they contracted the plague.
This story shines a light on one of the many forgotten women in history and I love the way it flips history on its head to make Shakespeare the inconsequential character, so much so that he is never even named within the book, instead he is referred to as brother, husband, father etc.
It is the story of grief told in the most, raw, descriptive lyrical style steeped in copious period detail. The tale of passage of the flea that brought the disease to the family was utterly captivating. I will not be able to hear of Hamlet without thinking of this tale now.
O’Farrell has a magical way with words, she completely transported me in the time and life of her characters and the way she writes maternal love (in this and in her memoir, I am I am I am) is incredible! This was a fantastic piece of historical fiction and I would be very surprised if it didn’t make the women’s prize short list.