A lot of people have complained about this book being slow, but I found it beautifully paced for what it was about--after all, the title is "Year of Wonders," which kind of sets up an expectation and timeframe right away. The pace helped set up a world, a time when things moved more slowly, when people were more thoughtful, when people paid attention to the seasons and nature. This is a beautifully narrated, incredibly seamless (for the amount of research that must have been put into to it, it reads so smoothly) novel. I liked the evolution of the protagonist, the way she gained power and still moved within her role in society.

That being said, the ending just friggin' killed it for me. It was totally Hollywood-ized and a total cop out. At turns a romance, a horror, and an action-adventure--in 20 or so pages--but really bad. Bad, like "Who killed Bobby Ewing?" bad. Sigh. I was really pulling for 4 stars here, and then the ending is .5 or 1 star. So it averaged out to a heavily weighted 2 stars.

Another winner from this author! An engaging plot and an interesting glimpse of what life was like for country people back then.
Historical novels are the perfect niche for Geraldine Brooks. She does ample research, then creates a perfect blend of fact and fiction.

This book is based on a true story about the village of Eyam, Derbyshire, where they really did quarantine themselves during the Black Plague of the 17th century. People long ago didn't understand how disease was transmitted, so they resorted to a combination of religious fervor ("this is God's punishment"), superstition (witch hunts, magic charms), and feeble attempts at scientific inquiry.

This is just a great read from start to finish, full of memorable saints and villains and unexpected events. It really shows how, in times of crisis, a person's true nature emerges. Some become even more loving and selfless, some become hysterical and helpless, and some continue to think only of themselves.

By the way, I was glad that the gross-out factor was kept to a minimum. There are numerous other mini-dramas to keep your interest, so it's not only about plague victims and putrefaction.

Nope, I didn't like this at all. OK, just about everybody agrees the ending is bad, me included, but that is not at all why I so dislike the book. For me endings are not that terribly important. It is the time spent with the book that is important to me. Do they get me thinking? Am I drawn into the lives of the characters? Do I occasionally smile or laugh outright or cry? I never laughed with this book. Not once. Neither did I cry. I was made miserable by the depravity so frequently seen in the village. I was annoyed by the rector's religious thinking that made him judgemental and all-knowing. He was as far from humble as you can get.

The following sort of has some spoilers so beware!

I have difficulty accepting the rector's sexual behavior towards his wife and her closest friend Anna. The rector's religious explanation for his sexual abstinence toward his wife, whom I believe he did deeply love, an explanation revolving around repentance and atonement, is beyond my understanding! I think it was pure sophistry even in the 1600s. The explanation simply didn't ring true. Furthermore if this is what he truly thought, well then the rector sure had a high opinion of himself and what he thought he had the right to teach others.

I do respect and admire the rector's noble efforts to save numerous lives by guiding the village to close itself off from its neighbors, albeit sacrificing many villagers to save others living outside the village. However this tremendous noble act of courage, in the hands of this author, completely squashed out the normal, small every-day occurrences of kindness and humor that usually lighten and ease the burden of life in difficult times. There was just too much misery without any joy or humor, which must have occasionally occurred.

I agree that the author seamlessly tied in her historical studies - but that doesn't make it a good book.

I guess I am the odd ball out in not liking this book!

I honestly have two totally different ranks for this book: one of the first 200 pages and one of the last fifty. The last fifty pages totally ruined everything I loved about the first 200. If I weren't reading on my computer, I'd throw it across the room.

Year of Wonders is inspired by a true story of a village called Eyam in England, which experienced an outbreak of the plague in 1666. Our story focuses on Anna, a housemaid for the village priest, and her experiences with loss, family, and community as the village is cut off from all other society in an effort to contain the plague.

Writing
So this is kind of a modern classic, right? It's a New York Times and Washington Post notable book, it's a best seller, and you'll find it on all kinds of "Best of" and "Required Reading" lists. I felt obligated to read it and have had it on my list for years. After reading it, I'm honestly lost as to where to start in reviewing the writing. I feel like it was almost two separate books.

The first book - made up of the first 250 or so pages - was amazing. I thought the writing was beautiful, I love the characters, and I was very impressed with the overall quality as well as the author's storytelling capabilities.

And then the last fifty pages happened and it wasn't even in the same world as the first section. Things just go absolutely nuts in the last fifty pages. I don't want to spoil, but I could not, even by the largest stretch, suspend my disbelief that far. It was totally and completely unbelievable, not just based on history and fact (the book is not a fantasy) but also based on everything the author had established about the characters to that point. You can't write two hundred and fifty pages of character development and then turn around and have the characters act against everything you've already established. No, just no.

Entertainment Value
Despite my anger at the fact that the last few pages of the book take place in some alternate universe with characters who do not in any way resemble the characters we've established throughout the rest of the novel, I actually was quite entertained by the whole thing. I mean, I'll always be entertained by crazy stuff happening, but in this case being entertained was not the best thing. The crazy stuff, while crazily entertaining, had absolutely no place in the book.

Overall
The ending ruined it. I'm not ready to say I don't recommend it, because I feel like the first part of the book is really good. And it's not a horrible waste of time in the way a more believable but cliched and un-memorable story would be. This one is certainly memorable and inspired discussion between me and the friends who have read it - so in that way it was a success. Just don't model your upcoming plague novel on the last fifty pages, ok?