Burial Rites - Hardcover

Kent, Hannah

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0316239801 ISBN 13: 9780316239806

Publisher: Little Brown and Company, 2013

Synopsis

Life in 1830s Iceland is stark and difficult, but there is a sense of beauty and peace among those hardy enough to make a life there. This peace is disrupted by two brutal murders, news of which travels from settlement to settlement, the frenzy building as a young woman, Agnes, is accused, tried and convicted. She is sentenced to death. The governor decides Agnes must wait out her execution on an isolated farm. Her arrival there disrupts the quiet between the farmer, his wife and their two daughters, all of whom are horrified at the prospect of having this woman share their home, their life. Agnes herself is stoic, doing her work as best she can and only slowly letting down her guard to Toti, the young priest she has mysteriously chosen as her spiritual guide. As Toti struggles to guide Agnes towards redemption, the farmer's wife, Margaret, begins to sense that there is another side to the sensational story they've heard. A suspenseful and riveting novel rich with vivid lyricism and page-turning suspense, BURIAL RITES evokes a harsh and dramatic existence in a distant time and place, and asks the heartbreaking question: how can one woman endure when her life depends upon the stories told by others? Based on a real-life story, this is an astonishing debut that heralds the arrival of a great new talent.

About this title

Review:

"A brooding, atmospheric debut."-- Entertainment Weekly

"Kent skillfully reconstructs events."-- San Francisco Chronicle "

"Kent skillfully reconstructs events."-- "San Francisco Chronicle "

"Atmospheric, stark and beautiful."-- San Francisco Chronicle"

"Atmospheric, stark and beautiful."-- "San Francisco Chronicle"

"A brooding, atmospheric debut." "Entertainment Weekly""

"Kent skillfully reconstructs events." ""San Francisco Chronicle """

"Atmospheric, stark and beautiful." ""San Francisco Chronicle"""

"Here is an original new voice, with a deep and lovely grasp of language and story. Hannah Kent's first novel, BURIAL RITES, is an accomplished gem, its prose as crisp and sparkling as its northern setting."--Geraldine Brooks, winner of the Pulitzer Prize

"A compelling read, heart-breaking and uplifting in equal measure."--Anne Berry, author of The Hungry Ghosts

Book Description:

'This compelling, ripped-from-real-life tale reminds me of Margaret Atwood's Alias Grace' Karin Slaughter, best-selling author of Kisscut

LONGLISTED FOR THE 2013 GUARDIAN FIRST BOOK AWARD

About this edition

• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0316239801
• ISBN 13: 9780316239806
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 448