Historical fiction book · Curated
Burial Rites
Hannah Kent · historical fiction
In 1829, in the north of Iceland, Agnes Magnúsdóttir is sent to wait for execution at Kornsá, a district officer’s farm, because the valley has no prison for the servant convicted of murdering Natan Ketilsson. Hannah Kent’s 2013 novel is Regency biographical historical fiction of that winter—and of Tóti, the young priest she asks for, who hears a story the court record does not contain.
Why read it: A widely searched Icelandic historical novel—the Kent title readers look up by name (Guardian First Book Award), and a last-execution counterpart to Alias Grace already on the shelf (not The Good People).
About this historical novel
Burial Rites by Hannah Kent is historical fiction set around 1828–1830 in the Regency / Napoleonic period with key settings including Kornsá, Illugastaðir, Vatnsdalur, Iceland. In 1829, in the north of Iceland, Agnes Magnúsdóttir is sent to wait for execution at Kornsá, a district officer’s farm, because the valley has no prison for the servant convicted of murdering Natan Ketilsson. Hannah Kent’s 2013 novel is Regency biographical historical fiction of that winter—and of Tóti, the young priest she asks for, who hears a story the court record does not contain.
On HisFic we tag it under 4. Biographical fiction and 1. Literary historical fiction so you can pair it with similar story types. Recurring themes include execution, guilt, faith, servitude, and storytelling. A widely searched Icelandic historical novel—the Kent title readers look up by name (Guardian First Book Award), and a last-execution counterpart to Alias Grace already on the shelf (not The Good People).
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Plot summary
In 1829, in the north of Iceland, Agnes Magnúsdóttir is sent to wait for execution at Kornsá, a district officer’s farm, because the valley has no prison for the servant convicted of murdering Natan Ketilsson. Hannah Kent’s 2013 novel is Regency biographical historical fiction of that winter—and of Tóti, the young priest she asks for, who hears a story the court record does not contain. A widely searched Icelandic historical novel—the Kent title readers look up by name (Guardian First Book Award), and a last-execution counterpart to Alias Grace already on the shelf (not The Good People).
Subgenres
Eras
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- The Count of Monte Cristo · Alexandre Dumas
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- Les Misérables · Victor Hugo
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- Pope Joan · Donna Woolfolk Cross
In the ninth century, a canon’s daughter hides her sex, takes her dead brother’s name, and rises from a Fulda monastery to Rome as scholar, healer, and—according to the legend—pope. Donna Woolfolk Cross’s international bestseller is medieval biographical historical fiction of learning, disguise, and a woman the church spent a thousand years denying.
- The Agony and the Ecstasy · Irving Stone
Apprenticed in Medici Florence, Michelangelo Buonarroti wrestles marble, popes, and his own fury from the David through the Sistine ceiling to the dome of St. Peter’s—while Renaissance Italy tears through poisoning princes and warring pontiffs. Irving Stone’s 1961 novel is early-modern biographical historical fiction of genius and patronage: the artist’s life at the center of sixteenth-century Florence and Rome.
Regions & places
Europe
Kornsá · Illugastaðir · Vatnsdalur · Iceland
Themes
- execution
- guilt
- faith
- servitude
- storytelling
Tags
biographical · award-winner