The Book of Days is fabulous historical fiction. The start of the book is quite slow, and reading on my kindle, I did not become fully engaged with the novel until about the 50 % mark. But once I did, I could not put the book down.

In a village, north of Oxford , 1546 , the tale begins to unfold. Alice is a young woman , married to a much older man, Richard, who is very ill and is dying. Alice would very much like to have a child. Richard's first wife died, and left behind a now teen aged daughter, Agnes. Richard is obsessed with building a chapel where he plans to be buried, and prayers said for his soul. Alice has already lost a 3 day old baby, and mourns her loss.

Though not specifically mentioned, the Protestant Reformation has begun. The Catholic Chapel where Squire Richard and his family and the town worship, is threatened. A commissioner arrives, and the chapel is to dismantle all things Catholic. Meanwhile, daughter Agnes grows restive, and becomes interested in a man named Henry Martyn. When Richard dies, his manor and fortune will go to Agnes, unless a male heir is born. Alice wonders what will become of her when her husband dies.

Many of the townspeople begin to follow a firebrand Protestant preacher, and turmoil and tragedy result.

A fascinating tale from a very personal perspective, but one that has made me seek out more information on the Protestant Reformation, and the reign of King Henry V111

A couple of quotes

48% " I have been a man's possession since the day I was born" - Alice.
55% " was it right to liberate a church from Rome to enslave it to another throne ? " ( )

Married to a much older husband, Alice wants to have children but her husband is dying. His will stipulates that all will go to his daughter Agnes, flush with her first love, unless Alice bears a son. As her husband ails, he commissions a fine chantry chapel in the local church, his tomb is carved and a priest arrives to sing. However the locals on the estate are not happy about this and change is afoot, the old king is dead and the new one wants a different form of religious practice.
It was quite hard to get into this book, there are few names used in early chapters and the date is really given until later. Luckily I have a fair bit of knowledge and could use the hints about wider events to place this story. I'm glad I persevered as this is a wonderfully understated bit of writing. There are tumultuous events taken place as the Protestant reformation takes place and this book reflects on how it must have felt in the heart of the countryside. ( )