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Accidents of Providence by Stacia Brown
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Accidents of Providence (original 2012; edition 2012)

by Stacia Brown (Author)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
15010180,495 (3.34)15
Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. Historical Fiction. HTML:

"A seventeenth-century heroine for our times" could face death for her dangerous affair with an English revolutionary (O, The Oprah Magazine).

London, 1649. King Charles has been beheaded for treason; Cromwell is in power; paranoia and self-righteousness rule; and glove maker Rachel Lockyer has been engaged in a secret affair with William Walwyn, a Leveler who advocates for independence and tolerance. But when Rachel's "bastard" infant is found hidden in the woods, Rachel is arrested. No one disputes that the young mother buried her beloved daughter. The question that has brought Rachel to trial for murder is: why?

Now drawn into Rachel's circle is the married lover she is loathe to reveal; a fiercely compassionate mother who lost her own children to smallpox; a prosecutor hell-bent on making an example of Rachel; and the criminal investigator, increasingly reluctant to build his case against the condemned young womanâ??all of them brought to reckon for this one life.

At once a remarkable love story and a breathtaking thriller based on true events, Accidents of Providence is "heart-poundingly vivid [and] intellectually provocative . . . historical fiction at its best" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).

"[A] delightfully seditious heroine . . . Proof that a historical novel can be educational and entertaining." â??O, The Oprah Magazine

"Wonderfully detailed and keenly researched, it is a moving portrait of a courageous woman caught between a disastrous affair with a charismatic revolutionary and the draconian laws of the land that would put her to death because of it." â??Kathleen Kent, author of The Traitor's Wife
… (more)

Member:MHanover10
Title:Accidents of Providence
Authors:Stacia Brown (Author)
Info:Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (2012), Edition: First Edition, 1st Printing, 272 pages
Collections:Your library, Currently reading, Wishlist, To read, Read but unowned, Favorites
Rating:
Tags:to-read

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Accidents of Providence by Stacia Brown (2012)

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» See also 15 mentions

English (9)  Italian (1)  All languages (10)
Showing 1-5 of 9 (next | show all)
Rachel has an affair with a married man and becomes pregnant. The man is in the Tower during her pregnancy and the messenger boy she sends to relay to him that he has #15 on the way, never reaches him.
This takes place in 1649 and in 1624 a new law was established regarding bastard children. Basically, she doesn't have a prayer whether the child survives or dies.
spoiler:


She's questioned, tried and hung.
I didn't care for this story. The characters seem to be going through the motion, but none of them are really alive.
I much preferred the Afterword and the Authors Notes to the entire story. ( )
  VhartPowers | Dec 27, 2018 |
The story of a young woman who tried to bury a baby that died upon birth. A decree had been passed that single mothers were not permitted to do so. It was called the Bastard Act. Evidently, many young mothers had taken to killing their babies rather than live the life of shame. The end of the book seemed rushed and unsatisfactory; maybe unfinished. ( )
  Tess_W | May 3, 2015 |
There are some really glaring, jarring and annoying inconsistencies and historical inaccuracies with this book which I could not overlook and spoilt it for me as a work of fiction. The potential is there for a really good yarn with a character weaving in and out of real historical events. However, Brown is no Lindsey Davis or Susanna Gregory and just doesn't appear to have a full grasp of the history of the period, although she does mention various groups that did exist and refers to some of the rather strict laws that were in existence at that time.

She also appeared to be attempting to overlay a modern woman's viewpoint by critiquing 17th century with 21st century values within the self exploratory dialogue of the main character. Some of the dialogue, behaviours and interactions are just not accurate to the social norms of the period - and the use of modern day Americanisms is infuriating.

I couldn't for the life of me work out whether she wanted the book to be a murder mystery, a social commentary of the times, or a...? It became lost, neither one thing nor the other. ( )
  Jawin | Nov 2, 2013 |
3.5 stars

My blog post about this book is at this link. ( )
  SuziQoregon | Mar 31, 2013 |
Accidents of Providence is a book I read on my kindle from the elibrary. This was an interesting historical fiction book. Rachel is the main character and she is in trouble because she is a pregant unwed mother. It tells of her relationship with her employer and friends and her trial. The book contains a few strange twists also that complicate matters.
Only took 2 days to read. Worth checking out. ( )
  Pattymclpn | Feb 3, 2013 |
Showing 1-5 of 9 (next | show all)
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Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Stacia Brownprimary authorall editionscalculated
Lonza, GiannaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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«Due passeri non si vendono forse per un soldo?

Eppure neanche uno di essi cadrà a terra

senza che il Padre vostro lo voglia.»


MATTEO 10,29
Dedication
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Mary non intendeva essere quel tipo di Ugonotta.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. Historical Fiction. HTML:

"A seventeenth-century heroine for our times" could face death for her dangerous affair with an English revolutionary (O, The Oprah Magazine).

London, 1649. King Charles has been beheaded for treason; Cromwell is in power; paranoia and self-righteousness rule; and glove maker Rachel Lockyer has been engaged in a secret affair with William Walwyn, a Leveler who advocates for independence and tolerance. But when Rachel's "bastard" infant is found hidden in the woods, Rachel is arrested. No one disputes that the young mother buried her beloved daughter. The question that has brought Rachel to trial for murder is: why?

Now drawn into Rachel's circle is the married lover she is loathe to reveal; a fiercely compassionate mother who lost her own children to smallpox; a prosecutor hell-bent on making an example of Rachel; and the criminal investigator, increasingly reluctant to build his case against the condemned young womanâ??all of them brought to reckon for this one life.

At once a remarkable love story and a breathtaking thriller based on true events, Accidents of Providence is "heart-poundingly vivid [and] intellectually provocative . . . historical fiction at its best" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).

"[A] delightfully seditious heroine . . . Proof that a historical novel can be educational and entertaining." â??O, The Oprah Magazine

"Wonderfully detailed and keenly researched, it is a moving portrait of a courageous woman caught between a disastrous affair with a charismatic revolutionary and the draconian laws of the land that would put her to death because of it." â??Kathleen Kent, author of The Traitor's Wife

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