36. Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

I would have never ever read this book, based on the subject matter, if not for this list challenge. Set in 1666 during the Great Plague of London in a small rural village (and based on the true story), the novel focuses on Anna Frith, a widowed mother-of-two (at 18 years old) and her experiences in the year when the Plague ravages her town. It really drew me in - I got totally caught up in the experience of life in 1666. It's written with awareness of Old English sentence structure and vocabulary but only to the point that it sounds authentic, not that it becomes difficult to read. A very interesting twist at the end and intriguing, flawed characters.