The Burning by Devin K. Asante

A fanatical obsession leads to deadly consequences in The Burning, Devin K. Asante’s chilling work of historical fiction.

The year is 1666. Sixteen-year-old, Agnes Wilmore, has lost her three younger siblings to the plague before arriving in London, hoping to make a new life for herself. Almost as soon as she arrives, she’s raped by Robert Hubert, a tavern barkeep, who’s immediately infatuated with her. She’s rescued by Thomas Farrier and his wife, who hire her as their live-in caretaker for their three young children.

Agnes fervently hopes she’s seen the last of Robert but with each passing day, he becomes more obsessed with her, especially after discovering that Agnes has had his baby. Robert concocts the perfect plan to finally make Agnes his wife when he learns that the ruthless religious sect he belongs to intends on killing their baby, believing little Lucien to be the future Antichrist…

Asante has written a riveting historical novel, thanks to his amoral but compelling protagonist, Robert Hubert. Intellectually brilliant but suffering from low self-esteem, Hubert makes the ideal sociopath who ingratiates himself into Agnes’ life despite her constant rebuffs. What also makes The Burning particularly interesting is the zealous role of the Ranters, the religious sect that operates according to their own particular code as they leave a trail of bodies strewn across London.

Replete with atmosphere, murder and mayhem, The Burning is a provocative and engrossing historical read.