The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
ahoijules's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
2.0
Eine gute Idee, die leider nicht gut umgesetzt wurde.
Ich empfand das Buch als furchtbar langatmig mit vielen Beschreibungen und Erklärungen, die nicht nötig gewesen wären, um das Buch zu verstehen. Ich hatte Probleme mit den Protagonistinnen warm zu werden und fand keine so richtig spannend. Auch dauerte es bis gut zwei Drittel des Buchs bis die Handlung langsam an Fahrt aufgenommen hat.
Das Ende fand ich furchtbar kitschig, die letzten 25 Minuten des Hörbuchs habe ich auf 1,5-facher Geschwindigkeit gehört, damit es endlich zu einem Ende kommt. Es stört mich außerdem wahnsinnig, dass so getan wird, als könnte man sich mal ganz easy in Cambridge immatrikulieren 😂 ich bin außerdem ziemlich sicher, dass die Masterarbeit thematisch nicht in die Anglistik gehört 😅
Ich empfand das Buch als furchtbar langatmig mit vielen Beschreibungen und Erklärungen, die nicht nötig gewesen wären, um das Buch zu verstehen. Ich hatte Probleme mit den Protagonistinnen warm zu werden und fand keine so richtig spannend. Auch dauerte es bis gut zwei Drittel des Buchs bis die Handlung langsam an Fahrt aufgenommen hat.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Medical content, Miscarriage, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Death, and Infertility
squirrel66's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Ich habe das Hörbuch gehört. Ich fand die Sprecherin gut und die Idee hinter dem Plot hat mich sehr angesprochen. Ich kam irgendwann auch rein und wollte dann weiterhören, aber hab schon etwas gebraucht um reinzukommen. Auf mich wirkte die Handlung auch etwas in die Länge gezogen, ich hätte es gerne in einem schnelleren Tempo erzählt bekommen. Vielleicht lag das aber auch daran, dass ich nicht komplett in die Geschichte(n) gesogen wurde.
Mir hat der historische Handlungsstrang besser gefallen. Carolines Entwicklungsbogen war für mich etwas niedrig angesetzt und vorhersehbar. Obwohl 200 Jahre in der Zukunft, lag sie in ihrer Emanzipation einfach hinter Nella. Durch ihre m.M.n. naiven und offensichtlich schlechten bisherigen Lebensentscheidungen war klar was für sie passieren musste und würde. Ich hätte mir noch den einen oder anderen Twist gewünscht, der sich in zwei parallelen Handlungssträngen ja anbietet. Und dass bei beiden Frauen ihr Muttersein so ein zentraler Punkt war, wurde mir auch irgendwann etwas viel. Aber mag sein dass es dafür ein dankbareres Publikum gibt.
Insgesamt war ich angenehm unterhalten, meine Empfehlung ginge aber auch darüber hinaus das Hörbuch zu hören, wenn man es kostenlos streamen kann.
Mir hat der historische Handlungsstrang besser gefallen. Carolines Entwicklungsbogen war für mich etwas niedrig angesetzt und vorhersehbar. Obwohl 200 Jahre in der Zukunft, lag sie in ihrer Emanzipation einfach hinter Nella. Durch ihre m.M.n. naiven und offensichtlich schlechten bisherigen Lebensentscheidungen war klar was für sie passieren musste und würde. Ich hätte mir noch den einen oder anderen Twist gewünscht, der sich in zwei parallelen Handlungssträngen ja anbietet. Und dass bei beiden Frauen ihr Muttersein so ein zentraler Punkt war, wurde mir auch irgendwann etwas viel. Aber mag sein dass es dafür ein dankbareres Publikum gibt.
Insgesamt war ich angenehm unterhalten, meine Empfehlung ginge aber auch darüber hinaus das Hörbuch zu hören, wenn man es kostenlos streamen kann.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infertility and Murder
Minor: Terminal illness
bambifaun's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Grief, and Medical content
Moderate: Child death, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, and Miscarriage
Minor: Pregnancy, Abortion, Blood, Death, Grief, and Murder
mattiedancer's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Writing: 3⭐️/5
The writing was fine, adequate, presentable. A few times Penner had some really stunning lines, but mostly the writing did what needed to be done without too much flare or finesse. A lot of sections for backstory were lengthy, giving us a bit of information by flashback and then overexplaining the emotions of the situation. But overall the writing did enough to not get in the way.
Characters: 3.5⭐️/5
I think the characters in the historical sections were much more fascinating than our modern-day protagonist. While I appreciated that Caroline had a lot going on, I also felt like her half-telling of the story made me lose a bit of interest in what was going on. I loved her research-heavy mind, but it felt stunningly unbelievable the way in which she pursued her research so easily after so long. And, while the characters were interesting, they felt a bit surface at times, almost as though we never got a true glimpse of their whole beings.
Plot: 3⭐️/5
Okay, so the concept? Super cool. The execution? Maybe that’s where I got lost. I loved everything about the apothecary. I even loved the slow unravelling of clues from Caroline’s side, but I also felt like that was the only thing that felt super fleshed out. All the details in the novel felt muddled, as though they were unclear and unformed. I also think that the end kind of undid some of the feminist points made throughout the novel, leaving kind of a sour taste in my mouth at the end.
Who Should Read This Book?
- Fans of historical books that have a split POV with modern perspective
- Someone looking for a cool concept over everything else
- Fans of witchy history who are looking for an easy read
Content Warnings?
- Pregnancy, adultery, murder, sexism, misogyny, rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment, violence, abuse, child abuse, child death, death, death of parent, self-harm, suicide, suicide attempt, suicidal thoughts, terminal illness, poison, gun violence, medical trauma, classism, injury, injury detail, fire, pedophilia, incest, infertility
Post-Reading Rating: 2.75⭐️/5
I just… wanted more? I liked the concept so much but I think everything else fell pretty flat.
Final Rating: 3⭐️/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Incest, Infertility, Violence, Vomit, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Classism, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Self harm, Child death, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Blood, Sexual violence, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, and Pedophilia
jkohls's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I think this was a very easy read. I found the book grabbed my interest very early. I sometimes struggle with the flashback books but I got into the grove with this one quickly.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Murder, Grief, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Chronic illness, Incest, Infidelity, Child abuse, Violence, Child death, Medical content, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, and Rape
aimeemg155's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Terminal illness, Grief, Murder, Drug use, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Suicide
lizzie_beth98's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Infertility, Child death, Drug use, Grief, Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Murder
annorabrady's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
The story was intriguing, but still left a lot to be desired. Especially when it came to Caroline's POV. I found a lot of her actions to be incredibly dumb, especially in regards to how she took notes. I also didn't understand a lot of her thought processes. I also felt that her husband's presence didn't add to the story except to show the extent to which he was willing and capable of abusing her. But memories alone showed most of that.
I wish the story had focused more on Eliza. Her part of the story was the most compelling by far.
Upon further reflection, I have to say that Caroline's story doesn't fit with the themes of the other stories. The others focus on seizing what little control they have over their situations as women of their time by means of harming the people who harmed them.
Caroline learned almost nothing from her "research" that lent itself to her situation. And she didn't even intend to hurt her husband. If he hadn't attempted to force her to stay married to him by way of poisoning himself (a move that he also intended to use as means to frame her for his death should he not live), nothing about her story would have been different despite the attempt at drawing a parallel between the various stories.
Also, on the bit about him poisoning himself. Are we really supposed to believe that her husband's history of toxic behaviors was limited to "being pragmatic and convincing her to give up her dreams until the right time" and then cheating on her? One doesn't go from infidelity and "risk aversion" to extreme manipulation via self harm and attempts at suicide without there being other attempts at similar methods of control. That level of escalation, especially after 10 years of marriage and however long of dating is unrealistic. Abusers use tactics they know are likely to work based on past acceptance of similar behaviors.
Also also am I really supposed to believe that someone who goes so far as to poison themself as an act of manipulation is going to just accept that it didn't work and leave calmly? Someone willing to go that far is someone who is dangerous. The kind of dangerous where the person leaving shouldn't be alone with their abuser. At all.
To have that storyline end with a hug and understanding is alarming. This is the kind of storyline that could encourage an abuse victim to stay in an abusive relationship because "well it's not always bad." Or, worse, could encourage someone to attempt a similar "conscious uncoupling" with someone who could seriously hurt them.
I wish the story had focused more on Eliza. Her part of the story was the most compelling by far.
Caroline learned almost nothing from her "research" that lent itself to her situation. And she didn't even intend to hurt her husband. If he hadn't attempted to force her to stay married to him by way of poisoning himself (a move that he also intended to use as means to frame her for his death should he not live), nothing about her story would have been different despite the attempt at drawing a parallel between the various stories.
Also, on the bit about him poisoning himself. Are we really supposed to believe that her husband's history of toxic behaviors was limited to "being pragmatic and convincing her to give up her dreams until the right time" and then cheating on her? One doesn't go from infidelity and "risk aversion" to extreme manipulation via self harm and attempts at suicide without there being other attempts at similar methods of control. That level of escalation, especially after 10 years of marriage and however long of dating is unrealistic. Abusers use tactics they know are likely to work based on past acceptance of similar behaviors.
Also also am I really supposed to believe that someone who goes so far as to poison themself as an act of manipulation is going to just accept that it didn't work and leave calmly? Someone willing to go that far is someone who is dangerous. The kind of dangerous where the person leaving shouldn't be alone with their abuser. At all.
To have that storyline end with a hug and understanding is alarming. This is the kind of storyline that could encourage an abuse victim to stay in an abusive relationship because "well it's not always bad." Or, worse, could encourage someone to attempt a similar "conscious uncoupling" with someone who could seriously hurt them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Murder, Grief, Suicide attempt, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Infertility, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts
sea_tea_books's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
5.0
I could not put this down. Ironically, the author wrote of one of the main characters, "she wasn't a witch, and this wasn't Harry Potter," but I disagree. According to the author, this story was about "embracing magic" (or "magick" as spelled in ye olde times). There were whisperings of a hidden, magical world—similar to the wizarding world with Snape's potions class, as well as the more shadowy realm of Dark Arts, Knockturn Alley, and Borgin and Burke's. And that is precisely what drew me into this story and kept me captivated.
All that aside, this story had a mystery that slowly unraveled between past and present perspectives. Loved the twist at the end! I've already reserved the author's next story from my library/Libby.
5 ⭐
All that aside, this story had a mystery that slowly unraveled between past and present perspectives. Loved the twist at the end! I've already reserved the author's next story from my library/Libby.
5 ⭐
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Mental illness, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Infertility, and Abortion
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, and Child abuse
blueyogi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Murder, Miscarriage, Grief, Pregnancy, Infidelity, Infertility, and Death
Minor: Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Sexual harassment, and Violence