A review by auroara
Die versteckte Apotheke by Sarah Penner

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character

2.5

2,5 ★

The Lost Apothecary takes place in two different timelines and is told from the perspective of three characters. In 1971, we follow Nella, who runs an apothecary that used to belong to her mother. The apothecary still specializes in women as customers. But instead of herbs and healing potions, Nella sells mixtures that bring death. As a poisoner, she helps women to get rid of their unfaithful or violent husbands, brothers and fathers. Eliza is a young girl who buys one of Nella's poisons on behalf of her mistress and is fascinated by the concoctions, the preparation and Nella herself. The present is told from Caroline's point of view. After learning of her husband's adultery, she traveled alone to London and is forced to admit that her life is not at all what she had imagined. By chance, she finds a small bottle and, thirsty for knowledge, begins to investigate. In the process, she comes across more and more clues that have to do with Nella's apothecary.


Characters


First of all, I found the ages of the three main characters refreshing: Nella and Caroline are in their 30s and Eliza is still a child.

I really liked Nella at the beginning. It's interesting to find out how she prepares the poisons and what her motives are. On the other hand, she lives a very isolated life and doesn't try to change that. For example, she remains very cold towards Eliza throughout the whole story, even though she likes the girl. She is even dismissive towards her several times - which made it very difficult for me to understand the “friendship” between the two. Nella complains about her past, the state of her body and wallows in self-pity. In the long run, I found this very exhausting. 

It's very similar with Caroline: her marriage is falling apart, she hasn't chosen the career path she wanted and she's generally very unhappy. I couldn't identify with her because I have exactly the opposite attitude towards marriage, the image of women and the desire to have children. Caroline's unhappiness about these aspects of her life are more or less the motives for her actions, so her chapters always involve a certain amount of self-pity. 

I absolutely could not understand some of the thought processes and actions of both women and found them rather silly (
Nella: taking orders from strangers, each of whom can pretend to be someone else; disposing the poison even though it will upset the customer who knows about her store and her face; meticulously writing down every poison and every name (is there anything more stupid?); putting an distinguishing mark on the containers she sells POISON in. Caroline: lying about everything she's found out and keeping it a secret; thinking trespassing on an old, decayed property is worse than being suspected for murder
). Eliza, on the other hand, is very mature and smart for her age. In fact, I liked her chapters the most! I would have liked to know more about her, her future and her “magic book”... Overall, all the characters and relationships unfortunately lack depth and only superficial key points, that are relevant to the plot, are covered.


Suspense & Plot


It only gets exciting from the 65% mark onwards, as the main characters are in danger on all timelines. Overall, however, the pacing is rather dragging. In 1971, only two murders are described in detail, the second of which turns out to be a problem. Until that happens, however, the focus is on Nella herself and her mixtures, as well as Eliza's story. Admittedly, I was hoping for more mystery, more drama and more deaths...

In the present, everything that happens is very unlikely (
the finding of the apothecary, the quick discharge of the phone battery, James drinking eucalyptus oil, the interrogation by the police
) and much of what Caroline finds out is already known through the other point of views. I still very much enjoyed the research parts, but it would have been more interesting if it hadn't just been a link to the past, but had complemented and enriched it with additional information. In the end, I was left with several unanswered questions.

The topic of pregnancy and the desire to have children is often addressed and is almost a core element of the plot. Since I'm not interested in the topic at all, I found the many comments on it extremely annoying. The constant change of perspective was cool and varied, but also exhausting in the long run.


Summary


Based on the blurb, I was expecting something completely different: more murders, more secrets, more mystery. The plot was not uninteresting, but it lacked depth and suspense. I liked the idea of a pharmacist who sells poison to women to help them. But overall it was less spectacular than I had hoped.