A review by hrewannabe
The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner

dark emotional informative mysterious medium-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? Yes

4.75

I ended up reading this in one sitting on a car ride and was utterly entranced. As a historian who has done a rather alarming amount of research for the time period that half the book is set in it was a wonderful read! The work that the main character goes through is exhilarating and I love her growth. The mystery aspect was very engaging and you really feel like your rediscovering your own passion with the her. You can really tell that the author took her time with researching and trying to make the story feel like it could have slotted neatly into our own world as something real. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Blood, Abortion, and Murder

Moderate: Pedophilia and Classism

The secondary characters (aka the "historical" cast) deal with a variety of issues of which the solution is a lot of death. It is a very frank look at what women through out history have faced and the way they've taken matters into their own hands when faced with issues like infidelity, pedophilia, child abuse and the like.