Reviews with content warning for Pedophilia - Myrkynkeittäjä

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

lisa_m's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5

This was an interesting story and I enjoyed listening to it. I definitely prefered the story of the apothecary and found myself wanting to skip the modern part of the story. The twist at the end was interesting and I definitely did not expect it.

Because it's two interconnected stories you pretty much already knew what happened with the Apothecary though. As soon as its clear that it still exists today you also know it was never found out. Because of that I didn't feel the anxieties of being found out. But it was a good story and especially if you're dealing with a cheating husband I think you'd really enjoy this story.

Content Warnings

theimposter's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious sad 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

4.0

Content Warnings

sea_tea_books's review against another edition

Go to review page

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 ⭐

Content Warnings

anni_swanilda's review

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Content Warnings

huntress's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark informative reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

1.0

Content Warnings

lyfeistrip's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

kat_rowlen's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional inspiring lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

This book starts out a little slow in the beginning but quickly picks up. I loved the way the elements of Nella and Eliza’s stories from 1791 connect with Caroline’s story in modern times. This book definitely had unexpected twists that kept you guessing until the end

Content Warnings

More...