Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner

51 reviews

bluebellfallen's review against another edition

dark 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? No

1.25

This book felt like a lot of ideas of story lines or plots that an author brainstormed, added a page count to, and then published without any further thought. The characters are deeply rooted in sexism and patriarchy, even though the author seems to imply this is a feminist, women-empowering kind of novel. It isn't. 

Every single plot is centered around women wanting children and whether or not they have them and how that ruins or fulfills their lives after. Every single one. All of them. (I don't get it)

There are so many flaws (and I have so few spoons right now) that I will just say - it wasn't a good book, and it certainly wasn't the right kind of bad to be worth reading. 75% or more of the book crawled by, while the last 25% did all the heavy lifting in the most annoying, James Patterson writes chapters that are max 2 pages long and then jumps perspectives / scenes entirely to keep the tension up and he inspired me - esque way. 

It just wasn't (in any way) worth my time, but because it's so mildly written and the author tries to hide behind "dark murder mystery" vibes to get away with a lot of shitty things (and the book isn't even a dark murder mystery btw - that's just the vibes she's going for), it would also be so very easy to just think "wow, that book was mid, but I wouldn't mind recommending the book if someone is bored or something", and then accidentally pass on, perpetuate, and re-normalize things like baby-obsession and "casual" emotional and mental manipulation at the hands of a spouse (which - if you know, you *know*).

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Infertility, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Self harm, and Infidelity

The husband thing, for if you don't know, want to know, but don't want to read the book:

The husband literally poisons himself to try and manipulate Caroline into staying with him after he cheated on her (you know, instead of apologizing). The police think she tried to kill him herself on purpose, and she is almost arrested because of it (and honestly, she should have been - that whole scene is also b.s., and is beYOND unrealistic). When she figures this out, she is briefly a little bit angry, but otherwise? Nothing. They part ways on relatively okay terms (they're not getting back together, but they're chill somehow??), she never tells the police what actually happened, and the author makes it very clear that they think this behavior was normal and fine. Not even ONCE does the author even beGIN to imply that this man needs help or that he's abusive (and yes, two things can be true at once - he needs help for this obvious mental health crisis, AND he's an emotionally and mentally abusive f*ck).

brookey8888's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

I really enjoyed this! It was a little slow and not what I was expecting so that’s why I’m not rounding up to a four. I just found the concept very interesting and the different timelines. I’m not going to lie, I did not care about the present timeline because if you know me you know I loathe cheating. I’m so happy she didn’t get back with that man. One part did make me gasp because what an idiot of a man. The ending actually did make me emotional and I teared up a bit. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Miscarriage, Classism, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Pedophilia, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Suicide, Abortion, Death, and Misogyny

pinkupengu's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective 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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide attempt, Murder, Classism, Violence, Medical trauma, Abortion, Alcohol, Suicide, Medical content, Sexism, Death, Drug use, Animal death, Child death, Vomit, Death of parent, Blood, Chronic illness, Infidelity, Infertility, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Incest, Terminal illness, and Cancer

Minor: Body horror, Excrement, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, and Addiction

_wilhelmine_'s review against another edition

adventurous mysterious relaxing medium-paced

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

2.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Death, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Infertility, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Vomit, Pedophilia, and Suicide attempt

dani__gomezz's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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

3.75

I enjoyed this read! It’s fun and thought provoking, yet still a relatively light read. I loved the characters, especially Nella and Caroline. The parallels between timelines were really fun. I did not love the dialogue because it was kind of clunky, but the prose was light and very enjoyable and engaging.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Death

Moderate: Sexual violence, Self harm, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Emotional abuse

abigailhaagen's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

This book felt like it couldn't decide what tone it wanted to go with, so it threw in a bit of everything. Sad, dark, lighthearted, contemporary, historical... and the characters didn't seem particularly fleshed out either. I didn't root for anyone except Eliza. And nobody had a strong moral code in this book; characters seemed to switch between being ok with crime and not ok with it, without any particular reason. The writing was also mid; lots of telling instead of showing. And I don't think this book is particularly historically accurate, based on other readings about the 18th century I've done. But it wasn't awful to read, and I liked the premise of the poisonous apothecary. So not a bad book, but not a great one either.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Suicide, Vomit, Murder, Infidelity, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Infertility, Miscarriage, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Toxic relationship

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Blood

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

taylortome's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.5

A lovely little story about an apothecary turned deadly and it’s *downfall*. This story is more than what it seems. It is a journey for all characters as they discover themselves and their truths. It is written with multiple POV throughout different timelines. It is cohesive and concise and comes together well in the end. I did find it difficult to identify with and love the characters, though I understood the meaning of taking one’s own journey to discover themselves and what they truly find fulfilling in their lives. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity and Miscarriage

Minor: Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Misogyny, Blood, Child death, Domestic abuse, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, and Toxic relationship

lyfeistrip's review against another edition

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

Minor: Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Murder, Mental illness, Grief, Emotional abuse, Abortion, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Infertility, Incest, Domestic abuse, Child death, Cancer, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Infidelity, Vomit, Terminal illness, Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, and Death

ashley_mrose530's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

2.5

I didn't really care for this one. I like stories that connect to history and everything so I thought it would be good, but I could not empathize with the main character in this one at all.
I think I'm just too gay for this. The whole thing is that women are upset with men for their wrong-doings but the author tried so hard to make Caroline go back and forth about what she was going to do about her husband's infidelity: did she still want to be with him, did she still love him, etc. and all I could think is "just leave him!" He was an absolute bastard especially when

it was revealed at the end that he drank the oil on purpose to manipulate her

. I was definitely not surprised by that at all. I just had no empathy for her and her wishy-washy feelings about him.
On another note, I support women's rights, but more importantly I support women's wrongs! Nella and Eliza's story was arguably the most compelling part of this book. Poor Eliza went through so much at such a young age but I'm so glad that her mistress had her back and was willing to kill her husband in order to protect Eliza.

And then to get her first period shortly after he dies and not knowing what it was was so heartbreaking and proves how important sex ed is

.
And Nella

deciding to help her lover's wife kill him after he made both of them miscarry

was fantastic honestly. He deserved nothing less imo. I also liked seeing these two come together and

Nella almost seeing Eliza as the daughter she never got to have was cute,

but again there was a disconnect even in these parts of the story where it didn't really make me feel as strongly as it should have.
So yeah, I liked the premise of this story but the execution could have used a little more work I think.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Sexual assault