Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner

6 reviews

pinkupengu's review

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

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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

rblack1515's review

slow-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

2.75

Unfortunately this book takes about 200 pages to truly get interesting. Caroline's story is equally predictable and infuriating. Nella and Eliza could have carried the story on their own, though the three perspectives read very similar in tone and personality. 
Far too much mention of fertility, pregnancy and "the womb" for my personal taste 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, and Miscarriage

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

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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

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.

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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

stephaniefong's review

dark mysterious reflective fast-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Blood, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Vomit

thecriticalreader's review

emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

2.75

I chose The Lost Apothecary as my March 2021 Book of the Month because I’m a history nerd (and the cover looked gorgeous).

 

 

Plot:

There are two plots in The Lost Apothecary: one follows Eliza and Nella in 1791, and the other follows Caroline Parcewell in the present-day. Both plots began with a slow start, but they surprised me towards the middle of the book as I became hooked on the mystery. Unfortunately, the resolution was too quick and mawkish for my taste. If Penner was willing to make bold narrative choices, this book might have been excellent. 

 

Characters:

The characters in The Lost Apothecary are fine—if a bit boring. Penner successfully captures the voices of an aged apothecary, a curious twelve-year-old, and a modern-day woman. However, this book was definitely more plot-driven than character-driven.

 

Setting:

As a history major, I am a stickler when it comes to historical fiction settings. Penner did well with the 1791 London setting; there are no glaring anachronisms. Features such as language, technology, and cultural superstitions add to the novel’s historical accuracy. The Lost Apothecary does not “make history come alive,” so to speak, but it serves its purpose adequately.

 

Themes:

The Lost Apothecary explores themes of love, loyalty, and guilt. Throughout most of the book, Penner addresses these themes in a nuanced and intriguing manner. The ending, however, largely shuns nuance in favor of a neat, happy ending. 

 

Writing Style:

Penner is good at adding just the right amount of detail to her mystery to make it seem mostly realistic. There were not any times where I was pulled out of the story because of a glaring plot-hole. Overall, the writing style nothing special, but it serves the story.

 

Conclusion:

I would recommend this novel to people who will identify with its main character: that is, mostly straight white women who dream of having a family but still hold to mainstream feminism principles. This book is not a bad read, but it fails to excel in a way that would make it appealing to a large variety of readers. 

 

 

Other Points

·      THE BOOK COVER IS GORGEOUS. The Lost Apothecary is, without a doubt, the prettiest book I’ve ever owned. The lush colors, title, and cover drawing are incredible. Almost worth the buy just for the aesthetics.

·     

At the end of the book, Caroline decides to leave her cheating husband and chase her dreams of becoming an academic. That’s great and all, but Penner handles it in a highly unrealistic way. Caroline applies to a master’s program in Cambridge in two days. As someone looking at graduate schools, there is NO WAY someone could create an acceptable application to a graduate program in that short of time, especially someone who is vacationing abroad. Where did Caroline get her transcript? Who wrote her letters of recommendation? Did she bust out a research proposal and work sample in two days? Additionally, Caroline just assumes that the program will accept her. I’m not saying that she won’t be accepted, but one does not apply to a graduate program and assume acceptance.

·      If you are struggling with infertility or a partner’s infidelity, don’t read this book until you have worked through these things. I found the descriptions of infidelity deeply distressing, and I haven’t ever been in a situation like that. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Blood, Death, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Miscarriage

Minor: Alcoholism, Death, and Vomit