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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I absolutely LOVED this book!!!! It had everything!!! Intrigue, mystery, romance, sea witches, fierce female characters, history, scenery, and more!!!
adventurous
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
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Gun violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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:
Complicated
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really enjoyed The Lost Apothecary and so based on the blurb for this assumed I would love it as well - dual timeline, multiple POV, love stories, mysteries, and so on. What’s not to love?
Well … a lot as it turns out!
We get the multiple POVs but they are clearly not equal, and end up diluting character development. Speaking of character development, that is also very thin aside from the two main characters - one from each timeline. Sadly that also means that the love stories are thin and suffer from having to TELL us because we’re not ever really shown. Speaking of thin, the worlds are not well drawn out and the older timeline seems particularly poorly researched.
The setting, basics of the plot, the connective tissue between the timelines are the things that add charm as well as a few personal moments for each character where we get some insights to what matters to them.
This was another disappointing 2025 book for me, meant to be a healing salve in between a couple of nonfiction reads, but instead it was an exercise in frustration and a reminder of why pre-ordering is a bad idea in general.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated