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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was beautiful. Heartbreaking. Hopeful in places. Bleak in others. And it’s far, far too relevant to the world we live in today.
I love the writer’s style. I love how she told a very modern and current story in the guise of a historical one. I loved the perspective of this very normal, very everyday family just trying to navigate an impossible situation and the fallout of it.
This was a perfect book to finish out Women’s History Month.
I just wanted a slightly happier ending. Like reality, though, you can’t always get what you want.
I love the writer’s style. I love how she told a very modern and current story in the guise of a historical one. I loved the perspective of this very normal, very everyday family just trying to navigate an impossible situation and the fallout of it.
This was a perfect book to finish out Women’s History Month.
I just wanted a slightly happier ending. Like reality, though, you can’t always get what you want.
Beautifully written slice of life, but I didn't really like the story or some of the important characters at all, and therefore can't say I actually enjoyed the experience of reading about them
This audiobook was the first ARC I received after joining NetGalley so that is very exciting! Here’s my review:
I will admit I am not the target audience for this book. Historical fiction is not a genre I usually gravitate towards—but I was drawn in by the title. And I really enjoyed this book! If you ARE a historical fiction reader, and especially if you happen to be from Vancouver, I think you will love this.
The first few chapters were slow for me, as I had trouble keeping track of all the characters (I think this would not have been an issue if I had been reading the paper book instead of an audiobook) and multiple plot lines. The book starts in the middle of many stories, throwing the reader right into the sisters’ lives and providing backstory peppered in throughout, rather than moving chronologically and giving the context first. I liked this approach once I had a handle on who everyone was.
The characters are almost all nuanced and balanced, with even the most frustrating characters having redeeming moments, and no character being all good. The author chose to write most of the book in third person with the exception of two first person characters—one of the sisters, and a dog. I really liked the chapters told from the dog’s point of view, it added a whimsical quality to an otherwise intensely realistic story. Although it took a bit of time to get into it, it was ultimately the real, honest, and messy relationships between the characters that kept me reading.
The writing style manages to incorporate a large vocabulary without ever sounding overdone or pretentious. At times it is very beautiful.
The book is centred around on multiple issues: feminism, reproductive rights, LGBTQ experiences, etc, and all are woven inextricably into the story, without ever feeling shoehorned in (I hate when books feel preachy, even if I agree with what they are preaching). The only area where I felt like more could have been said was to do with the character of Flore. She is the wealthiest of the main characters, and is also the one most involved in labour organizing, attending meetings about workers’ rights etc. At one point another character (Harriet) calls out her privilege, expressing frustration that Flore doesn’t seem to realize how serious it would be if Harriet was fired from her job. It would have been interesting to see more exploration of this…
The conflict between women wanting/needing access to abortion/birth control and others (mainly men) not understanding how dire this is, was well written. I also would have liked to see more of how that conflict played out politically (a few times there was mention of characters attending talks etc about these issues but we were never brought there as a reader).
If you like audiobook readers who sound very emotionally invested in the story (dynamic/not flat) you will like the audiobook.
Lastly I will say, because of all the different plot lines interwoven, I think this would make a really good mini-series or show…I could imagine it while listening. I would watch!
Thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the ARC! I feel like a real book reviewer
I will admit I am not the target audience for this book. Historical fiction is not a genre I usually gravitate towards—but I was drawn in by the title. And I really enjoyed this book! If you ARE a historical fiction reader, and especially if you happen to be from Vancouver, I think you will love this.
The first few chapters were slow for me, as I had trouble keeping track of all the characters (I think this would not have been an issue if I had been reading the paper book instead of an audiobook) and multiple plot lines. The book starts in the middle of many stories, throwing the reader right into the sisters’ lives and providing backstory peppered in throughout, rather than moving chronologically and giving the context first. I liked this approach once I had a handle on who everyone was.
The characters are almost all nuanced and balanced, with even the most frustrating characters having redeeming moments, and no character being all good. The author chose to write most of the book in third person with the exception of two first person characters—one of the sisters, and a dog. I really liked the chapters told from the dog’s point of view, it added a whimsical quality to an otherwise intensely realistic story. Although it took a bit of time to get into it, it was ultimately the real, honest, and messy relationships between the characters that kept me reading.
The writing style manages to incorporate a large vocabulary without ever sounding overdone or pretentious. At times it is very beautiful.
The book is centred around on multiple issues: feminism, reproductive rights, LGBTQ experiences, etc, and all are woven inextricably into the story, without ever feeling shoehorned in (I hate when books feel preachy, even if I agree with what they are preaching). The only area where I felt like more could have been said was to do with the character of Flore. She is the wealthiest of the main characters, and is also the one most involved in labour organizing, attending meetings about workers’ rights etc. At one point another character (Harriet) calls out her privilege, expressing frustration that Flore doesn’t seem to realize how serious it would be if Harriet was fired from her job. It would have been interesting to see more exploration of this…
The conflict between women wanting/needing access to abortion/birth control and others (mainly men) not understanding how dire this is, was well written. I also would have liked to see more of how that conflict played out politically (a few times there was mention of characters attending talks etc about these issues but we were never brought there as a reader).
If you like audiobook readers who sound very emotionally invested in the story (dynamic/not flat) you will like the audiobook.
Lastly I will say, because of all the different plot lines interwoven, I think this would make a really good mini-series or show…I could imagine it while listening. I would watch!
Thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the ARC! I feel like a real book reviewer
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
emotional
sad
tense
slow-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:
No
Will Gin, Turpentine, Pennyroyal, Rue win the award for the most surprising star rating in 2025?
Honestly, I didn’t expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. It reminded me of Little Women and Hamilton—two favorites of mine—but it took me over 30% of the book to really get into the story and sort out the characters. However, as the story progressed, the characters grew on me, and the pacing picked up, which made it much more engaging. I flew through the last 25% in just two sittings. Ultimately, I ended up thoroughly enjoying it.
The writing is beautiful, and the audiobook is wonderfully narrated—a bonus for a tandem reader like me. That said, the lengthy chapters made switching between the audio and physical versions a bit challenging.
Even so, this book was a hit for me, and it’s currently my top pick for OLA’s Forest of Reading Evergreen Award for adult fiction and non-fiction.
Quote:
A quiet rage rose in me as Llewellyn stood, the kind of rage that promises that if you can just remain calm for thirty seconds, things will end well, you will not embarrass yourself or ruin the evening; but if you can't, well, then it will not be held responsible for whatever you say. p. 302
In 2018, I read Christine Higdon’s debut novel, The Very Marrow of Our Bones (https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/2018/04/review-of-very-marrow-of-our-bones-by.html). Because I really liked it, I looked forward to reading her sophomore book. I enjoyed it very much.
The book focuses on the lives of the four McKenzie sisters living in Vancouver in 1922. Georgina, the eldest, is married to Victor, a man who provides her financial security but does not make her happy. Morag is happily married and newly pregnant; her husband Llewellyn is a policeman who is also a rum-runner. Isla is secretly in love with Llewellyn; finding herself pregnant, she has a back-street abortion that nearly results in her death. Harriet-Jean, the youngest, is confused because of her feelings for another woman, Flore Rozema. The family also includes Ahmie, the women’s mother who is addicted to laudanum, and Rue, a beagle rescued by Harriet.
I loved how there is no difficulty differentiating the sisters. Each emerges as a distinct character. Georgina yearns for more - opportunities that her working class family could not provide. Morag is blissfully happy, while Isla, though she is seen as “opinionated and fearless, and defiant,” has regret as a constant companion. Harriet-Jean struggles with her feelings for a woman in a world where homophobic violence is common. I found myself empathizing with each woman. For instance, Georgina may be “imperious . . . so rarely soft, so rarely amiable,” but her back story cannot but move the reader. Even Ahmie who is an ineffectual mother deserves sympathy for all that she has endured.
The novel is excellent at describing the realities of life in the 1920s, especially for women. It is men who decide what a woman can and cannot do. Life for a pregnant, married woman is untenable: “’A child out of wedlock is a prison sentence for a woman. And not only that, she’d be a victim of society’s disapprobation for the rest of her life.’” Flore describes Isla’s life if she’d had the baby: she’d “’be seen as a fallen woman. By virtually every human being whose feet trod this earth. Lose her job. Be sneered at and judged by even the shortest pillars of society. The self-righteous, the hypocritical.’” Since abortion is illegal, women turn to “’Gin. Turpentine. Pennyroyal. Rue. . . . Hat pin. Crochet hook. Knitting needle. Bicycle spoke.’”
But it is not just the harsh realities of women’s lives that are depicted. A man is badly beaten because he is a homosexual. Georgina’s husband rails against “the tide of Oriental immigration.” Disparaging comments are made about other immigrants such as Italians. Wealthy women gather to “bemoan the plight of the poor. Debate the causes of poverty (laziness, uncleanliness, lack of faith, undesirable hereditary traits, too much drink).” Men lose their lives in war and to the pandemic and leave shattered families.
Though set one hundred years in the past, the book is so relevant to the present. The reversal of abortion laws in the U.S. may mean women must once again turn to dangerous ways of ending unwanted pregnancies. Intolerance toward gay and Trans people seems to be increasing. Drug addiction, demonization of immigrants, and police corruption continue to be problems. Isla wonders “How different will life be for . . . children who arrived in the world nearly a generation after my sisters and me?” The answer is not positive.
The book is narrated from the perspective of various characters. The most unusual is that of Rue. I enjoyed his comments about the humans he encounters. He provides comic relief, though the humour is sometimes dark. For instance, when he hears about shell shock, he says, “I paid careful attention to where I placed my feet when walking with Rasia on the shell-strewn beaches near our abode, lest I be shocked.”
I love the author’s figures of speech. A dull and disappointing man is “a tire puncture on one’s bicycle the morning of a planned excursion, an empty jelly jar.” A confused man standing in a doorway is “lost as Franklin was, there in his own frozen Northwest Passage.”
The book examines a number of serious and important issues (search for love and justice and acceptance and equality and identity, sexual orientation, corruption, addiction, reproductive rights) but in a manner that engages the reader with both heart-warming and heart-breaking episodes.
It’s been five years since I read The Very Marrow of Our Bones, but I may have to re-read it. I remember that there’s a character named Aloysius McFee in that novel. Could he be the same Aloysius McFee from this novel? I will certainly be recommending Gin, Turpentine, Pennyroyal, Rue and then suggesting that readers who have not already done so might want to read The Very Marrow of Our Bones afterwards.
Note: I received a digital galley from the publisher via NetGalley.
Please check out my reader's blog (https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/) and follow me on Twitter (https://twitter.com/DCYakabuski).
The book focuses on the lives of the four McKenzie sisters living in Vancouver in 1922. Georgina, the eldest, is married to Victor, a man who provides her financial security but does not make her happy. Morag is happily married and newly pregnant; her husband Llewellyn is a policeman who is also a rum-runner. Isla is secretly in love with Llewellyn; finding herself pregnant, she has a back-street abortion that nearly results in her death. Harriet-Jean, the youngest, is confused because of her feelings for another woman, Flore Rozema. The family also includes Ahmie, the women’s mother who is addicted to laudanum, and Rue, a beagle rescued by Harriet.
I loved how there is no difficulty differentiating the sisters. Each emerges as a distinct character. Georgina yearns for more - opportunities that her working class family could not provide. Morag is blissfully happy, while Isla, though she is seen as “opinionated and fearless, and defiant,” has regret as a constant companion. Harriet-Jean struggles with her feelings for a woman in a world where homophobic violence is common. I found myself empathizing with each woman. For instance, Georgina may be “imperious . . . so rarely soft, so rarely amiable,” but her back story cannot but move the reader. Even Ahmie who is an ineffectual mother deserves sympathy for all that she has endured.
The novel is excellent at describing the realities of life in the 1920s, especially for women. It is men who decide what a woman can and cannot do. Life for a pregnant, married woman is untenable: “’A child out of wedlock is a prison sentence for a woman. And not only that, she’d be a victim of society’s disapprobation for the rest of her life.’” Flore describes Isla’s life if she’d had the baby: she’d “’be seen as a fallen woman. By virtually every human being whose feet trod this earth. Lose her job. Be sneered at and judged by even the shortest pillars of society. The self-righteous, the hypocritical.’” Since abortion is illegal, women turn to “’Gin. Turpentine. Pennyroyal. Rue. . . . Hat pin. Crochet hook. Knitting needle. Bicycle spoke.’”
But it is not just the harsh realities of women’s lives that are depicted. A man is badly beaten because he is a homosexual. Georgina’s husband rails against “the tide of Oriental immigration.” Disparaging comments are made about other immigrants such as Italians. Wealthy women gather to “bemoan the plight of the poor. Debate the causes of poverty (laziness, uncleanliness, lack of faith, undesirable hereditary traits, too much drink).” Men lose their lives in war and to the pandemic and leave shattered families.
Though set one hundred years in the past, the book is so relevant to the present. The reversal of abortion laws in the U.S. may mean women must once again turn to dangerous ways of ending unwanted pregnancies. Intolerance toward gay and Trans people seems to be increasing. Drug addiction, demonization of immigrants, and police corruption continue to be problems. Isla wonders “How different will life be for . . . children who arrived in the world nearly a generation after my sisters and me?” The answer is not positive.
The book is narrated from the perspective of various characters. The most unusual is that of Rue. I enjoyed his comments about the humans he encounters. He provides comic relief, though the humour is sometimes dark. For instance, when he hears about shell shock, he says, “I paid careful attention to where I placed my feet when walking with Rasia on the shell-strewn beaches near our abode, lest I be shocked.”
I love the author’s figures of speech. A dull and disappointing man is “a tire puncture on one’s bicycle the morning of a planned excursion, an empty jelly jar.” A confused man standing in a doorway is “lost as Franklin was, there in his own frozen Northwest Passage.”
The book examines a number of serious and important issues (search for love and justice and acceptance and equality and identity, sexual orientation, corruption, addiction, reproductive rights) but in a manner that engages the reader with both heart-warming and heart-breaking episodes.
It’s been five years since I read The Very Marrow of Our Bones, but I may have to re-read it. I remember that there’s a character named Aloysius McFee in that novel. Could he be the same Aloysius McFee from this novel? I will certainly be recommending Gin, Turpentine, Pennyroyal, Rue and then suggesting that readers who have not already done so might want to read The Very Marrow of Our Bones afterwards.
Note: I received a digital galley from the publisher via NetGalley.
Please check out my reader's blog (https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/) and follow me on Twitter (https://twitter.com/DCYakabuski).
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes