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schrke24 's review for:

Anatomy: A Love Story by Dana Schwartz
4.0
dark mysterious tense 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: No
Frankenstein meets Stalking Jack the Ripper. This book pulled me into the grimy world of Victorian Edinburgh and kept me reeling in the horrific delights it offered. Hazel Sinnett, our main character, wants to be a surgeon in a time before that was a viable option for a woman, let alone a gently breed one. However, she is not one to be denied her dream. She collects books, and dead animals before finally sneaking into the Anatomist’s Society to learn how to cut open cadavers. She even goes as far as dressing as a man and signing up for classes. After she gets kicked out of school for being a woman, she strikes up a deal that could allow her to be a surgeon and open the door for women behind her. She just has to pass a test on her own. For that she will need access to bodies. 
 
Luckily, she has already met a local resurrection man named Jack Currer. Their plans for their future and survival are hindered when resurrection men start going missing and poor people end up with body parts removed. Hazel and Jack must work together to help the people of Edinburgh and try to make a future for themselves. 
 
Overall, I enjoyed this book, it was just gross enough to make it interesting, but it was not so bad that I struggled to read through it. Hazel is an interesting female lead.   She is strong and smart, but she also struggles with the limitations set on her. She feels like a real person and despite everything you want her to succeed. 
 
The romance in this book takes a back seat to the mystery portion of the book. Most of the romance occurs off page so they go from acquaintances to being in love quickly and without a lot of on page time. 
 
There was also something off with the pacing of the book that made me feel like we either needed more to happen or one of the subplots needed to be removed or condensed. There was a portion of the book that started to get very long and that pulled me out of the story. It definitely stuck the landing with the ending though. I was not expecting the twist and it made some things that happened in the book seem more worth it. 
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