Historical

The Lost Apothecary

The Lost Apothecary

  • Downloads：8293
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-20 09:52:38
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Sarah Penner
  • ISBN：1789558972
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

Hidden in the depths of eighteenth-century London， a secret apothecary shop caters to an unusual kind of clientele。 Women across the city whisper of a mysterious figure named Nella who sells well-disguised poisons to use against the oppressive men in their lives。 But the apothecary's fate is jeopardized when her newest patron， a precocious twelve-year-old， makes a fatal mistake， sparking a string of consequences that echo through the centuries。Meanwhile in present-day London， aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her tenth wedding anniversary alone， running from her own demons。 When she stumbles upon a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that haunted London two hundred years ago， her life collides with the apothecary's in a stunning twist of fate--and not everyone will survive。

With crackling suspense， unforgettable characters and searing insight， The Lost Apothecary is a subversive and intoxicating debut novel of secrets， vengeance and the remarkable ways women can save each other despite the barrier of time。

2021's Most Highly Anticipated New Books Newsweek
Most Anticipated Books of 2021 Popsugar

'A bold， edgy， accomplished debut！' Kate Quinn， New York Times bestselling author of The Alice Network and The Huntress

'Intriguing。。。 Readers who enjoy parallel historical/contemporary narratives about women's lives， such as Claire McMillan's The Necklace or Liz Trenow's The Forgotten Seamstress， will enjoy the historical details and mystery in this engrossing tale。' Library Journal

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Reviews

Jennifer Aldrich ，

The lost apothecary is unique， exciting and relatively well paced。 My biggest issue was that I didn’t quite care for one of the timelines and thought it came across as a bit forced。 I felt the character development was pretty surface level and the themes a bit heavy handed。 Overall， very original idea and an entertaining read。 3。5 stars。

Jodi Simon ，

Good twist。 Each woman is read by a different person in the audio book which was very nice。

Maureen ，

This was a good book！ It was interesting and held my attention。 It was different and a good twist at the end。 Entertaining。 Good debut book:）

Freda Witt ，

This got better reviews than I think it should。 It's just ok。 This got better reviews than I think it should。 It's just ok。 。。。more

Erin ，

This is a BOTM that really excited me and after reading the blurb， I knew I had to make it my pick！ The blurb had words like， “explosive history” and “stunning twists” that I was expecting a fly-through-the-pages-mystery。 Instead， it reads more like a historical fiction， switching between the late 1700s and the present。 I wanted these fierce females to jump off the page and stun as I flipped through the pages， wondering what the mystery was going to be。 Nella’s story seemed to be skimmed over， E This is a BOTM that really excited me and after reading the blurb， I knew I had to make it my pick！ The blurb had words like， “explosive history” and “stunning twists” that I was expecting a fly-through-the-pages-mystery。 Instead， it reads more like a historical fiction， switching between the late 1700s and the present。 I wanted these fierce females to jump off the page and stun as I flipped through the pages， wondering what the mystery was going to be。 Nella’s story seemed to be skimmed over， Eliza was the most interesting and Caroline’s “secrets” almost didn’t seem necessary。 Was I the only one that felt the discovery of the apothecary turned out to be a bit。。。。lackluster？ For this to be a debut novel， the writing was amazing！ The author did a stellar job of weaving the stories together。 I just felt the plot and character’s fell a bit flat。 Also， the cover was stunning！ 。。。more

Astrid ，

1。5

Alisha Torrence ，

loved this book。 i need more books like this is my life。 the mystery of what happened back then was intriguing to follow along and listen to。 and fingers crossed for a second installment of eliza in her "second life" would be very interesting to listen too。 the back and forth of time lines was kind of annoying but ultimately fit the book。 it took awhile to see how the two were going to be tied together。 i also wish there was a continuation of present time to see what happened next for her as wel loved this book。 i need more books like this is my life。 the mystery of what happened back then was intriguing to follow along and listen to。 and fingers crossed for a second installment of eliza in her "second life" would be very interesting to listen too。 the back and forth of time lines was kind of annoying but ultimately fit the book。 it took awhile to see how the two were going to be tied together。 i also wish there was a continuation of present time to see what happened next for her as well。 did she move back and go to school？ did she investigate the apothecary back door more？ was the place made an exhibit？ did she buy it and open it back up as an apothecary？ so many questions about the history and lives of those from the first timeline that have been unanswered for so long。 the questions and "random" deaths from that time that could probably be traced back there with todays technology to fill in the gaps。 。。。more

Nicole ，

This was a pretty good book！ I loved the parallels between Nella/Eliza’s stories and Caroline’s。 I loved some of the themes about strong women， and friendships between women。 The “mysterious” elements kept me interested and the characters were so dynamic and intriguing。 I have said it before - I’m really not a historical fiction person which is probably why this is only a 4 for me。 But even with that， I was still thoroughly interested and enjoyed this！ Recommend for a different kind of read。

Savannah Blackmon ，

PHENOMENAL！ Absolutely enthralling。 The twists and turns this story took at the end gave me the most enjoyable whiplash I have ever experienced。 This one has topped the charts for me， I LOVED IT！

Susan ，

I completely judged this book by it’s （beautiful） cover so was biased from the start。 I enjoyed reading the historical chapters involving Nelia and Eliza and although I get the connection with modern day Caroline， I wasn’t as drawn in to her part of the story。 I also just like the word “apothecary” lol。 Taylor Swift would probably love this book #girlpower

Sarah ，

Nice， light， fun read。

Angela Schaffer ，

It was enjoyable - not exceptional though。 It got better throughout - like the author was on a journey too。 I was worried it would be really weak given the way she wrote the other woman's texts at first。 It was a bit too "neat" - the current day research happened far too easily。 It was enjoyable - not exceptional though。 It got better throughout - like the author was on a journey too。 I was worried it would be really weak given the way she wrote the other woman's texts at first。 It was a bit too "neat" - the current day research happened far too easily。 。。。more

Layla Paine ，

this book was so fun， i love how the stories wove together。 didn’t want to put it down。 only not 5 stars because sometimes I thought the dialogue was a little unrealistic， but once I recognized the style the author was going for it didn’t bother me。

Bethany Friend ，

I really enjoyed it！ A unique （and dark） plot with some interesting twists！

Ryan ，

[3。5 stars] Thrilling premise aside， “The Lost Apothecary” stalls out near its end， opting for predictable plot ribbons over the enigmatic plot-points that illuminate the first half。

Jen ，

Great example of a novel that only works because it has an idiot plot。

Hannah ，

An absolute must read in my opinion！ I’ve never been big into history， but this delicious & magical novel has changed me in the best way。 It does switch between late 1700s and present day， but I did not find it confusing at all。 Loved it so much！

Christine ，

3。5/5 This was a super fast read with an interesting story。 I liked the writing and enjoyed the language shift between the different characters and their POV。 I felt that this was an overly rushed tale being only 300 pages。 There was so much missed opertunity in character development and back story。 This could have easily been a series and that would have allowed so much more depth。 Overall a light mystery with characters that will leave you wanting a bit more。

Lauren ，

Audiobook

Molly Rea ，

This book ended up being SO more than I thought it was going to be when I picked it up for the pretty cover。 It's historical fiction mixed with magical realism mixed with some mystery and adult romance elements all told from multiple timelines and POVs。 I really enjoyed the story as it combined our timelines and explained how everything was tied together。 This book ended up being SO more than I thought it was going to be when I picked it up for the pretty cover。 It's historical fiction mixed with magical realism mixed with some mystery and adult romance elements all told from multiple timelines and POVs。 I really enjoyed the story as it combined our timelines and explained how everything was tied together。 。。。more

Jenna Winiewicz ，

Extremely well written。 This novel follows the lives of three women whose lives become entangled。 Caroline is on an anniversary trip in London by herself trying to clear her head of her husband’s betrayal。 Caroline stumbles upon a vial in the Thames 。 This vial helped her to discover the history of the apothecary Nella who dispenses poisons to women who wish the murder certain men。 Nella becomes entwined with a young girl named Eliza。 While Eliza and Nella navigate exposure， their stories are re Extremely well written。 This novel follows the lives of three women whose lives become entangled。 Caroline is on an anniversary trip in London by herself trying to clear her head of her husband’s betrayal。 Caroline stumbles upon a vial in the Thames 。 This vial helped her to discover the history of the apothecary Nella who dispenses poisons to women who wish the murder certain men。 Nella becomes entwined with a young girl named Eliza。 While Eliza and Nella navigate exposure， their stories are recorded in the papers and Nellas register。 Caroline is slowly discovering more about these two women and about herself along the way。 。。。more

Vanessa ，

This book could've been 5 stars if Caroline was left out。 This book could've been 5 stars if Caroline was left out。 。。。more

Martha ，

Disappointing as it was a nice premise， but the narration is heavy handed and repetitive， the plot slow and predictable， and the characters' voices not at all distinct from each other。 Also all 3 women are essentially just walking wombs the amount of 'motivation' they derive from uterine happenings。 Yawn。 And her husband has no redeeming features。On top of that it falls foul of that grating North American idealistic view of the UK， and London especially， with some of the portrayals of the city m Disappointing as it was a nice premise， but the narration is heavy handed and repetitive， the plot slow and predictable， and the characters' voices not at all distinct from each other。 Also all 3 women are essentially just walking wombs the amount of 'motivation' they derive from uterine happenings。 Yawn。 And her husband has no redeeming features。On top of that it falls foul of that grating North American idealistic view of the UK， and London especially， with some of the portrayals of the city making my brain itch。Also the portrayal of her as special as a historian because she cares about the stories of normal people irritates me something dreadful， like that's massively unique 🙄Which is moot anyway because there is no way a historian of any ilk would act like Caroline in the last chapter。 Nu-uh。 Not on your nelly。 Fight me。 。。。more

Joan Cochran ，

I have to admit that I'm a sucker for a book that goes back and forth in time and sense that it must be fairly difficult to find ways to link the chapters from different time periods。 I thought the author did a terrific job with this fascinating tale -- and what a great premise -- of a women who avenges her own rejection by a man by using her skills as an apothacarist （sp？） to help women to wreak revenge on men who wronged them。 I loved the images of old London superimposed on new London and tho I have to admit that I'm a sucker for a book that goes back and forth in time and sense that it must be fairly difficult to find ways to link the chapters from different time periods。 I thought the author did a terrific job with this fascinating tale -- and what a great premise -- of a women who avenges her own rejection by a man by using her skills as an apothacarist （sp？） to help women to wreak revenge on men who wronged them。 I loved the images of old London superimposed on new London and thought the direction this book was going felt a little obvious at times （I can't explain because it would be a spoiler）， yet that did nothing to spoil my delight with the unfolding of the story。 Highly recommend。 。。。more

Bonnie Wolbeck ，

This book had some fun twists and turns。 The history， whether it's true or not， is interesting。 I really liked the characters and hope that Sarah writes a sequel - I want to know if 。 。 。 I did however， get a little bored at times when things mentioned earlier in the book are repeated。 Very good job for her first release。 This book had some fun twists and turns。 The history， whether it's true or not， is interesting。 I really liked the characters and hope that Sarah writes a sequel - I want to know if 。 。 。 I did however， get a little bored at times when things mentioned earlier in the book are repeated。 Very good job for her first release。 。。。more

Katherine Darr ，

Engaging， interesting， good read

Levanche T。 Harris ，

A marvelous readThis is a book which grabs your attention from the first page。 You cannot wait to find the end of this mystery and yet you hate for the book to be over。

Julia ，

3。5 stars。 I enjoyed this， but I don't really feel like much happened in the book。 Both timelines only took place over a couple of days， so I didn't have time to really get attached to characters in either one。 I thought the concept was interesting and intriguing and I kept wanting to read more， but I didn't ever feel very rewarded for my curiosity。 The most interesting thing that happened was something in the modern timeline （you'll know what it was bc there's really only one big thing that hap 3。5 stars。 I enjoyed this， but I don't really feel like much happened in the book。 Both timelines only took place over a couple of days， so I didn't have time to really get attached to characters in either one。 I thought the concept was interesting and intriguing and I kept wanting to read more， but I didn't ever feel very rewarded for my curiosity。 The most interesting thing that happened was something in the modern timeline （you'll know what it was bc there's really only one big thing that happens at all） and even that gets resolved fairly quickly and painlessly。 。。。more

Jessica Foreman ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The ending was disappointing， it is unlikely that she would throw her original evidence out right before beginning her research。 I enjoyed the story， but felt it tried too hard to be meaningful。

Hannah La Rue ，

I’m not a fan of studying history or reading historical fiction but this book grabbed me。 Emotional， and unpredictable。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Lost Apothecary

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Lost Apothecary&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Lost Apothecary&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0