A female apothecary secretly dispenses poisons to liberate women from the men who have wronged them—setting three lives across centuries on a dangerous collision course.Rule #1: The poison must never be used to harm another woman.
Rule #2: The names of the murderer and her victim must be recorded in the apothecary’s register.
One cold February evening in 1791, at the back of a dark London alley in a hidden apothecary shop, Nella awaits her newest customer. Once a respected healer, Nella now uses her knowledge for a darker purpose—selling well-disguised poisons to desperate women who would kill to be free of the men in their lives. But when her new patron turns out to be a precocious twelve-year-old named Eliza Fanning, an unexpected friendship sets in motion a string of events that jeopardizes Nella’s world and threatens to expose the many women whose names are written in her register.
In present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her tenth wedding anniversary alone, reeling from the discovery of her husband’s infidelity. When she finds an old apothecary vial near the river Thames, she can’t resist investigating, only to realize she’s found a link to the unsolved “apothecary murders” that haunted London over two centuries ago. As she deepens her search, Caroline’s life collides with Nella’s and Eliza’s in a stunning twist of fate—and not everyone will survive.
REVIEW: This book was my March 2021 pick for Book of the Month. This book 100% reminded me of my love of historical fiction. The switching between our 3 main characters and the two completely different time periods was seamless. Eliza Fanning steals the show for me in this story. This twelve year old is bright, headstrong, and has bravery for days. The parallels between Nella and Caroline lives really speaks to the fact that even though women have comes so far we still struggle with some of the same worries and fears as a predecessors of years ago. The pacing was perfect. There was never a lull in the story. The writing was beautiful. An incredible tale of 3 strong women who's lives unknowingly become entangled through space and time. This was a solid 4 star read for me and a reminder to put more historical fiction into my reading rotation.
Publication Date: March 2, 2021
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