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The Anatomy Duology #1
Anatomy: A Love Story
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Young Adult Fiction (2022)Edinburgh, 1817. Hazel Sinnett is a lady who wants to be a surgeon more than she wants to marry.
Jack Currer is a resurrection man who’s just trying to survive in a city where it’s too easy to die.
When the two of them have a chance encounter outside the Edinburgh Anatomist’s Society, Hazel thinks nothing of it at first. But after she gets kicked out of renowned surgeon Dr. Beecham’s lectures for being the wrong gender, she realizes that her new acquaintance might be more helpful than she first thought. Because Hazel has made a deal with Dr. Beecham: if she can pass the medical examination on her own, the university will allow her to enroll. Without official lessons, though, Hazel will need more than just her books – she’ll need bodies to study, corpses to dissect.
Lucky that she’s made the acquaintance of someone who digs them up for a living, then.
But Jack has his own problems: strange men have been seen skulking around cemeteries, his friends are disappearing off the streets. Hazel and Jack work together to uncover the secrets buried not just in unmarked graves, but in the very heart of Edinburgh society.
A gothic tale full of mystery and romance about a willful female surgeon, a resurrection man who sells bodies for a living, and the buried secrets they must uncover together.
Jack Currer is a resurrection man who’s just trying to survive in a city where it’s too easy to die.
When the two of them have a chance encounter outside the Edinburgh Anatomist’s Society, Hazel thinks nothing of it at first. But after she gets kicked out of renowned surgeon Dr. Beecham’s lectures for being the wrong gender, she realizes that her new acquaintance might be more helpful than she first thought. Because Hazel has made a deal with Dr. Beecham: if she can pass the medical examination on her own, the university will allow her to enroll. Without official lessons, though, Hazel will need more than just her books – she’ll need bodies to study, corpses to dissect.
Lucky that she’s made the acquaintance of someone who digs them up for a living, then.
But Jack has his own problems: strange men have been seen skulking around cemeteries, his friends are disappearing off the streets. Hazel and Jack work together to uncover the secrets buried not just in unmarked graves, but in the very heart of Edinburgh society.
A gothic tale full of mystery and romance about a willful female surgeon, a resurrection man who sells bodies for a living, and the buried secrets they must uncover together.
338 pages, Hardcover
First published January 18, 2022
About the author
Dana Schwartz
21 books3,797 followersDana Schwartz was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago. She attended Brown University where she studied biology and public policy before realizing that she would only be happy if she tried to be a writer. While in college, she created the viral parody twitter account @GuyInYourMFA. Dana worked as a writer for Mental Floss, The Observer, and Entertainment Weekly, with additional bylines for GQ, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, Vanity Fair, and NewYorker.com.
Dana is the host and creator of the hit history podcast Noble Blood. She also writes for television. She lives in Los Angeles.
Dana is the host and creator of the hit history podcast Noble Blood. She also writes for television. She lives in Los Angeles.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 14,348 reviews
August 23, 2023
Wow! Just wow! That’s so much than I expected: Alienist meets Frankenstein with Scottish romance vibes, hot love sessions and forbidden kisses at the graveyard! Yeap! Quirky, disturbing but also surprising, stimulating, intelligent! A great concoction for gothic thriller lovers who adore tough, bold, smart heroines!
Welcome to the 19th century of Scotland: where the plague erupted and womanhood was the biggest obstacle to choose medicine as profession.
Poor Hazel Sinnett lives in a secluded, gothic family mansion, electrifying frogs for testing her peculiar medical methods behind the locked doors as her mother still mourns after her dead brother George and her little brother Percy stays in the middle of this chaos, behaving like most irritating spoiler kid.
Hazel might be only 16 but she’s so determined to pursue her career in medicine in expanse of being disguised in her dead brother’s clothes, acting like a man to be accepted to the coursework.
The entire city of Edinburgh is getting through the most demanding and struggling times as the plague threat arises and the resurrection men who are the gravediggers for providing more dead bodies to the anatomists and surgeons to resume their researches against the deadly effects of fever and contagious disease.
Jack Currer is one of the resurrection men, taking risks to dig out more graves as the dangerous men lurk around the graveyards to hunt them.
His path crosses with the ambitious, vivid, reckless Hazel and they reluctantly turn into partner in crimes and the danger of the job, staying alive against terminal disease make them vulnerable. As sparks fly around them, they do everything to concentrate on their jobs. But as you may see: The intimate romance blossoms at most inappropriate places ( yes this book could be defined as graveyard romance! Isn’t it a fabulous new genre idea? )
Hazel takes the responsibility to be a doctor too hard, dealing with her capricious almost fiancée, barely resisting her feelings for Jack!
I went back and forth between giving this mind blowing story four and five stars but that WTH, OMG I’m screaming at the top of my lungs ending was game changer! I’m rounding up 4.5 stars to 5 dark, haunted, gory, thrilling, deadly, creepy, unputdownable stars!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.
Welcome to the 19th century of Scotland: where the plague erupted and womanhood was the biggest obstacle to choose medicine as profession.
Poor Hazel Sinnett lives in a secluded, gothic family mansion, electrifying frogs for testing her peculiar medical methods behind the locked doors as her mother still mourns after her dead brother George and her little brother Percy stays in the middle of this chaos, behaving like most irritating spoiler kid.
Hazel might be only 16 but she’s so determined to pursue her career in medicine in expanse of being disguised in her dead brother’s clothes, acting like a man to be accepted to the coursework.
The entire city of Edinburgh is getting through the most demanding and struggling times as the plague threat arises and the resurrection men who are the gravediggers for providing more dead bodies to the anatomists and surgeons to resume their researches against the deadly effects of fever and contagious disease.
Jack Currer is one of the resurrection men, taking risks to dig out more graves as the dangerous men lurk around the graveyards to hunt them.
His path crosses with the ambitious, vivid, reckless Hazel and they reluctantly turn into partner in crimes and the danger of the job, staying alive against terminal disease make them vulnerable. As sparks fly around them, they do everything to concentrate on their jobs. But as you may see: The intimate romance blossoms at most inappropriate places ( yes this book could be defined as graveyard romance! Isn’t it a fabulous new genre idea? )
Hazel takes the responsibility to be a doctor too hard, dealing with her capricious almost fiancée, barely resisting her feelings for Jack!
I went back and forth between giving this mind blowing story four and five stars but that WTH, OMG I’m screaming at the top of my lungs ending was game changer! I’m rounding up 4.5 stars to 5 dark, haunted, gory, thrilling, deadly, creepy, unputdownable stars!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.
April 21, 2021
Look, I wrote this book so I'm a little biased. But personally, I think it's great.
November 27, 2022
A sequel is coming! A sequel is coming!
"Somebody should tell you that you're beautiful every time the sun comes up. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Wednesdays. And at tea time. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Christmas Day and Christmas Eve and the evening before Christmas Eve, and on Easter. He should tell you on Guy Fawkes Night and on New Year's, and on the eighth of August, just because."
I believe a good numbers of readers would pick up Anatomy: A Love Story based on the gorgeous cover art alone, because, contrary to popular belief, we really do grab our first impressions by judging a book by its cover. The marketing of this one might throw some people, as it's proclaiming to be a romantic, historical fantasy, but my finding was it really gears more in the way of historical fiction with a light side of the fantastical and just a dash of secondary romance. This isn't a complaint, just simply an observation to ensure you're in the right frame of expectation before choosing this book as your next read. If a slow burning, gothic style "mystery" is your thing, please proceed with gusto.
Hazel Sinnett is a 17 year old lady of "good breeding" living in Scotland in the early 1800's. She has a passion for becoming a physician/surgeon, and is hounded by the prospect of being required to marry her cousin, the viscount's son of Almont. 🤢 Although this was common back in the day, it's still yuck. After sneaking into a surgical presentation one afternoon, Hazel decides the best course of action is to pose as her deceased brother George and pass her physician exams so that she can find a place in this world to practice medicine. There is a disease going around called the Roman Fever, and she hopes to find a cure for it. Along the way, she meets Jack Currer, who is a "resurrection man", or someone who robs graves to sell the recently buried bodies to those needing to practice surgical techniques. Meanwhile, someone is kidnapping the poor, knocking them unconscious, and practicing on them against their will, sometimes leading to the deaths of these unlucky individuals.
The first half of the book is really meant to set the tone and atmosphere, while introducing a number of characters. It is a slow burn up until about the 60% mark, which was not a problem for me, but I was a little disappointed that all the twists were easily guessed from the earlier portions of the novel. That said, there was something truly readable about this story, and I found myself thinking about it and looking forward to picking it back up when I was doing other things, so that has to count for something. Whether it was the gothic vibe or the tangible Scottish atmosphere, it caused me to rate the story one star higher than anticipated. Fair warning: the ending is a bit abrupt, and while it's not exactly left open-ended, it didn't feel as complete as I'd hoped, but perhaps there will be a sequel? Regardless, this was a quick read that pulled me out of my slump, so bravo!
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
"Somebody should tell you that you're beautiful every time the sun comes up. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Wednesdays. And at tea time. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Christmas Day and Christmas Eve and the evening before Christmas Eve, and on Easter. He should tell you on Guy Fawkes Night and on New Year's, and on the eighth of August, just because."
I believe a good numbers of readers would pick up Anatomy: A Love Story based on the gorgeous cover art alone, because, contrary to popular belief, we really do grab our first impressions by judging a book by its cover. The marketing of this one might throw some people, as it's proclaiming to be a romantic, historical fantasy, but my finding was it really gears more in the way of historical fiction with a light side of the fantastical and just a dash of secondary romance. This isn't a complaint, just simply an observation to ensure you're in the right frame of expectation before choosing this book as your next read. If a slow burning, gothic style "mystery" is your thing, please proceed with gusto.
Hazel Sinnett is a 17 year old lady of "good breeding" living in Scotland in the early 1800's. She has a passion for becoming a physician/surgeon, and is hounded by the prospect of being required to marry her cousin, the viscount's son of Almont. 🤢 Although this was common back in the day, it's still yuck. After sneaking into a surgical presentation one afternoon, Hazel decides the best course of action is to pose as her deceased brother George and pass her physician exams so that she can find a place in this world to practice medicine. There is a disease going around called the Roman Fever, and she hopes to find a cure for it. Along the way, she meets Jack Currer, who is a "resurrection man", or someone who robs graves to sell the recently buried bodies to those needing to practice surgical techniques. Meanwhile, someone is kidnapping the poor, knocking them unconscious, and practicing on them against their will, sometimes leading to the deaths of these unlucky individuals.
The first half of the book is really meant to set the tone and atmosphere, while introducing a number of characters. It is a slow burn up until about the 60% mark, which was not a problem for me, but I was a little disappointed that all the twists were easily guessed from the earlier portions of the novel. That said, there was something truly readable about this story, and I found myself thinking about it and looking forward to picking it back up when I was doing other things, so that has to count for something. Whether it was the gothic vibe or the tangible Scottish atmosphere, it caused me to rate the story one star higher than anticipated. Fair warning: the ending is a bit abrupt, and while it's not exactly left open-ended, it didn't feel as complete as I'd hoped, but perhaps there will be a sequel? Regardless, this was a quick read that pulled me out of my slump, so bravo!
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
March 13, 2022
aw, man. such a captivating story that has a massive flop of an ending. :/
and i was having so much fun with this, too. its very ‘stalking jack the ripper’ and ‘a ladys guide to petticoats and piracy,’ with the supernatural elements reminding me more of ‘a golden fury.’ if you love a strong female character who isnt going to let the world of men get in the way of doing what she wants mixed with a historical setting, then this is a book you will want to pick up.
also, i want to make it clear that the love story referenced in the title is not a romantic love, but hazels love for medicine and passion for her subject. yes, there is a romantic love interest, but it is so minor that i think readers will feel duped if they go into this expecting romance.
but its a short and sweet story that delivers on fast pacing, purposeful plot, and interesting characters. so its such a shame the ending was such a let down for me. thank goodness it didnt ruin my reading experience completely.
↠ 3.5 stars
and i was having so much fun with this, too. its very ‘stalking jack the ripper’ and ‘a ladys guide to petticoats and piracy,’ with the supernatural elements reminding me more of ‘a golden fury.’ if you love a strong female character who isnt going to let the world of men get in the way of doing what she wants mixed with a historical setting, then this is a book you will want to pick up.
also, i want to make it clear that the love story referenced in the title is not a romantic love, but hazels love for medicine and passion for her subject. yes, there is a romantic love interest, but it is so minor that i think readers will feel duped if they go into this expecting romance.
but its a short and sweet story that delivers on fast pacing, purposeful plot, and interesting characters. so its such a shame the ending was such a let down for me. thank goodness it didnt ruin my reading experience completely.
↠ 3.5 stars
September 20, 2024
In 1817-Edinburgh, Hazel Sinnett's desire to be a surgeon is far from the norm. Seriously, a woman being a surgeon?
It's true. It was the times. Women of a certain standing were meant to look pretty, take on inconsequential hobbies, be quiet and care for a husband and household.
Hazel isn't interested in all that, but unfortunately, she knows the realities of her circumstance. In order to protect her position within society, she will need to be married.
In a way, Hazel is lucky. She's been betrothed to her cousin Bertrand since the two were children. They've known each other forever and get along quite well.
Hazel feels that Bertrand may even learn to understand her passion with anatomy and helping people. At least that is what she hopes.
Jack Currer is a resurrection man, digging up recently deceased bodies and selling them to doctors and anatomists within the city.
It's a dangerous job, but when Jack's main source of income, his position at a local theater, gets taken away due to circumstances outside of his control, he has no other choice. Jack doesn't come from wealth and has no family nest to crawl back into.
When their mutual arts of dealing with the dead bring them into contact with one another, Jack and Hazel are each set on a new course that will change their lives.
Anatomy: A Love Story reminded me a lot of my time spent with Down Comes the Night last year. Not because of its content, but because of its darkly gothic vibe that pleasantly took me by surprise.
I really enjoyed this. It had just the right 'romance to darker bits' ratio for my taste.
There is mystery, intrigue and a very slow-burn romance. Jack and Hazel are from different worlds, but together they work. They support one another in a way that neither of them have ever experienced before.
It was so comfortable watching their relationship blossom. It seriously filled my heart.
Another strong comparison would be to Stalking Jack the Ripper. Again, not so much for the content, but more so for the overall vibe.
Hazel is compelling, she doesn't back down to convention. I always love that. Jack has a good heart in spite of his chosen profession. Again, we stan a bad boy with a heart of gold. They shouldn't work, but you know you're going to root for them.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review.
I was really impressed with this and look forward to reading more from Dana Schwartz.
It's true. It was the times. Women of a certain standing were meant to look pretty, take on inconsequential hobbies, be quiet and care for a husband and household.
Hazel isn't interested in all that, but unfortunately, she knows the realities of her circumstance. In order to protect her position within society, she will need to be married.
In a way, Hazel is lucky. She's been betrothed to her cousin Bertrand since the two were children. They've known each other forever and get along quite well.
Hazel feels that Bertrand may even learn to understand her passion with anatomy and helping people. At least that is what she hopes.
Jack Currer is a resurrection man, digging up recently deceased bodies and selling them to doctors and anatomists within the city.
It's a dangerous job, but when Jack's main source of income, his position at a local theater, gets taken away due to circumstances outside of his control, he has no other choice. Jack doesn't come from wealth and has no family nest to crawl back into.
When their mutual arts of dealing with the dead bring them into contact with one another, Jack and Hazel are each set on a new course that will change their lives.
Anatomy: A Love Story reminded me a lot of my time spent with Down Comes the Night last year. Not because of its content, but because of its darkly gothic vibe that pleasantly took me by surprise.
I really enjoyed this. It had just the right 'romance to darker bits' ratio for my taste.
There is mystery, intrigue and a very slow-burn romance. Jack and Hazel are from different worlds, but together they work. They support one another in a way that neither of them have ever experienced before.
It was so comfortable watching their relationship blossom. It seriously filled my heart.
Another strong comparison would be to Stalking Jack the Ripper. Again, not so much for the content, but more so for the overall vibe.
Hazel is compelling, she doesn't back down to convention. I always love that. Jack has a good heart in spite of his chosen profession. Again, we stan a bad boy with a heart of gold. They shouldn't work, but you know you're going to root for them.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review.
I was really impressed with this and look forward to reading more from Dana Schwartz.
January 30, 2025
People say if you look for gothic romance in the urban dictionary, you'll see it as racconfables' favorite leisure genre and so you have no idea how I'm champing at the bit when this book first come out. Ressurection men? Anatomist? With the beautiful cover heart-shaped as similitude? And ROMANCE??? Signed me tf up ✅
To be a surgeon in the 1800s when you are bestowed with womanhood is not attainable. Even so, Hazel's interest in science, particularly its applications to medicine, did not deter her from sneaking into a lecture on medicine that women were not permitted to attend. On the other side, Jack makes ends meet while working odd jobs as a resurrection man to sell for medical research. Unbeknownst to them, Hazel and Jack crossed paths when he helps her into a medical presentation discreetly; knowing that if her cover is blown off, it could spell disaster for her, including those around her.
However, Edinburgh is undergoing a sinister calamity as Jack's acquaintances have lost other resurrectionists; and grave digging is becoming an increasingly dangerous profession. Even if their disparity in the social standing would appear to be irreconcilable, Hazel starts accompanying Jack on his work in the cemeteries despite the danger. As they spend more time together, they grow closer and more comfortable, which promises something more.
First of all, the book starts wonderfully because I am immersed, hooked, and I love Schwartz's groundwork on the post as well as the society at the time. This novel is pleasantly warm considering its gothic nature with plenty of gore. The plot is embraced by the history of surgery and the Sweeney Todd vibe is both eerie and enchanting. It was fascinating to watch Hazel delve into the terrifying realm of the unknown and the darker side of humanity through the sublime. Anatomy could be quite a masterpiece. It is unputdownable and I devour it like a starving man.
Now give me the drumroll for the big BUT that is coming in, because is there some figurative meaning that I should pick up after reading this? I get that this serves as a sort of Frankenstein kind of book, but I was in a funk with the last three chapters of the story. While this book has a ton of potential, the initial impressions don't withstand.
Quite frankly, despite the romance alluded to in the title, you shouldn't expect a typical love story from it— boohoo that wasn't the case when I started it as the romance was downplayed. The real love interest seemed to be more apparent between Hazel and anatomy/surgery. I mean, there was a fair amount of romance in this book and there was chemistry between Hazel and Jack; granted the buildup to some kissing (not digging the kiss in the grave though), but it never felt like a full-blown romance. Well, surely no big deal though.
But you know how they said 'one bad thing blinds a thousand good ones?'. Well, that is kind of exactly how it goes for me. Although I initially liked Hazel, the way her frantic studying was unexpectedly replaced with her involvement in a mystery involving missing people was a little strange. It was difficult to fathom Hazel's obstinacy and why she was so bent on being a surgeon. Then, there seem to be a lot of loopholes in the plot and the fantastical elements were unanticipated — it was presented so close to the end of the narrative that they felt forced and unwarranted, I don't think it works on me.
I may be mean for saying this, but then I am always unequivocal so you cannot convince me that this is not Stalking Jack the Ripper Walmart version - from the autonomist, corpse, the mystery, the whole Frankenstein fiasco. So again, some authors need to know when to insert anti-climatic as a plot device. There was no buildup as to how the culprit was discovered, and it went sour. No actual conclusion and only loose ends.
At length, this does not take away that the beginning of the book was magical, but the one-dimensional aspects to it may not exactly steal readers' hearts as the book cover may appear to. It hinted at a sequel but do I still wanna be part of it? To be continued...
"Dead bodies are never going to bite you. They're never going to do anything to you. It's the living things that hurt you"
To be a surgeon in the 1800s when you are bestowed with womanhood is not attainable. Even so, Hazel's interest in science, particularly its applications to medicine, did not deter her from sneaking into a lecture on medicine that women were not permitted to attend. On the other side, Jack makes ends meet while working odd jobs as a resurrection man to sell for medical research. Unbeknownst to them, Hazel and Jack crossed paths when he helps her into a medical presentation discreetly; knowing that if her cover is blown off, it could spell disaster for her, including those around her.
However, Edinburgh is undergoing a sinister calamity as Jack's acquaintances have lost other resurrectionists; and grave digging is becoming an increasingly dangerous profession. Even if their disparity in the social standing would appear to be irreconcilable, Hazel starts accompanying Jack on his work in the cemeteries despite the danger. As they spend more time together, they grow closer and more comfortable, which promises something more.
First of all, the book starts wonderfully because I am immersed, hooked, and I love Schwartz's groundwork on the post as well as the society at the time. This novel is pleasantly warm considering its gothic nature with plenty of gore. The plot is embraced by the history of surgery and the Sweeney Todd vibe is both eerie and enchanting. It was fascinating to watch Hazel delve into the terrifying realm of the unknown and the darker side of humanity through the sublime. Anatomy could be quite a masterpiece. It is unputdownable and I devour it like a starving man.
Now give me the drumroll for the big BUT that is coming in, because is there some figurative meaning that I should pick up after reading this? I get that this serves as a sort of Frankenstein kind of book, but I was in a funk with the last three chapters of the story. While this book has a ton of potential, the initial impressions don't withstand.
Quite frankly, despite the romance alluded to in the title, you shouldn't expect a typical love story from it— boohoo that wasn't the case when I started it as the romance was downplayed. The real love interest seemed to be more apparent between Hazel and anatomy/surgery. I mean, there was a fair amount of romance in this book and there was chemistry between Hazel and Jack; granted the buildup to some kissing (not digging the kiss in the grave though), but it never felt like a full-blown romance. Well, surely no big deal though.
But you know how they said 'one bad thing blinds a thousand good ones?'. Well, that is kind of exactly how it goes for me. Although I initially liked Hazel, the way her frantic studying was unexpectedly replaced with her involvement in a mystery involving missing people was a little strange. It was difficult to fathom Hazel's obstinacy and why she was so bent on being a surgeon. Then, there seem to be a lot of loopholes in the plot and the fantastical elements were unanticipated — it was presented so close to the end of the narrative that they felt forced and unwarranted, I don't think it works on me.
I may be mean for saying this, but then I am always unequivocal so you cannot convince me that this is not Stalking Jack the Ripper Walmart version - from the autonomist, corpse, the mystery, the whole Frankenstein fiasco. So again, some authors need to know when to insert anti-climatic as a plot device. There was no buildup as to how the culprit was discovered, and it went sour. No actual conclusion and only loose ends.
At length, this does not take away that the beginning of the book was magical, but the one-dimensional aspects to it may not exactly steal readers' hearts as the book cover may appear to. It hinted at a sequel but do I still wanna be part of it? To be continued...
February 19, 2022
18/02 Update: I've changed my rating from 1 to 2 stars because someone pointed out that there is a difference between love story and romance. I didnt realise a love story can have very light element of love/romance only so I guess that would have managed my expectations a bit. But either way I still think that the relationship development in this was too light for my liking.
Rating ⭐ This could probably be a 2.5 or 3 star but because of the ending and my false expectations that have left me disappointed this is a 1 star.
~ Quick Summary ~
Set in Edinburgh 1817, this is a love story between Hazel and her passion of becoming a surgeon, despite society expecting her to get married.
~ Pick this up if you enjoy/don’t mind the following ~
📜Mostly a YA Historical fiction
👦 Gender Bender
💖Light romance on the side, develops very quickly and in the second half only. If you are looking for a romance - I would not recommend this.
🐢Slow pace
🔍Mystery on the side
~ What I Enjoyed ~
The writing was good, setting and world building was on point, but sadly that's not enough to save this book.
~ What I didn’t enjoy ~
1) I had so many false expectations coming into this. It's not funny.
- Considering that “love story” is in the title I expected a lot more romance. Instead, Jack and Hazel meet briefly in the first 20/30% mark and long after I’ve forgotten that I was expecting a romance, they finally had more scenes past the 50% mark but their relationship developed very quickly.
- In the blurb, it mentions “A gothic tale full of mystery…”. Again, this gave me false expectations because this was predominantly a historical fiction with mystery on the side that developed more in the second half. In fact, even the romance was on the side. Wow. The more I’m typing this review the more frustrated I feel.
2) The whole book was all telling and not enough showing, so many things that are mentioned in the blurb were brief and not explored enough. For example:
- Hazel’s time in the classroom and pretending to be a boy, I could tell you that one line and that's all you need to know. Not much happened as she excelled in her class and disguised herself easily.
- Converting her home into a makeshift hospital seemed easy enough. I did enjoy these parts but she sure did go from zero to hero instantly.
- Her relationship with Jack (I still don’t know why this is called a love story).
- Jack’s job of being a resurrection man and helping Hazel. From the blurb it seemed like this would be a pretty significant part of the novel. If anything Hazel’s experience at her makeshift hospital was more significant in learning than Jack providing Hazel with bodies.
- The disappearances. I was never curious about them. At all.
- There was no major character development, everyone stayed more or less the same (though not always a bad thing).
What was explored in detail was Hazel’s passion for being a surgeon, her barriers to become one and her reluctance to marry. This isn’t a bad thing but again I came into this with the wrong expectations which really annoys me.
3) Other random thoughts:
- I listened to this on Audible and I found myself losing focus a lot especially when we are only in Hazel’s head. It's filled with a lot of descriptions.
- The twist was so left field it reminded me of . Not exactly what I signed up for. Though perhaps it's my fault for not noticing all the genres listed on goodreads
Rating ⭐ This could probably be a 2.5 or 3 star but because of the ending and my false expectations that have left me disappointed this is a 1 star.
~ Quick Summary ~
Set in Edinburgh 1817, this is a love story between Hazel and her passion of becoming a surgeon, despite society expecting her to get married.
~ Pick this up if you enjoy/don’t mind the following ~
📜Mostly a YA Historical fiction
👦 Gender Bender
💖Light romance on the side, develops very quickly and in the second half only. If you are looking for a romance - I would not recommend this.
🐢Slow pace
🔍Mystery on the side
~ What I Enjoyed ~
The writing was good, setting and world building was on point, but sadly that's not enough to save this book.
~ What I didn’t enjoy ~
1) I had so many false expectations coming into this. It's not funny.
- Considering that “love story” is in the title I expected a lot more romance. Instead, Jack and Hazel meet briefly in the first 20/30% mark and long after I’ve forgotten that I was expecting a romance, they finally had more scenes past the 50% mark but their relationship developed very quickly.
- In the blurb, it mentions “A gothic tale full of mystery…”. Again, this gave me false expectations because this was predominantly a historical fiction with mystery on the side that developed more in the second half. In fact, even the romance was on the side. Wow. The more I’m typing this review the more frustrated I feel.
2) The whole book was all telling and not enough showing, so many things that are mentioned in the blurb were brief and not explored enough. For example:
- Hazel’s time in the classroom and pretending to be a boy, I could tell you that one line and that's all you need to know. Not much happened as she excelled in her class and disguised herself easily.
- Converting her home into a makeshift hospital seemed easy enough. I did enjoy these parts but she sure did go from zero to hero instantly.
- Her relationship with Jack (I still don’t know why this is called a love story).
- Jack’s job of being a resurrection man and helping Hazel. From the blurb it seemed like this would be a pretty significant part of the novel. If anything Hazel’s experience at her makeshift hospital was more significant in learning than Jack providing Hazel with bodies.
- The disappearances. I was never curious about them. At all.
- There was no major character development, everyone stayed more or less the same (though not always a bad thing).
What was explored in detail was Hazel’s passion for being a surgeon, her barriers to become one and her reluctance to marry. This isn’t a bad thing but again I came into this with the wrong expectations which really annoys me.
3) Other random thoughts:
- I listened to this on Audible and I found myself losing focus a lot especially when we are only in Hazel’s head. It's filled with a lot of descriptions.
- The twist was so left field it reminded me of . Not exactly what I signed up for. Though perhaps it's my fault for not noticing all the genres listed on goodreads
September 9, 2024
↠ ˗ ·˚ ༘ˇ4.5 𝓢𝓽𝓪𝓻𝓼 * .ೃ࿐₊ ⊹
“𝓞𝓵𝓭 𝓪𝓰𝓮 𝓼𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓫𝓮 𝓯𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓮𝓭 𝓻𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓷 𝓭𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱.”
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ A gothic tale full of mystery and romance about a willful female surgeon, a resurrection man who sells bodies for a living, and the buried secrets they must uncover together.
“𝓜𝓸𝓻𝓽𝓾𝓲𝓼 𝓿𝓲𝓿𝓸𝓼 𝓭𝓮𝓸𝓬𝓮𝓷𝓽, 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓭𝓮𝓪𝓭 𝓽𝓮𝓪𝓬𝓱 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓵𝓲𝓿𝓲𝓷𝓰.”
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ‧₊˚✧[ 𝓠𝓾𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂 ]✧˚₊‧
We follow Hazel, our FMC in 19th century Edinburgh with a dream to become a physician one day. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the greatest time for women and the dream she so dared to dream required a lot more work to achieve.
She’s betrothed to her cousin and made to conform to the position of young woman in high society. Reading manuals on human physiology, bringing dead frogs back from the dead, and disguising herself as a boy to attend classes at an all-boys physiology school, Hazel was determined to be a physician regardless of her sex.
But there was a lot more happening in this book than just her pursuit in science. Not only is there the story about Hazel wanting to become a doctor, but there’s also a plague going around, bodies going missing, deaths occurring, and a marriage proposal.
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ‧₊˚✧[ 𝓜𝔂 𝓣𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 ]✧˚₊‧
What a super enjoyable quick read. The prose is to the point, nothing over the top but very satisfying. I couldn't help but get Bronte and Mary Shelley vibes. I loved that this story had so many aspects that wrapped itself together into one bigger story.
I loved the mysterious aspects of the story and brought a little bit of suspense to it. I was wondering who might be the person who was causing all the deaths and the reveal was so satisfying. I won’t elaborate on that because of spoilers, but omg I LOVE the whole vibe! Especially around autumn, it gives a gloomy/gothic vibe.
Love Hazel, she's a total badass...
“I’m not a fool, Jack Currer, no matter how you might think of me.”
“Oh, I assure, Miss Sinnett, I’ve taken you for a lot of things, but a fool was never one of them.”
The tale between Jack and Hazel warmed my heart. I appreciated the way in which their love grew. There is something to a medically cold story that is set with romantic undertones. Dana Schwartz did a fantastic job of intertwining the two concepts into one historical tale totally worth reading.
“My heart is yours, Hazel Sinnet. Forever. Beating or still.”
⠀
⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀:¨ ·.· ¨:
⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ `· . ꔫ
“𝓞𝓵𝓭 𝓪𝓰𝓮 𝓼𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓫𝓮 𝓯𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓮𝓭 𝓻𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓷 𝓭𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱.”
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ A gothic tale full of mystery and romance about a willful female surgeon, a resurrection man who sells bodies for a living, and the buried secrets they must uncover together.
“𝓜𝓸𝓻𝓽𝓾𝓲𝓼 𝓿𝓲𝓿𝓸𝓼 𝓭𝓮𝓸𝓬𝓮𝓷𝓽, 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓭𝓮𝓪𝓭 𝓽𝓮𝓪𝓬𝓱 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓵𝓲𝓿𝓲𝓷𝓰.”
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ‧₊˚✧[ 𝓠𝓾𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂 ]✧˚₊‧
We follow Hazel, our FMC in 19th century Edinburgh with a dream to become a physician one day. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the greatest time for women and the dream she so dared to dream required a lot more work to achieve.
She’s betrothed to her cousin and made to conform to the position of young woman in high society. Reading manuals on human physiology, bringing dead frogs back from the dead, and disguising herself as a boy to attend classes at an all-boys physiology school, Hazel was determined to be a physician regardless of her sex.
But there was a lot more happening in this book than just her pursuit in science. Not only is there the story about Hazel wanting to become a doctor, but there’s also a plague going around, bodies going missing, deaths occurring, and a marriage proposal.
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ‧₊˚✧[ 𝓜𝔂 𝓣𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 ]✧˚₊‧
What a super enjoyable quick read. The prose is to the point, nothing over the top but very satisfying. I couldn't help but get Bronte and Mary Shelley vibes. I loved that this story had so many aspects that wrapped itself together into one bigger story.
I loved the mysterious aspects of the story and brought a little bit of suspense to it. I was wondering who might be the person who was causing all the deaths and the reveal was so satisfying. I won’t elaborate on that because of spoilers, but omg I LOVE the whole vibe! Especially around autumn, it gives a gloomy/gothic vibe.
Love Hazel, she's a total badass...
“I’m not a fool, Jack Currer, no matter how you might think of me.”
“Oh, I assure, Miss Sinnett, I’ve taken you for a lot of things, but a fool was never one of them.”
The tale between Jack and Hazel warmed my heart. I appreciated the way in which their love grew. There is something to a medically cold story that is set with romantic undertones. Dana Schwartz did a fantastic job of intertwining the two concepts into one historical tale totally worth reading.
“My heart is yours, Hazel Sinnet. Forever. Beating or still.”
⠀
⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀:¨ ·.· ¨:
⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ `· . ꔫ
December 16, 2021
Gothic mystery with grave-robbing resurrectionists, dark magic, Victorian operating theaters and strong female leads set in Scotland? YES, PLEASE.
My only criticism is that it ended a bit abruptly, but I'm hoping that's because there will be more books to come.
My only criticism is that it ended a bit abruptly, but I'm hoping that's because there will be more books to come.
August 7, 2023
2023
Reread this to refresh myself before starting Immortality, the second and final book.
I enjoy this so much for a YA romance. Like I said last year, the romance is good but the characters themselves and the setting is really what shines. Edinburgh has a rich, deep, and disturbing history that Dana Schwartz nails in a similarly gruesome but also whimsical way.
I didn't love this AS much the second time around simply because it was the shock of enjoying a YA novel that made this so highly rated the first time around. I'm going to keep this at a 4 however because I hope other people pick this duology up. It's very under rated and I hope the YA audience gets their hands on this.
2022
I am not normally someone who enjoys YA to this extent but WOW. This was right up my street.
It is a love story but the main appeal is the plot and the atmosphere. The author's note at the end added so much depth and intrigue to the book. The fact that almost everything she's mentioned in surgical horrors was REAL and is memorialized in Ediburgh's Surgery of Horror's Museum is bonkers. I love the tie in to the true crime but putting a fantasy twist on it.
This is macabre and gothic but also lovely and has so much feminism and respect at it's core. I really really really enjoyed this.
Reread this to refresh myself before starting Immortality, the second and final book.
I enjoy this so much for a YA romance. Like I said last year, the romance is good but the characters themselves and the setting is really what shines. Edinburgh has a rich, deep, and disturbing history that Dana Schwartz nails in a similarly gruesome but also whimsical way.
I didn't love this AS much the second time around simply because it was the shock of enjoying a YA novel that made this so highly rated the first time around. I'm going to keep this at a 4 however because I hope other people pick this duology up. It's very under rated and I hope the YA audience gets their hands on this.
2022
I am not normally someone who enjoys YA to this extent but WOW. This was right up my street.
It is a love story but the main appeal is the plot and the atmosphere. The author's note at the end added so much depth and intrigue to the book. The fact that almost everything she's mentioned in surgical horrors was REAL and is memorialized in Ediburgh's Surgery of Horror's Museum is bonkers. I love the tie in to the true crime but putting a fantasy twist on it.
This is macabre and gothic but also lovely and has so much feminism and respect at it's core. I really really really enjoyed this.
February 2, 2022
"A gothic tale full of mystery and romance," you say?
Well. It certainly has a pretty cover.
Really, I've got to hand it to the marketing folks involved in this: for a book that doesn't even come close to "Gothic," barely contains much of a mystery at all, and has one of the most sudden and consequently lifeless romances I've ever read, they sure did a good job making me think this was something I'd like.
"Historical wallpaper" is how I usually describe books that place characters with modern sensibilities into historic settings. It's when an author wants to use the historic locations, clothing, technology, language, and social constructs to play around in, but isn't really interested in sticking to a more constrained historicity. This works for a lot of very fun books! It does not work here, because this is barely even historical wallpaper. These are thoroughly modern characters dressed in costumes, playing around in front of a canvas theater backdrop of 19th century Edinburgh, with some dead bodies thrown in for funsies. (Also, there is some particularly gruesome stuff involving eyeballs, so be on the lookout for that if you're skeeved out by that like I am.)
It's 1817 and we've got our teenage MC, Hazel, who is apparently gently bred enough to live in a castle but not gently bred enough to know that women weren't particularly being hired as physicians or surgeons in that time period. And no, this isn't a case of Strong Willed Young Woman Wants to Prove That We Girls Can Do Anything, Right Barbie? She is on several occasions absolutely stunned when anyone points out that she's female and isn't going to just be able to waltz into a class and learn human anatomy, let alone practice. There's a whole other bit later where she's absolutely flummoxed by the thought that a husband could have any say over whether a woman practices medicine after her marriage. Because, you know, women in that time and place were absolutely their own people and definitely not their husband's property. This makes Hazel come off as a something of an idiot, completely unaware of the strictures of her society. (She's also mean. She makes fun of a bully for having moles on his face and then does a handful of other things that made me think "what a dick" on several occasions.)
I don't even want to get into Jack, our extremely bland love interest. Dude steals bodies and has a crush on a ballerina and.... that's about it. Fun fact: there's an entire chapter about him in which nothing happens and the story absolutely does not move forward at all! In fact, there may be more than one chapter like that; I genuinely can't remember because he is so dull.
Anyway, Hazel gets left alone in her castle without any chaperone because sure, okay. And then the entirety of the book passes and nothing happens. I looked down at 20%, astounded that I was already that much into the book and that not much had happened. At 55%, I almost gave up because, again, nothing had happened. When things suddenly swung into motion, when the so-called mystery finally reared its head, I was at 75%. The pacing of that final 25% gave me whiplash compared to the first 75%, leaving me wondering just what the heck I'd read.
There are a million little things that annoyed me, like how no one in the upper classes speaks very differently from those in the lower ("sick" meant vomit then, right? Because it's used here in our modern parlance but I felt "ill" or "unwell" or "indisposed" would have helped center the story in the time period.). You've got a (if Hazel wasn't such an egalitarian 21st century girl in Regency clothing). Why is a pregnant woman ? Why does no one care that ? Word must have gotten out, otherwise ? What in the world is romantic about ?
So yeah, the mystery is.... woof. Something else, I tell you. I mean, completely telegraphed but still, it's a doozy, and you don't really even get much time to sit with it because the book that up until this point has been trickling like molasses is suddenly going Mach 5. The romance is so poorly done that I'm still vaguely baffled by it.
This had a great premise and, again, well done to the marketing folks. Too bad the execution failed so disappointingly.
Well. It certainly has a pretty cover.
Really, I've got to hand it to the marketing folks involved in this: for a book that doesn't even come close to "Gothic," barely contains much of a mystery at all, and has one of the most sudden and consequently lifeless romances I've ever read, they sure did a good job making me think this was something I'd like.
"Historical wallpaper" is how I usually describe books that place characters with modern sensibilities into historic settings. It's when an author wants to use the historic locations, clothing, technology, language, and social constructs to play around in, but isn't really interested in sticking to a more constrained historicity. This works for a lot of very fun books! It does not work here, because this is barely even historical wallpaper. These are thoroughly modern characters dressed in costumes, playing around in front of a canvas theater backdrop of 19th century Edinburgh, with some dead bodies thrown in for funsies. (Also, there is some particularly gruesome stuff involving eyeballs, so be on the lookout for that if you're skeeved out by that like I am.)
It's 1817 and we've got our teenage MC, Hazel, who is apparently gently bred enough to live in a castle but not gently bred enough to know that women weren't particularly being hired as physicians or surgeons in that time period. And no, this isn't a case of Strong Willed Young Woman Wants to Prove That We Girls Can Do Anything, Right Barbie? She is on several occasions absolutely stunned when anyone points out that she's female and isn't going to just be able to waltz into a class and learn human anatomy, let alone practice. There's a whole other bit later where she's absolutely flummoxed by the thought that a husband could have any say over whether a woman practices medicine after her marriage. Because, you know, women in that time and place were absolutely their own people and definitely not their husband's property. This makes Hazel come off as a something of an idiot, completely unaware of the strictures of her society. (She's also mean. She makes fun of a bully for having moles on his face and then does a handful of other things that made me think "what a dick" on several occasions.)
I don't even want to get into Jack, our extremely bland love interest. Dude steals bodies and has a crush on a ballerina and.... that's about it. Fun fact: there's an entire chapter about him in which nothing happens and the story absolutely does not move forward at all! In fact, there may be more than one chapter like that; I genuinely can't remember because he is so dull.
Anyway, Hazel gets left alone in her castle without any chaperone because sure, okay. And then the entirety of the book passes and nothing happens. I looked down at 20%, astounded that I was already that much into the book and that not much had happened. At 55%, I almost gave up because, again, nothing had happened. When things suddenly swung into motion, when the so-called mystery finally reared its head, I was at 75%. The pacing of that final 25% gave me whiplash compared to the first 75%, leaving me wondering just what the heck I'd read.
There are a million little things that annoyed me, like how no one in the upper classes speaks very differently from those in the lower ("sick" meant vomit then, right? Because it's used here in our modern parlance but I felt "ill" or "unwell" or "indisposed" would have helped center the story in the time period.). You've got a (if Hazel wasn't such an egalitarian 21st century girl in Regency clothing). Why is a pregnant woman ? Why does no one care that ? Word must have gotten out, otherwise ? What in the world is romantic about ?
So yeah, the mystery is.... woof. Something else, I tell you. I mean, completely telegraphed but still, it's a doozy, and you don't really even get much time to sit with it because the book that up until this point has been trickling like molasses is suddenly going Mach 5. The romance is so poorly done that I'm still vaguely baffled by it.
This had a great premise and, again, well done to the marketing folks. Too bad the execution failed so disappointingly.
December 7, 2022
2.5 stars MAX
This was boring. I had to fight my way through this book because little to nothing happened in the beginning. I was really intrigued by the cover and the overall “mystery stalking Jack the Ripper, zombie, Frankenstein” vibes but I feel like so many unnecessary things happened that made it way too long and boring. Honestly I thought this was going to be a stand-alone and I wish it was because the ending was too magical for me.
Don’t get me wrong I loved the entire idea of a woman being very determined to become a doctor during this time but the side plots were not that fun and the romance dead. Literally.
How did we get to making out so quickly? And why was there so much drama in the theatre???
This was boring. I had to fight my way through this book because little to nothing happened in the beginning. I was really intrigued by the cover and the overall “mystery stalking Jack the Ripper, zombie, Frankenstein” vibes but I feel like so many unnecessary things happened that made it way too long and boring. Honestly I thought this was going to be a stand-alone and I wish it was because the ending was too magical for me.
Don’t get me wrong I loved the entire idea of a woman being very determined to become a doctor during this time but the side plots were not that fun and the romance dead. Literally.
How did we get to making out so quickly? And why was there so much drama in the theatre???
January 19, 2022
Just going to get it out of the way: the concept and execution of this cover design is stunning. I cannot get over how great it is and I keep coming back to stare at it some more. Wednesday never really disappoints in this regard but I always appreciate the thoughtfulness put into their designs.
But back to the book itself—I haven’t read anything by Dana Schwartz before, well besides her tweets, but I was really excited to dig into this one.
Hazel has always been fascinated by the human body. It’s a strange preoccupation for a young woman in 1817 Edinburg, but left to her own devices that’s all she would be doing. Studying anatomy and, hopefully, using what she’s learned to help people. Jack on the other hand deals in the dead. He digs up bodies and sells them to local medical schools as practice cadavers, a gruesome but ultimately necessary practice. There’s no reason for Hazel and Jack to ever cross paths, with her inevitable engagement to her cousin (ew) a future Viscount and his struggle to make ends meet. But when a sickness comes to town, a secret plan goes awry and something even darker lurks nearby, the two form an unlikely team to help protect the living from that which wishes to do them harm.
I think the gothic elements of this book are a little more understated than some other novels I’ve read recently. That’s not a knock against its credentials in the genre, just those staples and tropes may not be as evident at first. What I think this was more than anything was historical fiction, but a much more approachable version. There’s a dusting of magic near the end and at the very beginning, though for the most part the story is focused on Hazel’s life as a future Viscountess and an aspiring surgeon during this era.
Also, despite the subtitle and the shelving of this book on Goodreads, I didn’t think Anatomy was much of a romance. All of Hazel’s feelings fall second to her passion for anatomy, which honestly I think I prefer anyways. And though there’s eventually the kindling of something starting to happen, it’s well into the book to where it feels more like an afterthought than the main focus. The romantic storyline does play a crucial role in the final act, so credit where it’s due for that plot point.
There’s some interesting reflections on class and patriarchy, how someone’s gender and the socioeconomic circumstances they’re born into dictate the majority of how their lives turn out, especially in 19th century Scotland. Reading this in the midst of a pandemic underlines further the gaps between the rich and the poor when it comes to access to essential medical services. Who’s expendable and who’s connivence is worth more than someone’s life? The parallels between this time period and present day are probably too grim for many people to want to consider.
The ending was a little hurried compared with the level of detail present through the rest of the book. We’re left with a sort of resolution, but not an Ending. in all it’s finality. But granted that sometimes I feel like Historical Fiction can drag, I didn’t have any problem fully engaging with Anatomy. It’s just as readable as it is interesting, and I think it’ll be a popular choice when it comes out in 2022!
*Thanks to Wednesday Books for an advance review copy!
**For more book talk & reviews, follow me on Instagram at @elle_mentbooks!
But back to the book itself—I haven’t read anything by Dana Schwartz before, well besides her tweets, but I was really excited to dig into this one.
Hazel has always been fascinated by the human body. It’s a strange preoccupation for a young woman in 1817 Edinburg, but left to her own devices that’s all she would be doing. Studying anatomy and, hopefully, using what she’s learned to help people. Jack on the other hand deals in the dead. He digs up bodies and sells them to local medical schools as practice cadavers, a gruesome but ultimately necessary practice. There’s no reason for Hazel and Jack to ever cross paths, with her inevitable engagement to her cousin (ew) a future Viscount and his struggle to make ends meet. But when a sickness comes to town, a secret plan goes awry and something even darker lurks nearby, the two form an unlikely team to help protect the living from that which wishes to do them harm.
I think the gothic elements of this book are a little more understated than some other novels I’ve read recently. That’s not a knock against its credentials in the genre, just those staples and tropes may not be as evident at first. What I think this was more than anything was historical fiction, but a much more approachable version. There’s a dusting of magic near the end and at the very beginning, though for the most part the story is focused on Hazel’s life as a future Viscountess and an aspiring surgeon during this era.
Also, despite the subtitle and the shelving of this book on Goodreads, I didn’t think Anatomy was much of a romance. All of Hazel’s feelings fall second to her passion for anatomy, which honestly I think I prefer anyways. And though there’s eventually the kindling of something starting to happen, it’s well into the book to where it feels more like an afterthought than the main focus. The romantic storyline does play a crucial role in the final act, so credit where it’s due for that plot point.
There’s some interesting reflections on class and patriarchy, how someone’s gender and the socioeconomic circumstances they’re born into dictate the majority of how their lives turn out, especially in 19th century Scotland. Reading this in the midst of a pandemic underlines further the gaps between the rich and the poor when it comes to access to essential medical services. Who’s expendable and who’s connivence is worth more than someone’s life? The parallels between this time period and present day are probably too grim for many people to want to consider.
The ending was a little hurried compared with the level of detail present through the rest of the book. We’re left with a sort of resolution, but not an Ending. in all it’s finality. But granted that sometimes I feel like Historical Fiction can drag, I didn’t have any problem fully engaging with Anatomy. It’s just as readable as it is interesting, and I think it’ll be a popular choice when it comes out in 2022!
*Thanks to Wednesday Books for an advance review copy!
**For more book talk & reviews, follow me on Instagram at @elle_mentbooks!
February 7, 2025
4.45/5 ⭐
Frankenstein meets Marie Curie and a little bit of Jack the Ripper in 1800s Scotland and if you love the sound of that then you're about to have the best time with this.
Anatomy has on one side a Jane Austen narrative vibe and on the other side, it feels like Mary Wollstonecraft also wanted to be part of the construction of the narrative and if these two had a baby in the form of YA historical fiction then this would probably be it.
The atmosphere of the book is amazing, it's honestly a Stalking Jack the Ripper but a little bit better executed in my humble opinion. It's grey and cold and rainy and it has some sort of toughness about it, but one that is enjoyable and leaves you wanting more of it.
The characters are sometimes silly, sometimes sweet, some of them are deserving of a serious caning (sorry, I feel violent today) and some others just need protection at all costs.
I am seriously surprised that I've been sleeping on this for so long because even though I don't consider it a masterpiece of the genre, it kept me wanting to read and learn more, I was entertained and I liked the way the whole narrative vibe was making me feel throughout the story. And the fact that, if you go a little bit deeper than the surface, you will most definitely see a note on what does it mean to be a woman aspiring to do something in a field that, up until a certain point, has been male-dominated. Because even though everyone can see how talented and determined Hazel is to become a female surgeon, all the people in her chosen field seem to be against her. Marriage and motherhood are the best careers for a woman, but Hazel chooses not to be the generic woman and become her own being. Which is in fact a very nice idea that I love and respect.
Frankenstein meets Marie Curie and a little bit of Jack the Ripper in 1800s Scotland and if you love the sound of that then you're about to have the best time with this.
Anatomy has on one side a Jane Austen narrative vibe and on the other side, it feels like Mary Wollstonecraft also wanted to be part of the construction of the narrative and if these two had a baby in the form of YA historical fiction then this would probably be it.
The atmosphere of the book is amazing, it's honestly a Stalking Jack the Ripper but a little bit better executed in my humble opinion. It's grey and cold and rainy and it has some sort of toughness about it, but one that is enjoyable and leaves you wanting more of it.
The characters are sometimes silly, sometimes sweet, some of them are deserving of a serious caning (sorry, I feel violent today) and some others just need protection at all costs.
I am seriously surprised that I've been sleeping on this for so long because even though I don't consider it a masterpiece of the genre, it kept me wanting to read and learn more, I was entertained and I liked the way the whole narrative vibe was making me feel throughout the story. And the fact that, if you go a little bit deeper than the surface, you will most definitely see a note on what does it mean to be a woman aspiring to do something in a field that, up until a certain point, has been male-dominated. Because even though everyone can see how talented and determined Hazel is to become a female surgeon, all the people in her chosen field seem to be against her. Marriage and motherhood are the best careers for a woman, but Hazel chooses not to be the generic woman and become her own being. Which is in fact a very nice idea that I love and respect.
February 3, 2023
Edinburgh im Jahr 1817. Hazel möchte Chirurgin werden; als Frau für sie unmöglich. Doch als Junge verkleidet schleicht sie sich in den Lehrsaal und kann so bei ein paar Stunden Medizin dabeisein. Irgendwann wird sie aber doch entdeckt und der Universität verwiesen. Doch es gibt noch eine Chance: Wenn Hazel ohne Unterricht die medizinische Prüfung besteht, ist ein Dozent bereit, sie bei ihm studieren zu lassen.
Hazel gelingt es mit der Hilfe von Jack, einem "Auferstehungsmann", an frische Leichen zu kommen, um sie zu sezieren und so zu lernen.
🖤
Mein Leseeindruck:
Ein wirklich guter erster Band, der mich sehr fesseln konnte! Ich mochte die Atmosphäre, die dieses Buch durchzieht. Man taucht als Leser ab in eine ganz neue, fremdartige Welt, die doch eigentlich gar nicht so fremd ist.
Ich fand es aber faszinierend, mit Hazel gemeinsam mehr über die Welt der Medizin zu erfahren. Ein Thema, das mich sowieso sehr interessiert.
Es gibt auch Krimi-Elemente in diesem Buch; auch das hat mir sehr gut gefallen. Die Stimmung war immer ein bisschen düster und beklemmend, aber auf eine gute Art.
Die Liebesgeschichte, die es hier auch gibt, habe ich als eher hintergründig wahrgenommen. Gerade deshalb hat sie mir so gut gefallen. Alles andere hätte für mich nicht so zur Stimmung des Buches gepasst.
Zum Ende des Bandes gibt es dann auch noch einen Hauch Fantasy. Den hätte ich nun hier nicht haben müssen, aber trotzdem bin ich gespannt auf den zweiten Band und freue mich darauf!
Hazel gelingt es mit der Hilfe von Jack, einem "Auferstehungsmann", an frische Leichen zu kommen, um sie zu sezieren und so zu lernen.
🖤
Mein Leseeindruck:
Ein wirklich guter erster Band, der mich sehr fesseln konnte! Ich mochte die Atmosphäre, die dieses Buch durchzieht. Man taucht als Leser ab in eine ganz neue, fremdartige Welt, die doch eigentlich gar nicht so fremd ist.
Ich fand es aber faszinierend, mit Hazel gemeinsam mehr über die Welt der Medizin zu erfahren. Ein Thema, das mich sowieso sehr interessiert.
Es gibt auch Krimi-Elemente in diesem Buch; auch das hat mir sehr gut gefallen. Die Stimmung war immer ein bisschen düster und beklemmend, aber auf eine gute Art.
Die Liebesgeschichte, die es hier auch gibt, habe ich als eher hintergründig wahrgenommen. Gerade deshalb hat sie mir so gut gefallen. Alles andere hätte für mich nicht so zur Stimmung des Buches gepasst.
Zum Ende des Bandes gibt es dann auch noch einen Hauch Fantasy. Den hätte ich nun hier nicht haben müssen, aber trotzdem bin ich gespannt auf den zweiten Band und freue mich darauf!
August 11, 2021
*Spoiler free*
I really thought I would like this book, a gothic setting in 1800s Edinburgh following a girl trying to become a surgeon and a resurrection man, yes please. Anyone in their right mind would see that description, this book cover, and immediately buy it. The marketing team did an incredible job. Sadly, I did not enjoy the actual book, for a multitude of reasons.
First off, to call this is a love story is far fetched. I’m not joking when I say that the protagonist meets the love interest for the second time halfway through the book. How can an author expect to develop a full fledged relationship in 160 pages? The answer (as least in my mind) is: you can’t. The couple kisses once or twice, with an actual standout “romantic” scene occurring once in this 320 page novel. The romance just wasn’t believable for me.
One thing I did like about this book was the characters. Our main character actually seems like a teenager in the way she approaches the world. I admired her, and understood the way she saw herself. She was confident after she had proven herself, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have doubts along the way. While the characters themselves were fully developed, the decisions that they made were poorly explained. Multiple times in the book characters did things I never could wrap my head around. After all, book characters are supposed to act like real people, and I was unconvinced that any real person would make the decisions these characters made.
In terms of the author’s writing style, I didn’t hate it. It could be a bit flowery and over-descriptive at times, but it was bearable. The pacing in this novel is where the real problem was. The beginning of the book felt slow, with multiple scenes being obvious fillers. Then, we get to the last half of the book and the speed starts to steadily increase. By the last quarter of the book, plot points were happening so quickly that I barley had time to actually comprehend them. Not to mention the twist at the end, which had no actual explanation to how the situation happened or worked. For a book called “anatomy” and filled with themes of science, I was expecting an actual delineation here, or at least some foreshadowing to ease the reader into the idea.
The most disappointing thing about this book is that it could have been really good. With more time to develop the romance, better pacing of the plot, and a bit of foreshadowing I could have loved this book. Sadly I just did not enjoy it. I take careful consideration of the novels I read and review and I promise to give my honest opinion, this is it. I feel like if the author had spent more time with beta-readers this could have evolved into a fantastic book. I’m silently hoping that there is a sequel released, the author definitely left this book open to a continuation of the story. I might actually consider reading it just to see how the author develops this story.
Overall, this book contained some great ideas… with poor execution.
I would recommend this to: Anyone looking for a book in a gothic setting with a strong female lead.
I really thought I would like this book, a gothic setting in 1800s Edinburgh following a girl trying to become a surgeon and a resurrection man, yes please. Anyone in their right mind would see that description, this book cover, and immediately buy it. The marketing team did an incredible job. Sadly, I did not enjoy the actual book, for a multitude of reasons.
First off, to call this is a love story is far fetched. I’m not joking when I say that the protagonist meets the love interest for the second time halfway through the book. How can an author expect to develop a full fledged relationship in 160 pages? The answer (as least in my mind) is: you can’t. The couple kisses once or twice, with an actual standout “romantic” scene occurring once in this 320 page novel. The romance just wasn’t believable for me.
One thing I did like about this book was the characters. Our main character actually seems like a teenager in the way she approaches the world. I admired her, and understood the way she saw herself. She was confident after she had proven herself, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have doubts along the way. While the characters themselves were fully developed, the decisions that they made were poorly explained. Multiple times in the book characters did things I never could wrap my head around. After all, book characters are supposed to act like real people, and I was unconvinced that any real person would make the decisions these characters made.
In terms of the author’s writing style, I didn’t hate it. It could be a bit flowery and over-descriptive at times, but it was bearable. The pacing in this novel is where the real problem was. The beginning of the book felt slow, with multiple scenes being obvious fillers. Then, we get to the last half of the book and the speed starts to steadily increase. By the last quarter of the book, plot points were happening so quickly that I barley had time to actually comprehend them. Not to mention the twist at the end, which had no actual explanation to how the situation happened or worked. For a book called “anatomy” and filled with themes of science, I was expecting an actual delineation here, or at least some foreshadowing to ease the reader into the idea.
The most disappointing thing about this book is that it could have been really good. With more time to develop the romance, better pacing of the plot, and a bit of foreshadowing I could have loved this book. Sadly I just did not enjoy it. I take careful consideration of the novels I read and review and I promise to give my honest opinion, this is it. I feel like if the author had spent more time with beta-readers this could have evolved into a fantastic book. I’m silently hoping that there is a sequel released, the author definitely left this book open to a continuation of the story. I might actually consider reading it just to see how the author develops this story.
Overall, this book contained some great ideas… with poor execution.
I would recommend this to: Anyone looking for a book in a gothic setting with a strong female lead.
April 28, 2023
A fun young adult women-in-STEM, lightly-feminist historical romance! So many things to love in this easy-to-read love story of a girl who just wants to be a doctor and a boy from the wrong side of the carriage tracks.
More 'Women In Stem' novels here!
THOUGHTS:
- Anatomy is a super fast-paced read, and I enjoy reading something young adult every now and then as a palette cleanser before heavier, more emotional reads. Schwartz's writing is also incredibly fluid, so you can read this one in a few days!
- Our heroine, Hazel - progresses from an immature young girl with fanciful ideas to a woman with her eyes open to the world is one of those things you know is about to happen but something you're also happy to see for any young gal. She learns the realities of life aren't as easy, and I appreciate that things weren't sugar-coated even though she was wealthy! Her future had been mapped out since birth, but in choosing her own way, she would also have to face harsh realities in life.
- Somewhat disturbing to think about the fact that early medicine and medical studies relied on cadavers that were already rotting. It's a wonder any medical advancements have been made!
Will I Read The Next Book? At some point, I could see myself reading the next book if I want something truly mindless.. however I feel that after reading the book blurb for Immortality (Book #2) - I already know the ending? With such a massive TBR list, sometimes I feel it's important, to be honest with myself about what I want to add to my TBR so I don't get bogged down. However, if I saw a copy of this book sitting at Half Priced Books - I'd probably snag it to have the duology complete in the library.
FAVORITE QUOTES: (Had A LOT of favorite quotes from this book because it's so good and I feel like a great teaching tool in some ways?)
- "never rely on someone with less to lose than you did." - Street smarts in the making for our young readers.
- "Hazel, there's no hell worse than a world in which I would see you grow old and lose you and then be forced to live another day." - Sweet in a Poe sort of maudlin way.
NOTES:
- Truly young adult in how the character's relationships are portrayed for their younger than 18-year-old selves.
- CWs: Parts of this story are somewhat gruesome.. think about what doctors do in med school while they're practicing on cadavers..? Definitely, some parts that I had to skip through because they grossed me out, but nothing else, IMO can be considered a content warning for readers.
- P.S. I thought this was going to be a fantasy novel for some reason - and even though it's not - there is a bit of scientific magic/whimsy that readers can look forward to.
More 'Women In Stem' novels here!
THOUGHTS:
- Anatomy is a super fast-paced read, and I enjoy reading something young adult every now and then as a palette cleanser before heavier, more emotional reads. Schwartz's writing is also incredibly fluid, so you can read this one in a few days!
- Our heroine, Hazel - progresses from an immature young girl with fanciful ideas to a woman with her eyes open to the world is one of those things you know is about to happen but something you're also happy to see for any young gal. She learns the realities of life aren't as easy, and I appreciate that things weren't sugar-coated even though she was wealthy! Her future had been mapped out since birth, but in choosing her own way, she would also have to face harsh realities in life.
- Somewhat disturbing to think about the fact that early medicine and medical studies relied on cadavers that were already rotting. It's a wonder any medical advancements have been made!
Will I Read The Next Book? At some point, I could see myself reading the next book if I want something truly mindless.. however I feel that after reading the book blurb for Immortality (Book #2) - I already know the ending? With such a massive TBR list, sometimes I feel it's important, to be honest with myself about what I want to add to my TBR so I don't get bogged down. However, if I saw a copy of this book sitting at Half Priced Books - I'd probably snag it to have the duology complete in the library.
FAVORITE QUOTES: (Had A LOT of favorite quotes from this book because it's so good and I feel like a great teaching tool in some ways?)
- "never rely on someone with less to lose than you did." - Street smarts in the making for our young readers.
- "Hazel, there's no hell worse than a world in which I would see you grow old and lose you and then be forced to live another day." - Sweet in a Poe sort of maudlin way.
NOTES:
- Truly young adult in how the character's relationships are portrayed for their younger than 18-year-old selves.
- CWs: Parts of this story are somewhat gruesome.. think about what doctors do in med school while they're practicing on cadavers..? Definitely, some parts that I had to skip through because they grossed me out, but nothing else, IMO can be considered a content warning for readers.
- P.S. I thought this was going to be a fantasy novel for some reason - and even though it's not - there is a bit of scientific magic/whimsy that readers can look forward to.
February 17, 2022
While Davey tugged the rope, Munro, still in the grave, helped to guide the body out of the small hole in the coffin and back toward the surface world, a strange reverse birth for a body past death. Munro successfully removed the body’s shoes off as it left its coffin, but it was up to Davey to strip off the rest of its clothes and throw them back in the grave. Stealing a body was against the law, but if they actually took any property from the grave, that would make it a felony.--------------------------------------
It’s the lesson young girls everywhere were taught their entire lives—don’t be seduced by the men you meet, protect your virtue—until, of course, their entire lives depended on, seduction by the right man. It was an impossible situation, a trick of society as a whole: force women to live at the mercy of whichever man wants them but shame them for anything they might do to get a man to want them. Passivity was the ultimate virtue…Be patient, be silent, be beautiful and untouched as an orchid, and then and only then will your reward come: a bell jar to keep you safe.Ok, so I screwed up. First off, I thought the pub date was 2/22/22 and scheduled my reading and review accordingly. Uh, sorry. Actual pub date was 1/18/22, so I am coming at this one a bit late. Second, I did not do a very thorough job of reading about the book when it was offered. I somehow managed to overlook the fact that it is a YA novel. I have nothing against YA novels. Some of my favorite books are YA novels, but I usually pass on YA books these days unless there is a compelling reason to take them on. Had I seen that it was a YA, I would probably have skipped this one. Finally, yet another failing on my part. I somehow managed to overlook the romance element in the promotional copy. Again, I have nothing against romance elements in books which are mostly of another sort. Quite enjoy them when they are well done. But did not have my expectations primed for the presence of quite as much as there is here, which is not to say that it is huge. It is not. So, multiple failings, mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. The product of impatience. Won’t happen again. I know the drill, Three Hail Marys and a couple of Our Fathers. Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest ands offered fair warning…on to the book itself.
Dana Schwartz - image from her site
Hazel Sinnett is seventeen. She has always lived in a castle an hour outside Edinburgh. It is 1817. She very much wants to study medicine, has read all the books in the family library on the subject, but lacks actual school-based tuition and hands-on experience. When the grandson of a famous doctor is in town to deliver a lecture, she finds a way to attend. Gender attitudes being what they were at the time, people of her sort were not welcome. Still, she finds a way, with some help, and when the doctor announces he will be offering an anatomy class she is desperate to attend.
Medicine is making some advances but the study of the human body requires actual human bodies, preferably lately late. Executions not providing sufficient resources to fill the need, a profession has arisen to satisfy that demand, resurrectionists, who, for a fee, relieve nearby graves of their residents, and deliver same to their clients with the utmost of discretion. Jack Currer, also seventeen, counts that among his several jobs. He happens to be hanging about near the Anatomists’ Society when Hazel is locked out. Meet Cute as Jack shows this clearly well-to-do young lady a secret way in. Think these two might just cross paths again? Of course, there are impediments.
Hazel is not in line to inherit anything, regardless of her parents’ wealth, bypassed in favor of the male heir. The female thing again. The usual way for a young lady from a god family to secure a future is to secure a husband of means. As it happens, she has a first cousin living not too far away, Bernard. They have known reach other forever, played together since early childhood, and it has been presumed that it was only a matter of time before Bernard would propose. He is not a bad sort, but rather dull and a bit too concerned with his appearance. Hazel recognizes that there are problems with her being allowed to make her own way in the world, so more or less anesthetizes herself to the likelihood that Bernard is her likeliest way out of a life of penury. God knows that is what her mother keeps telling her, and telling her, and telling her.
She manages to attend some of Doctor Beecham’s lectures, and is the star pupil, but the female thing again. Guys, catch up, C’Mon! Beecham at least recognizes her intelligence and they come to an agreement. If she can pass the medical exam at the end of the term, she will be able to get real medical training. Unfortunately, there’s that hands-on thing. Books alone will simply not do. But wait! It just so happens she has made the acquaintance of someone who might be able to help her out, and a beautiful friendship blossoms.
I really thought I was going to go be a doctor,” Dana Schwartz says about her time as a pre-med student in college. “Then I had this panicked moment of realizing I was so fundamentally unhappy. My dream was always to be a writer, but I never thought I could make a living that way.” - from the Forbes interviewBut it is not all raw sexism and Hallmark moments. There are dark doings in Edinburgh. A plague has struck, a return of the so-called “Roman fever” which had killed over five thousand the last time it hit, two years before. It had even killed Hazel’s beloved brother, George. She had caught it as well, but managed to survive. Is it really Roman
Fever that is boosting the mortality rate? Jack is aware of far too many acquaintances vanishing, and there are strange doings in the local graveyards as a trio of heavies are haunting such areas, terrorizing the poor resurrection men. Then Hazel begins to see some very strange medical problems when she starts getting to study specimens obtained by Jack, and treating some locals. There is also something decidedly off about Doctor Beecham, who never seems to remove his dark gloves, and demonstrates a mind-numbing drug as a road to pain-free surgery. Then there is Doctor Straine, one eye, nasty skin and a worse attitude, a surgeon working with Doctor Beecham. Seems like a nogoodnik from the build-a-creep shop.
It was the gothic elements that had drawn me to the story. And they are indeed present. But Schwartz has had some fun with them. (For the following I used some of a list from Elif Notes.) Usually gothic novels feature a Desolate, haunted Setting, typically a very creepy castle or equivalent. Here, Hazel lives in a castle, which is a pretty benign home for her. Other sites must serve this purpose. Graveyards work, and certainly provide some chills, and any place where human bodies are being cut up, for purposes educational or malign, will also serve, so, check. Dark and Mysterious Atmosphere? You betcha, plenty of suspect characters and unexplained deaths and disappearances. Something supernatural? Well, I do not want to give anything away, so will say only that there is an element here that qualifies the story as fantasy. Emotional Extremes? Fuh shoo-uh. Although the emotional extremes are as much about Hazel’s lot in life as they are about the actual life-and-death shenanigans that are going on. Women as Victims - absolutely, but in the wider, sexism-conscious sense as well as in the way of a damsels being put upon by dastardly males. Curses and Portents - not so much, except what we all might wish upon some of the baddies. Visions and Nightmares - Hazel has some of the latter, but nothing mystical about them, just recollections of horrors she had seen in real life. Frightening Tone - most definitely. There is clearly something sinister going on in Edinburgh. Frightening Weather - not really. There is a fun early bit in which we are waiting for an incoming storm to deliver some life-generating lightning, but mostly, weather is not that big a deal here. Religious Concerns - social mores are more the thing in this one. Good versus Evil - there is some serious evil going on here. And Hazel is definitely a force for good. A Touch of Romance - yes. Well, more than a touch. Hey, Laddy, you’d better keep those hands to yersel ef ya wan ter keep ‘em on the ends uh yer arms.”
There is Romance and then there is Love. The title even highlights it, Anatomy: A Love Story. There is clearly some romance going on here. Hazel and Jack give off sparks which brings their obvious connection to life. But Hazel’s true love may be more the passion she has for learning, for science, for medicine, for anatomy, for surgery. If she were really faced with a choice between being a doctor or being with Jack, and the two were exclusive, are you confident what choice she would make? Is it possible to have your cake and dissect it too? Not so easy in 1817 Scotland.
The real horrors here are the treatment of women as a subordinate level of human and the joys of the class system in early 19th Century Scotland. Even coming from a family of means, Hazel is refused entry into a profession for which she has passion, and a clear capability, simply because of her gender. She must endure belittling by men, in power and not, who are her intellectual and moral inferiors, as she struggles to find a way forward. Contemplating her life options, Hazel sees her future as a life under a bell jar, whatever that may be referring to. The experience of being poor in the Georgian era is shown not only in the life of Jack, but in the ways the poor and working class are held in their place no less than if they were confined to a castle dungeon, and in the depraved indifference the wealthy show to the lives of those less fortunate than themselves.
“The main mystery I wanted to pick at and unravel is who gets forgotten in society and for what purpose,” Schwartz says. “Obviously today, there is a huge wealth gap that continues to grow, but in the 1800s, the aristocracy made that wealth gap explicit. There was a social and cultural line, so I wanted to explore in a way that doesn’t necessarily label the characters as heroes or villains.” - from the San Diego Tribune interviewThere are some comedic elements, one of which focuses on a man-eater and is hilarious. There a lovely bit of a secondary romantic sub plot, and some fun references. Hazel is all excited to hear about a lecture/demonstration put on by someone named Galvini. This is a clear reference to the actual Luigi Galvani who was putting on shows in which dead things were animated with electricity from a battery. He provided some of the inspiration for a young writer of that era. The epigraph of the novel is a quote from Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, whose creation has near universal familiarity. A mention of Mary Wollstonecraft, her mom, serves double duty as a reference to a leading light for women’s rights in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and as a reminder that the novel deals with matters of life and death, and maybe life again. Hazel’s younger brother is named Percy, which again reminds one of Mary Shelley. A recollection of Walter Scott reciting his Lady of the Lake epic at her Uncle and Aunt’s house is also reminiscent of the Wollstonecraft/Godwin household, in which Coleridge read his Rime of the Ancient Mariner. So, there are many Frankensteinian parts gathered together to help animate the story.
Some parts did not quite fit, however. It was sooo convenient that her father was away on a prolonged naval mission, and that Mum decides to head out of town for an extended period with her other, much more valuable, male child, Hazel’s younger brother. So, Risky Business time for the entire season at Hawthornden Castle. (Although maybe Summer at Bernie’s might be a bit closer, given the issues with dead people.) AND, really? none of the staff rats Hazel out to her mother, the one paying their salary, for running a clinic at the family residence? Maybe we should consider this part of the fantasy element. Re my intro, I was not much excited by the squishy romance bits, but I already told you about that. No biggie, ultimately. It is mostly adorable.
Dana Schwartz has written a strong, literary, YA novel that offers some chills, an historical look at a place and time, and a look at the challenges faced by the poor and by those of the female persuasion, when it was still the rule to treat women as servants, eye candy, or brood mares. It shows a powerful approach and makes me eager to see what she comes up with when she writes a full-on adult novel, but that may not be next up on her board.
…right now, I have an idea for a sequel that I really want to tell and I think will be really fun. I thought this was going to be a one-off, but when I reached the ending, and I sat with that for a few months, I thought that there’s something else here.” - from the San Diego Tribune interview
Review posted – February 11, 2022
Publication date – January 18, 2022
I received an ARE of Anatomy: A Love Story from Wednesday Books in return for a fair review and some help dealing with an uncomfortable neck growth. Thanks, folks, and thanks to NetGalley for facilitating.
This review has been, or soon will be, cross-posted on my personal site, https://cootsreviews.com/. Stop by and say Hi!
=============================EXTRA STUFF
Links to the author’s personal, FB, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter pages
Schwartz came to public notice when she was still in the employ of the New York Observer and Tweeted a criticism of Donald Trump for using anti-Semitic imagery in an anti-Hillary ad. She got viciously trolled by his minions, and wanted to write about that experience. Her boss gave her a green light, but did not really proof the piece, an open letter, which called out Jared Kushner, who owned The Observer, for not interceding with his father-in-law to prevent such things. As an undergrad, she established the “GuyInYourMFA” and “Dystopian YA” parody Twitter profiles. She had internships with Conan and Colbert, and was later was a staff writer for Disney’s She-Hulk, then created and hosted the Noble Blood podcast. Anatomy is her fourth book.
Interviews
-----Time Magazine - Dana Schwartz Wrote the YA Romance She Always Wanted to Read by Simmone Shah
-----Bustle - How My Chemical Romance Inspired Dana Schwartz’s Latest Novel - By Samantha Leach
-----Forbes - 26-Year-Old Dana Schwartz Doesn’t Need To Stick To A Genre by Rosa Escandon
-----San Diego Union Tribune - Dana Schwartz gets skin deep in ‘Anatomy: A Love Story’ by Seth Combs
-----Barnes & Noble - Poured Over: Dana Schwartz on Anatomy by BN Editors
Items of Interest from the author
-----Discussion Questions
Items of Interest
-----Edith Wharton - Roman fever - a short story
-----This very nice bio of Mary Shelley, from The Poetry Foundation, has considerable information about her other works.
-----A nifty web-site on Resurrectionists. Can you dig it?
-----Frankie for free, courtesy of Project Gutenberg
-----NY Times - Reporter Calls Out Publisher (Donald Trump’s Son-in-Law) Over Anti-Semitism By Jonathan Mahler
-----My review of The Lady and her Monsters - This is a must-read book for anyone interested in Mary Shelley and the writing of Frankenstein
December 26, 2023
I’m on BookTube now! =)
”He could see the thin arc of her pale lips, the freckles almost invisible on her cheeks. Her face was burned into his memory, and it remained there: an echo but undiminished. A haunting.”
How is it this book has lines like this one and still isn’t all too popular among my fellow reviewers?! Of course I can only speak for myself here but “Anatomy: A Love Story” was such a surprise and this in the best way possible! When I first heard of the book I thought it might be a romance that plays in Edinburgh in the year 1817 and it sounded interesting enough to pick it up when I found it at my library. Well, and then I read the blurb and my perception of the book changed and I got even more intrigued.
”What were miracles, but science that man didn’t yet understand? And didn’t that make it all the more miraculous that the secrets of the universe were out there, codes one might decipher if smart enough, tenacious enough?”
Truth be told, it’s kind of hard to put this book in a certain genre because it’s one of those stories that defies to be pegged as just one thing. If I had to describe it with a couple of words I’d say it’s a story about a Lady and a resurrection man, with a little dash of romance, mysterious happenings, a dangerous sickness and some Frankenstein-like edge that adds creepy and gory scenes to the mix. It’s also critical of society and emancipated. And for everyone who thinks this sounds like way too many topics and issues packed into just one small book: Don’t worry, despite all that it still works more than just well!
”It’s the lesson young girls everywhere were taught their entire lives – don’t be seduced by the men you meet, protect your virtue – until, of course, their entire lives depended on seduction by the right man. It was an impossible situation, a trick of society as a whole: force women to live at the mercy of whichever man wants them but shame them for anything they might do to get a man to want them. Passivity was the ultimate virtue.”
I really loved Hazel as a character and it was so refreshing to see her fight all the stereotypes society wanted to push on her. I mean we have that 16 year old Lady that’s supposed to marry her cousin – the future Viscount Almont – and she completely refuses to give up the life she has built to become just another wife at the side of a powerful man. She wants to be powerful herself, she wants to help people and become a surgeon and despite being a young lady she doesn’t even hesitate to befriend a resurrection man and even accompanies him to dig up a corpse in order to study it. It were things like this, which caused me to root for her so much! Hazel had no qualms to get her hands dirty, no matter if it was with soil or entrails. This girl was amazing and she had her heart at the right place!
”Oi,” Thrupp barked at Burgess. “You’re lucky you have this pretty boy to protect you. You fancy yourself some sort of gentleman with those lined coats, Hazleton?”
“Yeah,” Hazel responded with the most masculine swagger she could manage. “I do. And the ladies seem to like it just fine.” Burgess laughed at that, a full throaty laugh, and Thrupp retreated with an eye roll.
Also it was extremely awesome she masqueraded as a boy named George Hazelton just to be able to attend anatomy lectures. We dig a girl that’s got her priorities straight and doesn’t let anyone hold her back from pursuing a career as a surgeon. And speaking of the anatomy lessons. The author really didn’t abstain from writing very detailed descriptions so if you’re one of the faint-hearted you better don’t pick up this book. Just a fair warning. Plus if we’re already at it: If you’re allergic to outdated misogynistic bullshit – like I am - you might end up hating a certain Dr. Straine and Hazel’s fiancé as well. Dr. Beecham, well he’s an entirely different story, but at least he had no objections to Hazel becoming a surgeon. The boy you’ll definitely fall in love with is Jack Currer, though!
”It was easy to die in Edinburgh, but Jack had made it seventeen years because he knew how to survive."
Oh boy, how I loved Jack! He was such a kind and gentle soul and he deserved the world! I absolutely adored this boy and even though he earned his money by being a resurrection man I could totally understand where he was coming from. Times back then were hard and his job at the Le Grand Leon theatre just didn’t earn him enough money to live from it. Always hungry, no possessions aside of the clothes he wore, no friends and family to watch out for him, Jack had nothing but still managed to survive. Still, despite his own situation, he still cared about others and tried to help them as best as he could and that made him one of the most precious souls ever. Hazel and he might have come from very different backgrounds but they had that in common, they cared about others and this was exactly what made them work so well. =)
”I don’t find myself cavorting with high society ladies like yourself all too often, so it doesn’t strike me as an introduction one needs to make.”
“We’ve already met. Twice,” Hazel reasoned.
“Aye, but is it really meeting if I haven’t given ye a name?” he said, and this time he winked for real.
Haha! Jack could be quite cheeky sometimes and I really liked that about him. Anyway! Those two meet and kinda start some sort of business together and even though the story is slow at some parts and there doesn’t happen a lot, the moments when things actually DO happen were written very well and had me glued to the pages. I was such a sucker for all the little moments between Jack and Hazel and I really wanted them to be together and to have a future with each other in their lives. Their chemistry was amazing and I was a huge fan of their gender swapped moments and scenes. It was an interesting dynamic because even though Jack is a boy, he’s still poor and doesn’t have all the chances and resources Hazel does.
”There ain't going to be any more bodies." He looked away and showed a heavy bruise across his left cheek. Before she could think better of it, Hazel strode forward and lifted Jack's face in her hands. Jack’s hair was particularly lank and dull, and his eyes were flat.
See what I mean!? Every reader knows plenty of scenes like that, but it’s usually the man that lifts the girl’s face and not the other way around. No, seriously! I want more moments like this one in my books! Vulnerable and honest men should appear in more books! Period! ;-) As for how the book ended and how everything was resolved: I won’t spoil anything but I will say that I saw some of the revelations come from miles away! It didn’t take a lot of brain capacity to figure things out, but I’m not gonna lie: The overall ending threw me and I’m still not over it. Urgh! My heart! <3
”My heart is yours, Hazel Sinnett,” Jack said. “Forever. Beating or still.”
“Beating or still,” she said.
Conclusion:
“Anatomy: A Love Story” turned out to be completely different than I thought it would be. I expected a romance and was positively surprised to find out that this book tackled so many other topics as well. I still have a hard time to describe this story because it’s so unique and defies being put into just one genre so all I’ll say is: If you like historical fiction books that think outside of the box and feature strong female characters that defy society’s rules you’ll enjoy this book. And if you like a little mystery, some gory details and two characters that try to save innocent people while inadvertently falling in love – Well, then you’ll most definitely end up loving this book! ;-)
________________________________
NO, what was that ending?! O_o
Someone please tell me there’s another book and that I’ll get answers! >_<
Also this was something different and I really enjoyed reading “Anatomy: A Love Story”.
Hazel and Jack have my heart! <333 I really dislike damn Bernard, though. Can we please not have him in the next book (if there is one.)
Full RTC soon! I need to look up if there’s a second instalment first. XD
_________________________________
I’m so intrigued by this book because I heard so many people rave about it. At first, I thought this would be a romance but as it seems the plot of “Anatomy: A Love Story” is completely different than I thought it would be.
I mean we have Edinburgh in 1817, a woman who wants to be a surgeon and a resurrection man who makes a living from digging up graves and they both try to solve a mystery together?!
As I said: I am intrigued. XD
I can’t wait to dive into this! This is going to be good! =)
Find me on:
My Blog
Instagram
”He could see the thin arc of her pale lips, the freckles almost invisible on her cheeks. Her face was burned into his memory, and it remained there: an echo but undiminished. A haunting.”
How is it this book has lines like this one and still isn’t all too popular among my fellow reviewers?! Of course I can only speak for myself here but “Anatomy: A Love Story” was such a surprise and this in the best way possible! When I first heard of the book I thought it might be a romance that plays in Edinburgh in the year 1817 and it sounded interesting enough to pick it up when I found it at my library. Well, and then I read the blurb and my perception of the book changed and I got even more intrigued.
”What were miracles, but science that man didn’t yet understand? And didn’t that make it all the more miraculous that the secrets of the universe were out there, codes one might decipher if smart enough, tenacious enough?”
Truth be told, it’s kind of hard to put this book in a certain genre because it’s one of those stories that defies to be pegged as just one thing. If I had to describe it with a couple of words I’d say it’s a story about a Lady and a resurrection man, with a little dash of romance, mysterious happenings, a dangerous sickness and some Frankenstein-like edge that adds creepy and gory scenes to the mix. It’s also critical of society and emancipated. And for everyone who thinks this sounds like way too many topics and issues packed into just one small book: Don’t worry, despite all that it still works more than just well!
”It’s the lesson young girls everywhere were taught their entire lives – don’t be seduced by the men you meet, protect your virtue – until, of course, their entire lives depended on seduction by the right man. It was an impossible situation, a trick of society as a whole: force women to live at the mercy of whichever man wants them but shame them for anything they might do to get a man to want them. Passivity was the ultimate virtue.”
I really loved Hazel as a character and it was so refreshing to see her fight all the stereotypes society wanted to push on her. I mean we have that 16 year old Lady that’s supposed to marry her cousin – the future Viscount Almont – and she completely refuses to give up the life she has built to become just another wife at the side of a powerful man. She wants to be powerful herself, she wants to help people and become a surgeon and despite being a young lady she doesn’t even hesitate to befriend a resurrection man and even accompanies him to dig up a corpse in order to study it. It were things like this, which caused me to root for her so much! Hazel had no qualms to get her hands dirty, no matter if it was with soil or entrails. This girl was amazing and she had her heart at the right place!
”Oi,” Thrupp barked at Burgess. “You’re lucky you have this pretty boy to protect you. You fancy yourself some sort of gentleman with those lined coats, Hazleton?”
“Yeah,” Hazel responded with the most masculine swagger she could manage. “I do. And the ladies seem to like it just fine.” Burgess laughed at that, a full throaty laugh, and Thrupp retreated with an eye roll.
Also it was extremely awesome she masqueraded as a boy named George Hazelton just to be able to attend anatomy lectures. We dig a girl that’s got her priorities straight and doesn’t let anyone hold her back from pursuing a career as a surgeon. And speaking of the anatomy lessons. The author really didn’t abstain from writing very detailed descriptions so if you’re one of the faint-hearted you better don’t pick up this book. Just a fair warning. Plus if we’re already at it: If you’re allergic to outdated misogynistic bullshit – like I am - you might end up hating a certain Dr. Straine and Hazel’s fiancé as well. Dr. Beecham, well he’s an entirely different story, but at least he had no objections to Hazel becoming a surgeon. The boy you’ll definitely fall in love with is Jack Currer, though!
”It was easy to die in Edinburgh, but Jack had made it seventeen years because he knew how to survive."
Oh boy, how I loved Jack! He was such a kind and gentle soul and he deserved the world! I absolutely adored this boy and even though he earned his money by being a resurrection man I could totally understand where he was coming from. Times back then were hard and his job at the Le Grand Leon theatre just didn’t earn him enough money to live from it. Always hungry, no possessions aside of the clothes he wore, no friends and family to watch out for him, Jack had nothing but still managed to survive. Still, despite his own situation, he still cared about others and tried to help them as best as he could and that made him one of the most precious souls ever. Hazel and he might have come from very different backgrounds but they had that in common, they cared about others and this was exactly what made them work so well. =)
”I don’t find myself cavorting with high society ladies like yourself all too often, so it doesn’t strike me as an introduction one needs to make.”
“We’ve already met. Twice,” Hazel reasoned.
“Aye, but is it really meeting if I haven’t given ye a name?” he said, and this time he winked for real.
Haha! Jack could be quite cheeky sometimes and I really liked that about him. Anyway! Those two meet and kinda start some sort of business together and even though the story is slow at some parts and there doesn’t happen a lot, the moments when things actually DO happen were written very well and had me glued to the pages. I was such a sucker for all the little moments between Jack and Hazel and I really wanted them to be together and to have a future with each other in their lives. Their chemistry was amazing and I was a huge fan of their gender swapped moments and scenes. It was an interesting dynamic because even though Jack is a boy, he’s still poor and doesn’t have all the chances and resources Hazel does.
”There ain't going to be any more bodies." He looked away and showed a heavy bruise across his left cheek. Before she could think better of it, Hazel strode forward and lifted Jack's face in her hands. Jack’s hair was particularly lank and dull, and his eyes were flat.
See what I mean!? Every reader knows plenty of scenes like that, but it’s usually the man that lifts the girl’s face and not the other way around. No, seriously! I want more moments like this one in my books! Vulnerable and honest men should appear in more books! Period! ;-) As for how the book ended and how everything was resolved: I won’t spoil anything but I will say that I saw some of the revelations come from miles away! It didn’t take a lot of brain capacity to figure things out, but I’m not gonna lie: The overall ending threw me and I’m still not over it. Urgh! My heart! <3
”My heart is yours, Hazel Sinnett,” Jack said. “Forever. Beating or still.”
“Beating or still,” she said.
Conclusion:
“Anatomy: A Love Story” turned out to be completely different than I thought it would be. I expected a romance and was positively surprised to find out that this book tackled so many other topics as well. I still have a hard time to describe this story because it’s so unique and defies being put into just one genre so all I’ll say is: If you like historical fiction books that think outside of the box and feature strong female characters that defy society’s rules you’ll enjoy this book. And if you like a little mystery, some gory details and two characters that try to save innocent people while inadvertently falling in love – Well, then you’ll most definitely end up loving this book! ;-)
________________________________
NO, what was that ending?! O_o
Someone please tell me there’s another book and that I’ll get answers! >_<
Also this was something different and I really enjoyed reading “Anatomy: A Love Story”.
Hazel and Jack have my heart! <333 I really dislike damn Bernard, though. Can we please not have him in the next book (if there is one.)
Full RTC soon! I need to look up if there’s a second instalment first. XD
_________________________________
I’m so intrigued by this book because I heard so many people rave about it. At first, I thought this would be a romance but as it seems the plot of “Anatomy: A Love Story” is completely different than I thought it would be.
I mean we have Edinburgh in 1817, a woman who wants to be a surgeon and a resurrection man who makes a living from digging up graves and they both try to solve a mystery together?!
As I said: I am intrigued. XD
I can’t wait to dive into this! This is going to be good! =)
Find me on:
My Blog
January 28, 2023
I had such a great time reading this!! 🤩🤩 It totally gave me the Gothic vibes that I wanted and while I did have some issues, I did really enjoy this overall!! 🥰🥰
“It was an impossible situation, a trick of society as a whole: force women to live at the mercy of whichever man wants them but shame them for anything they might do to get a man to want them.”
Anatomy: A Love Story follows Hazel Sinnett, a girl born into a wealthy family in 1817 Edinburgh. Hazel desperately wants to become a surgeon, but this is completely out of the norm for women at that time and results in Hazel being thrown out of Dr. Beecham's lectures. However, she's offered one chance to persue her ambitions and for her to succeed, she'll need corpses to study. Lucky that she's just met Jack Currer, who digs them up for a living...
“What were miracles, but science that man didn’t yet understand? And didn’t that make it all the more miraculous that the secrets of the universe were out there, codes one might decipher if smart enough, tenacious enough?”
This book intrigued me from the first time that I saw that gorgeous cover and I was happy to finally get my hands on it!! It seemed very Stalking Jack the Ripper-esque and I loved the concept. Even tho I didn't absolutely love it, I still had a very fun time reading it!! 💗
Starting with the characters. Our main characters are Hazel and Jack, with a few side characters (tho not many). I did really like the characters! Hazel was a great protagonist- I loved her determination to become a surgeon despite it not typically being a woman's job, and I was rooting for her the whole time 🥰🥰 Jack was also a good character- he appears very much like a 'bad boy', but he has a very soft heart and was really sweet 😍😍 He honestly felt a lot like a cinnamon roll, and I really liked him. A very solid cast of characters! 🤗🤗
Next, the writing. I was also a big fan of Dana Schwartz's writing style- it had this really cool 'old-timey' feel without being boring or hard to read. The writing was also super atmospheric and I loved the Gothic vibes. It was very fitting for the story 💕💕
The plot. Hmmm. Here's where I felt a bit iffy. Although I liked the plot enough overall, I did have a few minor problems with it. My main problem was that this book was very much pitched as a 'Gothic ROMANCE', especially with the title including 'A Love Story' and so I was expecting it to be mainly centered around the romance with a side plot of Hazel trying to become a surgeon. However, the romance often actually started around 50% and even then it developed pretty quickly- in fact, it wouldn't be a stretch to call it instalove 😬😬 My expectations in terms of the amount of romance were definitely not met. Also, wish this book was a little longer bc with a little more development in some things it could've been just that tad bit better! *sigh* 😒😒
However, it wasn't too bad overall and it did manage to keep me interested. Despite my complaints about the romance being too a bit too underdeveloped, it was still very cute and I was a big fan of Jack and Hazel as a couple! ❤ Some of the quotes were adorable 🥺🥺 So, yeah, the plot was decent in the end and the romance very cute, if a bit underdeveloped.
“Someone should tell you you're beautiful every time the sun comes up. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Wednesdays. And at teatime. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Christmas Day and Christmas Eve and the evening before Christmas Eve, and on Easter. He should tell you on Guy Fawkes Night and on New Year's, and on the eighth of August, just because.” ~ He's so sweet 🥺🥺
��My heart is yours, Hazel Sinnett," Jack said. "Forever. Beating or still.”
Overall, a very entertaining read! 🥰🥰 Would definitely recommend if you want:
✔ Gothic vibes
✔ Feminism!
✔ Cute romance subplot
✔ Good characters and writing
I would definitely be interested in picking up the sequel! ❤
~ Strong 3.5 stars
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This was a really enjoyable story!! 🤩🤩 I had a great time with it 🥰🥰
RTC!
“It was an impossible situation, a trick of society as a whole: force women to live at the mercy of whichever man wants them but shame them for anything they might do to get a man to want them.”
Anatomy: A Love Story follows Hazel Sinnett, a girl born into a wealthy family in 1817 Edinburgh. Hazel desperately wants to become a surgeon, but this is completely out of the norm for women at that time and results in Hazel being thrown out of Dr. Beecham's lectures. However, she's offered one chance to persue her ambitions and for her to succeed, she'll need corpses to study. Lucky that she's just met Jack Currer, who digs them up for a living...
“What were miracles, but science that man didn’t yet understand? And didn’t that make it all the more miraculous that the secrets of the universe were out there, codes one might decipher if smart enough, tenacious enough?”
This book intrigued me from the first time that I saw that gorgeous cover and I was happy to finally get my hands on it!! It seemed very Stalking Jack the Ripper-esque and I loved the concept. Even tho I didn't absolutely love it, I still had a very fun time reading it!! 💗
Starting with the characters. Our main characters are Hazel and Jack, with a few side characters (tho not many). I did really like the characters! Hazel was a great protagonist- I loved her determination to become a surgeon despite it not typically being a woman's job, and I was rooting for her the whole time 🥰🥰 Jack was also a good character- he appears very much like a 'bad boy', but he has a very soft heart and was really sweet 😍😍 He honestly felt a lot like a cinnamon roll, and I really liked him. A very solid cast of characters! 🤗🤗
Next, the writing. I was also a big fan of Dana Schwartz's writing style- it had this really cool 'old-timey' feel without being boring or hard to read. The writing was also super atmospheric and I loved the Gothic vibes. It was very fitting for the story 💕💕
The plot. Hmmm. Here's where I felt a bit iffy. Although I liked the plot enough overall, I did have a few minor problems with it. My main problem was that this book was very much pitched as a 'Gothic ROMANCE', especially with the title including 'A Love Story' and so I was expecting it to be mainly centered around the romance with a side plot of Hazel trying to become a surgeon. However, the romance often actually started around 50% and even then it developed pretty quickly- in fact, it wouldn't be a stretch to call it instalove 😬😬 My expectations in terms of the amount of romance were definitely not met. Also, wish this book was a little longer bc with a little more development in some things it could've been just that tad bit better! *sigh* 😒😒
However, it wasn't too bad overall and it did manage to keep me interested. Despite my complaints about the romance being too a bit too underdeveloped, it was still very cute and I was a big fan of Jack and Hazel as a couple! ❤ Some of the quotes were adorable 🥺🥺 So, yeah, the plot was decent in the end and the romance very cute, if a bit underdeveloped.
“Someone should tell you you're beautiful every time the sun comes up. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Wednesdays. And at teatime. Someone should tell you you're beautiful on Christmas Day and Christmas Eve and the evening before Christmas Eve, and on Easter. He should tell you on Guy Fawkes Night and on New Year's, and on the eighth of August, just because.” ~ He's so sweet 🥺🥺
��My heart is yours, Hazel Sinnett," Jack said. "Forever. Beating or still.”
Overall, a very entertaining read! 🥰🥰 Would definitely recommend if you want:
✔ Gothic vibes
✔ Feminism!
✔ Cute romance subplot
✔ Good characters and writing
I would definitely be interested in picking up the sequel! ❤
~ Strong 3.5 stars
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This was a really enjoyable story!! 🤩🤩 I had a great time with it 🥰🥰
RTC!
March 6, 2022
Another ya down the drain - BECAUSE I DIDN’T LIKE IT BUT YOU MIGHT!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
July 8, 2023
3.5⭐️ 'yeah, my boyfriend's pretty cool but he's not as cool as me' energy >>
Read
December 18, 2021Source of book: NetGalley (thank you!)
Relevant disclaimers: None
Please note: This review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author.
This is intriguingly odd. As we have comprehensively established I’m not a big YA-reader so I’m often find myself trying to adjust for genre because, and this could say more about the YA books I happen to read than whatever is happening with the young people, YA is … like out there. Contrary to nearly every YA I’ve read in recent times, the romantic lead of Anatomy: A Love Story is NOT a mass murderer. He just exhumes the bodies of the recently deceased to sell them.
Although to be fair, that’s due to economic necessity. And he’s otherwise a pretty nice guy who spends most of the book being supportive to the heroine. In some ways, I’m even a little envious. I mean, if you write historical romance aimed at adults the hero literally has to be a duke.
In any case, this is story of Hazel Sinnett, a gently born young lady who wants to be a surgeon. I mean, God knows why because surgery in the early 1800s was bloody (no pun intended) awful. In any case, that’s her ambition and she’s determined to achieve it, sneaking into anatomy presentations and disguising herself as a boy to attend classes—a ruse that ultimately goes wrong and gets her banned. At least until the famous surgeon, Dr Beecham, offers her an opportunity: if she can successfully pass the surgeon’s exam without formal teaching, he’ll allow her to study and allow other women to study too. Of course, to pass the exam, Hazel will need bodies to, um, practice on? Enter Jack.
And, y’know what they say, the only thing more romantic than a man who will help you bury bodies is a man who’ll help you dig ‘em up in the first place.
That summary barely scrapes the surface of what’s going on in this book. Alongside Hazel’s wager with Dr Beecham, there’s her romance arc with Jack, there’s her engagement to a Viscount, and the fact her parents conveniently leave she turns her family home into a makeshift hospital. There’s also a mysterious fever sweeping the city and mysterious disappearances amongst the lower classes, whereas the upper classes seem to be undergoing ever more outlandishly successful surgeries. It’s kind of like a Regency Repo!The Genetic Opera. Except less utterly bobbins.
With so much happening, it’s not surprising certain elements of the story are not as well developed as I might have hoped for. Jack, for instance, is definitely a swell guy but he has no personality except “is poor, steals bodies, supportive of Hazel.” And maybe that’s all he needs to be but it did make their romance feel a little bit flat to me. I liked Hazel but she, too, is mainly defined by her ambition which … I mean? That’s fine. She has a few moments of doubt when someone in a position of authority actively yells at her but mostly she’s unwavering resolute—making her admirable, more than I think she’s necessarily relatable. Again, I’m not saying this a problem. There shouldn’t be rules for what a heroine needs to be like and I kind of found her lack of vulnerability, plus her morbid fascination with the interiority of bodies, refreshing. And for those who relish a hefty dose of competence porn you certainly can’t go wrong with Hazel.
Oh my God. She’s basically Anya Taylor-Joy from The Queen’s Gambit. Except, instead of playing chess, she likes cutting up dead people.
Speaking of dead people, there’s also the oddest moment I think I’ve ever read in a romantic subplot where Hazel and Jack go to steal a body for her, exhume a disgustingly mutilated corpse with, like, maggots in his toes, are then nearly caught so … they hide in the grave, and once the danger has passed start making out. Like, they make out so long that a priest WAKES THEM UP THE NEXT MORNING.
And they are in a grave. Amongst the worms. With a hideously mutilated body just lying on the grass a few feet away. I know danger boners are a thing in romance but … ye Gods. Kids today. Or rather kids in the 1800s. Fair play to both of them, I guess?
The hideously mutilated corpse, by the way, is another of the waysided plot elements. In the sense its significance becomes apparent later, but neither Jack nor Hazel seem remotely interested in it when they actually encounter it. Again, I realise my values and priorities are way out of whack with the book in general, given my personal discomfort with in-grave sexytimes, but neither one of them at any point remarks, “hey, what was the deal with that hideously mutilated corpse we left just lying in the middle of that graveyard?”
I also felt that, while the plot was twisty and exciting, especially in the final third, that there ends up being a bit of a bait and switch. I don’t want to pick over too much because of spoilers, but essentially the thing we’re told to be interested in at the beginning of the book does not remotely get resolved by the end. Something else, arguably more important and dramatic, is resolved instead but I still found myself a bit frustrated that I’d been asked to care about something that became ultimately irrelevant.
In general, though, there’s lots to appreciate here: I loved the Edinburgh setting, the enthusiastically gross focus on surgery and anatomy, the faintly gothic undertones, the breakneck plotting, and the on-going examination of intersectional privilege. Recommended to anyone who fancies an unusual historical-set YA where the hero isn’t an absolute psychopath for once.
PS – Also, sorry to be this dick because I sincerely try to be open-minded about historical “accuracy” not least because insistence of particular ideas of what historical accuracy entails is often a way for the genre to police stories by marginalised authors. Basically, I’m cool with a modern-flavour to dialogue or with books set in the past having modern values (we are, after all, modern readers) and I’m even cool with elements of the setting being adjusted for thematic resonance or plot necessity (I mean, Reputation is full of well-bred Regency ladies sneaking away from their chaperones to talk loudly about sex while drinking wine and smokes opiates). But I just have to say: there are multiple references to large, unwieldy crinolines in this book and the book is set in 1817. And in 1817 the silhouette was basically a triangle. Extremely high bosom and consequently high waist, long straight gown, heavily embroidered hem. And maybe I’m being ungenerous here, but this didn’t feel like a deliberate adjustment to period norms for a specific narrative reason. It felt … uh. Unnecessary.
Relevant disclaimers: None
Please note: This review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author.
This is intriguingly odd. As we have comprehensively established I’m not a big YA-reader so I’m often find myself trying to adjust for genre because, and this could say more about the YA books I happen to read than whatever is happening with the young people, YA is … like out there. Contrary to nearly every YA I’ve read in recent times, the romantic lead of Anatomy: A Love Story is NOT a mass murderer. He just exhumes the bodies of the recently deceased to sell them.
Although to be fair, that’s due to economic necessity. And he’s otherwise a pretty nice guy who spends most of the book being supportive to the heroine. In some ways, I’m even a little envious. I mean, if you write historical romance aimed at adults the hero literally has to be a duke.
In any case, this is story of Hazel Sinnett, a gently born young lady who wants to be a surgeon. I mean, God knows why because surgery in the early 1800s was bloody (no pun intended) awful. In any case, that’s her ambition and she’s determined to achieve it, sneaking into anatomy presentations and disguising herself as a boy to attend classes—a ruse that ultimately goes wrong and gets her banned. At least until the famous surgeon, Dr Beecham, offers her an opportunity: if she can successfully pass the surgeon’s exam without formal teaching, he’ll allow her to study and allow other women to study too. Of course, to pass the exam, Hazel will need bodies to, um, practice on? Enter Jack.
And, y’know what they say, the only thing more romantic than a man who will help you bury bodies is a man who’ll help you dig ‘em up in the first place.
That summary barely scrapes the surface of what’s going on in this book. Alongside Hazel’s wager with Dr Beecham, there’s her romance arc with Jack, there’s her engagement to a Viscount, and the fact her parents conveniently leave she turns her family home into a makeshift hospital. There’s also a mysterious fever sweeping the city and mysterious disappearances amongst the lower classes, whereas the upper classes seem to be undergoing ever more outlandishly successful surgeries. It’s kind of like a Regency Repo!The Genetic Opera. Except less utterly bobbins.
With so much happening, it’s not surprising certain elements of the story are not as well developed as I might have hoped for. Jack, for instance, is definitely a swell guy but he has no personality except “is poor, steals bodies, supportive of Hazel.” And maybe that’s all he needs to be but it did make their romance feel a little bit flat to me. I liked Hazel but she, too, is mainly defined by her ambition which … I mean? That’s fine. She has a few moments of doubt when someone in a position of authority actively yells at her but mostly she’s unwavering resolute—making her admirable, more than I think she’s necessarily relatable. Again, I’m not saying this a problem. There shouldn’t be rules for what a heroine needs to be like and I kind of found her lack of vulnerability, plus her morbid fascination with the interiority of bodies, refreshing. And for those who relish a hefty dose of competence porn you certainly can’t go wrong with Hazel.
Oh my God. She’s basically Anya Taylor-Joy from The Queen’s Gambit. Except, instead of playing chess, she likes cutting up dead people.
Speaking of dead people, there’s also the oddest moment I think I’ve ever read in a romantic subplot where Hazel and Jack go to steal a body for her, exhume a disgustingly mutilated corpse with, like, maggots in his toes, are then nearly caught so … they hide in the grave, and once the danger has passed start making out. Like, they make out so long that a priest WAKES THEM UP THE NEXT MORNING.
And they are in a grave. Amongst the worms. With a hideously mutilated body just lying on the grass a few feet away. I know danger boners are a thing in romance but … ye Gods. Kids today. Or rather kids in the 1800s. Fair play to both of them, I guess?
The hideously mutilated corpse, by the way, is another of the waysided plot elements. In the sense its significance becomes apparent later, but neither Jack nor Hazel seem remotely interested in it when they actually encounter it. Again, I realise my values and priorities are way out of whack with the book in general, given my personal discomfort with in-grave sexytimes, but neither one of them at any point remarks, “hey, what was the deal with that hideously mutilated corpse we left just lying in the middle of that graveyard?”
I also felt that, while the plot was twisty and exciting, especially in the final third, that there ends up being a bit of a bait and switch. I don’t want to pick over too much because of spoilers, but essentially the thing we’re told to be interested in at the beginning of the book does not remotely get resolved by the end. Something else, arguably more important and dramatic, is resolved instead but I still found myself a bit frustrated that I’d been asked to care about something that became ultimately irrelevant.
In general, though, there’s lots to appreciate here: I loved the Edinburgh setting, the enthusiastically gross focus on surgery and anatomy, the faintly gothic undertones, the breakneck plotting, and the on-going examination of intersectional privilege. Recommended to anyone who fancies an unusual historical-set YA where the hero isn’t an absolute psychopath for once.
PS – Also, sorry to be this dick because I sincerely try to be open-minded about historical “accuracy” not least because insistence of particular ideas of what historical accuracy entails is often a way for the genre to police stories by marginalised authors. Basically, I’m cool with a modern-flavour to dialogue or with books set in the past having modern values (we are, after all, modern readers) and I’m even cool with elements of the setting being adjusted for thematic resonance or plot necessity (I mean, Reputation is full of well-bred Regency ladies sneaking away from their chaperones to talk loudly about sex while drinking wine and smokes opiates). But I just have to say: there are multiple references to large, unwieldy crinolines in this book and the book is set in 1817. And in 1817 the silhouette was basically a triangle. Extremely high bosom and consequently high waist, long straight gown, heavily embroidered hem. And maybe I’m being ungenerous here, but this didn’t feel like a deliberate adjustment to period norms for a specific narrative reason. It felt … uh. Unnecessary.
March 1, 2022
Honestly, I don’t think this book was a good match for me, personally. ☹️ It’s a bit too gothic and dark and I’m a baby with blood and cuts and dead bodies. 🤮 But I appreciate the writing of time period, scene descriptions, characters etc. So, I think this one will have reviews all over the place. 😬
March 23, 2022
My thanks to Dana Schwartz, St. Martin's Press and Netgalley. It's nearly a given with me that if a book is written well, and in this time period, then I'm probably going to love it! What made this one extra special though were the main characters. My love was strong and true for a woman who wants to break out of the mold, and become a Doctor/Surgeon. A man, a body snatcher, who has no other option. I was intrigued by the odd nature of other goings on. Which, by the way were really never explained. But, I could also see how this could be continued into another book. Eh, we'll see? I'll confess that I'd be happy to read more. These characters were compelling.
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March 30, 2023OMG IT'S FREE ON KU
OBSESSED WITH THAT COVER THO
OBSESSED WITH THAT COVER THO
June 12, 2022
This is a sweet, young adult romance set in Edinburgh in the early 1800s. A young woman wants to become a surgeon, but society and her family are not keen on it. Women physicians are few and far between and she wants to be a surgeon which was considered a very low skill set. She meets a young man, a grave robber, who sells corpses to the anatomy society where she wishes to study. There are sparks. They become unlikely friends who can help each other. Unlikely, because of their different positions in society.
I enjoyed this, although I thought the supernatural aspect was an odd choice for the story, because the rest of the story was rather gritty and grounded in reality. The author sets the scene well for the grave robbing operation. There was one anachronism that was hard to overlook, the young lady rolls her eyes in disgust a couple of times at the young man. Eye rolling was not used in order to show annoyance in this era. It was a sign of lust. It wasn't until modern times (around the 1980s) that eye rolling became synonymous with stupidity.
I enjoyed this, although I thought the supernatural aspect was an odd choice for the story, because the rest of the story was rather gritty and grounded in reality. The author sets the scene well for the grave robbing operation. There was one anachronism that was hard to overlook, the young lady rolls her eyes in disgust a couple of times at the young man. Eye rolling was not used in order to show annoyance in this era. It was a sign of lust. It wasn't until modern times (around the 1980s) that eye rolling became synonymous with stupidity.
October 5, 2022
⭐⭐⭐⭐½
THEMES AND VIBES:
• dark, gruesome, atmospheric, moody
• Edinburgh at the beginning of the 19th century
• a love story, not so much a romance
• a young lady fighting the norms to become a surgeon
• dark academia
• a dash of alchemy
Lots of mixed reviews, but I loved it! It's a new favorite!
You can check out all my thoughts on my book blog NovelOnMyMind.
THEMES AND VIBES:
• dark, gruesome, atmospheric, moody
• Edinburgh at the beginning of the 19th century
• a love story, not so much a romance
• a young lady fighting the norms to become a surgeon
• dark academia
• a dash of alchemy
Lots of mixed reviews, but I loved it! It's a new favorite!
You can check out all my thoughts on my book blog NovelOnMyMind.
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February 1, 2025🫀| ‧꒰ა preview! ໒꒱ ‧
the way this is the perfect way to start my feburary 🤭 i cant wait! tbh ive been a bit hesitant with picking this up, but it looks so intriguing !! and i heard, dark academia, wonderful love story, a murder mystery, and more?? i hope this lives up to the hype!! and happy feburary everyone, i hope ya'll are doing well and i hope we find some spectacular reads, hows is everyone!! mwah ily guys 💗💗
the way this is the perfect way to start my feburary 🤭 i cant wait! tbh ive been a bit hesitant with picking this up, but it looks so intriguing !! and i heard, dark academia, wonderful love story, a murder mystery, and more?? i hope this lives up to the hype!! and happy feburary everyone, i hope ya'll are doing well and i hope we find some spectacular reads, hows is everyone!! mwah ily guys 💗💗
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