Review: The Physick Book Of Deliverance Dane

The Physick Book Of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I listened to the audiobook of this after reading The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs. After fininishing Temperance Hobbs I discovered that there was another book. While you don't need to read this one first, they both stand on their own, I recommend reading this one first as it gives a great back story on now Connie and Sam meet and tells Deliverance's story which is something I was missing in the other book. Little did I know she had an entire book devoted to her back story.

This is a wonderful nod to the Salem Witch trials and the craze that occurred in the 1690's. Howe does a wonderful job blending the historical information with fiction in this book. I love how she too real accounts and people and blended them in with her tale. It is very well done.

This follows Connie Goodwin, a promising history graduate student at Harvard. Her advisor is keen on her finding a primary source for the paper she is going to write. Connie is called upon by her mother, a free spirit living in Arizona, to sell her grandmother's very old, very odd house. What Connie uncovers while she is cleaning up the house for sale is the old family bible and a key with a name attached to it. This discovery leads her on a literal witch hunt to find a women who she believes is not only her ancestor but was also persecuted as a witch. She soon finds that Deliverance Dane was a healer and known to have a physick book. This could be Connie's primary source for her research. Unfortunately strange things start to happen as Connie tries to find the book. Connie is forced to accept that her family may have gifts that she was unaware of or unwilling to see in order to save the man she's come to care about.

I really enjoyed this and I'm glad I went back to read this after reading the 2nd book. I highly recommend the series if you like magical realism, witch lore, and historical fiction.


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Review: The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs by Katherine Howe

The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs by Katherine Howe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was provided an advanced copy of this book via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.  This was released on June 24, 2019.

I really enjoyed this book. It has a bit of historical fiction, a bit of magic, and some interesting family dynamics. I didn’t realize this was the 2nd book in a series, having said that this book can be read as a standalone. It 100% stands on its own. Knowing that there is another book about Deliverance Dane I want to go read that now after reading this. I certainly didn’t need to read The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane to follow along with this but I want to know more about this family of magical ladies.

This book follows Connie Goodwin as she navigates her busy life as a Professor at Northeastern trying to get tenure, a mentor to graduate students and doctoral candidates, writing a book, a friend, a daughter, and a romantic partner to the wonderful Sam. Connie is an expert in magic in the Colonial age of America, but what no one knows is that Connie is the descendent of a long line of women who through the help of tinctures and “recipes” were able to wield power of their own. Connie learns through her mother, Grace that Sam’s life is in danger as none of the men in the family have ever lived. Connie is determined to use her family’s recipe book to solve the age old mystery and save her beloved. In addition to Connie’s perspective, we alternate with the many women who came before her and wielded the magic Connie is trying to uncover. As we learn their stories, we come to meet Temperance Hobbs and come to understand why she was so important.

This book is so well researched. I love a good story with magic and Howe did an amazing job weaving in the history of the different time periods into the story. I also loved getting to know about the life of the doctorate candidate and a college professor. I really liked the writing style and character development in this book. I really loved the characters and their interactions. We have some great female friendships, a good healthy romance, a good mother daughter relationship. None of these relationships are perfect, but they are all written realistically. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author in the future.


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