The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe<br/><br/> My rating: 3 of 5 stars I debated reading this, but when I saw that Matthew Pearl spoke highly of it on the jacket cover, I decided to pick it up.If there were half stars, it'd get a 3.5 and I'd have gone with four if I liked the ending better. It was ok, but didn't wow me.The story is about nearly modern day (story set in 1991) Connie Goodwin, who is tasked by mother Grace to clean out the home of her grandmother, which has been vacant for nearly 20 years. Connie is a doctoral candidate at Harvard and the home is in Marblehead, very near Salem, where the infamous witch trials were held.Connie can barely find the home as it is over-grown with vegetation. She finds exotic vegetation in what was once a garden, and early on finds a key in a bible with a name on a piece of paper "Deliverance Dane", which sets her on a mission to learn who this woman was.Connie believes Dane was 'convicted' in the witch trials and more importantly believes she had a 'physick book' or recipe book of potions for healing. Connie's interest is heightened in that if she finds the book it will be the first original source of its kind and would be the basis of her doctoral studies.Connie's hunt for the book is assisted by Sam, a steeplejacker she met in Marblehead.The story bounces from Connie's quest to the time of Deliverance Dane. As Connie gets closer to the book, odd occurrences take place and Connie clearly begins to believe in magic.All-in-all, it was a good read, but not great. It could have had more depth and the ending left me a bit disappointed - I expected more as there was great build up. View all my reviews >>

Posted via email from Ross Nunamaker