Book Review: The Apothecary by Maile Meloy

The Apothecary by Maile Meloy

Published by Putnam Juvenile Oct 4, 2011

Middle Grade/Young Adult

Source: Publisher

 It's 1952 and the Scott family has just moved from Los Angeles to London. Here, fourteen-year-old Janie meets a mysterious apothecary and his son, Benjamin Burrows - a fascinating boy who's not afraid to stand up to authority and dreams of becoming a spy. When Benjamin's father is kidnapped, Janie and Benjamin must uncover the secrets of the apothecary's sacred book, the Pharmacopoeia, in order to find him, all while keeping it out of the hands of their enemies - Russian spies in possession of nuclear weapons. Discovering and testing potions they never believed could exist, Janie and Benjamin embark on a dangerous race to save the apothecary and prevent impending disaster.Together with Ian Schoenherr's breathtaking illustrations, this is a truly stunning package from cover to cover.

I went into this book thinking it sounded good but I wasn't sure what to expect.  I have to say that it was quite good, I really enjoyed the story and never had a hard time reading and never wanted to set it down because I was bored.  But I do feel that it lacked something.   And it's hard to say what it is that was lacking,  just oomph, I guess.

Some things I really liked were the magical aspects of it.  The magic comes from potions and I thought it was fascinating.  I mean, imagine taking a potion and becoming a bird.  Imagine what you could do!   I also liked learning more about the era.  It's not about the cold war, but it certainly seeps into the book a lot.  I thought it was all interesting.  However, some younger readers may have a harder time with it and may lose interest in that aspect of the story.  

I liked the characters okay, but once again I sort of felt like they lacked oomph.  But I certainly didn't dislike them.  One character I actually did love and he was just a side character.  His name is Pip and if he had been present more he could have taken over.  He did not lack oomph!  He had the perfect amount and really, he was the character with the strongest personality.  I just loved him!

I think this book had potential to be amazing, but it ended up just being good.  It wasn't a waste of my time and I'll never regret using my precious time reading it, and I'll even recommend it to those who think it sounds interesting.  I just kind of wish there was just a bit more.

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Disclosure: I received an advance edition of this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review.  I was not paid and all opinions expressed are my own.