The Lost Apothecary, Penner - B-

    This novel is set in London and features an American woman, Caroline, visiting in the present, and two Londoners, Nella and Eliza, in 1791. Nella was an apothecary specializing in mixing poisons for utilization by women wronged by men. Eliza was the 12-year old maid of one of her customers. In perhaps one of the most unbelievable leaps of imagination ever written, Caroline finds Nella's shop behind a wall down an alley in the middle of the metropolis, and unearths Nella's secrets. A bit too much fantasy for me.