Review : The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane
The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
Pages : 365
Genre : Fiction, Historical Fiction, Sorcery
My Rating : 
From the back of the book :
Harvard graduate student Connie Goodwin needs to spend her summer doing research for her doctoral dissertation. But when her mother asks her to handle the sale of Connie’s grandmother’s abandoned home near Salem, she can’t refuse. As she is drawn deeper into the mysteries of the family house, Connie discovers an ancient key within a seventeenth-century Bible. The key contains a yellowing fragment of parchment with a name written upon it: Deliverance Dane. This discovery launches Connie on a quest–to find out who this woman was and to unearth a rare artifact of singular power: a physick book, its pages a secret repository for lost knowledge.
As the pieces of Deliverance’s harrowing story begin to fall into place, Connie is haunted by visions of the long-ago witch trials, and she begins to fear that she is more tied to Salem’s dark past then she could have ever imagined.
Although a little slow on the action, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane was a nicely written and entertaining book. Alternating between 1692 and 1991, the book mostly took place in the recent century while offering an interesting perspective on magic and “witches”.
I want to start with the little things that I liked less ; one of them is that the main character, Connie, seemed sometimes a little slow on understanding what was going on. A few things seemed obvious to me, so it felt a little painful to see her go around blind!
Another thing that irritated me : the (over)use of dialect, especially in the past. Of course, it’s a very personal opinion, which takes nothing away from the author’s talent; but it felt for me it was overtaking the characters conversations, when the narration is done in such a present, beautiful language. I usually enjoy a bit of dialect since it helps me figure out when and where we are, but this was a little too much for my taste!
Everything wasn’t bad of course and despite a few flaws, I really enjoyed reading this one. Yes, the pace was slow, but for me it was a “good” slow, a book that you can taste little bite by little bite instead of rushing through. I really liked Connie’s character; she felt real, like someone I could meet and be friends with. I enjoyed the other characters too, but I found Connie to be the most interesting (good thing too, since after all, this story is about her!)
What really made this book good though, was Howe’s writing. I just loved it! It’s hard to pinpoint what exactly made it work so well for me. I simply loved her long but not overdone descriptions, the pace of the story and how it evolves through the book.
In the end, I really liked it and I would definitely read more from the author. If you think this book might be for you or are simply curious, you should definitely stop by the book’s website by clicking here. It’s beautiful and there’s some information on the book and Salem.
Fab review.
Sounds like a worthwhile read. I agree that you only need a hint of dialogue to get the flavor, and too much is usually way too much. I started reading this b/c I had a copy of the ARC but it was mysteriously missing 5o pages toward the beginning. I will have to pick it up again at some point.
Sometimes odd dialogue can be irritating if it takes away from the flow of the story. I still want to read this one, though.
Yes, the dialogue…aargh!! I was a bit disappointed in this one, but I think it’s because I kept comparing it to The Heretic’s Daughter and The Lace Reader.
I don’t normally like dialect, but I honestly don’t remember how I felt about it in this book though! Great balanced review. =)
Great review! I’ve still got this one on my to be read shelf. I’d heard a few people mention the dialect was off-putting but I think the story will still be worth a shot.
There are times that it is wonderful to savor a book bit by bit instead of devouring it. I have had my eye on this book – great review!
I just finished this book last week. I didn’t like it all that much. For someone working on their PhD dissertation, Connie sure was a slow one 🙂 I wanted to shake her sometimes.