This reminds me a lot of The Girl In His Shadow, in a good way. Both feature women in historical times unable to practice medicine the way they want due to patriarchal constraints, both also have sweet little love stories that enhance the overall novel without overpowering it or getting in the way, and lastly, both are fairly realistic in the time, setting, and portrayal of the caste system to keep the poor poorer and the rich richer. And both are excellent reads.

In Anatomy, our leading lady has a strong narrative voice, our main love interest is cute and a bit flippant, think Flynn Ryder from Tangled. The supporting characters left a bit to be desired. They are perhaps too archetypical and lack real development; but I also didn’t need 100 more pages of detail so I can accept that they were sacrificed to give more vibrancy to our leading two and the villains of the story.

At its crux, Anatomy: A Love Story is about corruption and power. Holding to task the idea that power corrupts absolutely. Our ‘in control’ men are able to change narratives to their own liking (true or not), select who lives and dies under what conditions, and spin fear into their society to retain control (plus cover up many ill deeds). There are certainly good people, including our leading lady and her love interest; however, little can be done when the truth falls on deaf ears.

Overall Anatomy: A Love Story is a cute love story, with a horrific villain, and reminds us of all the progress made to date; yet also inspires us to keep fighting for equality, fairness, and the truth. As my own province (state) is discussing privatizing our hospitals (in Canada) it disgusts me to think we would put the lives of our citizens into the hands of people whose entire function is to make money. And yet, here is a story of that exact same goal being laid out before us 200+ years sooner than now. I only wish we could learn and somehow reclaim the system back from those with power who think only for themselves. Hopefully this story reminds folks to be wary of what our elected officials do when it comes to health care; and emphasizes that it should be equally doled out to everyone, regardless of wealth, family lineage, or societal status.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

Anatomy: A Love Story was such a fun and quirky book! The concept is interesting and unique and the characters are fantastic. I really enjoyed that this was a love story, a story of female empowerment, and also kept a wonderful gothic flair. While this is not a super complex story, it is engaging, quick, and didn't ever lose my interest. I can't wait to find out what happens next in the story - I think there is a lot of room to explore. One of my favorite aspects of this was that I didn't quite guess what the ending would be. If you had told me what would happen at the beginning, I don't know that I would have thought that the author would be able to make it work well without being a little unrealistic or campy. However, reading it, Dana Schwartz did it beautifully.

I absolutely loved it. It felt unique and immediately drew me into the story and the time period. I have the second to read and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

Dana Schwartz certainly knows how to deliver a MFC that YA readers can look up to, which was probably my favorite part of the book. Hazel Sinnett aspires to be the first female doctor in 1817 Edinburgh. No matter how many hurdles she has to overcome nothing can stop her from reaching her goal. Schwartz also 100% nailed the gothic vibe - I can't be the only one who continued to think of Hazel as a would-be young Dr. Frankenstein.

I really enjoyed this book and fully agree that it was rightfully nominated for the Best Young Adult Fiction Goodreads Choice Award. I was surprised to see it's currently only rated at 3.84 on Goodreads and while I haven't read any other reviews, I imagine people gave it a poor rating based on the ending. Specifically, how things came to a head with the villain of the story and I have to admit it did fall a little flat. However, I liked that it wasn't predictable and I appreciated the author coloring outside the lines so to speak. Overall, I thought the ending was lovely and I'm looking forward to the sequel.

I don't know why I was surprised to enjoy this so much, but I was very impressed. I loved both Hazel and Jack and their interactions. I wasn't expecting the story to take a speculative turn, but I enjoyed it when it did.

Anatomy is the first book in a duology. The story line is well developed and the characters three dimensional. It's taking two books to tell the whole story. Set in an era where women were restricted to their homes and their future husbands were chosen for them. In Anatomy, the chosen mate is also her cousin......keeping the family's fortunes inside the family. But the center of the story is Hazel. She's of an age and era where her future has already been decided and it doesn't matter what she wants. But Hazel wants to be a doctor, a profession specifically denied to women, much less the only daughter of a wealthy family. Luckily for Hazel, she's intelligent enough to plan how to be the master of her fate. And then there's Jack Currer, a man who could be useful to Hazel's plan.

Dana Schwartz has taken the time to build her characters and their back story to keep readers invested in the history of the era. The first book pushes Hazel and Jack together in efforts to set the story line for the second book. Anatomy has it's own plot line but sets many over arcing plots to build the steam coming from Immortality. the second book.

First of all KILLER COVER I will never get over it. Sadly, the story wasn't a slam dunk. So many good ideas but not super well executed- mainly with a very disappointing ending given the focus on female empowerment in the rest of the book.

"Anatomy: A Love Story" by Dana Schwartz is a captivating exploration of love, loss, and the complexities of the human heart. Set against the backdrop of a medical school dissecting lab, the novel follows protagonist Bea as she grapples with the challenges of navigating relationships and finding her place in the world. Schwartz's writing is poignant and evocative, drawing readers into Bea's emotional journey as she confronts her own vulnerabilities and discovers the true meaning of love. With its blend of humor, heartache, and raw honesty, "Anatomy: A Love Story" is a poignant and unforgettable read that will resonate with readers long after they've turned the final page.

A unique and beautifully written novel that blends historical fiction with fantasy and paranormal elements, Anatomy follows Hazel as she pushes boundaries to become a surgeon. The parallel plot line of Jack, a grave robber procuring bodies for the medical schools, is a great way to explore more social dynamics of the time. The ending was a bit disappointing for me but I look forward to reading the next book in the duology.

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience. Note: I ended up purchasing a final copy to read in the future.

There was a lot I loved about this book, but I think I enjoyed the setting most of all. Edinburgh in the 1800s was such a dark, gothic place for this mystery to be set, and I ate it up. I will say, for a book with "Love Story" in the title, I thought the romantic subplot was just that: a subplot. That said, I think it worked really well and I'm glad it didn't take over the entire plot of the story. I'm so glad I can run out and pick up the sequel now!

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review. This book was highly enjoyable - until the ending! But there is hope as a sequel has been released! This book is dark, quirky, and has such amazing gothic vibes. I am also all for a female lead going to medical school being from a STEM field myself. Loved this and can’t wait to read the final installment!

I loved nearly everything about this book. A headstrong female lead. the Edinburgh streets, the mystery. Just everything was beautiful.

This was a beautiful blend of medicine, gothic slow burn romance, mystery, and horror. It took me a couple tries to get into it, but once I was in I didn't want to put it down. I'm already looking forward to the next book in the duology. This showcases a strong and driven protagonist with the drive to be become the first female surgeon. The story was interwoven with anatomical texts and medical journals which was a great detail.

I think this one also has decent ya/adult crossover appeal.

Anatomy is a story of contrasts: it is sweet and bitter, light and dark; It gives hope and in the next chapter it snatches it away, it hypnotizes the readers and traps them, forcing them to want to know the outcome of the story, but when you get to the end, you wish the book didn't end.
In Anatomy, the author gives us the story of Hazel, a girl from Scottish high society who wants to be a surgeon, and Jack, a lower-class resurrectionist man. A forbidden love with a life that can be ephemeral or immortal. A wonderful story worthy of becoming a movie.
I think it goes without saying that I loved it!
I thank the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.
The opinion I have expressed above is based solely on what I think and feel about this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for giving me a free eARC of this book to read in exchange for my review!

To be perfectly honest, this book was what I had always hoped Wuthering Heights would have been. (Don’t even get me started, and I’m sorry for all of you who love that book.) Filled with a dark, gothic romance, mystery, and a dah of fantasy, I’m ashamed it took me so long to read this. Once I picked it up, I didn’t put it down except to sleep.

Thank you to the publishers who granted me an Arc of this book…nearly 2 years ago…

4.5 ⭐️

This was a feminist, gothic infused, mystery set in Edinburgh in the 1800s with a FMC determined to become a surgeon. I loved the setting, themes, characters, and the mystery all involved. I feel like some things came without trial for the MC and would’ve liked to see her have realistic failed attempts with some of her endeavors, but I think book 2 is set up for some of that. Love Hazel & Jack. Hate Bernard. Supppper curious about Dr Beecham

I really wanted to love this one. I thought maybe it would tickle the feminist in me to see a woman succeed in a male dominated field through her own steam. I am an avid lover of pretty much all things medical and found a lot of the descriptions to be fairly spot on. This was appealing because a lot of authors do not make it a point to research. It is evident that this author did. I really liked Hazel and found her to be a strong character, however did not buy into any sort of romance or love story with Jack just because of a couple moments in the book. This aspect of the book really seemed to be reaching at best. This book ended up just being OK for me. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

I liked the story it was dark and the Edinburgh setting was interesting. The romance was okay but really we were more invested in the story than the romantic connection. I wasn't thrilled with the ending but I was really intrigued and enjoyed the rest of the story.