I requested this book based on the fact I wanted to learn more about the medical side of mental health in the 1940s. The Lobotomist’s Wife was based on the storyline of Walter Freeman II a physician who performed 3000 lobotomies in the 40s and 50s, during this time performing just under 300 lobotomies in the one location and killing patients by giving them more than one lobotomy.

While lobotomy was a strong feature in this book I found I wanted to know more about the procedure, I’m just going to say I wanted some details. There was only a mention of a transorbital lobotomy done by an orbitoclast bit like an ice pick being inserted into the eye to cut part of the brain in the most delicate way possible.

Ruth, the female MC, was a bit daft sometimes however, I eventually came to like her, while her husband Dr Apter was plain out scary. What he become later in the book could only be described as plain evil.😧

Overall I think it was a good story, I think historical fiction fans who like a basic understanding of lobotomy would like this book.

Thank you netgalley and Lake Union for the digital copy of The Lobotomist’s Wife for reviewing purposes.

The first half of the book felt quite slow, it took me a few weeks of picking it up and putting it back down before I got into it. After this though, I read the rest in an afternoon. It was an interesting insight into how a doctor with a ‘miracle cure’ descended into indiscriminate operations to maintain his reputation, rather than focus on the evidence. Ruth, his wife, was a good character with strong morals who worked to put a stop to him. Great author’s note highlighting the factual elements of the story based on her research.

This is a great read based on true events. The ending was too predictable. The book was researched so well. The writing was great

I enjoyed quite a bit in this book. Ruth is a strong woman character and I just love those! The history is also something unique. Then there is the science. Lots of research went into this book. But, it is overly dramatic in places and to be honest, I even rolled my eyes in spots!
I am glad I read it though! I did learn some things I didn’t know and that always endears me to a book!

Fascinating book about a different time and how mental illnesses were treated before more research was done and known

Well done historical fiction about a dark period in mental health. Ruth, the lobotomist's wife, is committed to helping patients at the Emeraldine but know that this isn't the way. Woodruff puts a face on an issue and a treatment we've turned our backs to. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Interesting tale of how medicine was not always in favor for the patients. The techniques and almost mental gap that was used by these doctors was unforgivable in some situations. I liked the take of it being the wife and the historical accuracy was a good touch. Overall a little slow for me but still enjoyable overall.

This book is a heavy historical read. Most are but this is a topic that I havent read about before. It was disturbing but well written,

Detailed, fascinating, and alluring!

The Lobotomist’s Wife is an immersive tale that sweeps you away to mid-1900s New York and into the life of Ruth Emeraldine, an intelligent woman ahead of her time whose goal in life since her brother’s death is to ease the pain of those suffering from mental illness and whom after marrying the charismatic Robert Apter and being swept away by his enthusiasm and charm encourages and supports him in his work to relieve severe anxiety through the use of a new technique known as lobotomy.

The prose is descriptive and smooth. The characters are wealthy, driven, and complex. And the plot is a vivid, absorbing tale of life, loss, love, hope, family, greed, mental illness, and the unconscionable theory of lobotomy as a beneficial treatment.

Overall, The Lobotomist’s Wife is an insightful, well-written, shocking tale by Woodruff loosely based on real-life events that does an exceptional job of highlighting her considerable knowledge and impressive research into this barbaric practice used to, unbelievably, treat almost sixty thousand people in the US alone between 1936 and 1972.

This was an interesting read. It felt very somewhat like the diary of Ruth’s (the wife of Dr. Robert Apter - the Lobotomist). We follow their relationship, scientific discovery, and Apter’s ultimate descent into insanity via using the lobotomy inappropriately throughout his practice.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for my copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was very well written dive into the darker days of early psychiatric care. As someone who has dealt with mental illness most of my life it made my skin crawl but I couldn't stop reading. The research that the author did for this was impressive and I highly recommend this book!

I thoroughly enjoyed The Lobotomist's Wife by Samantha Greene Woodruff. Coming from a medical background and knowing how misrepresented the mental health field is, I connected with Ruth and her passion to help all of her patients at Emeraldine Hospital. I liked how at the end of the book, the author showed how her novel was connected to real life events. I had heard of the Kennedy daughter being subjected to a lobotomy and its horrible outcome for her in one of my college psych classes. This book was an easy and enjoyable book. I will recommend to other readers!

This story is absolutely worth a read. It is an interesting look at a very dark period of mental health history. It is gripping and emotional.

This book was so interesting. I really liked Ruth and Maggie so much! I enjoyed Ruth’s character arc and getting to see her interaction with the patients and her true passion for her career. The book was written well and had relatable characters. An overall enjoyable read!

Loved the premise and the story! This book feels like a biography, even if the author only drew inspiration from the history and most of it is her imagination. But it felt so real sometimes... Ruth is an amazing woman, the pressure between keeping her career, supporting her husband and doing what's right for the people, those are the things a lot of people will relate to and the things which show how complex the character is because of so many internal conflicts.

I'm glad this book exists because like this more people will know about the cruelty of lobotomy and, in the meantime, they'll read such a good book!

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. A great women's fiction novel. Love the cover.

A 3.5 for this one.
It had a slow start it was dragging for a while to the point that I even forgot that I was reading it.
A few weeks went by before I picked it up again to finish the second half in a few days.
Now the second half is fast paced and interesting, I honestly thought it was going to be darker.
It's a great story with parts better than others.. Nice fiction but not mind blowing.

This book was everything I wanted it to be. It had me turned pages without even realizing. It was so good!

I plan on including this in a cross-curricular activity this school year. It was very insightful and opens the door to ethics in medicine discussion.

Ruth Emeraldine has one goal in life, to help those suffering from mental illness. When her brother kills himself after WWI, her wealthy father opens a hospital for patients suffering from mental health. It is a much more humane place than many of the others and Ruth is the assistant administrator. She is caring and compassionate and wants to help the patients. When Robert Apter comes to work for them, he is also caring and wants to help. His charisma, compassion and brilliance is attractive to Ruth and she falls in love. Robert begins to champion a radical, new treatment, the lobotomy, and it is heralded as the miracle treatment. Ruth and Robert marry and she supports him and this treatment as their hospital, at first. As Robert spirals into deluded megalomania, Ruth can’t ignore her growing suspicions. Robert is operating on patients recklessly, often with horrific results. And a vulnerable young mother, Margaret Baxter, is poised to be his next victim.

The Lobotomist's Wife is based on true events. If you google it, you can find a chart that parallels this book to actual events, but the names have been changed and some events fictionalized. The only thing I really knew about lobotomies was from the movie, "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". I learned more from this story and even more from my own research. To think that this procedure went on for decades. The "Ice Pick" procedure that had Robert losing control is unbelievable and I still can't believe this was an accepted procedure. Ruth's eyes are opened and she tries to let others know how dangerous the process is, and the results do not support this treatment. Of course, Ruth being a woman, her objections are not followed up on or taken seriously, so many patients who might have foregone the procedure did not. Even today, we still don't agree on treatments for mental health issues and there is no one answer, but I can see why people get carried away trying to find a treatment that will "cure" mental health conditions. The Lobotomist's Wife is a well-written and informative book into those early times of psychiatric care. Like any health issue, the scientists and doctors have to control that desire to find the answer and be applauded, and remember that their first duty is to the patients they are trying to help. Make sure you read the author's notes at the end of the book, it is definitely eye opening. I recommend this book to those who enjoy historical fiction, medical stories and stories based on true events or people. This was a book that I still think about.