A well executed (hehe) conclusion to this duology. We meet back up with Hazel after the death of Jack as she tries to move one with her life after the events of book 1. She is keeping her head up and her mind on her goals. But when she helps the wrong person she is thrown into a new town and a new mysterious group of people who know more about immortality than her. Can she save a princess, a king, the one she loves and herself?

I think this book did a better job at telling the story than book one. Book one felt like it was trying to do too much where this one felt complex without losing the core of the story. Hazel is a face acting character and I found that I enjoyed the ways she handled her situation throughout the book. I also appreciated the ending, It left enough to the imagination without feeling like we didn’t get closure.

Overall I think you will lose your head (Okay I’ll stop) over the conclusion to Hazel’s tale.

Hazel Sinnet returns in the second book of the Anatomy Duology. She has continued to practice medicine amongst the poor of Edinburgh, worries about the health of her pregnant ladies' maid, works on her book of anatomy aimed at the layperson, and deeply grieves Jack (her love from book one).

When Hazel is wrongly accused of murder and thrown in prison, and is expecting to be hanged, she's utterly surprised to find herself put into a carriage heading to England. And the even bigger shock is that she is ordered to heal the ailing Princess Charlotte, who had suffered from the Roman fever but now has some unknown ailment. It's believed that a female physician might be able to gain Charlotte's trust and provide a diagnosis and suggest a treatment.

Once in London, she encounters much resistance from Charlotte, who wants no one near her after the bumbling and bigotry of her previous male physicians. Hazel also meets a kind and respectful Swedish doctor who is attempting to treat the "mad" King George and begins developing feelings for him. Most intriguingly, Hazel is drawn into a small and extremely unusual group, who call themselves the Companions of Death, whose members include Byron and Voltaire, with Marie-Anne Lavoisier and her husband, both chemists, as leaders of the group. Hazel quickly deduces that all the members are immortal, like Doctor Beecham (from book one) was, and all suffer from the same problem of limbs falling off unexpectedly. Hazel's skill at surgery earns their trust, and she ends up spending more of her time with them, when she isn't trying to earn Charlotte's trust. Things end up resolving, for both Charlotte, and for Hazel eventually, with Hazel having to make some big decisions about her future.

Dana Schwartz's Hazel is a terrific creation; she's dedicated, intelligent, sympathetic to others, kind, open-minded and willing to buck tradition, unlike most gentry she knows. She's also discovering that even though she still grieves Jack keenly, she is capable of having romantic feelings for the Swedish doctor and even considers him seriously, until things start blowing up, in a manner of speaking, with the return of someone from her past, and the unscrupulous Companions of Death.

I ended up enjoying this book even more than book one (and that was a good book!) I think Hazel is more confident here, and is more aware of who she is as a person, thanks to her days spent contemplating her life whilst in jail. The pacing worked better, too, in this book, and though I did think Hazel was a little naïve in her assessment of the members of the Companions of Death, she did re-evaluate them and their motives once she learned more about them. I also appreciated how Schwartz wove early medical practices, grave robbery, Court politics, romance and feminism all together into an satisfying story.

Thank you to Netgalley and to St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.

happy to report that immortality is a great follow up to anatomy. i think I'm just eternally endeared to schwarz's writing style, i hope she continues.

I absolutely fell in love with Hazel and Jack's story when I first read their chemistry together in Anatomy: A Love Story. I was gutted when I started reading Immortality: A Love Story only to see no Jack anywhere to be found! But, to be fair this is Hazel's story. So it does track that it should follow her journey through her new set of challenges. And boy does she have challenges! With twists and turns along the way, Immortality: A Love Story will keep your attention till the very end!

I really enjoyed following the main character in the first book. I liked how she took control of her own destiny. This second book is quite different from the first book, in that the tension is more of an slight undercurrent. Not as overt as the first book. Overall, I enjoyed meeting the new characters as well. And similar to the first book, I would recommend this book if you're looking for a story with a strong, proactive main character who learns and grows throughout the story, but the romance still felt underdeveloped and a bit insta lovey.

This is a story about love after death.

If you enjoyed book 1, but felt very anxious about that ending- definitely pick this one up. It carries on the gothic atmosphere & spins an unsettling, but lovely narrative that explores both disenfranchisement & brilliance.

Thank you so much Macmillan Young Listeners & Wednesday books for the eArc & Alc!

[3.5]

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

As the sequel to Anatomy: A Love Story, this continuation picks up after the previous novel's events where Hazel is still pursuing a life as a female surgeon. This sequel sets up a new storyline including a new setting, London, as Hazel is moved there to work as the physician to the princess. The first book leaves off on a half-cliffhanger in my opinion. The book could have easily been left as is and worked well. This is why I was a bit nervous about hopping into a second book and seeing where the author would take Hazel.

Hindsight being 20/20, the story's plot is really well done, I just wasn't expecting as much to be uncovered and was not waiting for things to all connect as they did. Though, this did make the very VERY end of the book exciting as things picked up quickly and there was a lot of face-paced action.

There is a love triangle introduced in this second book, but I feel like personally, it was clear from the beginning who had a fighting chance. There was also a large number of new characters, too many for me to dive into fully. I really enjoyed the epilogue part, which I think tied together all of the storylines well. All in all, I think this book either needed to be a 2nd book in a series or the first one left as a standalone.

Throughly enjoyed IMMORTALITY despite not having read the first book of the series yet. Dana Schwatz truly captures the scientific darkness of the era in all its gothic glory.

Hazel Sinnett is trying to move on from the events of last year. Finding out about the Immortality serum, meetings falling in love with Jack, and helping dig up dead bodies seemed like a dream or nightmare or a combination of both.

Hazel has decided to just continue to treat her patients. Broken arms, fevers and other common place illnesses are much more her speed. Until…she’s arrested for saving someone’s life. She’s not sure if she will spend the rest of her life in prison or be hanged like Jack was.

A surprise intervention from the royal family gets her out of jail. They want her to be the personal physician to Princess Charlotte. Hazel is thrown into court life and British society. She makes new friends and is reunited with someone from her past. Of course, not everything is what it seems and Hazel will have to figure out how to fix everything.

I really loved the first book, Anatomy, and really wanted to love the followup but it just fell short for me. The story didn’t pull me in. It felt kind of bland and lacking in the character department.

I received this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I was so excited to receive an advanced copy of this book. I loved the first one so much and was worried the 2nd book couldn’t live up to my expectations but I’m here to tell you it did.

From the beautiful cover, the story and the writing I loved hearing more about Hazel Sinnett’s story.

Book one spoiler alert: When Jack was unfairly hanged in book one we were left wondering had he taken the tincture for immortality. Hazel was left heartbroken, working in a dangerous field of surgery as a woman so she consumed herself with work and writing her treatise to help herself move on past Jack. She gets herself caught up in some interesting situations, some of which her family feel she has brought disgrace upon them.

This book does a great job tying up the first book and has a wonderful story of its own.

Thanks to #netgalley and #stmartinspress for an advanced copy of this book.

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I absolutely loved the first book in this duet and after the ending could not wait to get my hands on this one. Hazel finds herself alone once again and after helping a young woman who comes to her things take a turn for the worse. Hazel is imprisoned and facing possible death due to the procedure she performs to help her patient. Suddenly though, a message arrives and Hazel is whisked away to the royal court to be the personal physician to the princess. Things proceed from there and I did not want to put this book down. As far as sequels go, this is an excellent one. The tone is a little lighter than the first book, but fits the setting and does not take away from the impact of the duology. I highly recommend this book and will be picking up other works by this author in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books for this egalley that was given in exchange for my honest opinions.

I enjoyed this book. After the ending of the last book I was excited to see how this went and overall I liked it.

Objectively Immortality: A Love Story is well written and I would consider it a "good story", but something about it just didn't grab me the way I wanted! The chemistry between the characters is missing and I general, there seems to be no established relationship (despite us knowing it is) and feel like this would have served better as an anthology rather than a continuation of the story. This one just wasn't for me.

I read Anatomy on vacation and breezed through it in a few hours. It wasn’t quite what I expected (don’t ask me what I was expecting, I don’t know) but I enjoyed it well enough. I waffled between 3 and 4, and wasn’t sure if I would read this one because of how I felt about the first. I’m so glad I did! I don’t know if it’s because I read Anatomy and listened to Immortality, but I really enjoyed Immortality! I actually liked the ‘filler’ other people mentioned. I liked the little club, the princess, the doctor. I wasn’t a huge fan of Jack in the first book (didn’t like or dislike him) and I kind of wanted her to stay with the doctor lol but ultimately I liked the way it ended. I would read another book from this author, this duology was a unique spin on historical fiction and I enjoyed the writing. And the covers are stunning!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the e-copy in exchange for review.
I recently read Anatomy and absolutely enjoyed it, so was quite excited to have the opportunity to read Immortality. This duology was exciting and fun, and the continuation and ultimate culmination of Hazel’s story was perfect. The new characters introduce in the London setting were so fun.

Immortality: A Love Story
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Historical Romance
Format: Kindle eBook and Audiobook
Date Published: 2/28/23
Author: Dana Schwartz
GR: 4.03

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

My Thoughts: While I LOVED Anatomy, I was not happy with the ending, I had so many unanswered questions at the end, was left a tad disappointed, and was beyond excited when I heard about a follow up book. Immortality is the second in The Anatomy Duology series. This second book did not disappoint. While it is a series book, it could be read as a standalone, however, to get the full immersive experience, I would recommend reading both. The covers are both books are just fantastic. In this novel, we meet up with Hazel wondering what happened with her. The story does a great job at catch up from the prior novel.

The story is narrated by Hazel, in her POV. Hazel is a very independent women in the 1800’s practicing as a ‘doctor.’ She is strong and courageous. Hazel, while caring for the Princess, joins a secret group, realizing it may not be what it seems. We follow Hazel through the ups and downs. While Hazel was developed well in the first novel, the continuation of her character, with even more development was just brilliant. The character development was spot on, had depth, an aspect of mystery, witty banter, and creatively done. The author’s writing style is complex, multifaceted, historical, humorous, thought provoking, and just brilliant. The author’s take on feminism is just brilliant.

I normally do not like historical books but really loved this duo. I devoured this book in under 48 hours. The story kept me on the edge with a wonderful ending, the perfect ending. I would highly recommend both books!

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. I loved the addition of Princess Charlotte, Eliza, and Simon, but I wish Hazel had more time with Jack in this book. All in all, still an enjoyable read!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the digital ARC.

I was really looking forward to Immortality after reading Anatomy last year. I thought this was a fun sequel and enjoyed the monarchy being included in the story. The gothic and sort of gory vibes are so unique to what I read, so it was fun to jump back into Dana's world. The ending was also satisfying.

Everything I loved about Hazel and Jack in the first book is missing in this book. Hazel does not appear to be strong minded or confident, and the partnership, beautiful friendship, deep love and commitment she had with Jack feels more like strangers forcing themselves to be together because they think they should. I had a very hard time believing their love for one another and the overall story line was too far-fetched and unbelievable. The first half of the book felt like filler and I had to work hard to finish the book.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Dana Schwartz does it again. I loved the first book in this series and much like the first one I could not put this down and felt myself going through with drawls in between readings. Our main heroine is still working in the medical area and finds herself in a bit of trouble and then in a situation only she would be able to get herself out of. Love that it is in its own way a love story but she is not left to be perceived as helpless nor does the story just revolve around that. So refreshing. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.