I really enjoy Dana Schwartz's writing and this follow up to Anatomy stays true to that! This story is little gruesome, a little unexpected, but still totally enjoyable. This book doesn't have nearly as much romance in it as book one, so I'd say this is more the love story of a woman and her work. Overall, I really liked it.

The narrators do a wonderful job bringing this story and these characters to life!

*Steamy kisses with descriptions of tongue, some nudity, one fade to black scene

Author Dana Schwartz comes back swinging with a follow up to her 2022 Reese's Book Club YA pick Anatomy: A Love Story that is, dare I say, even better than the original. The audio narration by Mhairi Morrison (and Tim Campbell) was top notch, lending to the atmosphere of this thrilling historical adventure. If you enjoy historical fiction served with a healthy dose of feminism and a little romance, then this book (and 2 book duology) are for you.
Pioneering female surgeon Hazel Sinnett is reeling from heartbreak and trying to establish her medical practice in an unwelcoming early 19th century society, when she is faced with new and, perhaps, even more sinister and dangerous foes to not only her practice but her life. Follow her ups and downs through Scotland and venturing into England as she attempts a second chance at love and medicine.
Please note that I received an audio advanced reader copy via Net Galley.
While this book is the intended completion of a duology, I would race to pick up future volumes if this became a series or triology (hint, hint!).

IMMORTALITY review

⭐️⭐️⭐️.75/5

🧠Can we take a second to admire the gorrrrgeous covers for this duology?? I read the first book in this series a couple months ago and wasn’t super wowed by it, but I enjoyed Immortality so much more! This book is a combo of sooooo many different genres: YA, romance, historical fiction, fantasy/magical realism. The pacing of the story was perfect and kept me on my toes the entire time!

🧠Here’s a summary of the plot:👇
Hazel is working as the only female medical practitioner in her town. When she is arrested for the treatment of one of her patients, she seems doomed to rot in prison. Until a stranger shows up with a strange request: she’ll be bailed out of prison but must cure one of Britain’s leaders of an unknown illness that seems to have no cure. As Hazel scrambles to find the cure, she’s haunted by someone from her past, and swears she sees him just around every corner…

🧠I loooooved the first half of this book! The second half started to fall apart a bit for me. I didn’t care about the romance plot line at all and could have done without it. I wish the story had continued to focus on Hazel and her medical practice. I still really enjoyed this one overall and think it’s a must read if you liked the first book in the series!

🧠Thanks @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for my advanced copy of this one!

Although I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for a review, all opinions remain my own.

This was simply a beautiful conclusion to the Anatomy duology. I loved the first book and loved the second one just as much. This duology is going into my personal collection. It has romance, it has suspense, it has medical mystery and murder. What else can you really ask for. I just love the main character, Hazel, being a doctor. Well, she doesn't have all the certifications because you couldn't as a woman back then, but she's done all the training. This time she is called upon to treat the princess Charlotte. - will she be able to help the princess under the eye of the Royal court with all the other goings-on? It really is a wonderful story and so beautifully written. I couldn't wait to see what would happen with Hazel.

The Anatomy Duology is the perfect blueprint for a duology and I wish more authors would challenge themselves to fit their stories into two clean, tightly written and emotionally impactful books.

I was worried for Hazel after the ending of Anatomy but Immortality was a fantastic- and maybe perfect- second act for her story. There’s a change of setting, a few new mysteries, and some very interesting characters.

This duology will appeal to even those who don’t like historical fiction because it doesn’t READ like historical fiction despite very directly referencing specific events and people in 1800s Europe.

4 stars, loved it, will recommend it to anyone who likes YA, gothic, or historical fiction. Thank you to Macmillan & Netgalley for the eARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advance copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Immortality: A Love Story is the highly anticipated sequel to Anatomy: A Love Story and picks up about a year after the events of the first book. Hazel Sinnett continues to hone her surgical skills alone in Hawthornden Castle and is working to compile her own medical treatise, all while she grieves the loss of a loved one. After she is thrown into prison on a false charge, the king commutes her sentence and has the young surgeon brought to London to treat the ailing Princess Charlotte. Hazel’s adventures in England bring her into contact with a handsome Swedish doctor, noteworthy members of the British elite—a few of whom invite her to join their mysterious secret society—and several figures from her past, whose surprise appearances force Hazel to reevaluate not only her career but her entire future.

I enjoyed the first book well enough, even though I didn’t love that the vague ending made me feel obligated to read the sequel. Frankly I don’t think the first book required a sequel at all; there was really only one matter left open-ended at the end, and pretty much anyone could have guessed how it would likely turn out. But if there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s leaving things unfinished, so I just couldn’t not read the sequel.

And the sequel is… fine. It has its moments. It’s dark and just gory enough without being gratuitous. We meet a number of important historical figures, which is sort of fun. The early events in Edinburgh had me on tenterhooks, but then Hazel goes to England and nothing else really happens until the last 25% of the story. I mean, things happen, but a majority of the book is spent squeezing the life out of plot points no one really cares about, and none of them involve the real reason most of us are here in the first place.

Even though this book was underwhelming, there are a few things I like about this series in general. The premise is cool. The book covers are even cooler. The protagonist, Hazel, is the plucky Regency-era heroine we all love to see throw on a pair of trousers Mulan-style, but she’s also practical. She’s well aware of her position as a young lady in society, as well as of the repercussions her chosen career could have on any chance of a secure future. She defies social norms in her love for medicine (which, it’s worth noting, is the real love story of this duology), but she doesn’t thumb her nose at them blindly. She’s not the most complex heroine out there, but she’s an admirable one.

This is a great series for people who are new to historical fiction or who want to dip a toe into Gothic fiction (just note that a few scenes include violence, body horror, and descriptions of medical procedures that might make some readers squeamish). There’s also a touch of fantasy, and it’s probably just enough to indulge sci-fi/fantasy lovers without putting off historical purists. Though reading the sequel isn’t necessary to enjoy the first book as it is, Immortality does tie up a few loose ends that will satisfy anyone who, like me, can’t bear to leave anything unfinished.

Immortality: A Love Story continues the tale that was started in Anatomy and delivers plenty of resolution!

This is one of those books that I can’t say too much about without giving it away, but I can’t say that Hazel still practising medicine. She’s continuing her career she’s developing and expanding on her knowledge and her expertise. Things are not peachy, and she is still struggling being a female medical practitioner, she experiences great highs and lows but most of all she experiences her HEA! I can also say that Jack is back, and we need a whole new cast of characters as Hazel takes her practice outside of Edinburgh. Lastly, we learn more about the magical elements that were revealed in book 1!

Overall, this book provides a satisfying conclusion to the romance, mystery and Hazel’s medical dreams.

This book needs to be read in sequence with it’s predecessor, Anatomy. They read like a part one and two of a single story.

🎧I received an audiobook copy of this, and absolutely loved the dual narration from Mhairi Morrison & Tim Campbell. They both excel at Scottish and British accents and they complemented each other. This is the type of audiobook that takes you away to another world and you easily get lost within. A great listen.

Immortality: A Love Story by Dana Shwartz is available today!

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the review copy.

If you haven’t yet started this gothic duology, I’d highly recommend it! The series starts with Anatomy, which is set in Edinburgh early 1800s, and a lady, Hazel Sinnet, wants to study to become a surgeon and ends up having to grave rob cadavers. With a story that is hard to put down, a sweet romance and an MC that stands against the patriarchy, it’s a great book.
Immortality is a sequel to Anatomy: A Love Story. In this book, there’s more romance and more fantastical aspects. Since Hazel’s arc was pretty much resolved in the first book, this is more focused on events that happen to her as she’s trying to practice medicine and ends up getting pulled into the London society scenes and a secret society filled with historical figures.

To me, this read almost more like a full-length epilogue to Anatomy, filled with adventure. It was a fun read that was hard to put down.

🎧 I read both of the books as an audiobook, and really enjoyed the format! The narration by Mhairi Morrison really helps pull you into the time and place of the book.

This book had less focus on character growth, less surgeries, and less of the commentary on sexism and classism that we saw in Anatomy. Instead, the focus was on various situations Hazel finds herself in, some dangerous, some exciting.

There’s a small love triangle in this book, and I don’t know… I was really liking the other guy too. I kind of liked how their life together would have been. That LI was so sweet to Hazel throughout the book, I loved the incredibly thoughtful gift he got for her, how he had her back and I also appreciated that he wasn’t bitter at the end.

I really enjoyed the secret society in this book as well, Companions of Death. There were many well-known names from history in one place. I love it when stories take people we know and put them in a brand-new context, combining their real back stories with imagined ones.

There were some fun side characters in this one too. From a princess to a cute dog, and a man whose fashion is stuck in the past. In Anatomy Hazel was more isolated, but in this book, she's surrounded by good (and some bad) people, most of them supporting her ways big and small.

For those that really liked the gore/horrror-ish vibes from the first book, this has a lot less of that. It still reads gothic, but since there's less grave digging, and more balls, the gore level is diminished.

Thank you to Macmillan audio and NetGalley for the ALC.

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Immortality is the second book in Dana Schwart's YA-Gothic Fantasy Romance The Anatomy Duology. First, let's get the most obvious thing out of the way. This cover is absolutely stunning and the two novels together are perfection. They also fit this story nicely. These books follow Hazel Sinnett, who after the tumultuous events of [book:Anatomy: A Love Story|57917042] finds herself on her own.

Not one to give up in the face of adversity, however, Hazel continues to plug along, doing what she does best; learning about human anatomy, while also putting her knowledge to good use helping the underprivileged of Edinburgh.

When a young woman comes to Hazel, scared and distressed, she never even considers turning the sick woman away, even though the procedure she requests is against the law. Unfortunately for Hazel, her efforts that day don't go unnoticed and she is arrested and imprisoned. The punishment, possibly execution. This is no joke.

Just when Hazel thinks it's the end of the road for her, a confounding message arrives that saves her skin. She has been specifically requested to be the personal physician of Princess Charlotte, the sickly daughter of King George IV. Before she knows it, Hazel is freed from prison and transported to the Palace, where she must befriend the Princess, a task easier said than done, and figure out just what the heck is wrong with her.

As Hazel becomes more involved with the royal court, it's clear to her that something is afoot. If she can't figure out what it is, and soon, there could be a lot more than just her life at stake. We have a mystery on our hands!

Immortality is a very solid sequel. Sometimes it can be difficult with a second book to create the same magic as the first, but I think Schwartz pulled it off overall. I was delighted from the get-go to be back with Hazel. I really grew to love her over the course of the first book and she was sticking true to herself in this follow-up.

As a girl who goes against the grain of what family and society expect of her, Hazel's personality rings true and is quite intriguing. I love how she never backed down, even when her family basically shunned her. She took risks and although doesn't live the most extravagant lifestyle, I think she's able to sleep pretty comfortably at night.

I was sorry to see her get into a bit of a pickle early on in this one, but it was fun watching how she got out of it. Of course it was more pure luck and her reputation than anything else, but we'll take what we can get. I also liked her immersion in the royal court. There were definitely some interesting characters flitting about around there and as expected, a ton of royal drama.

While this one didn't feel as dark and gothic to me, mainly due to the different road the plot went down, it was still well done as far as the atmosphere and overall vibe. I also missed the dynamic we had between Hazel and Jack in the first one. As they were getting to know one another, the pining and tension was fantastic and you really couldn't have that same thing here. I missed it, but obviously understand why that couldn't be a part of this continuation.

However, we do get another intriguing man, a doctor no less, circling around Hazel like a bee to honey, so that definitely brought some more cute fun.

I've enjoyed watching Hazel grow over the course of this story, as she became even more committed to her vocation, in spite of the contempt, disrespect and disregard she received from most of her male peers. I also enjoyed the light fantastical elements sprinkled throughout the duology, the idea of the immortality serum; to learn more, you'll have to read the book, by the way.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I enjoyed my time with this duology and am looking forward to reading more from Dana Schwartz. I hope she sticks to the gothic-feeling, light-fantasy romance style that she brought us here. She does it so well!

Thanks so much to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the gifted advanced audio copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts. All opinions are entirely my own. { partner } All of my reviews can also be found on Instagram @Tackling_TBR and on my blog at tacklingtbr.home.blog

TW: death, some violence/gore

I listened to this audiobook straight through yesterday, because I just couldn't put it down!
I really loved the first book in this duology, Anatomy: A Love Story, but much like a lot of people I needed infinitely more information on where the first book left our two main characters, so I was definitely excited to get started on this one.

I think that of the two books I prefer the first one, only because I think that there was something really magical about that as the start of this story, but the two of them work so beautifully together that I'm not sure I can fully separate them in my mind.

As I mentioned I listened to this book on audio, and I'll repeat what I said for the first book - the narrator is absolutely phenomenal! She is so talented - all of her characters feel unique and it felt easy to tell each apart from the others. If there were a book that I was on the fence about reading or listening to and I saw that Mhairi Morrison was the narrator, that on it's own would be enough to convince me to listen to it.

I would highly, highly recommend this book and duology to my friends and fellow readers.
I'll repeat here what I said for the first book as well - I think that the perfect way to read this book would be after dinner curling up with a blanket and a glass of wine, listening to a full blown storm outside of your window. Honestly, I say just read the first one and then continue straight into the second, because for me these are books to settle in and stay up late for, reading past your bedtime in order to finish.

Immortality: A Love Story is the second book in the Antonomy Series and I absolutely enjoyed this one so much. I loved all the medical and fantastical aspects of this book as well as how Dana Schwartz was able to have all events come together at the end.

This book was so well done and I was really into the plot. I could not put it down and completed it in two short sittings. To say I was engrossed is an understatement.

Fantastic job by Mhairi Morrison and Tim Campbell for helping make this book come to life.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

Immortality: A Love Story by Dana Schwartz

This is book 2 of The Anatomy duology. I am glad Dana Schwartz wrote this book because book one leaves Jack in a cliffhanger. The writing is beautiful and flows nicely through the pages. Hazel has been arrested and gets the opportunity of a lifetime to get out of prison. She gets to be the Dr. for the princess. I like how intelligent Hazel is and people need to take her seriously with the medical knowledge she has is top notch.

There is so much happening in this story and the title has meaning within the story. Can you imagine being immortal and living forever. We get closure with Hazel and Jack's relationship and that is important from the previous book cliffhanger.

Narrated by Mhairi Morrison and Tim Campbell which made listening to this book so enjoyable. The characters came to life and it was easy to follow. I recommend reading book one to follow along with the two books to get the full story. I think both books deserve the praise they are getting.

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio and St. Martin's Press for a free copy of Immortality: A Love Story for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Possible spoilers alert.

I loved Anatomy: A Love Story! I particularly thought the amazing narration brought Hazel's story to life so fantastically! I have been so excited to pick this up. But I think this ended up being a case of setting my expectations too high.

I couldn't wait for Hazel and Jack to reunite. It felt super lackluster when it actually happened. And of course they tried to spice this one up with a love triangle that I was not jiving with.

This just felt like it was missing the spark that Schwartz created in the first book. It was okay. I kind of wish I had just ended with book one.

An extra star because the narration is still fantastic! Best part of this book!

Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐
🧠
This book, like the first, is packed with excitement, mystery and love. It starts out pretty much where we left off and very quickly gets into the story. As we get further into the book I think the plot begins to stray from the original and has a very different feel, but I'm not necessarily mad about it. There were times I WAS mad at a certain character (I don't want to say because it could be a bit spoilery) and that, minimally, took away from my love of this book. I understand why those things happened the way they did and why the character acted that way but I just wish they didn't. (It almost had me rooting for another character at one point..)
🧠
The approach on feminism is well thought out and portrayed in an understandable yet very enjoyable way. The overall writing style is descriptive and really paints a clear picture for the reader. I enjoyed piecing together the puzzle(s) and guessing what would happen next with every twist or new piece of information provided. The love/romance, just as impeccable as the first time.
🧠
Now.... I've seen some reviewers say that this book was unnecessary and I can almost agree. The plot has almost nothing to do with the first book and it sometimes felt like the two stories were being mashed together but not actually fitting. Sort of like two separate plots at once instead of one cohesive storyline. Personally, though, I can't get enough of these characters and their story and if a third book came out or another book set in this universe I'd immediately read it. 😂
🧠
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for providing me with an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fitting sequel to the absolutely gut wrenching cliffhanger in book 1 . By the end of the book I felt like I got closure !

Hazel is such an interesting character and I love how she challenges societal norms. This was a pleasure to listen too and gave me all the eerie and gothic vibes I needed !

This was a satisfying sequel to "Anatomy: A Love Story"! I loved that it was mainly set in a different city with completely new characters. And while this one did have some romance in it, it didn't seem like enough to justify having "Love Story" in the title. At least, not the traditional type of love one might expect to find in a romance novel; it was mainly pining for and reminiscing about love.

I received an advanced listening copy of Immortality: A Love Story by Dana Schwartz through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review and, here it is!
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☆☆☆☆ ½ - rounded down to 4 stars
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I was so excited to receive this sequel and it did not disappoint! I'm so happy with it because the first book (Anatomy: A Love Story) was such a heartbreaking cliffhanger.
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Hazel is grieving the loss of the love of her life and throws herself into her work. She has been practicing medicine and treating others as much as a woman could back in the 1800s. One of her patients is forced to betray Hazel and she is thrown in jail only to be released by the prince regent himself in exchange for her expertise. Hazel must cure Princess Charlotte's illness which has the whole country worried.
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While Hazel is treating Princess Charlotte and living in court she is roped into the allure of it all; the complexities, the mysteries, and, of course, the secret society.
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I loved going on this ride with Hazel! I could not put it down because I needed to know everything all at once! I really liked the relationships Hazel made throughout this story, especially because she is always unapologetically herself.
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Also! I'm OBSESSED with the cover!!!
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Thanks to Macmillan Audio, NetGalley, and author Dana Schwartz for this ALC to honestly review. Immortality: A Love Story is out TODAY, go grab it now!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing the ARC of Immortality: A Love Story. The narrator for the audiobook was perfect! The book itself was fantastic. I loved the new characters. I liked this one even more than I liked Anatomy: A Love Story. 4.5 stars.

This was so good and totally blew the first one out of the water! With cameos from Princess Charlotte to Lord Byron to Voltaire, this was a lot of fun and tied up all the loose ends from the previous installment. This would be tough to follow as a stand-alone, so definitely read Anatomy: A Love Story first. The tone of this one is much closer to Dana Schwartz’s writing and narrative style on Noble Blood, so if you like the podcast this one is definitely a must read.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review!

After the ending of book one I couldn't wait for this second instalment, I was not left disappointed and ended up loving this one even more. Great story telling and I loved that the immortals have a kind of elite secret society. lots of twists and turns and a fantastic epilogue