Thank you to the author, the publisher and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. The author sent it personally with a nice note and a necklace of a mortar and pestle.

I've been trying to win this book everywhere it seems and my patience paid off it seems. I've read all of her books and I've enjoyed them all so far and I'm hoping for this same with this one. I guess I'll see after reading the whole book.

Step back in time from the 1920s to the 1980s when Augusta Stern moves to FL after retiring at age 80. I'm not surprised that she followed her father in his footsteps in becoming a pharmacist considering he was one and she worked in the store for 20 years after her father died and then she sold the store. She moves to Florida after she retires and who is living in the same condo but her "friend" Irving, who was the delivery boy for her father in their pharmacy. She's shocked for sure after 62 years of not seeing him. Is everyone retired and in their 80s living in the same condo complex in FL? Coincidence? Probably. There's a rivalry between Irving and Nathaniel Birnbaum, also a friend from the past whose father was the doctor in her town. They were all the best of friends growing up and Nathaniel married Augusta's best friend. The alternate chapters from past to present made it interesting. How can I forget Great Aunt Esther from the old country who moved in with the Steins after Bess and Augusta's mother died when Augusta was 14. She was a healer and Sol didn't want her to mix up her potions for many ailments in competition with him. She did anyway with wonderful results. I'm not going to spoil the ending but it was wonderful and thanks to Great Aunt Esther, August sort of had a second career at age 81.

It was a good book but not as good as her others and I've read the reviews and some opinions aren't the same as mine -- good and bad.

“𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘰. 𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘦. 𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯. 𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭, 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘸𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘱 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵."

If you're feeling like I am today and need a big hug, 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗫𝗜𝗥 𝗢𝗙 𝗔𝗨𝗚𝗨𝗦𝗧𝗔 𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗡 is that in book form.

Lynda Cohen Loigman has crafted a story that combines dual timelines, a second chance romance, sassy senior citizens, an intriguing mystery, lots of Jewish joy, and a dash magical realism to create the perfect antidote to whatever has you down, just like Aunt Esther's her cure-all chicken soup in the book.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the copy to review.

**BOOK REVIEW***
First and foremost, I love a good dual timeline. We get to know these characters two-fold; in their adolescent youth and in their senior years. We get a look at how events of their youth shaped the rest of their lives. Second, I love a good independent, sassy old lady. I loved Augusta wholeheartedly. As a pharmacy professional myself I really just connected all around with the characters, the story, everything as Augusta grew up in her father’s pharmacy and later footsteps. I loved this story and was sad when it ended. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 #netgalley #bookreview #arc #arcreview #botm #bookofthemonth

I enjoyed reading THE LOVE ELIXIR OF AUGUSTA STERN, especially after loving Linda Cohen Loigman's wonderful THE MATCHMAKER’S GIFT. This story captivated me with its blend of nostalgia, mystery, and second chances. I loved following Augusta as she wrestled with her past—a mix of old wounds, lost love, and family secrets—and watching her start a new chapter in Rallentando Springs. The seamless interweaving of 1920s Brooklyn and present-day Florida, along with Augusta’s memories of her family’s pharmacy and her eccentric Great Aunt Esther’s unconventional remedies, added so much depth. Loigman’s warm and enchanting storytelling brings heart and a touch of magical realism, making this a thoughtful, charming read about aging, healing, and rediscovering oneself.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Augusta Stern is eighty-years old. She has finally retired from her hospital pharmacist job in NY and is moving to a retirement community in Florida. Never married, she finds herself face to face with the man she once loved. Irving Rivkin broke her heart when she was in her teens and she vividly recalls how devastated she was by his betrayal. Another old neighborhood friend also lives in the community and he’s a widower. The two men dislike each other and are at loggerheads over reconnecting with Augusta.

There’s humor and witty dialog that enliven each scene. Augusta can’t forget her past wounds but also can’t deny how much she once cared for Irving. Watching octogenarians act like romantic fools is great fun. Augusta may be worldly wise, but her heart is still young, recalling the touching moments she once spent with Irving.

The story of Esther, Augusta’s aunt, also figures prominently in the novel. Augusta recalls how her aunt, who was an apothecary, would make chicken soup and medicinal concoctions. She imbued her tonics (potions) with spiritual incantations and her successes could not be denied.
She was an inspiration to her niece and also a mentor. Even in retirement Augusta turns to the lessons she learned from her aunt; sometimes with unexpected results.

Loigman based her central character on her husband’s great-grandmother who was a rare, early female pharmacist. The author also used her husband’s father's life as fodder for her fictional setting. She wrote of second chances and a love re-kindled. This book will have appeal for people of all ages, especially those who are young at heart.

I enjoyed this genre blend of historical fiction, romance, and magical realism. Augusta was a very relatable character, and I loved the 1920s Brooklyn pharmacy setting. The family relationship dynamics were well written and added so much to the story. I don't typically love the whole miscommunication trope or the jumping from past to present day because it's been done so much, but I really appreciated how Augusta was still the main character in the 1980s portion of the book instead of having a granddaughter figure out her story through finding a box of old letters or something like that! It was refreshing to see a female MC still looking ahead and building a future at age 80!

This book really took me by surprise! When I first started reading The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern, I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about it, whether it was my kind of book and if it would hold my interest. But I have to say, I absolutely loved this story and I think it was because of a couple of different reasons. First being that it’s an old romance that gets rekindled over 60 years later. And the second thing I enjoyed about it was that its main character is an 80 year old woman. I think that now that I myself am aging, I really enjoy reading books about the older generation. The fact that the storyline all seemed so real and believable was also a plus. And the character of Aunt Esther, I felt added a touch of magic to the story that made it all the more interesting. I really enjoyed reading this and it’s a book I will definitely recommend to other readers. I’d like to thank Rivka Holler, Associate Marketing Manager @ St. Martin’s Press & Wednesday Books for the widget and invite to be an early reader and NetGalley for the arc. This was a great story that shows that it’s never too late to find love and that happiness is possible if you are willing to open your heart and mind and let it in. I loved this story and am giving it a much deserved 5 star rating and would love to add a physical copy to my home library upon release.

First, let's just admire this pretty cover! Anything will plants or flowers will always grab my attention. Next, the story. The Love Exilir of Augusta Stern by Lynda Cohen Loigman was a good book, like a cozy sweater on a chilly fall night. I really enjoyed the story of Augusta.

The book features two timelines, 1920s Brooklyn and 1980s Florida. In the 20’s, Augusta is a young woman with her whole adult life ahead of her. She is determined to be a pharmacist like her father, especially after getting her heart broken by her first love, Irving.

In Florida, decades later, Augusta is retired and just arrived at a senior living center where she runs into who else? Irving.

Her heart is still broken after all of those years, she wants nothing to do with him. But she will learn that things didn’t quite happen as she assumed…

I typically cannot stand any kind of “magical realism” however, in the story, Augusta learns about potions from roots and plants and how/when to use them so it's not technically magic.

This was very enjoyable!

Synopsis:

On the cusp of turning eighty, newly retired pharmacist Augusta Stern is adrift. When she relocates to Rallentando Springs — an active senior community in southern Florida — she unexpectedly crosses paths with Irving Rivkin, the delivery boy from her father’s old pharmacy — and the man who broke her heart sixty years earlier.

As a teenager growing up in 1920’s Brooklyn, Augusta’s role model was her father, Solomon Stern, the trusted owner of the local pharmacy and the neighborhood expert on every ailment. But when Augusta’s mother dies and Great Aunt Esther moves in, Augusta can’t help but be drawn to Esther’s curious methods. As a healer herself, Esther offers Solomon’s customers her own advice — unconventional remedies ranging from homemade chicken soup to a mysterious array of powders and potions.

As Augusta prepares for pharmacy college, she is torn between loyalty to her father and fascination with her great aunt, all while navigating a budding but complicated relationship with Irving. Desperate for clarity, she impulsively uses Esther’s most potent elixir with disastrous consequences. Disillusioned and alone, Augusta vows to reject Esther’s enchantments forever.

Sixty years later, confronted with Irving, Augusta is still haunted by the mistakes of her past. What happened all those years ago and how did her plan go so spectacularly wrong? Did Irving ever truly love her or was he simply playing a part? And can Augusta reclaim the magic of her youth before it’s too late?

Having really enjoyed THE MATCHMAKER’S GIFT, I looked forward to reading THE LOVE ELIXIR OF AUGUSTA STERN. Augusta and her family live in Brooklyn during the 1920s above her father’s drug store. Her Aunt Esther, moves in after Augusta’s mother passes away. She uses natural remedies to help people. Thus a bit of conflict is developed with Augusta’s father. I enjoyed the storylines more during this time period than the second period set in 1987 when seventy-nine-year-old Augusta moves to a retirement community in Florida where she encounters her old boyfriend and father’s delivery boy Irving Rivkin. I always learn a lot when reading Loigman’s stories. There were a couple of twists I did not see.

Wow!!
What a fabulous story! An 80 year old moves to a Florida retirement village and surprise! Her long lost love lives there too! But why are they star crossed lovers? Loigman takes us back and forth in time as their tale unfolds for the reader. Full of hilarious moments I loved this story with an older protagonist and enjoyed how the author wove this tale together with some surprises!.

4.5⭐ rounded up

Refreshing and heartwarming. Augusta Stern, a newly retired pharmacist, retired to a south Florida senior community, and astoundingly runs into the boy/man who broke her heart 60 years ago Told in two timelines from her youth to present day with just touch of magic, the story kept me engaged throughout.

"The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern" by Lynda Cohen Loigman is a cute story about how people who are meant to be together will find each other, no matter what. I know I am in the minority of reviewers, but I just didn't love this book. I found it to be a bit too farfetched (and it wasn't the magical realism elements that were farfetched; it was the plethora of unlikely coincidences) and the characters were too unbelievable to come alive for me. I definitely enjoyed the earlier timeline over the latter one, but it wasn't enough to completely redeem the story for me. I am not a fan of cutesy romance novels and would never have picked this one up if I had known more about the story. This book is definitely for fans of romance and those who like lighter reads.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

If your Halloween vibe is more cozy than creepy, this is the book for you. Augusta Stern has just moved into a retirement community in Florida, red bathing suit in hand ready to swim some laps and play canasta, when she runs into an old flame, her only flame, the one who broke her heart. The novel jumps between her conundrum in the present (1987) and the story that set the conflict in motion back in the 1920s. Throw in some prohibition era gangsters and an unconventional homemade elixir from great aunt Esther and you’ve got a cozy fall read. I really enjoyed this one and the move to tell stories about women of all ages. If you liked Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame or The Summer House by @laurenkdentonbooks you’ll like this (and vice versa).

A story told in dual timelines, about Augusta Stern. Augusta is an 80 year old former pharmacist, forced to retire and living in a retirement community in Florida. She crosses path with someone from her past, Irving Rivkin a boy who worked delivering for her father's pharmacy business, and her first love who broke her heart.

As a girl she idolized her father and wanted to be just like him, but when her mother dies young and her father's Aunt Esther comes to stay with them and help around the house her perspective on healing changes. She struggles with her loyalty to her father and his profession, and the obvious impact Esther's remedies make in people around them. When she makes an Elixir for Irving and the outcome is not what she wanted she vows to never use them ever again.

Will their reconnection fix all the mistakes of their past? Will Augusta forgive herself and Irving for things that happened when they were young and just doing their best?

There is something about this author's writing that just hits for me. I love her characters, and the slightly magical yet ordinary element that really makes the book sparkle. The sense of community and kinship her characters have just warm my heart. She does deal with harder topics but it still feels like such a cozy book. The dual timeline element really added to the story, and kept me interested to find out what happened in the past to make the events of the present be what they are.

What a cutie little read! I loved elderly Augusta and her little retirement home. I loved the geriatric boy drama. And young Augusta was so easy to root for. Ester is a gem. This book was PERFECTION. Anyone with a soul would enjoy it!

Entertaining story of a woman pharmacist who took over her father's drug store after he passed. She also had a great aunt who dabbled in homeopathic medicines, so Augusta learned about that. When she retired at 80 she moved to Florida and met up with people from her past.

4.5 stars Told in dual timelines, Augusta's story of her coming to adulthood in 1920s Brooklyn and retirement in 1987's South Florida is a story of missed chances, letting oneself be loved for who one truly is, and the wisdom of women in the home. Her great-aunt Esther is a fantastic mentor as she comes into their motherless home and helps the girls arrive at adulthood, all the while training Augusta in homeopathy. The mishaps young Augusta and Irving face could break your heart, but the retirement community and Jackie put it back together. An absolutely lovely story!

This is a (new to me) author, and I will definitely be looking for more of her works. I enjoyed the story being in two different timelines, although I think I liked the younger Augusta, a little better than the older one. I can’t wait to see what more Ms. Loigman has to offer.


I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This book was amazing! Told via dual timelines, this book deals with the life of Augusta Stern. In the 1920s, young Augusta works in her father’s pharmacy. We follow her thru this prohibition era and life with Aunt Esther, who brings her own remedies to those that need them. The 1980s deals with 80 year old Augusta, who moves to a retirement community after being forced into retirement. It’s so fun to see the two timelines collide. A story of second chances; it’s never too late for happily ever after.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a digital advance reader copy. All comments and opinions are my own.

The title was charming. The premise was intriguing. And the novel was an appealing page-turner, although a bit predictable. But sometimes that’s the kind of book I feel like reading, with a heartwarming happily ever after.

“The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern” tells the story of a woman of a certain age getting a second chance at love with her first boyfriend of sixty years ago. The narrative is told in two timelines and two locations, alternating between 1920’s New York and 1987 Florida. In addition to Augusta’s coming-of-age story, author Lynda Cohen Loigman inserts a story of Augusta’s Aunt Esther, a woman who learns to both survive and thrive despite the limitations of society.

Growing up in a middle-class Jewish family in New York, Augusta had always wanted to become a pharmacist like her father. While he encouraged her, they both knew it would be difficult as in the 1920s women were not expected to have a career. When Augusta’s mother dies, Aunt Esther comes to live with them - to keep house, cook, and clean.

And that’s when the novel becomes something more. Esther helps people, mostly women, with her mixtures and elixirs, potions and powders, and often her homemade chicken soup. This is where the novel veers into magical realism, and also provides a message about women’s strength and ability to overcome the time period’s restrictions.

“If a person is denied a formal education,” Esther told Augusta, “She must be inventive in her quest for knowledge She must study the folktales and the old stories. She must learn however she can. She must use every tool at her disposable.”

This is a second chance story of misunderstandings and magic, medicine and miracles, fate and forgiveness. It is about Augusta, who “wanted to be a woman who yes, had suffered losses, but whose heart had not yet been broken beyond repair. A woman who was curious and hopeful and who still believed in the glimmers of magic that made their way quietly into the world.”