I loved this book with my whole dumb heart.

First off, I love that the MCs are ‘of an age’. As much as I love Romantasy, I’m over 24-year-old characters, whose brains aren’t fully cooked, yet are tasked with saving the world.

I loved the reverse Grumpy Sunshine trope, ‘though Augusta is less Grump and more ZERO NONSENSE.

The dual timelines was lovely. Some books require you to make a detailed red-thread board, but this author filled in knowledge gaps clearly and concisely.

The two settings were fantastic. 1920s Jewish Brooklyn and 1980s Seniors’ Florida were both vibrant in a way my brain translated into music.

The interplay between ‘modern’ and ‘traditional’ medicine was super-interesting. I loved how the author didn’t land on one or the other as ‘better’ but sat firmly on the fence.

The only thing I didn’t like, was all the non-communication (The Miscommunication Trope’s bastard cousin). Y’all need to read some Brene Brown and TALK TO EACH OTHER.

I had thought The Matchmaker’s Gift was this author’s only other book. Can’t wait to track the other two previous works down.

Thanks to NetGalley, St Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for this fantastic ARC.

Upon her retirement from a career as a pharmacist and on the cusp of her 80th birthday, Augusta Stern retires to Florida and coincidentally connects with an old flame, Irvin. She’s quite salty with him; after all, they have a history of hurt feelings! Told in dual timelines, the reader gets to explore 1920s NYC from a local pharmacy (there’s a fun subplot here involving a great-aunt and her apothecary shop) and slowly learn the events that led to Augusta and Irvin going separate ways. Themes include aging, women in science, found family, and finding love later in life. Despite my cynical ways as a reader, I found myself charmed! Read the author’s note here, it bumped my rating up a notch for sure.

Thanks to the publisher via NetGalley for the e-arc.

This is a charming romance cloaked in a dual timeline. Augusta Stern has spent her life as a pharmacist in the NYC area. Now approaching eighty she has relocated to a small retirement community in Florida. But that community is not as small as she thinks. Her path once again crosses with Irving Rivkin, the delivery boy who worked at her father’s pharmacy back in Brooklyn during the 1920s. Her feelings about him are still very mixed. Loigman traces back to Augusta’s early days when she lived with her adored Dad and her enigmatic Great Aunt Esther, who was a healer in her own way. Then Loigman pivots back and forth to modern day Florida. Is it too late to learn what happened back then? Will it make a difference going forward? Light, enjoyable novel. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this title.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

My Canadian Thanksgiving reads have been the highlight of October. In her main protagonist, Augusta Stern, Lynda Cohen Loigman has created one of the most delightful and heartwarming characters. A second chance romance between characters in their eighties? It made me laugh and cry (even long after I closed the book). Just when I felt that I might be tired of dual timelines( this one is 1920's/1980's), I stand corrected and have a book that I am going to recommend that everyone must place on their list!!


Publication Date 08/10/24
Goodreads Review 15/10/24

Using two timelines, the 1920s and the 1980s, author Lynda Cohen Loigman tells a compelling tale of starting over and second chances.

At the novel's open in 1987, Augusta at a spry 80-years-old is forced to retire from her job at a hospital. Feeling upset and at loose ends, she decides to move to a condo in a small retirement community that her niece Jackie found for her in Florida. Augusta is a woman who likes her routines and plans, and has no desire to change once she moves to her new apartment. She is horrified and experiences a rush of emotions when she discovers that her old flame Irving is living in the same condo. Despite doing her best to avoid him, she is forced to begin to confront memories of her adolescence.

Teenaged Augusta and her sister Bess and their father Solomon lived in together in Brooklyn in the 1920s. Augusta looked up to her pharmacist father, Solomon Stern, who was a respected and trusted figure in their neighbourhood, and Augusta yearned to learn how to be a pharmacist, just like him.

After Augusta's mother died from diabetes, and Solomon was unable to do anything to prevent it, he fell into a depression. Then, Augusta's great aunt Esther moved in with them. Esther, though not a pharmacist, had her own cures for situations, and Augusta was drawn to the woman, even while Solomon fumed that his authority was being undermined every time someone asked Esther for one of her treatments, such as something as seemingly benign as soup, or an order to wear boots instead of high heels.

Though Solomon was mired in grief, he reluctantly allowed Augusta to learn a little from him, and she chose to learn from Esther. Augusta also became fascinated, and later fell for, her father's delivery boy Irving, a kind person who was equally enamoured with her. Their lives together seemed a given, but something sent them off in separate directions. Augusta was convinced it was her misuse of one of Esther's concoctions, and consequently refused to countenance anything but medically-approved drugs, rather than Esther's homemade cures. Augusta also never found anyone to spend her life with, but had a wonderful relationship with her beloved niece Jackie.

The author does a great job of bringing the two timelines and their many characters to life, though I will confess to enjoying the 1987 period a little more, probably because we see the professionally successful and personally lonely Augusta get a chance to change her life.

I loved the way Augusta and Irving did eventually find their way back into each other's lives, and Augusta finally began to open herself up to new relationships and friendships. There is plenty of sadness and humour throughout the story, and much as I liked Augusta and enjoyed her gradual transformation, proving that it's never too late to embrace new things in life, I loved some of the side characters, particularly Esther, whose homespun treatments could have been just sensible, or could have been a touch magical? Either way, this was an enjoyable story, and I'm interested in checking out other works by this author.

I went back and forth between the text and the audio, and greatly enjoyed the talented voice work of Gabra Zackman, who injects emotion into every character, bringing each alive with humour and compassion.

Thank you to Netgalley and to St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for these ARCs in exchange for my review.

I love the way Loigman writes her characters across time, giving them depth and allowing us to see into their motivations. This story follows Augusta Stern as she is forced to retire when she turns 80 and she moves down to Florida in the 1980s. We then hop back in time to when she was a teenager in 1920’s Brooklyn, and toggle between her life as a young adult and her life now in her 80s. I loved getting to know young Augusta and see her teenage motivations, and then catch up with her in her 80s and see how the choices she made for herself affected her life. At the retirement home in Florida she runs into multiple people from her old neighborhood in Brookly, including Irving, the one who broke her heart.

Loigman is so good at writing characters that make me want to hug them at the end, even if I don’t always agree with their choices, Loigman explains so well why they make those choices. She is absolutely an auto-buy author. The Matchmakers Gift, is one of my favorite books of all time.
The Love Elixir is a solid book that I will absolutely be recommending to anyone who loves a good character driven story with a dash of romance thrown in.

*The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern* is a novel that explores the resilience of the human spirit through a heartwarming and thought-provoking narrative. The author, Loigman, demonstrates exceptional storytelling skills and rich character development, making this book a notable work in contemporary fiction. The novel serves as a poignant reminder that new beginnings are always possible and that the past, despite its challenges, can provide strength and wisdom.

This book is highly recommended for readers who appreciate historical fiction with elements of magical realism. Its engaging plot, well-developed characters, and insightful themes offer a rewarding reading experience. Whether you seek a story of love, redemption, or simply a beautifully crafted novel, **The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern** is likely to leave a lasting impression.

This book is absolutely adorable and as sweet as one of Aunt Esther’s apple cakes. In this book, Lynda Cohen Loigman weaves a tale of second chance love, medicine and healing.
The story of Augusta Stern is told in then and now timelines in the 1920s and 1980s, toggling between Brownsville, NY and a retirement community in Florida. It explores the mystery of what happened between Augusta and her boyfriend, Irving Rivkin on one disastrous day in the 1920s, when they meet again in their 80s. Their inevitable reunion is wonderfully predictable and getting there is a lot of fun.
I love Lynda Cohen Loigman’s stories that center Jewish history and Jewish joy and cannot wait for the next one.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

If you are looking for a heartwarming story of love and second chances with a hint of magic, read THE LOVE ELIXIR OF AUGUSTA STERN. This dual timeline novel follows Augusta as a young girl working at her dad's pharmacy and learning to make her great aunt's 'special recipes' and jumps to her as an 80 year old woman, who is reunited with a past love. I loved learning about Augusta's life growing up in the 1920's and her retirement community in Florida. The characters jumped off the page and the Jewish rep in this was top tier. I genuinely loved the message that it is never too late to find happiness. Pair this with a bowl of chicken soup. Thank you St Martins Press and Netgalley for my physical copy and earc. This is the cozy, uplifting read you are looking for this fall.

In The Love Elixier of Augusta Stern, in the late 1980s, an 80 year old woman, Augusta, is forced into retirement and relocates to a Florida. In her community, she is reunited with her first love as a teenager so the story flips back and forth between the 1920s in Brooklyn and the 1980s. And the 1920s was Augusta’s life with her dad, sister and her aunt who had homemade remedies to heal all the ailments of their neighbors. I loved every second of this book. I loved the magical realism. I loved the back and forth with the timelines. I loved the retirement community folks. I loved seeing Augusta mature and stand up for herself. I laughed out loud so many times. A true delight to read.

Sometimes you get a second chance at love

Eighty years young, pharmacist Augusta Stern is finally being forced to retire. Her niece Jackie, as close to her in many ways as a daughter, has helped her to find a condo in Florida in an active senior community called Rallentando Springs. She has no sooner arrived than she bumps into someone she knew when she was a young woman back in Brooklyn, Irving Rivkin. He isn’t just some random fellow, though; he is the man with whom she had fallen in love back in the 1920’s and whom she was sure she would marry….until he abruptly moved to Chicago and married the wealthy daughter of a mobster. Now, six decades later, she is determined not to make the same mistake twice and succumb to his charms, despite Irving’s flirtatious behavior and the attraction she can’t quite dismiss. Life may have just thrown her another curveball, but Augusta has kept herself safe from heartbreak these many years. Does she dare risk her heart one last time?
There are some characters with whom you quickly fall in love and find a place in your imagination to tuck them away, and this book has quite a few of them whom the reader meets as chapters flip back and forth between present day Florida and a 1920’s Brooklyn neighborhood. First there is Augusta, who loses her mother as a relatively young girl and whose intellect and curiosity lead her to overcome numerous obstacles and become a pharmacist as was her father before her, ultimately taking over his drugstore. She is also a young woman in love with the boy who works in her father’s store, a boy who seems to see her for who she is and loves her because of rather than despite it, a young girl who is as intrigued by her father’s world of pharmacology as she is by her great aunt’s world of herbal healing. Then there is Irving, from impoverished circumstances but with a caring and generous heart, who finds Augusta’s intelligence and drive to be beautiful. Augusta’s father and great-aunt, her sister, and the people in their neighborhood whose lives they touch, including a ruthless mobster, a woman desperate to have a baby, and more come to life in amidst their small neighborhood, while the Florida community becomes the backdrop against which two men will fight over Augusta even as other women scheme to land one themselves. Humor is interwoven with love, loss, pain, hope and the magic of healing in a story which I tried desperately to make last as long as I could, knowing that I would miss these quirky, nuanced characters even as I rooted for a happily-ever-after ending for a couple who had once dreamed of a future together until fate and their own choices intervened. Perfect for lovers of the books of Elizabeth Berg, Elizabeth Strout and Elinor Lipman, trust me….grab a copy of The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern and sink into a world where its never too late for new beginnings. Many, many thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for allowing me early access to this gem of a novel.

Thank you St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read and review The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern by Lynda Cohen Loigman on NetGalley.

Published: 10/08/24

Stars: 4.5

Days after reading the book I'm thinking about the characters; these were not real people, but could be and I don't know them. The story feels realistic. I had the corresponding love/hate relationship with the characters. I laughed, chuckled and giggled. I also was saddened, was choked up a couple times, and yes, I teared up.

Augusta is something else in all ways good. I love the relationship she had with her niece.

The synopsis says a lot and I don't want to hint at any spoilers.

I thoroughly loved this book. Loigman told a magnificent story. What does it say that I knew (guessed and never swayed) the ending early on, and I never figure them out? I think the author told a story and I listened.

I recommend without hesitation. Is it a Dad book? Mine would have received a copy....

Another winner from the one and only Lynda Cohen Loigman! Rife with Jewish representation and a tinge of magical realism, I was sad when it was time to say goodbye to the endearing Augusta Stern!

Lynda Cohen Loigman’s The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern is a charming and bittersweet novel that beautifully blends romance, family secrets, and the search for identity. Set against the contrasting backdrops of 1920s Brooklyn and a senior community in present-day Florida, the story offers a poignant reflection on aging, second chances, and the choices that shape our lives.

Augusta Stern is an engaging protagonist. On the brink of turning eighty, she is grappling with the unsettling feeling of being adrift after a lifetime of working as a pharmacist. Her move to Rallentando Springs brings a reunion with Irving Rivkin, the man who broke her heart decades ago, triggering memories of her youth and the mistakes she made when she dabbled with her Great Aunt Esther’s unconventional remedies. The story expertly shifts between past and present, allowing readers to slowly uncover the heart of Augusta’s pain and the events that led to her estrangement from Irving.

The novel’s setting in 1920s Brooklyn is one of its strongest elements, vividly evoking the time and place where Augusta’s father’s pharmacy served as the heart of the neighborhood. The dynamic between Augusta’s father, the pragmatic pharmacist, and her eccentric Great Aunt Esther, a healer with her own brand of magic, creates tension that is both emotional and intellectual. Augusta’s struggle to reconcile these two influences — her father’s science-based approach and her aunt’s mystical methods — adds depth to her character and gives the novel a unique twist.

The romance between Augusta and Irving is tender but complicated, marked by misunderstandings and regret. Their reunion in Rallentando Springs feels both nostalgic and hopeful, as Augusta must come to terms with the past and decide whether she’s ready to let love back into her life.

While the novel explores themes of healing and redemption, the pacing can feel slow at times, particularly in the middle sections, and some of the revelations, while touching, are a bit predictable. However, Augusta’s journey of self-forgiveness and her eventual acceptance of both the scientific and magical aspects of her heritage make for a satisfying and emotionally rich read.

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern is a heartwarming novel about the magic of youth, the mistakes that haunt us, and the possibility of second chances at any age. It’s a story that will resonate with anyone who has ever wondered about the roads not taken, and it’s filled with charming moments that celebrate love, family, and the unexpected turns life can take.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern" and all opinions expressed are my own. I listened to the audio book. I thought this was an interesting story. I did enjoy listening to it. Augusta is a wonderful character. It's never too late to fulfill your dreams.

Contemporary • Apothecary • Love Story
Published • 8 October 2024

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @macmillan.audio for the free digital copy and audiobook.

This book was a warm hug: funny, wise, magical, and slightly witchy. All the things you would want in a cozy, heartwarming story.

Did I mention it’s set in a south Florida retirement community and has curmudgeonly old people protagonists? Including a mensch or two!

🍵 Read if you love ✨
• Apothecaries and pharmacies
• Second chance romance
• Crotchety banter of the elderly
• Brooklyn, New York City
• Feminism in the 1920s

The timelines flip between 1920 Brooklyn and late 80s Florida retirement community, where Goldie settles after a forced retirement.

I loved this book as a woman of science *and* a believer in magic, miracles, and old-world healers.

An absolutely fabulous tale of second chances. Recently forced into retirement, eighty years old and never married, Augusta Stern has just moved into a south Florida retirement community and is just settling in. She loves to swim and has barely gotten out of the pool when who should call out to her but the man who broke her heart sixty years ago.
Delightful characters populate this story of lost love. From the wise old great aunt Esther to the rough around the edges Irving, the characters make this story a joy to read. Flipping between Augusta’s New York childhood and her new life in Florida we get to really know and understand the characters and what makes them tick. With just a touch of magic, it is a wonderful love story that was a joy to read. 5 stars

This is a cute rom com where a woman on the cusp of her 80th birthday runs into the love of her life- a man she hasn't seen since she was 18. The story alternates between when they were teenagers and present day.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC! This book was like a warm hug. Future/past storyline of Augusta, her aunt, and family/love. Augusta retired and moved to Florida and runs into her ex love of her life. I adored this book and look forward to more by this author. 5/5 stars from me!

This book was a refreshing light-hearted read with unusual characters and a bit of magical realism. The format of two timelines was not only entertaining but really went a long way to develop the characters of Augusta and Irving. The miscommunication and tension between the main characters was typical of romantic comedy but the couple being 80 years old and the dispute going back 62 years created a different aspect to the story. I found the dialogue to be witty and humorous and the book was an enjoyable and quick read. I also really enjoyed Esther, the wise great aunt who tried to guide Augusta without being overbearing. Her sage advice was a nice addition to the story. The senior living community was a great setting and the pros and cons of residing in this type of community seemed realistic. I would recommend this book for readers looking for a uplifting read to get out of a rut.