I was completely captivated by Eleanore of Avignon from the very first page. The novel is set in medieval Provence and follows Elea, the courageous heroine who carries on her mother's legacy as a midwife and herbalist despite the onset of the Black Death in France.

The book is beautifully written, with meticulously researched details and pacing that expertly delves into the emotional depths of love and loss, while also delivering heart-pounding suspense. There was even a moment that made me audibly gasp! Don’t overlook the author’s note at the end, as it deepened my appreciation for the historical figures in the novel.

I will definitely be recommending Eleanore of Avignon to all the book clubs I know.

Thank you, NetGalley and Dutton, for the advance copy to read and review!

Eleanore is a young herbalist who works as a doctor's assistant during the bubonic plague. The epidemic, along with superstitious beliefs held by the people, overtook Europe. The backstories of Eleanore, her patients, her family, and countrymen are realistic and interesting. I love her courage and brilliant mind.

Eleanore is a midwife and herbalist. When she meets the personal physician of the Pope, she persuades him to take her on as an apprentice. As the black death rolls through Italy, pregnant Queen Joanna is in need of a personal physician.

I could not put this book down. It was a fascinating read. The characters and plot kept me interested and reading long into the night. I look forward to reading more from this author. Highly recommended!

I would give this book 6 stars if I could. It was that good. This book is set in 1347, Avignon, France. As the book opens, you will see the city, surrounded by the walls with gates that close at night. You learn that Eleanore is a young midwife trained by her mother. Some think of the mother as a witch. She dies in childbirth with Eleanore attending. The family consists of the father, Eleanore and her twin sister. Also in the household is a housekeeper who is much like another family member. It is a sad household as they are in mourning. There is news of the plague come to Marseilles and it will shortly arrive in Avignon. I can feel the atmosphere of the time and the city--the author makes it so real. The research undertaken by the author appears to be thorough. New and interesting to me: In 1347 the Jewish were required to wear yellow armbands and already discriminated against. The plague came in two forms, one more fatal than the other. Thank you to Penguin Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC of such a good book. This review is my own words.

Fascinating look at medical and herbalist practices in the Middle Ages as practiced by a young Avignon woman apprenticed to a physician of Pope Clement. Issues with religious beliefs, fear and superstition, gender expectations play well in this historical fiction. Great read.

ASI read the author’s note, I was surprised to learn this was a debut novel! So well researched and written! The descriptions of life in the 1300’s in Avignon seemed very realistic to me. And the way the author wrote the story kept me completely engaged!

I received this book from the publisher via net galley in exchange for an honest review. Four and a half stars!

The year is 1347 and the place is the great Papal City of Avignon. Eleanore (Elea) Blanchet is a young herbalist and midwife who was in training with her mother until the latter's recent death in childbirth. Elea still feels culpable in this loss but her strong family connections to her father (a papal accountant) and her twin sister Margot who is looking forward to a bright marriage, have helped her to continue practicing her medical skills. The 14th century was a turbulent time in medieval history with great wealth among the nobility and church but with disgruntled citizens looking for signs of witchcraft or treachery among outsiders in society. Into this mix, rumors of a terrible plague begin to reach Avignon and soon after lives are lost in almost every household.

Not long before the sickness reaches the city, Elea chances to meet the renowned historical doctor of the time Guy de Chauliac, “Guigo" who is working a personal physician to Pope Clement VI. Guigo appreciates Elea's knowledge of folk medicine and after she prepares a tonic to treat the pope's kidney infection, he agrees to take her on as an apprentice. The book details many of the medical beliefs and scholarship of the time, some of which led to capable methods for treating the bubonic plague. It was a fascinating piece of historical fiction from start to finish with many figures from medieval France presented along with a central narrative focused on Elea, a wonderful feminist character. I very much appreciated this vivid historical tale with a touch of romance and plenty of medical lore.

Many thanks to #NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the advance ecopy of this book.

Provence, 1347. Eleanore (Elea) Blanchet is a young midwife and herbalist with remarkable skills. But as she learned the day her mother died, the most dangerous thing a woman can do is draw attention to herself. She attends patients in her home city of Avignon, spends time with her father and twin sister, gathers herbs in the surrounding woods, and dreams of the freedom to pursue her calling without fear. In a chance encounter, Elea meets Guigo de Chauliac, the enigmatic personal physician to the powerful Pope Clement, and strikes a deal with him to take her on as his apprentice. Under Chauliac’s tutelage she hones her skills as a healer, combining her knowledge of folk medicine with anatomy, astrology, and surgical techniques.

Then, two pieces of earth-shattering news: the Black Death has made landfall in Europe, and the disgraced Queen Joanna is coming to Avignon to stand trial for her husband’s murder. She is pregnant and in need of a midwife, a role only Elea can fill. The queen’s childbirth approaches as the plague spreads like wildfire, leaving half the city dead in its wake. The people of Avignon grow desperate for a scapegoat and a group of religious heretics launch a witch hunt, one that could cost Elea—an intelligent, talented, unwed woman—everything.

I've been on a historical fiction kick lately, and this ticked a lot of boxes for me. I'm fascinated by plagues (way before covid!), and the concept of medicine in the Middle Ages (and before) has always been something I enjoy reading about. Absolutely loved this. It was a quick read, and I wish it had lasted longer! I wanted more. 🙂

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced digital reader's copy (ARC) in exchange for an honest review!

Very interesting story. The minute I read it was about an herbalist healing people during the plague, I was intrigued, I love books about healers and famous monarchy. It was well-written and reminded me of the book Hamnet. However, I think it was a little overlong ( and I love long books), and tried to cram too many elements into the story, (a love story, persecution, healing, medieval monarchy, the plague) then it had to have an unbelievable (to me) ending to wrap it all up. I did enjoy the afterword where the author fills you in on what happened to the various real characters in the story. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Heartbreaking but incredibly poignant, Eleanore of Avignon follows the title character Elea, who was trained as a midwife by her mother but was unable to save her mother and baby brother during childbirth. She has enemies in the church that want to brand her a witch, but when the plague sweeps through France, Elea apprentices with the pope’s personal surgeon to use both the medical knowledge of doctors and midwives to try and cure victims. The story is well told with many historical details, but it is the relationships between characters that shine brightly.

I don’t think I’ve ever read a historical fiction novel set during the Black Death and I thought this one was exceptional. Accurate to the time, yet feminist without being man-hating. I cared deeply about the characters and it made me eager to read some more stories from the Middle Ages.

Eleanore is a pleasant and eagerly helpful healer that any reader will enjoy spending time with in this quickly evolving story of life in the mid-1300's. Clearly well-researched, this story includes valid medical and historical information so artfully woven into Eleanor's work with patients that I felt totally immersed in old Avignon and gladly followed Eleanor between the woods, the town, the Pope's palace, and every rewarding turn in the plot.

What I really loved:
- I’m in a fair historical fiction mood lately and this one did not disappoint! I loved the feeling of being taken back in time to Avignon. Having visited the Provence region of France a handful of years ago, it was lovely revisiting it in a different way, through a historic lens, and through the eyes of characters that really lived.
- There were many characters that I really enjoyed, and while the novel didn’t go too terribly deep into who they were as people, it felt like the spirit of who they were was captured well.
- I loved the herbalist and midwifery perspective and feeling like I was a fly on the wall as physicians attempted to do the best they could with the knowledge they had (and some absolutely outrageous ideas) to fight off an invisible enemy that can now be treated with basic antibiotics.
- I really enjoyed the female perspective of a character trying to become something that society deemed entirely unattainable. While there were some unrealistic turns in the plot with her character, I suspended my disbelief for the sake of being hopeful and happy that a female character in a terrible time in history was able to come out okay.
- It was bingeable - I read most of it in one sitting and just couldn’t stop. Lots of plot!

What I didn’t love:
- This felt like a really fast read! Some of that was because it was really good, and so I read quickly. But also I don’t know that this was a very large book either. I think if the author had wanted to, she could’ve expanded even more on the events and people of the time in more detail. But as it stands, it was still fantastic and enjoyable. If you especially are the type of reader that does not enjoy dense historical fiction with lots of detail but stories that you can still feel immersed in, I think this is a solid choice!
- I feel like all the loose ends were tied up very quickly at the end. It was still well done but the end kind of snuck up on me and then the story was over. I still think readers will be entirely content with the ending regardless!

Overall:
I really did enjoy this one! It immersed me in a time and place, surrounded me with historical people and events, and kept me reading until the last line. If you like historical fiction, just enjoy detail to really set the stage and the players (but not too much), and a good feministy plot line, I definitely recommend it!

Thank you to both Dutton (Penguin) and Netgalley for allowing me to read an early review copy!