IMMORTALITY

Historical fiction with a side of gothic.

Having loved and lost grave-robbing Jack (who possibly survived being hanged thanks to serial killer Dr. Beecham’s tonic but has vanished), Hazel finds solace as the “lady doctor,” caring for Edinburgh’s poor while mourning Jack. Hazel pours her energy into writing a book of medical knowledge designed for ordinary people, not just educated male physicians. After being imprisoned for aiding a woman who aborted an unwanted pregnancy, Hazel is whisked to London to care for Princess Charlotte (as explained in the author’s note, Schwartz creates an alternate history here; the real Charlotte was married and had died in childbirth before her fictional counterpart appears). Once in London, the pacing picks up, but the plot largely maintains a slow burn until a flurry of late-game action. It’s easy to root for Hazel’s self-determination, but she is subsumed by her relationship with the Companions to the Death, a social club of great intellectuals who, as it happens, possess the same tincture and immortality as Beecham. A number of interesting concepts bubble to the surface in this duology closer but largely fizzle out before being fully developed—women’s intellectual rights, the price of immortality, the role of scientific knowledge in society, class tensions, and more. Hazel is White; side characters add some diversity in race and sexual orientation.

Accomplished prose deserving of a better plot.