The Healer's Apprentice

June 24, 2013

Title: The Healer's Apprentice
Author: Melanie Dickerson
Publisher: Zondervan
Pages: 261
ISBN: 978-0-310-72143-7

Synopsis:  
 Two Hearts. One Hope.

Rose has been appointed as a healer's apprentice at Hagenheim Castle, a rare opportunity for a woodcutter's daughter like her. While she often feels uneasy at the sight of blood, Rose is determined to prove herself capable. Failure will mean returning home to marry the aging bachelor her mother has chosen for her—a bloated, disgusting merchant who makes Rose feel ill.

When Lord Hamlin, the future duke, is injured, it is Rose who must tend to him. As she works to heal his wound, she begins to understand emotions she's never felt before and wonders if he feels the same. But falling in love is forbidden, as Lord Hamlin is betrothed to a mysterious young woman in hiding. As Rose's life spins toward confusion, she must take the first steps on a journey to discover her own destiny.


If you like fairy tales, you will like The Healer's Apprentice. It is a new twist on an old classic. I didn't do much research into this book before I started to read it. I saw that it was a fairy tale based book ans started to read, that is rare for me. It was fun to figure out which fairy tale this story was based on. (I will admit, that I have a tendency to read the last couple of pages of the book right after I start reading, and I couldn't figure it out that way.)

I loved the setting of the book. The Healer's Apprentice is set in what is now Germany in 1386. We are placed right in the middle of the Middle Ages. The descriptions in the books are great. The clothes, the buildings, and the way of life is portrayed and it isn't bogged down. The story flows smoothly and keeps you wanting to read more.

Our heroine Rose, is the daughter of the village wood cutter. She knows in her heart that she doesn't want to marry and becoming the apprentice healer to Frau Geruscha is the right path she needs to go, to keep herself from becoming ensnared in her mothers schemes to marry her off. Rose is girl that does her best at learning the healer's ways, even when she feels ill,. She also has her own mind about what is happening around her. She is a strong lead character and even when her emotions become involved, she doesn't let them carry her away. She lets her faith and common sense lead her, even when it leads her to a hard decision.

When Lord Hamlin returns from his time away at the university, he knows his duty and he knows he needs to stand by his word of honor. When he is brought to the Healer after he is injured, Rose is the only one there to help him. After their first meeting, a friendship between the Lord Hamlin and Rose start up and slowly grows to something more for Lord Hamlin when he realizes, he doesn't want to see Rose hurt by certain people around her. Wilhelm, Lord Hamlin, has to decide if he should stick to his honorable word and do the duty his family placed before him or go his own course. 

The decisions that Rose and Wilhelm have to make give this fairy tale a realistic feel. 
Too Read!
4/5

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