I thought the writing was good. The differential setting could have been bettered portrayed. I did not feel any dramatic differences then the apparent use of phones in one century and chamber pots in the other. I didn't care for how feminine the book was. I was told apothecary, mystery, and murder , and instead , it only focused on three women one who was thoroughly depressed , one who blamed her husband for everything , and one who was only a child. Maybe it was the fact that all any of them ever seemed to talk about was pregnancy and how much they wanted a child , except for Caroline in the last 40 say 50 pages. Or maybe it was my lack of intrust and overall admiration for how the characters handled the problems throughout the book. I couldn't find much reason to keep turning the page.