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Book Reviewed by:From the international bestselling author of The Gilded Hour comes Sara Donati's enthralling epic about two trailblazing female doctors in nineteenth-century New York.
Obstetrician Dr. Sophie Savard returns home to the achingly familiar rhythms of Manhattan in the early spring of 1884 to rebuild her life after the death of her husband. With the help of Dr. Anna Savard, her dearest friend, cousin, and fellow physician she plans to continue her work aiding the disadvantaged women society would rather forget.
As Sophie sets out to construct a new life for herself, Anna's husband, Detective-Sergeant Jack Mezzanotte calls on them both to consult on two new cases: the wife of a prominent banker has disappeared into thin air, and the corpse of a young woman is found with baffling wounds that suggest a killer is on the loose. In New York it seems that the advancement of women has brought out the worst in some men. Unable to ignore the plight of New York's less fortunate, these intrepid cousins draw on all resources to protect their patients.
With its focus on smart, courageous women physicians, who were a rarity but certainly not unheard of in the late 19th century, Where the Light Enters easily sets itself apart in the genre of historical fiction. It is an excellent followup to The Gilded Hour, but also can be read as a standalone novel. The controversial themes, headstrong heroines and gripping accounts of high-stakes medical trials all come together to create a winning combination...continued
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(Reviewed by Tara Mcnabb).
The 19th century was a time of revolutionary changes in the areas of industrialism, democracy and the sciences, yet despite these radical shifts in society, the general public still viewed women as inherently less intelligent and less capable than men. Revered 19th century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche remarked, "When a woman has scholarly inclinations there is usually something wrong with her sexual organs." Given this backdrop of sexist thinking, it's not surprising that many women had to fight to prove themselves worthy of professional titles. Perhaps one of the most notoriously difficult career choices a woman could make at that time was to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. Women had long been considered "morally unfit" to...
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