From the Bookshelf of Q&A with Josh Lanyon…

The Apothecary's Garden

Julie Bozza

Start date: September 1, 2021

Finish date: October 1, 2021

Discussion: Book of the Month Club

Why we're reading this: This will be our September read!
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Book of the Month Club

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What Members Thought

May 02, 2013 Enny rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

For this gem of a book I'll ignore my resolution not to post reviews here anymore because it deserves all the love it can get. Please bear with me for getting very personal in my review.

Some people might feel uncomfortable about the fact that one of the MCs is a 65-year old man and the age difference between the men and 42 years definitely IS a huge difference. They might wonder why such a wonderful young man would fall in love with a man who could easily be his grandfather and since the book is For this gem of a book I'll ignore my resolution not to post reviews here anymore because it deserves all the love it can get. Please bear with me for getting very personal in my review.

Some people might feel uncomfortable about the fact that one of the MCs is a 65-year old man and the age difference between the men and 42 years definitely IS a huge difference. They might wonder why such a wonderful young man would fall in love with a man who could easily be his grandfather and since the book is written from Hilary's POV, I initially had the same reservations. But I've been together with a man 15 years my senior ever since I was 23 and now he is one year younger than Hilary and I still find him very attractive. Older men have their own beauty. Plus the love of my life is the most caring, patient and the wisest man I've ever met and that is even more important than age. Things like date of birth becomes completely unimportant when you meet your soul mate.

And the author did a wonderful job of showing how they both liked the same things, had the same values and how well they fit together. At first I though it would've been better to also learn about Tom's feelings but after a while I came to appreciate what Ms. Bozza did. Seeing their love story solely from Harold's view, his instant attraction to Tom, his contentment at finally having someone to share his life with, his wonder at having someone who might actually be attracted to him, his doubts, fears and scruples, his despair when he thinks he might have lost Tom and his joy about being loved back touched me deeply.

Hilary is 65 years old and when he was young, being with another man was a criminal offense so he became very guarded of his feelings and desires, settling for a life of solitude and becoming rather set in his ways. Tom is a 23 year old grad student with an unquenchable enthusiasm for life and a very sunny disposition. But both men have a deeply caring nature, putting the other's need before their own and this is what ultimately convinced me that their relationship might actually work.

Another thing that I loved about the book was the neglected garden and its restoration. Two years ago I became sick with a pretty bad case of arthritis and while I waited for it to get better, my garden became a wilderness with 6 foot high weeds. When I finally realized that things were never going to be the way they were, I was lucky to find a very energetic young man on the internet who successfully tackled the weeds and now my garden is very beautiful again and a source of great joy to me.

Plus the prose in the book is absolutely beautiful. Some sentences absolutely took my breath away which is another reason why this is a 5 star read for me.

Hilary took a moment to rest careful fingertips against his cheek, reliving the sense–memory of Tom's lips against his skin. He thought that, if he were especially careful with it, if he nurtured it and didn't wear it out, that moment might see him through decades of loneliness.

Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy who fell in love when Christopher was 48 and Don 18 and who stayed together till the day Christopher died.
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32 likes · Like · see review

Jul 03, 2013 Mandy*reads obsessively* rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: feel-good-read, m-m, cute-easy-light, sniffle, closet, sweet, friends-to-lovers, hurt-comfort-disability, cinderfella, age-gap

I bought the paperback of this book and took it with me to all my appointments and read it while I was waiting, which took a bit, but honestly, this book deserves the slow approach. It deserves to be savored and enjoyed, like a good cup of tea. Not rushed through.
Like Butterfly Hunter this is a slow meandering, flowing like a small stream, no big action or wild emotions. Friendship and then love develops between two men who at least at first glance are very different.
Hilary is a very quiet and I bought the paperback of this book and took it with me to all my appointments and read it while I was waiting, which took a bit, but honestly, this book deserves the slow approach. It deserves to be savored and enjoyed, like a good cup of tea. Not rushed through.
Like Butterfly Hunter this is a slow meandering, flowing like a small stream, no big action or wild emotions. Friendship and then love develops between two men who at least at first glance are very different.
Hilary is a very quiet and settled man. He's retired and lives alone and always has, no close friends or any family, and he's fine with that.
Tom is working on his thesis and with his excitement and dedication to Hilary's garden and the story of Thaddeus he easily wins Hilary over.
I believe Tom enriched and beautified Hilary's life as much as Hilary enriched and helped Tom find something he was looking for.
“But that was all right, for he knew that this precious gift of love was such a fragile thing. He must keep it safe for its own sake to allow it to thrive, like an exotic plant in its own little glasshouse – and more importantly than that he must protect Tom. Nothing ignoble must attach itself to this wonderful young man. Nothing must harm him in any way.”

There is over a 40 year age difference, which is a lot, not just in years, but in experience. Tom grew up in a much more accepting and open world than Hilary. And of course our life experiences make us who we are.
I really did love seeing them find something together. Having their own rituals and traditions. Their Thursday night date, their tea time. That's what makes it real.
“Oh Tom, I’ve never asked for anything more from life than contentment, and for most of my years I’ve had exactly that. I suppose it seemed too much and too late to start asking for happiness.”

This is a story for people who enjoy quiet and understated stories, strong emotions but not yelled out, they are all the more powerful for being whispered.

I had one or two things I was a little uncertain of, but it didn't diminish my enjoyment. (view spoiler)
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May 05, 2013 Ije the Devourer of Books rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This story has a very different feel when compared to other m/m romance stories. It is genteel and warm and very pleasant. It evokes in me the kinds of feelings I had when enjoying summer time as a child. Don't get me wrong, there is emotion and anxiety in this book but it is just presented differently and this is what makes this book so beautiful.

Normally the books I read in the m/m genre are full of action: police, army, cowboys, detectives, soldiers, marines, globe trotting business men, fire This story has a very different feel when compared to other m/m romance stories. It is genteel and warm and very pleasant. It evokes in me the kinds of feelings I had when enjoying summer time as a child. Don't get me wrong, there is emotion and anxiety in this book but it is just presented differently and this is what makes this book so beautiful.

Normally the books I read in the m/m genre are full of action: police, army, cowboys, detectives, soldiers, marines, globe trotting business men, firemen, medics, drama, drama, drama along with angst, mystery and a good dose of rumpy pumpy (sex) !! Often the energy of these books is ramped up by vampires, werewolves, shape shifters and all manner of paranormal beings. There is always boundless energy and no boundaries. This is what makes the m/m romance genre such a fantastic genre to get stuck into.

Not so this book. Here the main character is retired and living a quiet life in a country village and love comes to him not with action and high octane activity, but with the quiet of shared interests, academic studies, and a love that grows out of quiet companionship.

Their's is a love that emerges from a foundation of solid friendship, one that is based on tea, sandwiches, Midsomer Murders, Bach, fish and chips, and the British countryside. The story has a slow and beautiful pace.

I enjoyed this. It is nice to have a story about two people who quietly overcome their challenges (age) to form a deep relationship and strong love. It is a story with language that paints pictures. It has left me feeling saddened that my local traditional fish and chip shops have changed into 21st century fries & chicken grab - and - go places. I now feel the need to organise my daily tea drinking and to leave London and go roaming about the British country side in search of gardens and flowers. Above all I really desire my own garden with plants, herbs and a patio, and sunshine and country quiet and love.

This is a soft and beautiful love story and a pleasure to read. ...more

13 likes · Like · see review

May 08, 2013 Antonella rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Just read another 5 stars review like the one of Vio or Macky. They've already expressed the beauty of this book.

ETA: A few people here criticized the book because the big age gap is not likely. I asked the permission of a friend to share the fact that he has been in and out of a relationship with a man 40 years older than him in the last 4 years. I thought the relationship had definitely ended, but there is still some attachment there. I loved the relationship in the book, but I'm skeptical abo ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Jun 27, 2016 Bellbomb Bellbomb rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: julie-bozza

My eyes were moist over the last few pages. This novel is certainly the most romantic and dreamy, yet in every way as plausible as a truly loving relationship between any couple of any inclination can be. I can't not give it the highest possible rating for how deeply moving the story makes me feel. Thank you Julie Bozza for introducing such a lovely couple and for daring to challenge the general preconception about a union between 2 persons of a huge age difference. It gives me hope that somewhe ...more

1 like · Like · see review

May 06, 2013 Meggie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: m-m-romance-romance

This story is absolutely beautiful. The main story plot is surely a peculiar slow developing love story between younger Tom and older Hilary, which I personally wouldn't easily accept. But Julie Bozza gave us here a warm, especially well written realistic romance. I loved Hilary mindset and his attitude toward young Tom and all other secondary characters. He was a true shy gentleman. What is not to love here. Maybe I did miss Tom's POV, but even so, I loved it all!! ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Apr 27, 2014 Sarah rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A really lovely book.

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May 03, 2013 Uli rated it really liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 because of the bravery of writing about such a huge age gap. :)
I think the book was well written and the relationship didn't feel weird in any way despite it not being what we are used to from most books.
I could especially imagine Hilary vividly from the way he was written.
My main concern with the book was, that it was sometimes too sugary sweet for my personal taste. ...more

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