The Bibliophile's Bookshelf

Title: The Healer’s Apprentice

Series: Hagenheim #1

Author: Melanie Dickerson

Genre: Young Adult, Retelling, Clean Romance, Christian Fiction

Rating: 4 stars

Review:

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. – summary from Goodreads

The Healer’s Apprentice is a unique historical/Christian fiction Sleeping Beauty retelling!

If you have been following me for a while, you know how much I love Melanie Cellier and her amazing Christian retellings. I thought this book would be very similar to those books. I was wrong- these take place during medieval times and there isn’t any magic.

I really didn’t know much going into these books- I knew they were Christian, and I knew they were retellings. Because of this, I struggled a little getting into the book.

I did really enjoy this book. I will say it is very Christian. With the Melanie Cellier books, the Christianity aspects of the book are more implied and seen in how the characters act. That is not true here. The characters pray often, do things in the name of God, act according to the Bible- all of which I loved. One of my favorite things about this book was the aspect of disappointing God affecting you being a big part of Christian’s lives.

This does take place in Germany during the late 1400s, early 1500s, so the Catholic church does play a big role in the storyline. I am not Catholic, and I think Dickerson did a nice job of making it Catholic enough for the time period but not too Catholic for non-Catholic readers.

Even if you are not a Christian, but you enjoy history, I highly encourage you to read this book. It does a really good job of showing how close God was in the daily lives of people in the past that is hard to understand now. If you have ever struggled with understanding that in history class, then this book puts it in a new perspective. It also shows how to properly address someone, which was a little confusing for me at times.

I loved the characters! Wilhelm and Rose were truly wonderful! They were so sweet and cute together, and they were strong characters on their own too. I really liked how they cared for each other but still wanted to follow the customs of that time period. I also liked how calm their relationship was- there was drama, but it wasn’t overdone. I will always love a protective MMC, and Wilhelm didn’t disappoint. And I will always love a sweet FMC, and Rose didn’t disappoint.

I will say I think this books is ages fifteen and up. It’s not inappropriate, but it does deal with some heavy things. It’s very historical so it does deal with some assault- nothing graphic but still dark. This book also has spiritual warfare. This can be a lot, and while only a few pages, it made me a little uncomfortable at moments.

I liked how the tale of Sleeping Beauty was woven into the story. It was well done, and I quite enjoyed it. At times I forgot I was reading a retelling- it felt brand new and unique. There is no magic in this book, so at times it looked very different from the original.

The Healer’s Apprentice is a wonderful historical retelling of Sleeping Beauty, with Christian themes, romance, and wonderful protagonists that keep you rooting until the end!