The Healer's Apprentice - Book Review

Who says fairy tales are only for children? Melanie Dickerson spins stories from fairy tales that teens and adults can enjoy. The Healer's Apprentice is the first book in her Fairy Tale Romance series, also called the Hagenheim series. If you enjoy Disney Princess movies or fairy tales, then The Healer's Apprentice is perfect for you.

Plot Summary

Rose is grateful for the opportunity to be the healer's apprentice, a rare privilege for a woodcutter's daughter. But her discomfort with blood makes it hard for her to fulfill her duties and she wonders if she is meant to be a healer. When Lord Hamlin, the future duke, is wounded, she's the one who tends him. Their meeting leads to more and stirs up unwanted feelings. Not only would a nobleman never marry someone as poor as her, Lord Hamlin is already engaged.

Lord Hamlin has never met his fiancé because of an evil man who swore he'd kill her when she was a baby. He seeks the villain day and night so his lady may come out of hiding and he can know who she is. But the more he sees Rose, the more he's drawn to her. He struggles between staying faithful to his mysterious betrothed and obeying the impulses of his heart; will he choose love or should he choose honor?

Personal Thoughts

I was curious to see how the author would reimagine Sleeping Beauty. She stayed true to the spirit and main points of the story, but she brought the story to life in a stunning way that didn't rely on magic or any other fairy tale elements. I was surprised with how she wove in the "mysterious deep sleep" angle of the story, but it fit.

Rose was a sweet, somewhat naïve, girl. I empathize with her squeamish stomach whenever there's blood. Sometimes I wished she wasn't so trusting, because then she wouldn't have let Rupert near her. Wilhelm was an honorable nobleman, unlike his brother, and truly wanted to do the right thing.

Rose and Wilhelm were meant to be together, but I had a hard time seeing how that would happen. Part way through the story I suspected what was going on, but didn't know for sure until the very end.

Personally, it took me awhile to get used to the Medieval way of speaking. At first I thought everyone was being a bit dramatic, then I realized that was how they spoke in those days 😂 Thankfully it wasn't overbearing and instead added to the historical feel.

Notes

This book is best for teenagers and adults.

Steam Level: 💋💋

This is the first book in the Hagenheim series.

Ramblings Inspired by the Book

Rose’s struggles mirror a lot of singles, including me. Particularly in the Christian culture, there’s a lot of pressure to find the one, get married, and hurry up before it’s too late. Rose faced the same pressure. Her friends and mother encouraged her to consider men Rose never wanted to meet. Then when Lord Rupert pursued her, they were thrilled. Finally, she was interested in someone. Bring on the wedding!

Frau Geruscha didn’t approve. She knew something Rose didn't and she cautioned the girl to wait, that God was going to bring her someone even better than Rupert. Rose had to trust that this wonderful man was out there. She had to choose to rely not on her own understanding, but God’s.

This is not a post on wise dating, though one could extrapolate the message from the book. What hit me was how Rose could either go her own way, lower her standards, and finally find someone who claims to love her, or she could wait for what God had planned. We have the same choices, both in the dating world or in life in general. Specifically in dating though, it’s tempting to settle so we can be married and have the life and family we want. We say someone is “good enough” and think there’s no need to look further. In other words, we can rely on our own understanding and say nothing better will come. Or we can listen when God tells us to wait, that someone better is on the way.

I'm not suggesting we should have impossibly high standards no one can fulfill. However, I don't think it's unreasonable to think our understanding is limited in romance. God's plan and person is always bigger than we can dream because He is wiser than us. We say "Good enough". God says, "Wait for it; I've got something better in mind."

I don't know who originally said this, but awhile ago I read a quote that went something like, "The devil often brings along his best before God brings along His best." That's what happened to Rose. Thankfully she didn't take the devil's best; she waited for God's best and got the surprise of her life. Could the same thing happen to singles if they held out even when the world (and well meaning Christians) demand they find someone NOW? I think it could. Imagine the true love stories we could tell if we didn't rely on our own understanding and instead relied on God's wisdom when it comes to our personal romance.

For those of you who have read The Healer's Apprentice, what did you think of it? For those who have not read it, would you? Tell me in the comments below!