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The Laboratory Assistant
In a city on the brink of revolution, science and passion offer their own strains of violence.
Petrograd, 1916 After her aristocratic family's fall from fortune, Mariya is desperate to survive - and to support her widowed mother and sisters. Matters alleviate when she finds work as an assistant to Dr. Nikolas Rodin, a reclusive scientist. Though the job makes ends meet, she is soon pulled into his strange and secretive a world of flickering gaslights, whispered experiments, and a man whose brilliance is as alluring as it is unstable.
Tuberculosis and revolution both ravage Russia. And as political unrest swells and illness creeps closer, Mariya finds herself torn between a future of safety and a love that threatens to unravel everything. But in the dark corridors of the laboratory, nothing is as it seems - and the line between devotion and danger disappears entirely.
Darkly romantic and steeped in suspense, THE LABORATORY ASSISTANT explores the perilous chemistry of desire, madness, and the choices that haunt us.
Petrograd, 1916 After her aristocratic family's fall from fortune, Mariya is desperate to survive - and to support her widowed mother and sisters. Matters alleviate when she finds work as an assistant to Dr. Nikolas Rodin, a reclusive scientist. Though the job makes ends meet, she is soon pulled into his strange and secretive a world of flickering gaslights, whispered experiments, and a man whose brilliance is as alluring as it is unstable.
Tuberculosis and revolution both ravage Russia. And as political unrest swells and illness creeps closer, Mariya finds herself torn between a future of safety and a love that threatens to unravel everything. But in the dark corridors of the laboratory, nothing is as it seems - and the line between devotion and danger disappears entirely.
Darkly romantic and steeped in suspense, THE LABORATORY ASSISTANT explores the perilous chemistry of desire, madness, and the choices that haunt us.
390 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 2, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
September 16, 2026
The laboratory assistant takes place in 1916 Russia and follows the story of Mariya doing her best to support her sisters and ill mother.
Although the premises of the story is interesting; the story dragged at times and the some of the dialogue felt out of place.
Thank you to Natalia Loya for providing this audiobook for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Although the premises of the story is interesting; the story dragged at times and the some of the dialogue felt out of place.
Thank you to Natalia Loya for providing this audiobook for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
August 15, 2026
🥼🖤 The Laboratory Assistant ALC Review 🖤🥼
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
🌶️
📗 The Laboratory Assistant is a lush, atmospheric, morally messy debut that works best when it embraces the collision of its various worlds: science and superstition, reason and madness, love and obsession, privilege and poverty, personal survival and political revolution.
Set in Petrograd in 1916, the story follows Mariya Sokolova, a young woman from a once-aristocratic family that has fallen into poverty. With her mother ill and her younger sisters depending on her, she takes a position working for Dr. Nikolas Rodin, a brilliant but troubled scientist attempting to find a cure for tuberculosis. Meanwhile, Russia is approaching revolution, and the increasingly unstable world outside the laboratory begins to mirror what is happening inside it.
What makes the novel particularly compelling is that the laboratory becomes almost a character itself. It is simultaneously a workplace, refuge, place of discovery, source of danger, and symbolic representation of Nikolas's mind.
The scientific experiments are fascinating (and, at times, morally questionable) because the book isn't simply asking, Can science save people? It's asking a much uglier question:
What are you willing to sacrifice to save someone you love?
That question gives the romance, the scientific plot, and the historical setting a common thematic center.
As much as I loved it, the novel isn't quite flawless. There are places where the plotting or transitions could have benefited from another editing pass. The middle slowed down or that certain plot threads weren't developed as fully as they could have been. Others, however, found the pacing compelling and praised the increasingly tense final act
So for me, this is a strong, highly atmospheric debut with a couple minor execution issues, but one whose ambition makes it considerably more interesting than a perfectly polished but conventional historical romance.
📓 Synopsis
Petrograd, 1916. When recently impoverished aristocrat Mariya Sokolova takes a job assisting an enigmatic scientist researching a cure for tuberculosis, she expects a paycheck — not obsession, dangerous experiments, and an attraction to a brilliant man whose mind may be as unstable as his methods. As revolution rages outside the laboratory walls, Mariya must decide how far she's willing to go for family, love, and scientific progress.
Thank you to Natalia Loya and @netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and freely given.
🫵🏼 The Laboratory Assistant is perfect for readers who enjoy:
🧪 Mad-scientist / dangerous-genius characters
🕯️ Atmospheric Gothic fiction
❤️🔥 Slow-burn, morally complicated romance
🩸 Dark romance with horror elements
🏛️ Historical fiction set outside the usual Regency/Victorian England
🇷🇺 Russian history and revolutionary settings
🔬 Historical STEM/science
👭 Strong sister/family relationships
🧠 Stories exploring the intersection of genius, obsession, morality, and madness
🌹 Beautiful-but-creepy aesthetics — gaslit laboratories, secrets, old-world romance, illness, and danger
historical romance + Gothic horror + scientific experimentation + family survival story. Reviews particularly highlight the atmosphere, the Sokolov sisters, the slow-burn romance, and the tension surrounding Rodin's experiments.
Literary Equation
Crimson Peak + Mexican Gothic + The Death of Jane Lawrence + The Great Gatsby's fallen aristocracy + a mad-scientist Gothic romance
Or
Russian Revolution + forbidden attraction + tuberculosis + a morally questionable scientist + a gaslit laboratory + fallen aristocracy + “how far would you go to save the people you love?”
⚠️ TW/CW: SA, poverty, starvation, illness, blood, 🔫, 💀 bodies, implied grape, kidnapping, drugging, experiments done without consent, vomit, scenes inside a mental hospital
❓QOTD: If a loved one was facing a long, painful death (no chance of survival) and you had access to a promising experimental treatment that hasn't had adequate human trials, would you give the treatment to your loved one (who can't communicate with you), or no?
❗AOTD: That would be such an agonizing choice. I think I would give it to them, and hope that the worst case is it providing a data point to help other people in the future.
📖 Plot 4.5
The premise is excellent. The plot is imaginative and ambitious, and the overall trajectory works. The execution isn't always as seamless as the premise deserves.
A fallen aristocrat becomes the assistant to an obsessive scientist researching tuberculosis while Petrograd is simultaneously being torn apart by revolution. That gives Loya three pressure cookers operating simultaneously:
Mariya's family's desperate financial situation
Nikolas's increasingly dangerous scientific obsession, and Russia's political collapse. And they increasingly collide, and the lead up creates a constant undercurrent of tension.
The strongest aspect of the plotting is how personal and historical stakes reinforce one another. Mariya isn't interested in revolution because she's trying to feed her family. Nikolas isn't interested in politics because he's consumed with his research. Yet neither of them can escape the rapidly changing world around them.
The final portion becomes particularly intense, with the scientific and moral questions escalating dramatically. The way the climax brings the various tensions together was, for me, immaculate in its execution.
It's in the final portion that leaves me torn about how to rate, and more importantly, how to feel about this book. Nikolas abducts a rapist and uses him for medical experiments. Which, in fiction at least, I'm on board with as this person is unquestionably guilty of rape - multiple rapes, if I recall correctly. Nikolas is unquestionably morally grey already, so him doing this wasn't out of character. What I'm torn about is the other characters indirectly blaming it on his unnamed mental illness. As I recall, they don't outright verbalize that, but it's heavily implied.
On one hand, that's likely historically accurate as to what people likely would've said about something like that back then (probably, idk, I'm far from a historian). Mental health still has stigma attached to it today, but it was much more drastic and accepted by the public back in 1916. I just don't love Nikolas's decision to abduct a horrible person and use them to advance his tuberculosis treatment being blamed on his mental health.
➕ Loved
• The unusual combination of Russian Revolution + gothic + romance + science
• The continually escalating stakes
• The suspense and morality surrounding Nikolas's research
• The increasingly morally questionable choices
• The climax 🫣
• Multiple seemingly separate threads gradually converging.
• The mix of historical fiction, romance, gothic (almost) horror, psychology, and mystery
➖ Didn't Love
• Slight loss of momentum in the middle
• Some transitions are a bit sudden, not as refined as I'd have liked
📜 Themes & Deeper Meaning 4.5
This is one of my favorite aspects - the way it made me really ponder my morals. There's considerably more going on beneath the surface than the synopsis initially suggests.
A big thematic question is: how far love can, or should, go. Mariya's entire existence is organized around caring for other people. She sacrifices for her mother and sisters, and that makes her relationship with Nikolas particularly interesting because eventually the question becomes whether love can transform from care into enabling.
Nikolas represents another version of devotion: obsession disguised as love. His scientific pursuit of a tuberculosis cure is admirable because people are dying. But the book increasingly asks whether the noble goal of saving lives can justify increasingly unethical methods. And whether potentially saving many in the future is worth a few lives now. That creates a fascinating moral equation:
Love + desperation + power + obsession = the possibility of monstrous choices.
The laboratory itself functions beautifully as a metaphor. It's a place where things are taken apart, manipulated, transformed, and reconstructed. And that's essentially what is happening to the characters emotionally.
The Russian Revolution provides another excellent thematic parallel. The society outside is breaking apart while the characters' personal worlds are breaking apart inside.
Other major themes:
Love vs Obsession — when does devotion stop being selfless?
Science vs Morality — does discovering something that could save thousands justify unethical experimentation?
Class and survival —
Mariya's aristocratic background doesn't protect her once her family loses its money. The novel demonstrates how quickly social status becomes meaningless when you can't afford food or medicine.
Women and intellectual autonomy —
Mariya and Sofia are both intelligent women trying to exercise agency in a society that limits their options. Their intelligence isn't simply treated as a novelty, nor is it mocked or questioned by the male characters.
Madness vs. Genius
This was the most complicated theme for me.
The novel clearly wants to explore the historical association between brilliance and madness, but it occasionally tows the line into equating mental illness with dangerous or immoral behavior.
➕ Loved
• Strong thematic layering
• Excellent parallels between political upheaval and personal upheaval
• Questions about morality don't have easy answers
• The science/love/obsession connection is fascinating
• Leaves some room for interpretation
• Leaves the reader plenty of morality questions to ponder
➖ Didn't Love
• The mental-illness/madness theme feels potentially controversial in its execution (I'm still torn on it and I thought about it for almost 24hrs)
🎧 Narration 4.75
Narrated by: Natalia Loya (author narrated)
Loya gives us clear storytelling with a literary delivery rather than an elaborate full-cast/character-performance approach. While we don't get vastly different voices for characters, they are differentiated via things like inflections. It worked well enough for me, it suited this book quite well. The prose is atmospheric and literary, and a measured delivery allows the gothic mood to develop. The historical setting and psychological unease benefit from a narration that doesn't rush.
I could be reading more into it than what's there, but I don't think I am. The audiobook starts off with a tone that's almost hesitant, almost unsure, or just shy or lacking full confidence. As the story goes on and Mariya grows, that slowly morphs into a confident tone - one not afraid to take up space. Maybe it's just the author/narrator growing in their own confidence, becoming more sure in their narrative skills. Either way, it works very well for this story and these characters.
A good fit if you like author-narrated literary fiction and atmospheric delivery; less ideal if you want a highly theatrical, character-actor-heavy audiobook.
➕ Loved
• Loya's intimate understanding of the material
• Clear familiarity with the characters and story
• Clearly spoken & well enunciated narration
• A measured, literary delivery
• The fact that the person narrating understands exactly what emotional beats she intended when writing them.
• The atmosphere translates naturally into audio.
➖ Didn't Love
• The prose's tendency to switch between character names and descriptors slowed my listen a little
💫 While it doesn't have the polish or theatrical range one might expect from a veteran audiobook narrator, I personally didn't feel like that impacted my experience or enjoyment of the story.
✍🏼 Prose & Dialogue 4
Loya's prose is often lush, highly atmospheric, evocative, rich in sensory details, and, at times, vigorous. All while staying accessible, easy to read and follow.
The main thing I didn't love with the prose may have, at least in part, been exacerbated by me listening to it (rather than reading with my eyes) and having a hearing impairment. The character label issue. Switching between various character descriptors, "the fallen aristocrat," and their names, "Mariya," was a bit of a struggle for my brain to keep up. Maybe had I been reading with my eyes, it wouldn't have been an issue for me. But I wasn't. Anyway, doing that can be atmospheric once or twice. When it happens repeatedly, especially with multiple characters present, it became confusing for me and pulled me out a couple times.
Some transitions between paragraphs could use refinement. Large gaps of time between paragraphs, for example.
➕ Loved
• Beautiful imagery
• Strong sensory descriptions
• Atmospheric language
• A literary, old-world quality
• Some genuinely gorgeous passages
➖ Didn't Love
• Overuse of character descriptors
• Occasional clunky transitions
• Occasional ambiguity about who is speaking or being described
⏳Pacing 4
What we get is a mostly effective slow-burn structure with a strong escalation.
The story steadily accumulates tension rather than relying on constant action. The laboratory, Nikolas's behavior, Mariya's family problems, the tuberculosis crisis, and the revolution create an increasing sense that something terrible is approaching. The final act is considerably more intense than the opening. It moves along at a quicker pace (without feeling rushed).
That said, the middle isn't perfectly even. The beginning and end flowed and moved well, but small bits of the middle didn't quite have the same momentum. The bulk of the book I didn't want to put down (well, press stop or pause), though.
➕ Loved
• Strong buildup
• Suspense increases gradually
• Final act is gripping
• Enough mystery to keep turning pages
➖ Didn't Love
• Some slower middle sections
• Abrupt time/scene transitions
• A few threads feel temporarily disconnected.
🗺️ Gothic Atmosphere 5
The vivid gothic elements also aren't merely decorative. They reinforce the novel's central ideas about death, illness, obsession, and moral corruption.
The atmosphere is fantastic, the laboratory, the illness, the tension in the city, the gaslight, the mausoleums and crypts, the sanatorium visits, the medical experiments, the sense that something is deeply wrong with Nikolas, the possibility that what we're witnessing may be science, "madness," or something stranger.
It all creates that delicious gothic uncertainty of: 'I don't know what's happening, but I absolutely do not want to go down into that basement.'
➕ Loved
• Extremely strong sense of place
• Dark academia-esque laboratory setting
• Macabre imagery
• Psychological unease
• Gothic medical/scientific atmosphere
• Excellent use of historical instability to amplify dread.
👥 Character Development 4.5
We get well developed characters, full of depth, dimension, and some more morally grey than others.
Mariya is the heart of the novel. Her development is particularly effective because she begins from a place of necessity rather than ambition. She's not initially trying to become a scientist or revolutionize medicine.
She's trying to keep her family alive. That makes her later involvement in Nikolas's work meaningful because her motivations gradually expand beyond survival. She's resilient, intelligent, and empathetic. Her sisters also contribute significantly to the emotional architecture of the story. The Sokolova family isn't just background scenery. Their financial desperation makes the stakes tangible.
Nikolas - I waivered on him multiple times, but I think that's likely intentional. He's fascinating precisely because he's difficult to categorize as either romantic hero or villain. Initially, Dr Rodin seems mercurial, a moody genius. As time goes on, his mental state slowly morphs into more of a Jekyll and Hyde type situation. The specific cause of his malady isn't named, and while I'm incredibly curious about what it was, and I'm kind of glad it isn't. Leaves it open to the reader to wonder about. I love that Mariya doesn't just ignore or excuse everything just because he's good looking. Even though both their feelings are genuine, that doesn't make his actions ok - and Loya makes that a deliberate point.
➕ Loved
• Mariya is easy to root for
• Strong female characters
• Family relationships feel important
• Nikolas is fascinatingly complicated
• Sofia provides another strong female perspective
• Characters have meaningful moral conflicts
➖ Didn't Love
• Nikolas's characterization can become too closely tied to his mental illness
• I would've loved more development in particular relationships
🖤 Romance 4
We get a strong romance taking place in a dark, morally complicated historical time. The romance is slow-burn, morally complicated, and atmospheric rather than fluffy. Mariya and Nikolas are compelling because their relationship grows out of proximity, intellectual respect, vulnerability, and mutual dependence. The chemistry is intense. Nikolas's instability complicates the relationship considerably and I quite enjoyed how that was handled overall.
It ends up becoming a question of if Mariya loves Rodin, the man, or is she emotionally dependent on the version of Rodin she believes she can save?
The romance started sooner than I'd have liked and progressed quicker than I need to fully buy into their love.
➕ Loved
• Excellent tension
• Forbidden/complicated dynamic
• Intellectual attraction
• Slow-burn qualities
• Romance is intertwined with the larger plot
• Strong chemistry
➖ Didn't Love
• The progression wasn't quite convincing enough
• Romance developed more quickly than I wanted
• Not quite enough on-page progression to make the emotional transition completely convincing
🌶️ Spice 4
The book is sensual and romantic. There is explicit content, but the emphasis is much more on tension, desire, forbidden attraction, and emotional intimacy than on extended or numerous explicit scenes. The only reason this aspect isn't a 5 is because I would've preferred a slower progression, to see their emotional connection grow on page before any steamy scenes.
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
🌶️
📗 The Laboratory Assistant is a lush, atmospheric, morally messy debut that works best when it embraces the collision of its various worlds: science and superstition, reason and madness, love and obsession, privilege and poverty, personal survival and political revolution.
Set in Petrograd in 1916, the story follows Mariya Sokolova, a young woman from a once-aristocratic family that has fallen into poverty. With her mother ill and her younger sisters depending on her, she takes a position working for Dr. Nikolas Rodin, a brilliant but troubled scientist attempting to find a cure for tuberculosis. Meanwhile, Russia is approaching revolution, and the increasingly unstable world outside the laboratory begins to mirror what is happening inside it.
What makes the novel particularly compelling is that the laboratory becomes almost a character itself. It is simultaneously a workplace, refuge, place of discovery, source of danger, and symbolic representation of Nikolas's mind.
The scientific experiments are fascinating (and, at times, morally questionable) because the book isn't simply asking, Can science save people? It's asking a much uglier question:
What are you willing to sacrifice to save someone you love?
That question gives the romance, the scientific plot, and the historical setting a common thematic center.
As much as I loved it, the novel isn't quite flawless. There are places where the plotting or transitions could have benefited from another editing pass. The middle slowed down or that certain plot threads weren't developed as fully as they could have been. Others, however, found the pacing compelling and praised the increasingly tense final act
So for me, this is a strong, highly atmospheric debut with a couple minor execution issues, but one whose ambition makes it considerably more interesting than a perfectly polished but conventional historical romance.
📓 Synopsis
Petrograd, 1916. When recently impoverished aristocrat Mariya Sokolova takes a job assisting an enigmatic scientist researching a cure for tuberculosis, she expects a paycheck — not obsession, dangerous experiments, and an attraction to a brilliant man whose mind may be as unstable as his methods. As revolution rages outside the laboratory walls, Mariya must decide how far she's willing to go for family, love, and scientific progress.
Thank you to Natalia Loya and @netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and freely given.
🫵🏼 The Laboratory Assistant is perfect for readers who enjoy:
🧪 Mad-scientist / dangerous-genius characters
🕯️ Atmospheric Gothic fiction
❤️🔥 Slow-burn, morally complicated romance
🩸 Dark romance with horror elements
🏛️ Historical fiction set outside the usual Regency/Victorian England
🇷🇺 Russian history and revolutionary settings
🔬 Historical STEM/science
👭 Strong sister/family relationships
🧠 Stories exploring the intersection of genius, obsession, morality, and madness
🌹 Beautiful-but-creepy aesthetics — gaslit laboratories, secrets, old-world romance, illness, and danger
historical romance + Gothic horror + scientific experimentation + family survival story. Reviews particularly highlight the atmosphere, the Sokolov sisters, the slow-burn romance, and the tension surrounding Rodin's experiments.
Literary Equation
Crimson Peak + Mexican Gothic + The Death of Jane Lawrence + The Great Gatsby's fallen aristocracy + a mad-scientist Gothic romance
Or
Russian Revolution + forbidden attraction + tuberculosis + a morally questionable scientist + a gaslit laboratory + fallen aristocracy + “how far would you go to save the people you love?”
⚠️ TW/CW: SA, poverty, starvation, illness, blood, 🔫, 💀 bodies, implied grape, kidnapping, drugging, experiments done without consent, vomit, scenes inside a mental hospital
❓QOTD: If a loved one was facing a long, painful death (no chance of survival) and you had access to a promising experimental treatment that hasn't had adequate human trials, would you give the treatment to your loved one (who can't communicate with you), or no?
❗AOTD: That would be such an agonizing choice. I think I would give it to them, and hope that the worst case is it providing a data point to help other people in the future.
📖 Plot 4.5
The premise is excellent. The plot is imaginative and ambitious, and the overall trajectory works. The execution isn't always as seamless as the premise deserves.
A fallen aristocrat becomes the assistant to an obsessive scientist researching tuberculosis while Petrograd is simultaneously being torn apart by revolution. That gives Loya three pressure cookers operating simultaneously:
Mariya's family's desperate financial situation
Nikolas's increasingly dangerous scientific obsession, and Russia's political collapse. And they increasingly collide, and the lead up creates a constant undercurrent of tension.
The strongest aspect of the plotting is how personal and historical stakes reinforce one another. Mariya isn't interested in revolution because she's trying to feed her family. Nikolas isn't interested in politics because he's consumed with his research. Yet neither of them can escape the rapidly changing world around them.
The final portion becomes particularly intense, with the scientific and moral questions escalating dramatically. The way the climax brings the various tensions together was, for me, immaculate in its execution.
It's in the final portion that leaves me torn about how to rate, and more importantly, how to feel about this book. Nikolas abducts a rapist and uses him for medical experiments. Which, in fiction at least, I'm on board with as this person is unquestionably guilty of rape - multiple rapes, if I recall correctly. Nikolas is unquestionably morally grey already, so him doing this wasn't out of character. What I'm torn about is the other characters indirectly blaming it on his unnamed mental illness. As I recall, they don't outright verbalize that, but it's heavily implied.
On one hand, that's likely historically accurate as to what people likely would've said about something like that back then (probably, idk, I'm far from a historian). Mental health still has stigma attached to it today, but it was much more drastic and accepted by the public back in 1916. I just don't love Nikolas's decision to abduct a horrible person and use them to advance his tuberculosis treatment being blamed on his mental health.
➕ Loved
• The unusual combination of Russian Revolution + gothic + romance + science
• The continually escalating stakes
• The suspense and morality surrounding Nikolas's research
• The increasingly morally questionable choices
• The climax 🫣
• Multiple seemingly separate threads gradually converging.
• The mix of historical fiction, romance, gothic (almost) horror, psychology, and mystery
➖ Didn't Love
• Slight loss of momentum in the middle
• Some transitions are a bit sudden, not as refined as I'd have liked
📜 Themes & Deeper Meaning 4.5
This is one of my favorite aspects - the way it made me really ponder my morals. There's considerably more going on beneath the surface than the synopsis initially suggests.
A big thematic question is: how far love can, or should, go. Mariya's entire existence is organized around caring for other people. She sacrifices for her mother and sisters, and that makes her relationship with Nikolas particularly interesting because eventually the question becomes whether love can transform from care into enabling.
Nikolas represents another version of devotion: obsession disguised as love. His scientific pursuit of a tuberculosis cure is admirable because people are dying. But the book increasingly asks whether the noble goal of saving lives can justify increasingly unethical methods. And whether potentially saving many in the future is worth a few lives now. That creates a fascinating moral equation:
Love + desperation + power + obsession = the possibility of monstrous choices.
The laboratory itself functions beautifully as a metaphor. It's a place where things are taken apart, manipulated, transformed, and reconstructed. And that's essentially what is happening to the characters emotionally.
The Russian Revolution provides another excellent thematic parallel. The society outside is breaking apart while the characters' personal worlds are breaking apart inside.
Other major themes:
Love vs Obsession — when does devotion stop being selfless?
Science vs Morality — does discovering something that could save thousands justify unethical experimentation?
Class and survival —
Mariya's aristocratic background doesn't protect her once her family loses its money. The novel demonstrates how quickly social status becomes meaningless when you can't afford food or medicine.
Women and intellectual autonomy —
Mariya and Sofia are both intelligent women trying to exercise agency in a society that limits their options. Their intelligence isn't simply treated as a novelty, nor is it mocked or questioned by the male characters.
Madness vs. Genius
This was the most complicated theme for me.
The novel clearly wants to explore the historical association between brilliance and madness, but it occasionally tows the line into equating mental illness with dangerous or immoral behavior.
➕ Loved
• Strong thematic layering
• Excellent parallels between political upheaval and personal upheaval
• Questions about morality don't have easy answers
• The science/love/obsession connection is fascinating
• Leaves some room for interpretation
• Leaves the reader plenty of morality questions to ponder
➖ Didn't Love
• The mental-illness/madness theme feels potentially controversial in its execution (I'm still torn on it and I thought about it for almost 24hrs)
🎧 Narration 4.75
Narrated by: Natalia Loya (author narrated)
Loya gives us clear storytelling with a literary delivery rather than an elaborate full-cast/character-performance approach. While we don't get vastly different voices for characters, they are differentiated via things like inflections. It worked well enough for me, it suited this book quite well. The prose is atmospheric and literary, and a measured delivery allows the gothic mood to develop. The historical setting and psychological unease benefit from a narration that doesn't rush.
I could be reading more into it than what's there, but I don't think I am. The audiobook starts off with a tone that's almost hesitant, almost unsure, or just shy or lacking full confidence. As the story goes on and Mariya grows, that slowly morphs into a confident tone - one not afraid to take up space. Maybe it's just the author/narrator growing in their own confidence, becoming more sure in their narrative skills. Either way, it works very well for this story and these characters.
A good fit if you like author-narrated literary fiction and atmospheric delivery; less ideal if you want a highly theatrical, character-actor-heavy audiobook.
➕ Loved
• Loya's intimate understanding of the material
• Clear familiarity with the characters and story
• Clearly spoken & well enunciated narration
• A measured, literary delivery
• The fact that the person narrating understands exactly what emotional beats she intended when writing them.
• The atmosphere translates naturally into audio.
➖ Didn't Love
• The prose's tendency to switch between character names and descriptors slowed my listen a little
💫 While it doesn't have the polish or theatrical range one might expect from a veteran audiobook narrator, I personally didn't feel like that impacted my experience or enjoyment of the story.
✍🏼 Prose & Dialogue 4
Loya's prose is often lush, highly atmospheric, evocative, rich in sensory details, and, at times, vigorous. All while staying accessible, easy to read and follow.
The main thing I didn't love with the prose may have, at least in part, been exacerbated by me listening to it (rather than reading with my eyes) and having a hearing impairment. The character label issue. Switching between various character descriptors, "the fallen aristocrat," and their names, "Mariya," was a bit of a struggle for my brain to keep up. Maybe had I been reading with my eyes, it wouldn't have been an issue for me. But I wasn't. Anyway, doing that can be atmospheric once or twice. When it happens repeatedly, especially with multiple characters present, it became confusing for me and pulled me out a couple times.
Some transitions between paragraphs could use refinement. Large gaps of time between paragraphs, for example.
➕ Loved
• Beautiful imagery
• Strong sensory descriptions
• Atmospheric language
• A literary, old-world quality
• Some genuinely gorgeous passages
➖ Didn't Love
• Overuse of character descriptors
• Occasional clunky transitions
• Occasional ambiguity about who is speaking or being described
⏳Pacing 4
What we get is a mostly effective slow-burn structure with a strong escalation.
The story steadily accumulates tension rather than relying on constant action. The laboratory, Nikolas's behavior, Mariya's family problems, the tuberculosis crisis, and the revolution create an increasing sense that something terrible is approaching. The final act is considerably more intense than the opening. It moves along at a quicker pace (without feeling rushed).
That said, the middle isn't perfectly even. The beginning and end flowed and moved well, but small bits of the middle didn't quite have the same momentum. The bulk of the book I didn't want to put down (well, press stop or pause), though.
➕ Loved
• Strong buildup
• Suspense increases gradually
• Final act is gripping
• Enough mystery to keep turning pages
➖ Didn't Love
• Some slower middle sections
• Abrupt time/scene transitions
• A few threads feel temporarily disconnected.
🗺️ Gothic Atmosphere 5
The vivid gothic elements also aren't merely decorative. They reinforce the novel's central ideas about death, illness, obsession, and moral corruption.
The atmosphere is fantastic, the laboratory, the illness, the tension in the city, the gaslight, the mausoleums and crypts, the sanatorium visits, the medical experiments, the sense that something is deeply wrong with Nikolas, the possibility that what we're witnessing may be science, "madness," or something stranger.
It all creates that delicious gothic uncertainty of: 'I don't know what's happening, but I absolutely do not want to go down into that basement.'
➕ Loved
• Extremely strong sense of place
• Dark academia-esque laboratory setting
• Macabre imagery
• Psychological unease
• Gothic medical/scientific atmosphere
• Excellent use of historical instability to amplify dread.
👥 Character Development 4.5
We get well developed characters, full of depth, dimension, and some more morally grey than others.
Mariya is the heart of the novel. Her development is particularly effective because she begins from a place of necessity rather than ambition. She's not initially trying to become a scientist or revolutionize medicine.
She's trying to keep her family alive. That makes her later involvement in Nikolas's work meaningful because her motivations gradually expand beyond survival. She's resilient, intelligent, and empathetic. Her sisters also contribute significantly to the emotional architecture of the story. The Sokolova family isn't just background scenery. Their financial desperation makes the stakes tangible.
Nikolas - I waivered on him multiple times, but I think that's likely intentional. He's fascinating precisely because he's difficult to categorize as either romantic hero or villain. Initially, Dr Rodin seems mercurial, a moody genius. As time goes on, his mental state slowly morphs into more of a Jekyll and Hyde type situation. The specific cause of his malady isn't named, and while I'm incredibly curious about what it was, and I'm kind of glad it isn't. Leaves it open to the reader to wonder about. I love that Mariya doesn't just ignore or excuse everything just because he's good looking. Even though both their feelings are genuine, that doesn't make his actions ok - and Loya makes that a deliberate point.
➕ Loved
• Mariya is easy to root for
• Strong female characters
• Family relationships feel important
• Nikolas is fascinatingly complicated
• Sofia provides another strong female perspective
• Characters have meaningful moral conflicts
➖ Didn't Love
• Nikolas's characterization can become too closely tied to his mental illness
• I would've loved more development in particular relationships
🖤 Romance 4
We get a strong romance taking place in a dark, morally complicated historical time. The romance is slow-burn, morally complicated, and atmospheric rather than fluffy. Mariya and Nikolas are compelling because their relationship grows out of proximity, intellectual respect, vulnerability, and mutual dependence. The chemistry is intense. Nikolas's instability complicates the relationship considerably and I quite enjoyed how that was handled overall.
It ends up becoming a question of if Mariya loves Rodin, the man, or is she emotionally dependent on the version of Rodin she believes she can save?
The romance started sooner than I'd have liked and progressed quicker than I need to fully buy into their love.
➕ Loved
• Excellent tension
• Forbidden/complicated dynamic
• Intellectual attraction
• Slow-burn qualities
• Romance is intertwined with the larger plot
• Strong chemistry
➖ Didn't Love
• The progression wasn't quite convincing enough
• Romance developed more quickly than I wanted
• Not quite enough on-page progression to make the emotional transition completely convincing
🌶️ Spice 4
The book is sensual and romantic. There is explicit content, but the emphasis is much more on tension, desire, forbidden attraction, and emotional intimacy than on extended or numerous explicit scenes. The only reason this aspect isn't a 5 is because I would've preferred a slower progression, to see their emotional connection grow on page before any steamy scenes.
September 4, 2026
Set in the early 1900s in Petrograd, this gothic novel follows Mariya and her family in the quest to stay alive in this war torn area.
Mariya's family was aristocratic due to her father's position in the army. However, once he dies, life becomes much harder for them, and Mariya is trying to support them the best she can. Her mother has consumption (tuberculosis) and isn't able to work, so it falls on her to support the family. She has two younger sisters. One is in secretarial school, and the other is young and in school. Mariya is lucky and is able to land a position with a doctor that can't seem to keep assistants. The truth is unraveled, but never full explained. Along the way, she falls in love with the doctor, and overlooks his foibles despite the impact that they have on her.
This novel was intriguing, and I found myself concerned for the family. They were living a meager existence in Petrograd, and this was about the time of the rise of the Bolsheviks and the Russian Revolution. While the focus on this aspect was minor, it was something the characters had to be concerned about for their safety and wellbeing.
This novel addresses mental health, and the search for a cure for consumption. Not a lot was known about this illness, and they thought it was hereditary. Dr. Nikolas Rodin lost a fiancée to this disease and was on a quest to discover a cure. Did he? Or did he discover something that was a temporary measure?
I was engaged with this novel, but do feel like some of my questions were not answered. There are a few spicier scenes that bring together Mariya and Nikolas, but I felt like their romance was a minor part of the overall story. Sofia, Mariya's sister, is torn between getting involved with the revolution and helping her family. I did like Viktor's character. He was Nikolas' lifelong friend, and he owed a lot to him, but was he helping or hurting the situation?
I also thought it odd that at times, the characters were not called by their name, but by the jobs - the assistant, the psychiatrist, etc. This threw me off at times since the flow of the paragraphs was interrupted.
It was an intriguing book, and we give it 3 1/2 paws up. It would be good for anyone who enjoys gothic novels with a side of romance and a tiny bit of horror.
Mariya's family was aristocratic due to her father's position in the army. However, once he dies, life becomes much harder for them, and Mariya is trying to support them the best she can. Her mother has consumption (tuberculosis) and isn't able to work, so it falls on her to support the family. She has two younger sisters. One is in secretarial school, and the other is young and in school. Mariya is lucky and is able to land a position with a doctor that can't seem to keep assistants. The truth is unraveled, but never full explained. Along the way, she falls in love with the doctor, and overlooks his foibles despite the impact that they have on her.
This novel was intriguing, and I found myself concerned for the family. They were living a meager existence in Petrograd, and this was about the time of the rise of the Bolsheviks and the Russian Revolution. While the focus on this aspect was minor, it was something the characters had to be concerned about for their safety and wellbeing.
This novel addresses mental health, and the search for a cure for consumption. Not a lot was known about this illness, and they thought it was hereditary. Dr. Nikolas Rodin lost a fiancée to this disease and was on a quest to discover a cure. Did he? Or did he discover something that was a temporary measure?
I was engaged with this novel, but do feel like some of my questions were not answered. There are a few spicier scenes that bring together Mariya and Nikolas, but I felt like their romance was a minor part of the overall story. Sofia, Mariya's sister, is torn between getting involved with the revolution and helping her family. I did like Viktor's character. He was Nikolas' lifelong friend, and he owed a lot to him, but was he helping or hurting the situation?
I also thought it odd that at times, the characters were not called by their name, but by the jobs - the assistant, the psychiatrist, etc. This threw me off at times since the flow of the paragraphs was interrupted.
It was an intriguing book, and we give it 3 1/2 paws up. It would be good for anyone who enjoys gothic novels with a side of romance and a tiny bit of horror.
Did Not Finish
October 10, 2026I was offered an ALC but ouch. The narration was not good. After three chapters I could tell their voice and the story itself was not a match for me.
June 3, 2026
The following is an abridged version of my review. The full length version can be found on my site www.readinghasruinedmylife.com
Thank you to Apprentice House Press for sending me an advanced copy of The Laboratory Assistant by Natalia Loya. They aren't paying me for my review, they just sent me the book for free; all thoughts and opinions are my own.
A quick content and trigger warning. The Laboratory Assistant is set in the 1910s and has scenes set in a mental hospital. Mental hospitals from history are notoriously bad and patients were not treated kindly in them. While the book does not go into detail about mental health treatments or the horrors of the mental hospitals at the time, I feel it is only right to mention this topic is briefly featured in The Laboratory Assistant. It should also be noted that rape and sexual assault are mentioned in the novel as well and play quite a large role at the end of the story.
First and foremost, I must applaud Natalia Loya for her beautiful prose and imagery. The dank basement laboratory was chilling, the few finer possessions of Mariya’s were stunning, and the pains of hunger and general unease of Petrogard were strongly felt. There are certainly strong passages in this novel. That being said, there are passages in The Laboratory Assistant that do not feel as developed as others. The imagery isn’t always there. Some transitions could have been written better. There are a few that are clunky and don’t flow smoothly. One chapter will end and suddenly it’s a month later and I don’t know exactly how I got to the next scene.
Now, I have a major fault with this book. I greatly enjoyed it up until the final third. I was invested. And then Nikolas kidnaps a rapist and begins using him as an unwilling test subject for his consumption cure. I am still on board with this. Nikolas has entered a morally gray area, and that is fine, the Book Girlies will gladly look the other way when it comes to Nikolas kidnapping a horrible human being. But, the characters closest to Nikolas all but explicitly say “he’s done this because he’s mad.” Nikolas has an undisclosed mental illness and it feels like his mental illness is being villainized.
I am fine with Nikolas being morally gray. Morally gray villains are my favorite. I am fine with him kidnapping a rapist and doing what he does. The moment another character says Nikolas has done this due to his mental illness is where I draw the line. The decision Nikolas comes to regarding the kidnapping is one he would have made regardless of his mental health. I do not like that the other characters correlating his bad actions with mental illness. Yes, The Laboratory Assistant is set in 1916. Yes, there was a strong stigma surrounding mental health at the time. But those facts do not negate the fact that Nikolas’s mental illness is being villainized. It just doesn’t sit right with me and made me dislike the otherwise enjoyable read. It left quite a sour taste in my mouth.
Thank you once again to Apprentice House Press for sending me a copy of this book. I greatly appreciate it every time someone out there wants to send me books.
Again, the full length version of my review can be found on www.readinghasruinedmylife.com. I post new reviews there every Wednesday at noon.
Thank you to Apprentice House Press for sending me an advanced copy of The Laboratory Assistant by Natalia Loya. They aren't paying me for my review, they just sent me the book for free; all thoughts and opinions are my own.
A quick content and trigger warning. The Laboratory Assistant is set in the 1910s and has scenes set in a mental hospital. Mental hospitals from history are notoriously bad and patients were not treated kindly in them. While the book does not go into detail about mental health treatments or the horrors of the mental hospitals at the time, I feel it is only right to mention this topic is briefly featured in The Laboratory Assistant. It should also be noted that rape and sexual assault are mentioned in the novel as well and play quite a large role at the end of the story.
First and foremost, I must applaud Natalia Loya for her beautiful prose and imagery. The dank basement laboratory was chilling, the few finer possessions of Mariya’s were stunning, and the pains of hunger and general unease of Petrogard were strongly felt. There are certainly strong passages in this novel. That being said, there are passages in The Laboratory Assistant that do not feel as developed as others. The imagery isn’t always there. Some transitions could have been written better. There are a few that are clunky and don’t flow smoothly. One chapter will end and suddenly it’s a month later and I don’t know exactly how I got to the next scene.
Now, I have a major fault with this book. I greatly enjoyed it up until the final third. I was invested. And then Nikolas kidnaps a rapist and begins using him as an unwilling test subject for his consumption cure. I am still on board with this. Nikolas has entered a morally gray area, and that is fine, the Book Girlies will gladly look the other way when it comes to Nikolas kidnapping a horrible human being. But, the characters closest to Nikolas all but explicitly say “he’s done this because he’s mad.” Nikolas has an undisclosed mental illness and it feels like his mental illness is being villainized.
I am fine with Nikolas being morally gray. Morally gray villains are my favorite. I am fine with him kidnapping a rapist and doing what he does. The moment another character says Nikolas has done this due to his mental illness is where I draw the line. The decision Nikolas comes to regarding the kidnapping is one he would have made regardless of his mental health. I do not like that the other characters correlating his bad actions with mental illness. Yes, The Laboratory Assistant is set in 1916. Yes, there was a strong stigma surrounding mental health at the time. But those facts do not negate the fact that Nikolas’s mental illness is being villainized. It just doesn’t sit right with me and made me dislike the otherwise enjoyable read. It left quite a sour taste in my mouth.
Thank you once again to Apprentice House Press for sending me a copy of this book. I greatly appreciate it every time someone out there wants to send me books.
Again, the full length version of my review can be found on www.readinghasruinedmylife.com. I post new reviews there every Wednesday at noon.
August 24, 2026
[Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced listener copy in exchange for an honest review.]
I listened to the audio version narrated by the author, and at first I wasn’t sure about it. I’m so used to audiobook narrators being voice actors and this felt more like an older sister reading me a bedtime story. She grew on me, and I really imagined her voice as Maria, our main character. The plot started out slow but it also grew on me. I’ve never read anything set during the Russian Revolution and I enjoyed learning some of the history and doing additional research on my own. Earlier this year, I listened to Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green, so I found the consumption aspect of the book to be really interesting, especially from the perspective of searching for a cure. If this book wasn’t a “read now” option on NetGalley, I’m not sure I would’ve picked it up, but I ended up being glad that I did.
I listened to the audio version narrated by the author, and at first I wasn’t sure about it. I’m so used to audiobook narrators being voice actors and this felt more like an older sister reading me a bedtime story. She grew on me, and I really imagined her voice as Maria, our main character. The plot started out slow but it also grew on me. I’ve never read anything set during the Russian Revolution and I enjoyed learning some of the history and doing additional research on my own. Earlier this year, I listened to Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green, so I found the consumption aspect of the book to be really interesting, especially from the perspective of searching for a cure. If this book wasn’t a “read now” option on NetGalley, I’m not sure I would’ve picked it up, but I ended up being glad that I did.
February 17, 2026
ARC READ:
Mariya , recently dealing with poverty with her two sisters and Ill stricken mother after their father’s death trying to do anything to make ends meet.
The job with Nikolas Rodin proves to be fruitful with some challenges to an undisclosed condition that drives him mad. ( condition still unknown and really bothered me , was hoping it would have been disclosed what was actually wrong as his best friend was psychiatrist but potentially there wasn’t a name for it in 1916?)
Mayira pushes through all obstacles of sickness and heart ache as she starts falling for the scientist, despite his flaws she stands by his side.
This book was captivating and suspenseful in third person POV. Though at some points it was difficult to know which character was being spoke about.
Overall ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice 🌶️
Mariya , recently dealing with poverty with her two sisters and Ill stricken mother after their father’s death trying to do anything to make ends meet.
The job with Nikolas Rodin proves to be fruitful with some challenges to an undisclosed condition that drives him mad. ( condition still unknown and really bothered me , was hoping it would have been disclosed what was actually wrong as his best friend was psychiatrist but potentially there wasn’t a name for it in 1916?)
Mayira pushes through all obstacles of sickness and heart ache as she starts falling for the scientist, despite his flaws she stands by his side.
This book was captivating and suspenseful in third person POV. Though at some points it was difficult to know which character was being spoke about.
Overall ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice 🌶️
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 4, 2026
First of all, thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing and sharing this ARC.
Not only on NetGalley, but this is actually the very first book I’ve given 5 stars this year. I truly vibed with the atmosphere described in the story, and I have to say I am absolutely, absolutely in love with the writing style. I found myself enjoying the way the author told the story even more than focusing on the plot itself. The details, especially the foreshadowing, were well-placed and meaningful. While the overall message isn’t necessarily new, the way the author weaves in themes of disease, humanity at the threshold of scientific discovery, and the cracks in the feudal social structure was fascinating. I went from worrying about the sick to worrying about the revolution!
Although I emphasize how much I enjoyed the writing, that doesn’t mean the characters and plot didn’t engage me. As mentioned above, the plot was compelling. Regarding the characters, it’s been a long time since I felt such empathy for a female protagonist. She is kind, careful, and incredibly perceptive, with a clear and consistent moral compass that holds steady from beginning to end.
Overall, I really loved this book and the author. Considering it’s a debut novel, I would rate it quite highly.
That said, my positive reading experience doesn’t mean I didn’t notice a few small issues with word usage. Normally I might overlook them, but since this is categorized as historical fiction, I’d like to offer some feedback. A few scientific terms—particularly hormone names—were coined after 1920, with air embolism only being reported in the 192x period. Additionally, regarding formatting, the EPUB I received wasn’t divided into chapters; it was just one continuous section. I’m not sure if the publisher intends to release an ebook version, but if so, I hope the formatting will be revised.
Not only on NetGalley, but this is actually the very first book I’ve given 5 stars this year. I truly vibed with the atmosphere described in the story, and I have to say I am absolutely, absolutely in love with the writing style. I found myself enjoying the way the author told the story even more than focusing on the plot itself. The details, especially the foreshadowing, were well-placed and meaningful. While the overall message isn’t necessarily new, the way the author weaves in themes of disease, humanity at the threshold of scientific discovery, and the cracks in the feudal social structure was fascinating. I went from worrying about the sick to worrying about the revolution!
Although I emphasize how much I enjoyed the writing, that doesn’t mean the characters and plot didn’t engage me. As mentioned above, the plot was compelling. Regarding the characters, it’s been a long time since I felt such empathy for a female protagonist. She is kind, careful, and incredibly perceptive, with a clear and consistent moral compass that holds steady from beginning to end.
Overall, I really loved this book and the author. Considering it’s a debut novel, I would rate it quite highly.
That said, my positive reading experience doesn’t mean I didn’t notice a few small issues with word usage. Normally I might overlook them, but since this is categorized as historical fiction, I’d like to offer some feedback. A few scientific terms—particularly hormone names—were coined after 1920, with air embolism only being reported in the 192x period. Additionally, regarding formatting, the EPUB I received wasn’t divided into chapters; it was just one continuous section. I’m not sure if the publisher intends to release an ebook version, but if so, I hope the formatting will be revised.
June 3, 2026
As someone who has a tendency to shy away from both historical fiction and gothic horror, I was shocked by how tightly “The Laboratory Assistant” had me in its clutches. I was expecting to find a slow buildup, a prolonged period of establishing timelines and characters, and perhaps a challenge for me personally to remain interested and engaged. Believe me when I tell you that was not the case. I was immediately enraptured in this story, quickly becoming a fan of Mariya and her strength, tenacity, and self-sufficiency.
Strong FMCs, women in STEM, political revolution, love, death, and perhaps a dash of insanity? What could you possibly love more?
Strong FMCs, women in STEM, political revolution, love, death, and perhaps a dash of insanity? What could you possibly love more?
August 3, 2026
I grabbed this as a Listen Now on NetGalley, and thank you SO much for the opportunity to hear this as an ALC.
The narration was clear, concise, and sweetly portrayed. It was so clearly done, I could speed it up to 1.25x speed with no loss of clarity.
The story was so good— I struggled to pause it when I was being distracted! I was enraptured by the mystery, the Bolshevik, the science, and the characters.
If Nocticadia had a love child with the Victorian Gothic/Russian Historic era, this is the product.
The narration was clear, concise, and sweetly portrayed. It was so clearly done, I could speed it up to 1.25x speed with no loss of clarity.
The story was so good— I struggled to pause it when I was being distracted! I was enraptured by the mystery, the Bolshevik, the science, and the characters.
If Nocticadia had a love child with the Victorian Gothic/Russian Historic era, this is the product.
April 21, 2026
Title: The Laboratory Assistant
Author: Natalia Loya
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: eARC
Series: NA
Star Rating: 3 stars
tw: sexual assault, poverty, starvation, illness, blood, guns, dead bodies, implied rape, kidnapping, drugging, experiments done without consent, vomit
A special thank you goes to Netgalley and Mindbuck Media for providing me with a copy of this book. Please know that this does not influence my rating or thoughts on the book itself.
I have some thoughts about this book. I think the problem was with the synopsis. It didn’t seem to match what the genre was. So this book was marketed as a romance and historical fiction. But the way the synopsis was written, it made it sound like it was going to lean more into horror. So I was a bit thrown when there was so much romance in it. But I suppose it might be my fault for not paying attention to the book's genre. Netgalley was pretty clear with its tags, but I guess I did not pay attention to that.
As for the book itself, I did enjoy it for the most part. I had a problem with the writing, though. Oftentimes, there were these weird descriptors that would happen in the middle of the paragraph. It’ll go from using their names, like Mariya and Rodin, and then it will switch to the dancer, the assistant, etc. It was jarring, and I got confused at times. Especially when Mariya was called the dancer, because we didn’t get to know Mariya when she was a dancer. We only got to know her after the fact.
I think my main problem with this book was that I was expecting it to go a lot darker than it did. I truly expected the doctor to go just insane, and I truly thought Mariya was going to go with him, kind of like a Joker and Harley Quinn thing. I know that is a horrible thing to compare, but it’s the first thing I thought of. But alas, Mariya only went just a little dark. And I think that is why I rated the book as low as I did.
Overall, I did enjoy the book, but I had a few issues with it. I don’t know if it was just me not reading the synopsis right or what, but I just felt like my expectations were not met. I wouldn’t be opposed to reading this author again, as I think they can write and write well, but overall, this book was just a bit of a miss for me.
Author: Natalia Loya
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: eARC
Series: NA
Star Rating: 3 stars
tw: sexual assault, poverty, starvation, illness, blood, guns, dead bodies, implied rape, kidnapping, drugging, experiments done without consent, vomit
A special thank you goes to Netgalley and Mindbuck Media for providing me with a copy of this book. Please know that this does not influence my rating or thoughts on the book itself.
I have some thoughts about this book. I think the problem was with the synopsis. It didn’t seem to match what the genre was. So this book was marketed as a romance and historical fiction. But the way the synopsis was written, it made it sound like it was going to lean more into horror. So I was a bit thrown when there was so much romance in it. But I suppose it might be my fault for not paying attention to the book's genre. Netgalley was pretty clear with its tags, but I guess I did not pay attention to that.
As for the book itself, I did enjoy it for the most part. I had a problem with the writing, though. Oftentimes, there were these weird descriptors that would happen in the middle of the paragraph. It’ll go from using their names, like Mariya and Rodin, and then it will switch to the dancer, the assistant, etc. It was jarring, and I got confused at times. Especially when Mariya was called the dancer, because we didn’t get to know Mariya when she was a dancer. We only got to know her after the fact.
I think my main problem with this book was that I was expecting it to go a lot darker than it did. I truly expected the doctor to go just insane, and I truly thought Mariya was going to go with him, kind of like a Joker and Harley Quinn thing. I know that is a horrible thing to compare, but it’s the first thing I thought of. But alas, Mariya only went just a little dark. And I think that is why I rated the book as low as I did.
Overall, I did enjoy the book, but I had a few issues with it. I don’t know if it was just me not reading the synopsis right or what, but I just felt like my expectations were not met. I wouldn’t be opposed to reading this author again, as I think they can write and write well, but overall, this book was just a bit of a miss for me.
August 19, 2026
Audiobook received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
🖋: Natalia Loya
🎧: Natalia Loya
⭐: 4.5
Lush with elegant prose, vivid descriptions, nuanced characters, The Laboratory Assistant stands out as an unforgettable debut. With a plot painted across a dreary, gothic canvas of Petrograd, 1916, poverty, war, revolution and tuberculosis threaten to swallow Imperial Russia whole.
Penniless aristocrat, Mariya Sakolova desperately struggles to support her younger sisters and consumption ridden mother. After finding employ as a laboratory assistant to an enigmatic young scientist, Dr Nikolas Rodin, Mariya steadily descends into a world of science, sickness, madness darkness and tantalising romance. In a race against time and the political instability, Mariya helps the tormented doctor search for a cure for the disease ravaging the streets and those close to home.
Each character was complex without being insufferable; their challenges felt bleak and innately human. They each shone in different ways, Viktor's unwavering loyalty, Nikolas's dedication (bordering obsession), Sofia's resilience, the youngest Sokolova sister's intuition and the lengths Mariya will go to save those whom she loves. However, I adored the manner in which character flaws are not romanticised or dismissed, rather they are extensively explored.
The question of morality is posed. What would you do to save someone you love? Luckily, I am a lover of dark romance and the poignant answer resonated with me: Everything. Absolutely loved the beautiful conclusion reached that even the mentally unwell deserve to be loved.
Honestly, the last 40% stressed me out, in the best of ways. While I may not be a historian nor Bolshevik expert, it is common knowledge how it all ended. Thus, with that in mind each event heightens the tension and claustrophobic atmosphere.
My critiques are almost insignificant. Nevertheless, while I have no major frustrations with the overall pacing it almost felt as if important moments relevant to the romantic progression occurred off page. Furthermore, I recognise that writing in the third person presents certain challenges to authors but the overuse of terms like "the scientist", "the psychiatrist" etc became tedious towards the middle of the novel. Paradoxically, the terms fitted in well in the beginning and end. Finally, it hurts me to say this, but the audio performance was mediocre at best. While characters can be identified by minor inflections of voice the story suffers by this performance.
In sum, this was a genre bending, unforgettable experience. A haunting gothic romance depicted against a society on the cusp of violent change that will leave you begging for more.
CW: Sexual Assault, implied rape, alcoholism, undiagnosed mental illness, human experimentation, assault, death, body horror.
🖋: Natalia Loya
🎧: Natalia Loya
⭐: 4.5
Lush with elegant prose, vivid descriptions, nuanced characters, The Laboratory Assistant stands out as an unforgettable debut. With a plot painted across a dreary, gothic canvas of Petrograd, 1916, poverty, war, revolution and tuberculosis threaten to swallow Imperial Russia whole.
Penniless aristocrat, Mariya Sakolova desperately struggles to support her younger sisters and consumption ridden mother. After finding employ as a laboratory assistant to an enigmatic young scientist, Dr Nikolas Rodin, Mariya steadily descends into a world of science, sickness, madness darkness and tantalising romance. In a race against time and the political instability, Mariya helps the tormented doctor search for a cure for the disease ravaging the streets and those close to home.
Each character was complex without being insufferable; their challenges felt bleak and innately human. They each shone in different ways, Viktor's unwavering loyalty, Nikolas's dedication (bordering obsession), Sofia's resilience, the youngest Sokolova sister's intuition and the lengths Mariya will go to save those whom she loves. However, I adored the manner in which character flaws are not romanticised or dismissed, rather they are extensively explored.
The question of morality is posed. What would you do to save someone you love? Luckily, I am a lover of dark romance and the poignant answer resonated with me: Everything. Absolutely loved the beautiful conclusion reached that even the mentally unwell deserve to be loved.
Honestly, the last 40% stressed me out, in the best of ways. While I may not be a historian nor Bolshevik expert, it is common knowledge how it all ended. Thus, with that in mind each event heightens the tension and claustrophobic atmosphere.
My critiques are almost insignificant. Nevertheless, while I have no major frustrations with the overall pacing it almost felt as if important moments relevant to the romantic progression occurred off page. Furthermore, I recognise that writing in the third person presents certain challenges to authors but the overuse of terms like "the scientist", "the psychiatrist" etc became tedious towards the middle of the novel. Paradoxically, the terms fitted in well in the beginning and end. Finally, it hurts me to say this, but the audio performance was mediocre at best. While characters can be identified by minor inflections of voice the story suffers by this performance.
In sum, this was a genre bending, unforgettable experience. A haunting gothic romance depicted against a society on the cusp of violent change that will leave you begging for more.
CW: Sexual Assault, implied rape, alcoholism, undiagnosed mental illness, human experimentation, assault, death, body horror.
October 7, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley and Apprentice House for providing me with an ARC of the ebook and audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
DNF @ 61%.
I went into this read thoroughly excited. Although the author is new to me, I had high expectations. This book had all the aspects I normally enjoy, so I figured I would really enjoy it. However, my expectations were a bit on the high side, because I couldn’t even finish reading it.
To start with, the story is set in Imperial Russia just before the revolution. Normally, this is one of my favorite periods in time to read about. In this story, Mariya is the oldest of three sisters, and is forced to work to survive after her father passes away and leaves the family to bear the brunt of his gambling debts. She’s barely making ends meet, especially with her mother suffering from tuberculosis, so when a better paying opportunity arises to work as an assistant to a scientist, Mariya gladly accepts. Dr. Rodin has a tinge of the mad scientist to him, and his work seems both complex and mysterious to Mariya.
The setting was done really well, transporting readers to a grim, gritty, and difficult period in Russian history. I liked how the setting was done, but really struggled with other aspects of the book.
I was given the opportunity to read this as both an ebook and an audiobook, and I was extremely disappointed by the author’s choice to narrate her own book rather than using an established narrator. Initially, my biggest issue with her narration is that all the characters shared the same voice, making it impossible to tell between characters. Her tone was kind of bland and flat as well, and at times, it sounded like she was smiling with pride while reading her words, even when it wasn’t appropriate for a smile. She also placed her own emphasis on places that didn’t need emphasis, and her narration really detracting from my enjoyment of the read.
One of the aspects that seriously gave me the ick was that a relationship develops between Mariya and Dr. Rodin. However, the power dynamic ensured that this wouldn’t be a relationship on even footing, and that is exactly what happens. Mariya begins to develop feelings for Dr. Rodin, and it was extremely off-putting to hear him refer to her as ‘girl’ during a sexual encounter. I was unable to root for this romance in any way, and it really left me with a bad taste in my mouth.
When I gave up on reading this book, the pace had slowed down significantly. Parts of the story were quick in the beginning and at isolated parts in the middle, but dragged for much of the story. It made me a lot less exciting to read, and after putting the book down for a few days, I just couldn’t bring myself to pick it back up. Where I stopped reading it sounded like Dr. Rodin was on the way to being a mad scientist with a potential case of mental illness, and I honestly didn’t want to read another book that makes a person with mental illness into a villain, as if they aren’t already stigmatized enough.
DNF @ 61%.
I went into this read thoroughly excited. Although the author is new to me, I had high expectations. This book had all the aspects I normally enjoy, so I figured I would really enjoy it. However, my expectations were a bit on the high side, because I couldn’t even finish reading it.
To start with, the story is set in Imperial Russia just before the revolution. Normally, this is one of my favorite periods in time to read about. In this story, Mariya is the oldest of three sisters, and is forced to work to survive after her father passes away and leaves the family to bear the brunt of his gambling debts. She’s barely making ends meet, especially with her mother suffering from tuberculosis, so when a better paying opportunity arises to work as an assistant to a scientist, Mariya gladly accepts. Dr. Rodin has a tinge of the mad scientist to him, and his work seems both complex and mysterious to Mariya.
The setting was done really well, transporting readers to a grim, gritty, and difficult period in Russian history. I liked how the setting was done, but really struggled with other aspects of the book.
I was given the opportunity to read this as both an ebook and an audiobook, and I was extremely disappointed by the author’s choice to narrate her own book rather than using an established narrator. Initially, my biggest issue with her narration is that all the characters shared the same voice, making it impossible to tell between characters. Her tone was kind of bland and flat as well, and at times, it sounded like she was smiling with pride while reading her words, even when it wasn’t appropriate for a smile. She also placed her own emphasis on places that didn’t need emphasis, and her narration really detracting from my enjoyment of the read.
One of the aspects that seriously gave me the ick was that a relationship develops between Mariya and Dr. Rodin. However, the power dynamic ensured that this wouldn’t be a relationship on even footing, and that is exactly what happens. Mariya begins to develop feelings for Dr. Rodin, and it was extremely off-putting to hear him refer to her as ‘girl’ during a sexual encounter. I was unable to root for this romance in any way, and it really left me with a bad taste in my mouth.
When I gave up on reading this book, the pace had slowed down significantly. Parts of the story were quick in the beginning and at isolated parts in the middle, but dragged for much of the story. It made me a lot less exciting to read, and after putting the book down for a few days, I just couldn’t bring myself to pick it back up. Where I stopped reading it sounded like Dr. Rodin was on the way to being a mad scientist with a potential case of mental illness, and I honestly didn’t want to read another book that makes a person with mental illness into a villain, as if they aren’t already stigmatized enough.
September 29, 2026
Natalia Loya’s The Laboratory Assistant is a compelling, deeply emotional and often tense story set in Petrograd in 1916, shortly before the Bolshevik Revolution. We follow Maria Sokolova, a twenty-year-old aristocrat left destitute with her widowed mother and sisters by her father’s failures. Desperate for money, she becomes assistant to the reclusive scientist Nikolas Rodin.
I especially appreciated Loya narrating the audiobook herself, drawing listeners into the precarious lives of Petrograd’s residents at the height of World War I, when many families lost the men, whose incomes sustained them. Harsh conditions also fuelled tuberculosis, a poorly understood disease that weakened and killed impoverished people across Europe. Loya makes both threats immediate as Maria and her family stretch a meagre income while their matriarch declines from grief and disease. Both the characters and the reader sense that one misstep could change everything. Although I admire Loya’s writing, waiting for their desperate situation to worsen was almost unbearable.
Maria is deeply loving and resilient. Once destined for a comfortable life as an officer’s wife, she loses that security through circumstances beyond her control. She does whatever it takes to keep her mother and sisters alive as each new hardship arises. At times, I desperately wanted her to stop and put herself first, even if only to sleep, because she rarely considers her own needs or desires. Nikolas enters her life first as her employer and later as her lover, but he never distracts her from her duty to her family. They always come first, which I believe explains Maria’s final choice. Without giving anything away, this is more than a survival story. The Laboratory Assistant is a historical Gothic novel whose darkest moments will haunt the reader.
I found myself repeating a mantra: ‘They’re doing this because otherwise things will be far worse for them, everyone you’ve grown to care about and thousands more.’ I suggest doing the same. Your stomach may turn a couple of times, but it also feels so good. No spoilers, though fellow readers and listeners will know what I mean.
Prepare for the darkness. This is no light read: it asks you to care for characters who do terrible things to survive and protect those they love. It immerses you in one of Russia’s bleakest periods and leaves you needing a comforting drink and a moment to escape the horrors of 1917, when people could lose loved ones on the battlefield and their homes at the same time, utterly powerless.
The Laboratory Assistant is a phenomenal read, and I’m glad I lost myself in its darkness for a while.
I especially appreciated Loya narrating the audiobook herself, drawing listeners into the precarious lives of Petrograd’s residents at the height of World War I, when many families lost the men, whose incomes sustained them. Harsh conditions also fuelled tuberculosis, a poorly understood disease that weakened and killed impoverished people across Europe. Loya makes both threats immediate as Maria and her family stretch a meagre income while their matriarch declines from grief and disease. Both the characters and the reader sense that one misstep could change everything. Although I admire Loya’s writing, waiting for their desperate situation to worsen was almost unbearable.
Maria is deeply loving and resilient. Once destined for a comfortable life as an officer’s wife, she loses that security through circumstances beyond her control. She does whatever it takes to keep her mother and sisters alive as each new hardship arises. At times, I desperately wanted her to stop and put herself first, even if only to sleep, because she rarely considers her own needs or desires. Nikolas enters her life first as her employer and later as her lover, but he never distracts her from her duty to her family. They always come first, which I believe explains Maria’s final choice. Without giving anything away, this is more than a survival story. The Laboratory Assistant is a historical Gothic novel whose darkest moments will haunt the reader.
I found myself repeating a mantra: ‘They’re doing this because otherwise things will be far worse for them, everyone you’ve grown to care about and thousands more.’ I suggest doing the same. Your stomach may turn a couple of times, but it also feels so good. No spoilers, though fellow readers and listeners will know what I mean.
Prepare for the darkness. This is no light read: it asks you to care for characters who do terrible things to survive and protect those they love. It immerses you in one of Russia’s bleakest periods and leaves you needing a comforting drink and a moment to escape the horrors of 1917, when people could lose loved ones on the battlefield and their homes at the same time, utterly powerless.
The Laboratory Assistant is a phenomenal read, and I’m glad I lost myself in its darkness for a while.
June 19, 2026
I received a digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
The Laboratory Assistant is the debut novel by Natalia Loya. It is primarily a historical fiction with elements of romance and gothic horror.
The Sokolov sisters are the heart of this novel and they are why the story works so well. Much of the story is a tale about an everyday struggle for survival. Mariya runs the family while the eighteen year old Sofia attends secretary classes. Sofia’s involvement with the Bolsheviks caused complications for the family but she is fiercely protective of her sisters. By the start of the story they have both sacrificed their dowries in favour of food and basic supplies – and all to protect Darya, their eight year sister and the embodiment of innocence in the novel, from having to do the same.
One aspect of the story that I really liked was that Mariya and Sofia’s intelligence was never mocked or questioned by the male characters; quite the opposite. I’ve read several historical novels where one of the key plot points involves the female protagonist being forced to hide her intellect. While The Laboratory Assistant does highlight the difficulties facing this family with no living male relatives, Mariya and Sofia’s knowledge, learning and reasoning was always respected and encouraged by their peers.
The character of Dr Nikolas Rodin straddles the lines between anti-hero and villain. Both his desire and motivation behind wanting to find a cure for consumption comes from a good place but his methods become increasing dark as he moves onto human experimentation. The novel stresses both Rodin’s love for Mariya and his internal battle with mental illness as the reasons behind his ability to perform his ghoulish experiments without guilt. While for me it didn’t affect my enjoyment of the book, I do wonder how the story and Rodin’s relationships would have played out if Loya has chosen instead to make the character carry out his experiments in spite of his illness rather than because of it.
The Laboratory Assistant is filled with engaging characters, a slow-burn believable romance, a brooding gothic atmosphere and suitably macabre scenes during the climax. The pacing of the story was really good and the novel kept me wanting to read more.
The Laboratory Assistant is the debut novel by Natalia Loya. It is primarily a historical fiction with elements of romance and gothic horror.
The Sokolov sisters are the heart of this novel and they are why the story works so well. Much of the story is a tale about an everyday struggle for survival. Mariya runs the family while the eighteen year old Sofia attends secretary classes. Sofia’s involvement with the Bolsheviks caused complications for the family but she is fiercely protective of her sisters. By the start of the story they have both sacrificed their dowries in favour of food and basic supplies – and all to protect Darya, their eight year sister and the embodiment of innocence in the novel, from having to do the same.
One aspect of the story that I really liked was that Mariya and Sofia’s intelligence was never mocked or questioned by the male characters; quite the opposite. I’ve read several historical novels where one of the key plot points involves the female protagonist being forced to hide her intellect. While The Laboratory Assistant does highlight the difficulties facing this family with no living male relatives, Mariya and Sofia’s knowledge, learning and reasoning was always respected and encouraged by their peers.
The character of Dr Nikolas Rodin straddles the lines between anti-hero and villain. Both his desire and motivation behind wanting to find a cure for consumption comes from a good place but his methods become increasing dark as he moves onto human experimentation. The novel stresses both Rodin’s love for Mariya and his internal battle with mental illness as the reasons behind his ability to perform his ghoulish experiments without guilt. While for me it didn’t affect my enjoyment of the book, I do wonder how the story and Rodin’s relationships would have played out if Loya has chosen instead to make the character carry out his experiments in spite of his illness rather than because of it.
The Laboratory Assistant is filled with engaging characters, a slow-burn believable romance, a brooding gothic atmosphere and suitably macabre scenes during the climax. The pacing of the story was really good and the novel kept me wanting to read more.
October 7, 2026
I really enjoyed the storyline in The Laboratory Assistant. It was interesting enough that I finished it in one day, and I was always interested in finding out what would happen next. The story was well paced and stayed on track, with enough background to understand the characters and how they got where they were without becoming repetitive. I also appreciated that the characters stayed consistent throughout the story.
I especially liked Nikolas. He was one of those characters I wasn’t always sure what to expect from, but I liked that he remained complicated rather than becoming predictable. Yes, he was the “mad scientist,” but that didn’t completely define him, and I enjoyed seeing the relationships he had with Mariya and other characters in the book.
One thing that stood out to me was the repeated use of different names and titles use for each character, like “Mariya,” “the assistant,” “the officer’s daughter,” “the scientist,” “Nikolas,” “the Doctor,” and “Dr. Rodin,” sometimes very close together. I didn’t always understand why the wording switched so quickly from formal to familiar. I knew who the author was referring to, but it kept making me think, “Why are we using this name now?” instead of allowing me to stay focused on the story.
I also struggled with Mariya being called “girl” during intimate moments. The wording gave me the uncomfortable feeling of a teacher/student or priest/student relationship, rather than the feeling of two adults in a consenting relationship.
As an audiobook, I liked that the author narrated it herself, but I was a little disappointed that, even though the characters each had distinct personalities in the writing, I didn’t hear those personalities come through as clearly in the narration. I’m not talking about the voices themselves, but the actual way the character might say something. I would definitely be interested in physically reading a Natalia Loya book to see how the experience compares in print. I would listen to another audiobook narrated by her.
The final portion was intense and exciting, and I really liked how everything came together. Overall, this was a solid historical romance with a good storyline, and I would definitely listen to another Natalia Loya book.
I especially liked Nikolas. He was one of those characters I wasn’t always sure what to expect from, but I liked that he remained complicated rather than becoming predictable. Yes, he was the “mad scientist,” but that didn’t completely define him, and I enjoyed seeing the relationships he had with Mariya and other characters in the book.
One thing that stood out to me was the repeated use of different names and titles use for each character, like “Mariya,” “the assistant,” “the officer’s daughter,” “the scientist,” “Nikolas,” “the Doctor,” and “Dr. Rodin,” sometimes very close together. I didn’t always understand why the wording switched so quickly from formal to familiar. I knew who the author was referring to, but it kept making me think, “Why are we using this name now?” instead of allowing me to stay focused on the story.
I also struggled with Mariya being called “girl” during intimate moments. The wording gave me the uncomfortable feeling of a teacher/student or priest/student relationship, rather than the feeling of two adults in a consenting relationship.
As an audiobook, I liked that the author narrated it herself, but I was a little disappointed that, even though the characters each had distinct personalities in the writing, I didn’t hear those personalities come through as clearly in the narration. I’m not talking about the voices themselves, but the actual way the character might say something. I would definitely be interested in physically reading a Natalia Loya book to see how the experience compares in print. I would listen to another audiobook narrated by her.
The final portion was intense and exciting, and I really liked how everything came together. Overall, this was a solid historical romance with a good storyline, and I would definitely listen to another Natalia Loya book.
August 3, 2026
Oh, dear. This book STRESSED ME OUT.
It’s been quite a while since I read a book and was constantly thinking “Oh, something bad didn’t happen for quite a while… Those characters will go through some kind of awful horror again very soon!” And I absolutely love books that make me feel that way. It's even better when they manage to lull you into a false sense of security before hitting you with something even worse. The Laboratory Assistant definitely succeeded in doing exactly that.
We start the book in an already dire situation, so from the very first pages you get the sense that she has almost no options left and is forced to seize whatever opportunities come her way.
For me it also always felt as is feeding her family and staying alive was the highest priority for her through the whole book and the reason she is motivated to commit certain acts she would not do is she was not with her back to a wall.
Her priorities also did not change with the introduction of the romance. Her feelings for Nikolas felt like a nice addition but not a distraction from her actual goal and I really enjoyed that.
I also really loved all the supporting characters who felt really nicely fleshed out and all with an actual purpose for this story.
One thing that did take me back for a bit was the very extensive use of synonyms to describe a character. Having a main character constantly being referred to as “the man” or “the assistant” when I usually encounter those type of descriptions for less relevant side characters felt a little bit off while reading. I found myself rechecking several times which characters were having and interaction right now.
Since I listened to this as an audiobook, I also want to mention the narration: Initially I was not a big fan because it often felt more like someone was just reading the book out loud instead of trying to bring some life into the story with their voice. However, once I realized that the author herself was doing the narrating, this immediately became more charming and gave it a whole different and personal feel. I really loved that.
It’s been quite a while since I read a book and was constantly thinking “Oh, something bad didn’t happen for quite a while… Those characters will go through some kind of awful horror again very soon!” And I absolutely love books that make me feel that way. It's even better when they manage to lull you into a false sense of security before hitting you with something even worse. The Laboratory Assistant definitely succeeded in doing exactly that.
We start the book in an already dire situation, so from the very first pages you get the sense that she has almost no options left and is forced to seize whatever opportunities come her way.
For me it also always felt as is feeding her family and staying alive was the highest priority for her through the whole book and the reason she is motivated to commit certain acts she would not do is she was not with her back to a wall.
Her priorities also did not change with the introduction of the romance. Her feelings for Nikolas felt like a nice addition but not a distraction from her actual goal and I really enjoyed that.
I also really loved all the supporting characters who felt really nicely fleshed out and all with an actual purpose for this story.
One thing that did take me back for a bit was the very extensive use of synonyms to describe a character. Having a main character constantly being referred to as “the man” or “the assistant” when I usually encounter those type of descriptions for less relevant side characters felt a little bit off while reading. I found myself rechecking several times which characters were having and interaction right now.
Since I listened to this as an audiobook, I also want to mention the narration: Initially I was not a big fan because it often felt more like someone was just reading the book out loud instead of trying to bring some life into the story with their voice. However, once I realized that the author herself was doing the narrating, this immediately became more charming and gave it a whole different and personal feel. I really loved that.
June 9, 2026
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a review copy of this book.
Natalia Loya’s The Laboratory Assistant is an impressive debut that combines historical fiction, romance and psychological drama into a compelling narrative. Set against the turbulent backdrop of Petrograd in 1916, the novel unfolds at a moment when Russia stands on the precipice of revolution. The atmosphere of political unrest and social upheaval permeates every page, lending the story a sense of urgency and inevitability.
At the heart of the novel is Doctor Nikolas, a brilliant young physician whose obsessive dedication to finding a cure for consumption—one of the deadliest diseases of the era—drives much of the narrative. His scientific ambition is both admirable and troubling, revealing a man willing to sacrifice almost everything in pursuit of discovery. Into his world steps Mariya, a resourceful young woman struggling to support herself and her sisters in a society that offers few opportunities to women of limited means. When she begins working as Nikolas’s laboratory assistant, an unexpected bond develops between them, one built on mutual respect, intellectual curiosity, and growing affection.
What makes the novel particularly engaging is the complexity of its characters. Mariya is a resilient and sympathetic protagonist whose determination to carve out a place for herself in a rigidly stratified society makes her easy to root for. Nikolas, meanwhile, is far more complicated. His brilliance is inseparable from the mental struggles that haunt him, and Loya portrays his condition with nuance and sensitivity. As his psychological difficulties begin to interfere with both his research and his relationship with Mariya, the emotional stakes of the story deepen considerably.
The novel gathers momentum steadily before becoming especially gripping in its final chapters. The ending carried a tension and emotional intensity that I did not anticipate, keeping me fully invested until the last page. For a debut novel, the storytelling is remarkably assured. Loya not only crafts a tightly woven and absorbing plot but also offers a thoughtful portrait of a society deeply divided by class, privilege, and social expectations. Through the experiences of her characters, she captures the uncertainties of an era on the verge of profound transformation.
Honestly, The Laboratory Assistant exceeded my expectations. It is a richly atmospheric historical novel that balances personal drama with larger social and political themes, marking Natalia Loya as an author worth watching.
Natalia Loya’s The Laboratory Assistant is an impressive debut that combines historical fiction, romance and psychological drama into a compelling narrative. Set against the turbulent backdrop of Petrograd in 1916, the novel unfolds at a moment when Russia stands on the precipice of revolution. The atmosphere of political unrest and social upheaval permeates every page, lending the story a sense of urgency and inevitability.
At the heart of the novel is Doctor Nikolas, a brilliant young physician whose obsessive dedication to finding a cure for consumption—one of the deadliest diseases of the era—drives much of the narrative. His scientific ambition is both admirable and troubling, revealing a man willing to sacrifice almost everything in pursuit of discovery. Into his world steps Mariya, a resourceful young woman struggling to support herself and her sisters in a society that offers few opportunities to women of limited means. When she begins working as Nikolas’s laboratory assistant, an unexpected bond develops between them, one built on mutual respect, intellectual curiosity, and growing affection.
What makes the novel particularly engaging is the complexity of its characters. Mariya is a resilient and sympathetic protagonist whose determination to carve out a place for herself in a rigidly stratified society makes her easy to root for. Nikolas, meanwhile, is far more complicated. His brilliance is inseparable from the mental struggles that haunt him, and Loya portrays his condition with nuance and sensitivity. As his psychological difficulties begin to interfere with both his research and his relationship with Mariya, the emotional stakes of the story deepen considerably.
The novel gathers momentum steadily before becoming especially gripping in its final chapters. The ending carried a tension and emotional intensity that I did not anticipate, keeping me fully invested until the last page. For a debut novel, the storytelling is remarkably assured. Loya not only crafts a tightly woven and absorbing plot but also offers a thoughtful portrait of a society deeply divided by class, privilege, and social expectations. Through the experiences of her characters, she captures the uncertainties of an era on the verge of profound transformation.
Honestly, The Laboratory Assistant exceeded my expectations. It is a richly atmospheric historical novel that balances personal drama with larger social and political themes, marking Natalia Loya as an author worth watching.
June 3, 2026
Review of advance reader copy received from NetGalley
A gothic historical novel set in Petrograd, Russia in 1916 where a young woman Mariya is barely making ends meet after her father dies and left a large debt during a time of political unrest. With her mother is sick in bed with tuberculosis and 2 younger sisters. She gets an opportunity and takes the job as an assistant for Dr. Nikolas Rodin, a reclusive but brilliant scientist, who seems to be conducting secret experiments. Is the generous pay offered too good to be true and is there something more sinister happening?
I was very intrigued by the premise. The setting was very unique and had a lot of potential. It was easy to read. The beginning definitely hooked me but did start to fall apart after about the first ⅓ of the book. It lost some of the more eerie gothic elements. By the synopsis, I did think it would be darker than it ended up. The writing kept distracting me for example within 2 pages it would say “the doctor", “the scientist”, “the young doctor”, “the man”, “Nikolas”, all of which would be referring to Nikolas and sometimes I had to read the passages multiple times to make sure if they were referring to the same person or if someone else was in the scene that I missed. I didn’t really find any of the characters likeable and felt the plot had too many threads that felt undeveloped and the main plot was fine but my expectations were very high and it didn’t match it. If you are looking to dip your toes in dark romance and don’t want something too dark and are intrigued by the setting and like historical fiction, this book may be more for you.
Plot: 2/5
Enjoyment: 2/5
Artistry: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
Heart: 3/5
Total average: 2.4/5
*rating system from ErinAndrews
https://youtu.be/uG7Lnt7LqdI?si=wQ5qn...
I received a free advanced reader copy of this book from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review. Thank you for Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC copy!
A gothic historical novel set in Petrograd, Russia in 1916 where a young woman Mariya is barely making ends meet after her father dies and left a large debt during a time of political unrest. With her mother is sick in bed with tuberculosis and 2 younger sisters. She gets an opportunity and takes the job as an assistant for Dr. Nikolas Rodin, a reclusive but brilliant scientist, who seems to be conducting secret experiments. Is the generous pay offered too good to be true and is there something more sinister happening?
I was very intrigued by the premise. The setting was very unique and had a lot of potential. It was easy to read. The beginning definitely hooked me but did start to fall apart after about the first ⅓ of the book. It lost some of the more eerie gothic elements. By the synopsis, I did think it would be darker than it ended up. The writing kept distracting me for example within 2 pages it would say “the doctor", “the scientist”, “the young doctor”, “the man”, “Nikolas”, all of which would be referring to Nikolas and sometimes I had to read the passages multiple times to make sure if they were referring to the same person or if someone else was in the scene that I missed. I didn’t really find any of the characters likeable and felt the plot had too many threads that felt undeveloped and the main plot was fine but my expectations were very high and it didn’t match it. If you are looking to dip your toes in dark romance and don’t want something too dark and are intrigued by the setting and like historical fiction, this book may be more for you.
Plot: 2/5
Enjoyment: 2/5
Artistry: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
Heart: 3/5
Total average: 2.4/5
*rating system from ErinAndrews
https://youtu.be/uG7Lnt7LqdI?si=wQ5qn...
I received a free advanced reader copy of this book from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review. Thank you for Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC copy!
August 22, 2026
Set in Petrograd (St. Petersburg) right before the Russian Revolution, The Laboratory Assistant is a dark historical fiction novel that explores the compounding and competing interests of family, duty, loyalty, and love under exceptionally trying circumstances. We join the protagonist Mariya shortly after her life of privilege has drastically changed for the worst, and follow her across a series of outside events and personal choices that shape the future of her life and the lives of her loved ones. The volatile setting provides an appropriate background as a question is posed to the reader: how far would you go for those you love? And how much of yourself would you lose in the process?
Natalia Loya frames this overarching moral inquiry within a compelling and approachable framework, grasping your attention from the first chapter and holding it until the finale. Her elegant but accessible prose allows an immediate attachment to her characters and their plights, appreciating their layered humanity while progressing the narrative at a steady pace. The author has a peculiar talent for developing and propagating tension, in an unexpectedly but delightfully nonlinear fashion. There are a few particular scenes in the book with memorably acute emotional engagement (namely, the mental asylum and first descent into the laboratory basement), showcasing Loya's mastery of pace, finesse with word choice, and natural ability to express a distinct mood with balanced imagery.
The Laboratory Assistant is an excellent debut work by a promising new author. The book delivers both an engaging reading experience and a lingering intellectual satisfaction. Loya demonstrates a broad literary toolbox as well as a storyteller's instinct to leave us with substance beyond the pages. She sets a high bar for her future work, it will be a treat to see what she produces next!
Natalia Loya frames this overarching moral inquiry within a compelling and approachable framework, grasping your attention from the first chapter and holding it until the finale. Her elegant but accessible prose allows an immediate attachment to her characters and their plights, appreciating their layered humanity while progressing the narrative at a steady pace. The author has a peculiar talent for developing and propagating tension, in an unexpectedly but delightfully nonlinear fashion. There are a few particular scenes in the book with memorably acute emotional engagement (namely, the mental asylum and first descent into the laboratory basement), showcasing Loya's mastery of pace, finesse with word choice, and natural ability to express a distinct mood with balanced imagery.
The Laboratory Assistant is an excellent debut work by a promising new author. The book delivers both an engaging reading experience and a lingering intellectual satisfaction. Loya demonstrates a broad literary toolbox as well as a storyteller's instinct to leave us with substance beyond the pages. She sets a high bar for her future work, it will be a treat to see what she produces next!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
The Laboratory Assistant was exactly the kind of atmospheric historical fiction I love.
Set during the Russian Revolution, this story combines gothic suspense, romance, political unrest, and scientific ambition into a compelling and immersive read. From mausoleums and family crypts to a creepy old laboratory filled with secrets, the atmosphere practically drips off the page.
Mariya was an easy protagonist to root for. As her family’s world crumbles around her, she finds herself working alongside the enigmatic Dr. Nikolas Rodin, whose research may change everything. What begins as a story of survival quickly becomes something much darker and more complex.
The gothic elements were my favorite part of the novel. The sanatorium setting, mysterious experiments, inspector investigation, and growing sense of unease gave this book strong dark academia vibes. There were several moments where I genuinely wasn’t sure where the story was heading, and I loved the suspense that created.
I also appreciated how the novel explored the intersection of science, morality, obsession, and love. The “mad scientist” undertones added another fascinating layer to the story without turning it into outright horror.
If you enjoy:
🖤 Gothic historical fiction
🖤 Dark academia vibes
🖤 Women in STEM
🖤 Atmospheric romance
🖤 Russian Revolution settings
🖤 Mystery and suspense
I definitely recommend picking this one up.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. All opinions are my own 📚✨
Favorite takeaway: This felt like a gothic romance wrapped inside a historical mystery, with just enough creeping dread to keep me glued to the pages 🖤
Set during the Russian Revolution, this story combines gothic suspense, romance, political unrest, and scientific ambition into a compelling and immersive read. From mausoleums and family crypts to a creepy old laboratory filled with secrets, the atmosphere practically drips off the page.
Mariya was an easy protagonist to root for. As her family’s world crumbles around her, she finds herself working alongside the enigmatic Dr. Nikolas Rodin, whose research may change everything. What begins as a story of survival quickly becomes something much darker and more complex.
The gothic elements were my favorite part of the novel. The sanatorium setting, mysterious experiments, inspector investigation, and growing sense of unease gave this book strong dark academia vibes. There were several moments where I genuinely wasn’t sure where the story was heading, and I loved the suspense that created.
I also appreciated how the novel explored the intersection of science, morality, obsession, and love. The “mad scientist” undertones added another fascinating layer to the story without turning it into outright horror.
If you enjoy:
🖤 Gothic historical fiction
🖤 Dark academia vibes
🖤 Women in STEM
🖤 Atmospheric romance
🖤 Russian Revolution settings
🖤 Mystery and suspense
I definitely recommend picking this one up.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. All opinions are my own 📚✨
Favorite takeaway: This felt like a gothic romance wrapped inside a historical mystery, with just enough creeping dread to keep me glued to the pages 🖤
September 9, 2026
Thanks Netgalley for providing this Listen Now Arc in exchange for my honest review.
In a book world awash in dark romance, The Laboratory Assistant, while not breaking any ground in the now well-tread genre, provides a historically rich and lovingly crafted story of medical mysteries, political intrigue, and of course, questionable romance. The book follows down-on-her-luck aristocrat Mariya as her family's financial straits force her to take a job as assistant to the not-at-all-sus Dr. Nikolas Rodin. If that weren't bad enough, this is 1916 Russia, and the political situation is about to get much, much worse. But that won't stop these two young-blooded lovers from falling for each other (and into each other's beds).
The historical setting and elements play a much larger role in the book than I anticipated, with multiple medical and political subplots vying for our leading lady's attention. Some readers may feel this makes the book cluttered, but for those who like their romance cut with something a little less spicy, this book delivers plenty of diversions. The romance itself lives up to its genre's name, as the power differential between the two leads tinges their relationship with a questionability readers will find either engaging or icky.
Speaking of icky, it should be noted this book engages with a number of heavy topics, including assault, illness, and asylums. A careful and sensitive portrayal of mental illness this is not, and the sensationalized way it plays into the plot will no doubt turn off some readers. But for those willing to endure the grislier elements of this dark romance, The Laboratory Assistant hits all the marks.
In a book world awash in dark romance, The Laboratory Assistant, while not breaking any ground in the now well-tread genre, provides a historically rich and lovingly crafted story of medical mysteries, political intrigue, and of course, questionable romance. The book follows down-on-her-luck aristocrat Mariya as her family's financial straits force her to take a job as assistant to the not-at-all-sus Dr. Nikolas Rodin. If that weren't bad enough, this is 1916 Russia, and the political situation is about to get much, much worse. But that won't stop these two young-blooded lovers from falling for each other (and into each other's beds).
The historical setting and elements play a much larger role in the book than I anticipated, with multiple medical and political subplots vying for our leading lady's attention. Some readers may feel this makes the book cluttered, but for those who like their romance cut with something a little less spicy, this book delivers plenty of diversions. The romance itself lives up to its genre's name, as the power differential between the two leads tinges their relationship with a questionability readers will find either engaging or icky.
Speaking of icky, it should be noted this book engages with a number of heavy topics, including assault, illness, and asylums. A careful and sensitive portrayal of mental illness this is not, and the sensationalized way it plays into the plot will no doubt turn off some readers. But for those willing to endure the grislier elements of this dark romance, The Laboratory Assistant hits all the marks.
June 11, 2026
The Laboratory Assistant is a historical gothic romance set on the cusp of Russia's February Revolution. Mariya Sokolova, the heroine, is from an aristocratic family fallen on hard times, as she's forced to seek out work in order to support her dying mother and sisters. By chance, she finds work as the assistant to the brilliant and charismatic doctor, Nikolas Rodin, who seems plagued by an inner darkness as he stops at nothing to find a cure for tuberculosis. As their relationship develops, she too is sucked into his world of madness and transgression, as the world around them slips further into chaos.
Loya does a wonderful job bringing the prose and magical realism of 19th Century Russian literature into the modern era. She captures the tension and philosophy of Crime and Punishment but with a modern perspective on mental illness and science -- as well as a steamy romance that would definitely not have passed the 19th Century censors!
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical gothic fiction with a strong romantic subplot, especially if you're interested in World War I era Russia. Additionally I think this is a great gateway book into the Russian classics if you're not familiar with them, especially since Loya simplifies some of the Russian naming conventions that so often befuddle Western readers.
Should you enjoy this book and want more of that vibe, I'd recommend Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky, Queen of Spades by Pushkin, and Master and Margarita by Bulgakov.
Loya does a wonderful job bringing the prose and magical realism of 19th Century Russian literature into the modern era. She captures the tension and philosophy of Crime and Punishment but with a modern perspective on mental illness and science -- as well as a steamy romance that would definitely not have passed the 19th Century censors!
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical gothic fiction with a strong romantic subplot, especially if you're interested in World War I era Russia. Additionally I think this is a great gateway book into the Russian classics if you're not familiar with them, especially since Loya simplifies some of the Russian naming conventions that so often befuddle Western readers.
Should you enjoy this book and want more of that vibe, I'd recommend Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky, Queen of Spades by Pushkin, and Master and Margarita by Bulgakov.
September 20, 2026
First and foremost, I am going to point out that the narrator of this book is also the author. I hate when authors do, this because they read the book like they are simply reading the book. It is not a true narration. Multiple times, I had to stop this book and restart it over the course of a few days. The authors tone was extremely whiny and very nasally. She does not have a good voice for audio recording, and she should take note of that because…
The book could have been phenomenal-had it not been for that.
The storyline was very good. It was set in Russia in the early 1900s. It had a lot of historical value in dealing with the crisis that Russia was going through along with the resistance that the Russian government had and multiple illnesses that were occurring at the time in that country.
It’s just so sad that the book was probably pretty well written, but because the author did not pay to have a good narrator or maybe just thought she could narrate it better, It just really fell short.
I would give it 2 1/2 stars, but I didn’t wanna rank it at two; I went ahead and generously gave it three. Had she had a true narrator read the voice, it probably would’ve hit closer to a four or 4 1/2 star. It got extremely confusing at times because she did not change her voice for each person that was talking. Thus, why I started it over five or six different times realizing that I didn’t even know what the f*ck was going on and who the f*ck was who.
Thank you to the author and NetGallery for the ARC.
The book could have been phenomenal-had it not been for that.
The storyline was very good. It was set in Russia in the early 1900s. It had a lot of historical value in dealing with the crisis that Russia was going through along with the resistance that the Russian government had and multiple illnesses that were occurring at the time in that country.
It’s just so sad that the book was probably pretty well written, but because the author did not pay to have a good narrator or maybe just thought she could narrate it better, It just really fell short.
I would give it 2 1/2 stars, but I didn’t wanna rank it at two; I went ahead and generously gave it three. Had she had a true narrator read the voice, it probably would’ve hit closer to a four or 4 1/2 star. It got extremely confusing at times because she did not change her voice for each person that was talking. Thus, why I started it over five or six different times realizing that I didn’t even know what the f*ck was going on and who the f*ck was who.
Thank you to the author and NetGallery for the ARC.
October 4, 2026
I went into The Lab Assistant expecting something much darker than what I ultimately got.
The premise immediately caught my attention, especially with the historical setting, the experiments, and the potential for the story to become increasingly unsettling. There were definitely dark moments, but I kept waiting for the story to really cross that line into something more disturbing and unhinged. It never quite went as far as I expected it to.
The romance also played a much larger role than I anticipated. That was not necessarily a bad thing, but it did change the feel of the book for me. I think I was expecting more of a dark historical thriller with romantic elements, rather than a story where the romance was so prominent.
I did enjoy Mariya, and there were moments when I thought her character might take a much darker turn. I honestly would have loved to see the story push her, and the doctor, even further because the setup had so much potential for that.
There were also a few writing choices that pulled me out of the story at times, particularly when the characters were suddenly referred to by descriptions or roles instead of their names. It occasionally made scenes harder to follow than they needed to be.
I enjoyed The Lab Assistant and thought the concept was really interesting. I just wanted it to go further with the darker elements that initially drew me in. I would still read this author again because there was enough here that worked for me, even if this particular story did not completely meet my expectations.
The premise immediately caught my attention, especially with the historical setting, the experiments, and the potential for the story to become increasingly unsettling. There were definitely dark moments, but I kept waiting for the story to really cross that line into something more disturbing and unhinged. It never quite went as far as I expected it to.
The romance also played a much larger role than I anticipated. That was not necessarily a bad thing, but it did change the feel of the book for me. I think I was expecting more of a dark historical thriller with romantic elements, rather than a story where the romance was so prominent.
I did enjoy Mariya, and there were moments when I thought her character might take a much darker turn. I honestly would have loved to see the story push her, and the doctor, even further because the setup had so much potential for that.
There were also a few writing choices that pulled me out of the story at times, particularly when the characters were suddenly referred to by descriptions or roles instead of their names. It occasionally made scenes harder to follow than they needed to be.
I enjoyed The Lab Assistant and thought the concept was really interesting. I just wanted it to go further with the darker elements that initially drew me in. I would still read this author again because there was enough here that worked for me, even if this particular story did not completely meet my expectations.
June 8, 2026
I expected almost a Frankenstein romance with paranormal elements. Instead, The Laboratory Assistant delivered a bleak account on the eve of the Russian Revolution of Mariya, an impoverished young woman caring for her widowed mother and younger sisters, who finds work in the lab of Dr. Nikolas Rodin, a brilliant biomedical scientist on the verge of discovering a cure for tuberculosis. There is no literal monster or ghost, only the shadows of Nikolas' mental illness and the growing love between him and Mariya, as she learns to read him and his loyalty and dependence on her grows.
The writing is sometimes hard to follow. Although most of the story is told from Mariya's POV, as more characters are introduced, POVs can switch momentarily in the middle of the action. The subject often changes too: rather than Nikolas, he's the scientist. Rather than Viktor, he's the psychiatrist. Rather than Mariya, she's the dancer or 20 year old woman.
Nevertheless, the plot carries forward well, as we follow the decline in Mariya's mother's, sister's, and then her own health due to tuberculosis and Nikolas' increasing madness, off the meds, to find the cure. Meanwhile, the city of Petrograd is a pressure cooker with the Bolsheviks and students increasingly clashing with the police. All of it sweeping everyone into final confrontation with high stakes of life or death.
Thanks to NetGalley and Mindbuck Media for the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy.
The writing is sometimes hard to follow. Although most of the story is told from Mariya's POV, as more characters are introduced, POVs can switch momentarily in the middle of the action. The subject often changes too: rather than Nikolas, he's the scientist. Rather than Viktor, he's the psychiatrist. Rather than Mariya, she's the dancer or 20 year old woman.
Nevertheless, the plot carries forward well, as we follow the decline in Mariya's mother's, sister's, and then her own health due to tuberculosis and Nikolas' increasing madness, off the meds, to find the cure. Meanwhile, the city of Petrograd is a pressure cooker with the Bolsheviks and students increasingly clashing with the police. All of it sweeping everyone into final confrontation with high stakes of life or death.
Thanks to NetGalley and Mindbuck Media for the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy.
August 12, 2026
This was….whew, this was not good, and I’m genuinely surprised that this book has over a four star rating! Perhaps the traditional book format is what is saving it. The premise sounded so intriguing but the execution was flawed on many levels.
Firstly, the author narrated this audiobook, and it was, well, as I’ve already mentioned…not good! Quite monotonous, with an accent out of line with the setting.
My main problem, and it was a big one, was with the author’s word choice and style. I have to wonder if somewhere along the way, an editor encouraged her to use different ways to name or refer to each character. We go from their names to ‘the assistant,’ ‘the scientist,’ ‘the psychiatrist,’ ‘the dancer,’ ‘Mariya’s lover,’ etc. In a two minute sample, Dr. Rodin was referred to as ‘the scientist’ seven times. It was silly and repetitive. This, in combination with the awkward audiobook narration, took me right out of the story more often than not. Also I feel like there were some underdeveloped storylines that went nowhere, such as hinting that the doctor’s ailment was supernatural only to lead you firmly down the path to it being “madness” in the next breath. I should probably have DNFed, but I’m no quitter! I felt a total lack of connection with all the characters. It’s a shame because I do feel this book had so much potential!
I received an early audiobook edition from Netgalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
Firstly, the author narrated this audiobook, and it was, well, as I’ve already mentioned…not good! Quite monotonous, with an accent out of line with the setting.
My main problem, and it was a big one, was with the author’s word choice and style. I have to wonder if somewhere along the way, an editor encouraged her to use different ways to name or refer to each character. We go from their names to ‘the assistant,’ ‘the scientist,’ ‘the psychiatrist,’ ‘the dancer,’ ‘Mariya’s lover,’ etc. In a two minute sample, Dr. Rodin was referred to as ‘the scientist’ seven times. It was silly and repetitive. This, in combination with the awkward audiobook narration, took me right out of the story more often than not. Also I feel like there were some underdeveloped storylines that went nowhere, such as hinting that the doctor’s ailment was supernatural only to lead you firmly down the path to it being “madness” in the next breath. I should probably have DNFed, but I’m no quitter! I felt a total lack of connection with all the characters. It’s a shame because I do feel this book had so much potential!
I received an early audiobook edition from Netgalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 8, 2026
The Laboratory Assistant by Natalia Loya immediately caught my attention because of the title. As someone who used to work as a lab assistant, I was intrigued to see where the story would take me, and I thought this would be a nice change from my usual reads.
I really enjoyed the dark and eerie atmosphere of this audiobook. Natalia Loya does a great job creating vivid imagery of Petrograd in 1916, especially with Russia on the brink of World War I and revolution. The laboratory setting, unsettling experiments, and mysterious atmosphere gave the story a gothic feel that kept me curious.
I will admit that the first three chapters were a little difficult for me to get through, and there were definitely some gruesome moments that caught me off guard. However, once I settled into the story, I appreciated the unique combination of historical fiction, gothic elements, science, and romance.
Mariya’s struggle to support her family while working for the reclusive Dr. Rodin added an emotional layer to the story, especially as tuberculosis and revolution begin affecting her family and the world around her.
Overall, if you enjoy gothic, eerie historical fiction with a touch of romance, The Laboratory Assistant is definitely one to add to your TBR. 🖤📚
Thank you @netgalley and Natalia Loya for giving me the opportunity to listen to the audiobook of The Laboratory Assistant. This review is from my own accord.
I really enjoyed the dark and eerie atmosphere of this audiobook. Natalia Loya does a great job creating vivid imagery of Petrograd in 1916, especially with Russia on the brink of World War I and revolution. The laboratory setting, unsettling experiments, and mysterious atmosphere gave the story a gothic feel that kept me curious.
I will admit that the first three chapters were a little difficult for me to get through, and there were definitely some gruesome moments that caught me off guard. However, once I settled into the story, I appreciated the unique combination of historical fiction, gothic elements, science, and romance.
Mariya’s struggle to support her family while working for the reclusive Dr. Rodin added an emotional layer to the story, especially as tuberculosis and revolution begin affecting her family and the world around her.
Overall, if you enjoy gothic, eerie historical fiction with a touch of romance, The Laboratory Assistant is definitely one to add to your TBR. 🖤📚
Thank you @netgalley and Natalia Loya for giving me the opportunity to listen to the audiobook of The Laboratory Assistant. This review is from my own accord.
October 20, 2026
⭐️ 3 / 5 stars
I received an ALC for this from Netgalley.
The Laboratory Assistant is set in Petrograd in 1916, as revolution builds and tuberculosis spreads. Mariya, the eldest daughter of a once-aristocratic family, takes a job assisting the reclusive Dr. Nikolas Rodin so she can support her mother and sisters. He is a brilliant but unstable scientist searching for a cure for consumption, and his work becomes darker the more she learns about it.
The author narrates the audiobook herself, and the narration was very well done.
It was hard for me to get into the story, but I liked it in the end. The atmosphere is dark, gloomy, and realistic. It was difficult to read, not because of the writing but because the plot is gritty and heavy. There are content warnings, including sexual assault and human experimentation, so check those before you pick it up.
Mariya and her sister Sophia are both strong characters, and I liked their potential love interest. At one point I didn’t like Mariya, when she turned against Nikolas and argued for a man with no morals. She came around eventually. Nikolas was my favorite, and every character had layers that made them interesting to read.
There is not much romance in it for me. It exists, but it felt more like a subplot.
Historical fiction is evidently not my genre, but this was an okay book overall, and I would still recommend it, especially to readers who enjoy dark, atmospheric historical fiction.
I received an ALC for this from Netgalley.
The Laboratory Assistant is set in Petrograd in 1916, as revolution builds and tuberculosis spreads. Mariya, the eldest daughter of a once-aristocratic family, takes a job assisting the reclusive Dr. Nikolas Rodin so she can support her mother and sisters. He is a brilliant but unstable scientist searching for a cure for consumption, and his work becomes darker the more she learns about it.
The author narrates the audiobook herself, and the narration was very well done.
It was hard for me to get into the story, but I liked it in the end. The atmosphere is dark, gloomy, and realistic. It was difficult to read, not because of the writing but because the plot is gritty and heavy. There are content warnings, including sexual assault and human experimentation, so check those before you pick it up.
Mariya and her sister Sophia are both strong characters, and I liked their potential love interest. At one point I didn’t like Mariya, when she turned against Nikolas and argued for a man with no morals. She came around eventually. Nikolas was my favorite, and every character had layers that made them interesting to read.
There is not much romance in it for me. It exists, but it felt more like a subplot.
Historical fiction is evidently not my genre, but this was an okay book overall, and I would still recommend it, especially to readers who enjoy dark, atmospheric historical fiction.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The Laboratory Assistant was atmospheric, lush, and immersive.
In 1916 Petrograd, we follow former aristocrat Mariya struggling to make ends meet for her family, while the threat of revolution and consumption (tuberculosis) arise. When she meets mysterious scientist Nikolas Rodin, her life shifts dramatically.
I felt like this was incredibly interesting. This is slightly outside of my typical genre reads, but I couldn’t put it down. Every time I would go to pause, the story would shift and I simply had to continue. I had no clue what would happen or how the book was ending, I loved that. The writing was cohesive and highly thought out. I personally loved the romance.
I struggled a bit with the third person POV, switching from following primarily Mariya to occasionally other characters in a way that felt abrupt. It took a second to be like “oh wait this isn’t Mariya anymore”. That’s my only complaint, and it’s so minor.
I loved how the author leaves room for interpretation with some subtle nuances, and addresses heavy topics with such grace. This story will stick with me for its originality and detail.
-1916 Russia
-gothic historical fiction
-madness
-romance
-how far will you go for those you love?
-political upheaval
-women in STEM
Thank you so much to NetGalley for this ARC, all opinions are my own.
In 1916 Petrograd, we follow former aristocrat Mariya struggling to make ends meet for her family, while the threat of revolution and consumption (tuberculosis) arise. When she meets mysterious scientist Nikolas Rodin, her life shifts dramatically.
I felt like this was incredibly interesting. This is slightly outside of my typical genre reads, but I couldn’t put it down. Every time I would go to pause, the story would shift and I simply had to continue. I had no clue what would happen or how the book was ending, I loved that. The writing was cohesive and highly thought out. I personally loved the romance.
I struggled a bit with the third person POV, switching from following primarily Mariya to occasionally other characters in a way that felt abrupt. It took a second to be like “oh wait this isn’t Mariya anymore”. That’s my only complaint, and it’s so minor.
I loved how the author leaves room for interpretation with some subtle nuances, and addresses heavy topics with such grace. This story will stick with me for its originality and detail.
-1916 Russia
-gothic historical fiction
-madness
-romance
-how far will you go for those you love?
-political upheaval
-women in STEM
Thank you so much to NetGalley for this ARC, all opinions are my own.
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