In 1897 Philadelphia, when Eliza is given the opportunity to debut in society, she decides against it in favor of attending medical school. The book follows her schooling, career, and marriage.

I found this book to be a bit boring. The time progression seemed a bit jolting, as it skipped over large periods of time. I think the times that it skipped, for example most of her experience in medical school, would have been very interesting to read about. It also seemed that life was very easy for Eliza, other than her marriage, there was very little tension in the book. Overall, a bust. ( )

I loved the strong women in this book who support each other through extraordinary choices. In this day when there are so many women doctors, it is incredible to remember that 100 years ago, there were scarcely any women doctors. This book eloquently and powerfully follows Eliza's choice to take the much less taken path. ( )

🌟𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀🌟
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝘆 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝗹𝘆

I was excited to read this historical fiction novel. I was gifted an advanced reader copy for review and overall I really enjoyed it.

“ 𝙰 𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕/𝚠𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚗'𝚜 𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚊𝚗 𝚎𝚍𝚞𝚌𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍, 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚛-𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚍, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚗'𝚜 𝙼𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝙲𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚐𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝙿𝚎𝚗𝚗𝚜𝚢𝚕𝚟𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚊 𝚊𝚝 𝚊 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝟻% 𝚘𝚏 𝚍𝚘𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚜 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚏𝚎𝚖𝚊𝚕𝚎, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚕𝚎𝚜 𝚜𝚎𝚡𝚒𝚜𝚖 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚜 𝚍𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚝𝚜, 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚋𝚒𝚗𝚎𝚜 𝚜𝚌𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚢𝚖𝚙𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚕 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏”.

It follows Eliza a recent Pennsylvania highschool graduate in 1897 who must decide where her future path will take her. Her ultimate decision sets her on a course that few women were taking at the time. She experiences joy, heartache, historical events at the time and joins the women’s suffrage movement on top of it all.

My one and only issue was it was hard to get into at first. The author is a great writer but sometimes certain descriptions are overly complicated, long metaphors and similes that often caused me to skim over and get back to the plot of the story. I would just get into a groove and then they would slow the plot to a halt.

The second half of the story flows much better and I couldn’t put it down. I became invested in Eliza’s achievements and personal life. At times I wish certain parts of her story were elaborated upon instead of skipping ahead in time but in the end everything was wrapped up satisfactorily. I would rate this a
3 -1/2 to 4 stars. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ( )

Insipired by family history and further research into women who went to the Philadelphia women's medical college in the late 1880s and 1890s, this novel follows Eliza, who isn't interested in being presented as a debutante but looks for something for meaningful to do with her life. Her unmarried aunts provide examples of what a woman can do, but she finds her own path in medicine. Alongside her life as a doctor, wife and mother the novel witnesses some of the major events in the early 20th century history, including campaigns for women's suffrage, the sinking of the Titanic, the first world war, and the Spanish influenza. At times I thought this novel lacked a bit of depth, but it was easy to read and get engrossed in the turns of Eliza's life. ( )

The Unlocked Path by Janis Robinson Daly is Historical Fiction and is a delight to those who wish they knew their ancestors‘ stories. I’ve always wondered after years of genealogical research why didn’t we ask or know more about our family history?
I loved reading this book inspired by the author’s grandmother because I felt an immediate connection between my great grandmother’s history and the author’s grandmother. While my 3rd great grandmother’s personal story was probably quite different, her professional life may have been similar. My great grandmother was an early female physician who graduated in 1861 from the New England Female Medical College as a Doctress of Medicine and her practice also primarily served women.
The Unlocked Path tells the history of women who broke through the barriers and succeeded in professions previously open only to men. Details of the physicians study materials and practical experiences were exceptional. The Author’s Note, Reading Group Guide, Acknowledgements, and Resources were thoughtful and of great interest to the reader. If you love history and medicine don’t miss this extraordinary book about the lives of women who made a difference.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I appreciate the opportunity and thank the author and publisher for allowing me to read, enjoy and review this book. 5 Stars ( )