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skinnypenguin's review against another edition
2.0
Didn't really like the subject much. England in the 1700s I guess is just not my thing. The description of living conditions and differences between haves and have nots was depressing. Also did not enjoy knowing about all the grave robbing that happened back then.
avoraciousreader68's review against another edition
4.0
*Book source ~ Many thanks to Kensington for providing a review copy in exchange for an honest review.
It is 1782 and Charles Byrne is said to be the tallest man in the world. Hating the way he is treated, Lady Lydia Farrell rescues him from the traveling fair when it is lodged on the far edge of her property. The Irish Giant only wants to see the King to get a pardon for his dad who was wrongly charged, convicted and hung for a murder he did not commit. From this single minded quest various threads are weaved together to form the whole tapestry of The Dead Shall Not Rest.
There is a lot going on in this second book involving Dr. Thomas Silkstone, an anatomist from the Colonies now living in London. The story is told from multiple POVs that, at first, are a bit hard to keep straight. However, it isn’t long before a picture begins to take shape and everything starts to pull together. There is a murder with an unlikely suspect, Lady Lydia’s strange behavior and the whole story around Charles, his illness and the unscrupulous anatomists who would love to dissect his remains against his wishes. Silkstone is hard pressed to keep up with all three of them as he dashes from one crisis to the next trying to help everyone.
The 18th century forensics is fascinating and the history behind anatomists, coroners and the justice system (such as it was) is a type of history I can get behind. I did think there was a bit too much going on in this book, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying the ride.
It is 1782 and Charles Byrne is said to be the tallest man in the world. Hating the way he is treated, Lady Lydia Farrell rescues him from the traveling fair when it is lodged on the far edge of her property. The Irish Giant only wants to see the King to get a pardon for his dad who was wrongly charged, convicted and hung for a murder he did not commit. From this single minded quest various threads are weaved together to form the whole tapestry of The Dead Shall Not Rest.
There is a lot going on in this second book involving Dr. Thomas Silkstone, an anatomist from the Colonies now living in London. The story is told from multiple POVs that, at first, are a bit hard to keep straight. However, it isn’t long before a picture begins to take shape and everything starts to pull together. There is a murder with an unlikely suspect, Lady Lydia’s strange behavior and the whole story around Charles, his illness and the unscrupulous anatomists who would love to dissect his remains against his wishes. Silkstone is hard pressed to keep up with all three of them as he dashes from one crisis to the next trying to help everyone.
The 18th century forensics is fascinating and the history behind anatomists, coroners and the justice system (such as it was) is a type of history I can get behind. I did think there was a bit too much going on in this book, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying the ride.
jodiesackettbrown's review against another edition
4.0
Book Review: The Dead Shall Not Rest by Tessa Harris
Originally published on my blog: http://www.ltwrmama.blogspot.com
Historical fiction is one of my absolutely favorite genres of literature, and Tessa Harris does not disappoint in this novel set in pre-industrial, pre-American Revolution London. Harris fictionalizes the life and death of Charles Byrne, an 8-foot-plus giant from Ireland juxtaposed against the dwarf Count Josef Boruwlaski and mixes in classical composer Josef Haydn and burgeoning anatomist Dr. John Hunter in a tale of justice and duplicity.
This novel surprised me in its tender treatment of Charles and Emily's developing and selfless love played against the backdrop of the brutal and uncaring nature of grave robbery and anatomical butchery in the name of the advancement of science for physicians.
The novel's gruesome exploration of what we now take for granted in the field of medicine is a stark reminder of what it took for medical scientists to accumulate the healing knowledge we now enjoy in the 21st century. As with so many emerging scientific understandings, the journey is paved with pain, suffering, sacrifice, and sometimes even insanity.
Things I Loved:
1. This is book one of a series: I am overjoyed to find a new series to explore. Dr. Silkstone, the grounded anatomist from the uppity Colonies, serves as a trustworthy protagonist with a sense of ethics not shared by most of his anatomist peers. This initial book in the series sets Dr. Silkstone up against some formidable adversaries that he is not even aware exist yet and whets my appetite for more of his discoveries.
2. Tenderness vs. Tawdriness: Harris understands the difficult balance many people struggle to attain between their baser natures and their self-control. The ugly side of London reveals itself in many of the lesser characters, but also in the presumed nobility who, as history has shown us time and time again, bear that distinction in title only as their actions are often anything but noble.
3. Boldness: Harris is a bold storyteller, not shying away from the brutality of the anatomist's professional discipline and not making apologies for the profession's methods. The procurement and the treatment of corpses is an unpleasant yet necessary part of the now-respectable trade of the physician. Harris breaks open the underbelly of this profession and shows us how, like Dr. Frankenstein, even those with good intent can go too far in their pursuits.
4. Background information: Learning about the castrati and reaffirming the duality of the barber-surgeon provided me with a learning opportunity. Man's attempts to modify the body to meet certain aesthetics is nothing new, but it always astounds me the roads we are willing to travel in the name of art.
Things I Liked Less:
1. Charles Byrnes's end: Without giving too much away (I truly hate spoilers!), the end that befalls Charles Byrne is heartbreaking, especially in light of his devotion to justice and his friends' efforts to secure him. However, Harris's narration of this final scene is exquisitely nightmarish, not a scene I will forget in the near future.
2. Lady Lydia's desperate actions: I'm eternally frustrated by a seemingly strong woman who gives in to weakness. Although her plight is representative of the plight of many women from whom autonomy was unmercifully stripped, I wanted her to be stronger, to fight the bastards who hunt her like a delicious quarry.
For those who love realistic historical fiction, Harris does not disappoint. For those who love series comprised of novels that could be stand-alones, the Dr. Silkstone mysteries does not disappoint. I am thankful for this find. Although I cringe at the brutal truth Harris reveals, I am nonetheless hooked .
Originally published on my blog: http://www.ltwrmama.blogspot.com
Historical fiction is one of my absolutely favorite genres of literature, and Tessa Harris does not disappoint in this novel set in pre-industrial, pre-American Revolution London. Harris fictionalizes the life and death of Charles Byrne, an 8-foot-plus giant from Ireland juxtaposed against the dwarf Count Josef Boruwlaski and mixes in classical composer Josef Haydn and burgeoning anatomist Dr. John Hunter in a tale of justice and duplicity.
This novel surprised me in its tender treatment of Charles and Emily's developing and selfless love played against the backdrop of the brutal and uncaring nature of grave robbery and anatomical butchery in the name of the advancement of science for physicians.
The novel's gruesome exploration of what we now take for granted in the field of medicine is a stark reminder of what it took for medical scientists to accumulate the healing knowledge we now enjoy in the 21st century. As with so many emerging scientific understandings, the journey is paved with pain, suffering, sacrifice, and sometimes even insanity.
Things I Loved:
1. This is book one of a series: I am overjoyed to find a new series to explore. Dr. Silkstone, the grounded anatomist from the uppity Colonies, serves as a trustworthy protagonist with a sense of ethics not shared by most of his anatomist peers. This initial book in the series sets Dr. Silkstone up against some formidable adversaries that he is not even aware exist yet and whets my appetite for more of his discoveries.
2. Tenderness vs. Tawdriness: Harris understands the difficult balance many people struggle to attain between their baser natures and their self-control. The ugly side of London reveals itself in many of the lesser characters, but also in the presumed nobility who, as history has shown us time and time again, bear that distinction in title only as their actions are often anything but noble.
3. Boldness: Harris is a bold storyteller, not shying away from the brutality of the anatomist's professional discipline and not making apologies for the profession's methods. The procurement and the treatment of corpses is an unpleasant yet necessary part of the now-respectable trade of the physician. Harris breaks open the underbelly of this profession and shows us how, like Dr. Frankenstein, even those with good intent can go too far in their pursuits.
4. Background information: Learning about the castrati and reaffirming the duality of the barber-surgeon provided me with a learning opportunity. Man's attempts to modify the body to meet certain aesthetics is nothing new, but it always astounds me the roads we are willing to travel in the name of art.
Things I Liked Less:
1. Charles Byrnes's end: Without giving too much away (I truly hate spoilers!), the end that befalls Charles Byrne is heartbreaking, especially in light of his devotion to justice and his friends' efforts to secure him. However, Harris's narration of this final scene is exquisitely nightmarish, not a scene I will forget in the near future.
2. Lady Lydia's desperate actions: I'm eternally frustrated by a seemingly strong woman who gives in to weakness. Although her plight is representative of the plight of many women from whom autonomy was unmercifully stripped, I wanted her to be stronger, to fight the bastards who hunt her like a delicious quarry.
For those who love realistic historical fiction, Harris does not disappoint. For those who love series comprised of novels that could be stand-alones, the Dr. Silkstone mysteries does not disappoint. I am thankful for this find. Although I cringe at the brutal truth Harris reveals, I am nonetheless hooked .
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