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shelleyrae's review against another edition
4.0
Corrupt Bodies is a fascinating memoir of Peter Everett’s time as Superintendent of Southwark Mortuary, one of the UK’s busiest morgue’s, during the 1980’s.
Peter had always been fascinated by death but he was in his early thirties before landing a job as an intern at a hospital mortuary. Just six years later he was both honoured, and surprised, to be offered the position at Southwark but within days of his appointment he understood why the role had been so difficult to staff.
It wasn’t just that the mortuary more closely resembled a Victorian era ‘dead house’ than a modern medical facility with its rusting fixtures, grimy floors and poor ventilation. Nor that the workload was heavy and he was on call practically 24/7. Peter quickly discovered that many of the staff were corrupt, exploiting not only financial arrangements with coffin suppliers and hearse drivers, but also profiting from money, property and body parts stolen from the dead.
Exposing the corruption took Peter months, and earnt him enemies among his colleagues and the police (who served as coroners officers). The stress of these events, plus the steady increase in cases both banal and gruesome,several of which are outlined in the book, eventually took a toll, and Peter suffered a nervous breakdown.
Gripping, Intriguing, and disturbing I found Corrupt Bodies to be a compelling read about life and death.
Peter had always been fascinated by death but he was in his early thirties before landing a job as an intern at a hospital mortuary. Just six years later he was both honoured, and surprised, to be offered the position at Southwark but within days of his appointment he understood why the role had been so difficult to staff.
It wasn’t just that the mortuary more closely resembled a Victorian era ‘dead house’ than a modern medical facility with its rusting fixtures, grimy floors and poor ventilation. Nor that the workload was heavy and he was on call practically 24/7. Peter quickly discovered that many of the staff were corrupt, exploiting not only financial arrangements with coffin suppliers and hearse drivers, but also profiting from money, property and body parts stolen from the dead.
Exposing the corruption took Peter months, and earnt him enemies among his colleagues and the police (who served as coroners officers). The stress of these events, plus the steady increase in cases both banal and gruesome,several of which are outlined in the book, eventually took a toll, and Peter suffered a nervous breakdown.
Gripping, Intriguing, and disturbing I found Corrupt Bodies to be a compelling read about life and death.
tysuckz's review
adventurous
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.25
I had this book on my to read list for so long & thus I was a little disappointed when I firstopened the book and felt it was so slow and boring. But it picked up and I found myself very interested in Peters life as a mortuary superintendent. I especially liked that he noted (or hinted) that debriefing is something that should be taught in the world of pathologists & other mortuary workers. Seeing dead bodies is never gonna be easy- especially not seeing over 11,000 bodies and at least 400 of them being murders of people of all age groups. (Eventually leading him to a mental breakdown so bad he ends up in a psychiatric ward).
imogencooper20's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
2.0
zoeholman's review
4.0
Enjoyed this book a lot; in the sort of guilty pleasure way. I will pretty much read any book on the death industry and this was interesting in a sensational/dramatic way.
bookmarkedatmidnight's review against another edition
3.0
Trigger warning: death, murder, rape, suicide, explicit gruesome details, mental health
This is a shocking story about the unseen life of the morgue employees, corruption and politics in the 1980’s. Paul Everett has tried to expose the truth, only to be suspended by an unfair system. The entire situation took a toll on his mental health and family circumstances. In the end, Paul has turned a negative into a positive outcome, but you’ll have to read the book to find out yourself;)
This is a shocking story about the unseen life of the morgue employees, corruption and politics in the 1980’s. Paul Everett has tried to expose the truth, only to be suspended by an unfair system. The entire situation took a toll on his mental health and family circumstances. In the end, Paul has turned a negative into a positive outcome, but you’ll have to read the book to find out yourself;)
tish9130's review
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
A brilliantly written fantastic look into Peter's career. At times I laughed, others on the verge of tears. Some of the story's within oh my gosh. Peter's writing style kept it factual but fascinating, I honestly didn't want to stop reading. A really great informative read. 👏