outsmartyourshelf's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.25
Philadelphia, 1889, & a group of young surgeons, including Ephraim Carroll, are observing autopsies carried out by Dr William Osler. When one of the coffins is opened to reveal the corpse of a beautiful young woman, Carroll notices that both Osler & a fellow surgeon, George Turk, have a momentarily odd reaction before the lid closed & Osler hurriedly moves on. For the first time since he has known him, Turk invites Carroll out to the theatre that evening & they end up at a pub called The Fatted Calf.
Turk introduces Carroll to two dancers from the show they have just seen, but Carroll's attention is taken by a strange event when Turk has an argument with a man Carroll has never seen before, but he is sure that he also momentarily spots Dr Osler. Turk waves off any enquiries but the evening ends abruptly. Carroll is rather the worse for wear the following morning but Turk does not appear at all. Nor the next day. Carroll decides to track him down & finds him at death's door & it soon becomes apparent that he has been murdered. Does this have anything to do with the argument or the odd reaction at the autopsy?
The plot itself is okay, it's apparent quite early on what the main thread is going to be about. The issue for me was the main character. Carroll thinks of himself as educated & cerebral whereas he actually does most of his thinking with another part of his body entirely. He's also a bit of a hypocrite & very shallow when it comes to women. After starting a tentative friendship with Mary Simpson, the only female student on the staff, as soon as he gets a sniff that a more attractive, richer young woman may be interested, he then completely ignores Simpson & rebuffs her attempts to continue their conversations (that he initiated), then is surprised when Simpson acts coolly towards him later on. As I said before, it's an okay read but it's not a book I would be in a hurry to reread at any point.
Turk introduces Carroll to two dancers from the show they have just seen, but Carroll's attention is taken by a strange event when Turk has an argument with a man Carroll has never seen before, but he is sure that he also momentarily spots Dr Osler. Turk waves off any enquiries but the evening ends abruptly. Carroll is rather the worse for wear the following morning but Turk does not appear at all. Nor the next day. Carroll decides to track him down & finds him at death's door & it soon becomes apparent that he has been murdered. Does this have anything to do with the argument or the odd reaction at the autopsy?
The plot itself is okay, it's apparent quite early on what the main thread is going to be about. The issue for me was the main character. Carroll thinks of himself as educated & cerebral whereas he actually does most of his thinking with another part of his body entirely. He's also a bit of a hypocrite & very shallow when it comes to women. After starting a tentative friendship with Mary Simpson, the only female student on the staff, as soon as he gets a sniff that a more attractive, richer young woman may be interested, he then completely ignores Simpson & rebuffs her attempts to continue their conversations (that he initiated), then is surprised when Simpson acts coolly towards him later on. As I said before, it's an okay read but it's not a book I would be in a hurry to reread at any point.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion and Medical content
Moderate: Misogyny and Murder
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