Book Review: The Dead Shall Not Rest by Tessa Harris

Book Review:  The Dead Shall Not Rest by Tessa Harris

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 .