A superb tale of medical intrigue and murder set in Victorian Edinburgh. We join Dr Will Raven for his second outing and a welcome return of all the main protagonists from The Way of All The Flesh (albeit this would be fine as a stand alone). Edinburgh and the era are richly developed as the background but it is the characters which make this book. For me, the plot was a little slow but it didn’t ruin my enjoyment and I think it a more rounded book than the first in the series. A definite recommendation!

With thanks to #netgalley and #canongate for the advance copy in consideration of an honest review

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Having very much enjoyed the first collaboration between Chris Brookmyre and his wife, I was very much looking forward to The Art Of Dying, and I was not disappointed. The writing is excellent, the historical context is convincing and the descriptions of Edinburgh are superb. While not a crime novel in the conventional sense, there are crimes involved, and the central character of Dr Will Raven is fascinating. I hope this series will continue to enthrall.

Even the title means that nothing here is quite what it seems to be. An exciting romp through a developing medical landscape where Love and life are as unexpected as the plot.
Essentially an historical novel which is well researched and offers a unique insight into the role of women in medicine and more importantly how they choose to use that knowledge !
Eloquently written in the style of a 19th Century novel the language can be complex but enlightening and educational too. I loved this storyline and looked forward to opening this book each night to watch the characters develop.

Before reading this I had no idea what to expect and I was slightly surprised to find that the reader knows who the murderer is right from the start. I actually really loved this about the novel. You follow both the murderer and the characters who are trying to solve the case; having insight into their lives and picking up clues on what drives them.

There was a good amount of twists and surprises throughout the book and a few subplots which added depth to the story and to the characters. It was well written, descriptive and a thrilling read.

I loved the setting, the historical references and was even more thrilled when I discovered that some of the characters were based on real life people. For me that was the icing on the cake.

Although this was book two of a series and obvious links were being referred to surrounding the characters, the story was easy to follow and worked as a stand alone novel too.

I am eager to read the first book, The Way Of All Flesh, now and any future Ambrose Parry novels. Thank you to Netgalley and Canongate publishers for my ARC.

Shaping up to be a great series. There's a mix of history, medicine, and murder with an insightful look at women and their place in society. Edinburgh in 1849 is not somewhere I'd chose to visit, if such things were possible.
The characters are well written and I'm looking forward to seeing how things develop.

Oh wow....I just loved this book! I am a bit of a fan of Victorian murder mystery books, and this one I just couldn't put down from the first page. 

It's set in Edinburgh, at a time when women cannot be doctors, and must only be maids, wives, and be happy with their lot, though things are starting to change. Previously Dr Simpson's apprentice, Raven travelled with his friends after he qualified and has now returned to Edinburgh to become Dr Simpson's assistant - he finds things have changed a little since he left...

This book sucked me in from the start, the characters are likeable and well thought through (no one dimensional characters here!), the plot twists and turns - you are nicely led in one direction only to be thwarted - or have you been?!! It just doesn't let up! 

Anyway, there is a murderer on the loose...and Dr Simpson's reputation is also on the line, but he seems not to care...what is going on?!!!

Can the murderer be found?!!! 

This is the second book I have discovered, I'm going to have to hunt out the first.....don't worry though, it stands alone happily.

My thanks to Netgalley and Cannongate Books for the advance copy

A well written crime novel set in Scotland when medicine was very much experimental. Although I have read the first book in this series I felt that it was a good stand alone story. Good story lines and strong characters.

Another interesting historical novel in this series. As well as a complex mystery we learn more about the use of chloroform in medicine and how new procedures were derived.

Another excellent piece of historical crime from husband wife duo Ambrose Parry. Anyone who enjoyed the first novel will love this gripping, dark and exciting medical crime adventure, as our heroes try to clear the name of Dr Simpson in the dangerous streets of Edinburgh's Old Town! Would also recommend to fans of The Wages of Sin and vice versa!

Last year one of my favourite books was The Way of all Flesh by Ambrose Parry (the pseudonym of crime fiction author, Chris Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman, a consultant anaesthetist). The Art of Dying is its sequel, continuing the story of Will Raven and Sarah Fisher. Once more this is a combination of historical fact and fiction; the social scene, historical and medical facts slotting perfectly into an intricate murder mystery. Beginning in Berlin in 1849 with a dramatic scene, as Will Raven is attacked by three masked men, it is mainly set in 1850 in Edinburgh, when a mysterious illness baffles doctors, who are unable to identify the disease, let alone cure their patients.

Will Raven, now a qualified doctor has returned from studying in Europe to take up the post of assistant to Dr James Simpson, who was Professor of Midwifery at Edinburgh University. Still in love with Sarah, he yearns to be re-united with her, but Will is dismayed to find that she had married during his absence. She was formerly Dr Simpson’s housemaid. Now she is an unqualified nurse, helping with Dr Simpson’s patients in the clinic he runs from his house. But when Dr Simpson is blamed for the death of a patient in suspicious circumstances, Sarah and Will join forces to clear his name. In doing so they uncover more unexplained deaths. Will thinks he may have discovered a new illness when he finds that four members of the same family in a wealthy area of the city have died within two weeks.

Sarah’s has her own problems as she is keen to be more than Dr Simpson’s assistant, but is hampered by the limited choices that women had, and she battles for more equality. There is so much packed into this novel. As well as a feminist theme with its strong female characters, it focuses on medical advances and practices, including the use of chloroform and the ethics and the dilemmas that presented. It also highlights the differences between the affluent professional classes and the poor working class. And it is an intriguing medical murder mystery, with several sub-plots and a wide cast of characters.

I really liked the setting, giving a great sense of place and full of atmosphere that adds to the tension and suspense of the murder mystery. I also liked the way the narrative is interrupted by short passages in the first person giving glimpses into the mind of a murderer – based on a real 19th century figure – and gradually the identity of this person becomes apparent. The Art of Dying is a well written and complex novel with credible characters, some based on real historical people and using nineteenth century textbooks reflecting the medical thinking of the period.

I loved The Art of Dying and I’m hoping there will be a third book as I really want to know what happens next to Will and Sarah. Although I think it is perfectly possible to read this as a standalone novel, I recommend reading The Way of All Flesh, focusing on Dr Simpson’s discovery of the anaesthetic properties of chloroform, before reading The Art of Dying.

Many thanks to Canongate Books for an e-book review copy via NetGalley.

enjoyed this latest in the series a medical crime thriller based in 1849 Edinburgh and liked the part of the enlightened woman in the book some of the plot is based on actual events but its fast paced and drew me in until the end of the novel

opening he is causing difficulties for himself while studying medicine in Germany that will result in him returning to Edinburgh to work as a doctor. Unable to set up his own practice, he will be employed as an assistant to Dr Simpson. Sarah (the ex maid now medical assistant) is still employed in the house but has married Dr Archie Banks to Will’s perturbation. A new character, James Quinton, has been employed as practice secretary to sort out administration and financial difficulties, but a host of others from Parry’s previous novel, some of them unsavoury – Raven and Sarah have been involved in crime detection before - will reappear.
Simpson is in difficulties because as well as his far out medical views (centred around chloroform use) he has been accused of killing a woman patient through incompetence and then covering it up. A whisper campaign is starting. Sarah, eventually backed by Raven, will start to investigate the allegations to prove them untrue. During the course of this she will encounter a cluster of deaths and will suspect that they are not natural, but caused by murder. Without revealing the plot, I can only report that together they will try to identify the person responsible and bring her to justice.
A lot of the interest in this novel lies in its placing in 1840s Edinburgh – expect some detailed descriptions of the Auld Reekie. The background is medical at a time when the practice was not just highly competitive, but moving from medieval traditions to the more “science based” workings of today. This is well researched (some of the characters are real) so interesting on the topics and issues it portrays. The stresses of the developing science – very clearly identified in this tale – adds to the complexity of the background to the murders and investigation.
Then there is the personal - Sarah wanting to have a career in medicine in spite of her working background. There is also her new “private” life as a married woman to another doctor. An unconventional step that friend Raven had not been prepared to make. Dr Simpson is managing his family life in the midst of his practice. Raven is meandering through life still creating chaos for himself and others around him. All these people, their ongoing tensions and tales have to be built into the plot-line as seamlessly as possible. Then the main crime theme of a mass murderess operating under the radar for many years has to be wrapped around this, integrated and - because this is fiction – identified and dealt with.
I had heard good reviews of the first Parry novel (which I am still to read) so I approached this one with high expectations. I was impressed with the Edinburgh scenes, appreciated the consideration of the medical issues (some new to me) and did not spot the final tweak in the unravelling of the murderess. But I must confess I found it disappointing against the previous hype. Was it because the personal aspects are a little too over-represented? I appreciate that this is often the nature of series based crime novels, but something was lacking. Maybe the challenge of the need to bring in new characters, deal with them and get rid, as well as run with the old too resulted in an over-rushed feeling, or lack of balance. But nonetheless it is a fun read with good historical, medical and crime background.

The Art of Dying

Ambrose Parry

“The Art of Dying” is the second in what I suspect is going to be an extended series. After all, with themes such as the development of modern medicine, the position of women in society and their access to medical training, not to mention a “will they won’t they” relationship subplot, there is plenty to go at.

I loved “The Way of All Flesh”, and was delighted to read the second in the series, which I enjoyed just as much. As before it focusses on two main characters – Will Raven, now a qualified doctor and Sarah Fisher, once a housemaid who wants to become a doctor, now a married woman (who still has medical ambitions).
Really this book is about clever women who don’t have a legitimate way of using their brains. Sarah is lucky, her employer, based on the real Professor James Young Simpson, encourages her to become involved in medicine. The other main female character Mary Dempster has no such outlet, and her way around this problem is the engine which drives the book. The narrowness of female life is very well evoked.

“The Art of Dying” is also a vivid portrait of nineteenth century Edinburgh, contrasting the lives of the affluent middle class with those of the poor.

I’m definitely going to be looking out for the next book in the series – Ambrose Parry is going on my “authors to look out for” list!
Thanks to Canongate and Netgalley for the proof.

Really enjoyed this book!

It is the second in a new series of murder mysteries set in late 19th century Edinburgh, with focus on the history of medicine, particularly obstetrics, surgery and public health. I wanted to read this as I loved the first book and I think this is a strong follow up.

The book is extremely well researched and a set in a fascinating time in medical discovery - prior to antibiotics with the recent discovery of chloroform becoming more widely used in certain surgical procedures and childbirth. It also looks at the different roles and restrictions on women in this Victorian period where societal values are starting to be challenged by writers such as Wollstonecraft.

I think the book is written extremely well, although I occasionally found the feelings between the two main characters a bit on the cheesy side. I also guessed the twist in the murder plot but it was still exciting and interesting psychologically.

Would strongly recommend.

From Good Reads:
I can't make up my mind whether this is better than the first - but its at least as good.

Victorian Edinburgh again takes centre stage as our heroes hunt a serial killer. You get a real feel of the old city - the slums, the smells, the tastes, the rich, the poor.

Will and Sarah have moved on as well, more developed, more grown up (I still frequently want to give Will a good shake though)

Love Simpson and Mclevy popping up.

As much historical fiction as historical crime fiction - but there is a cracking good crime story there.

Roll on number 3

Ambrose Parry’s “The Way Of All Flesh” was one of my crime novel highlights of 2018. I found its Victorian Edinburgh setting refreshing and the combination of an unpredictable crime set-up and a seamlessly incorporated history of medicine at the time was extremely effective. Two strong lead characters also helped, implying a lot of potential for this series.
This was Ambrose Parry’s debut novel but writing under that name is highly established crime writer Chris Brookmyre in collaboration with his anaesthesia expert wife Marisa Haetzman. This follow-up moves things on around a year with Dr Will Raven coming to the end of a tour of Europe and a violent incident in an alleyway before returning him back to the more familiar ground of Edinburgh where he has accepted the job of being his mentor Dr Simpson’s assistant. Here, he meets up again with another of Simpson’s employees, Sarah, but this time her circumstances have changed and it seems the authors are committed to keeping this couple who seem destined for one another apart.
The character of Simpson is based upon a real-life doctor noted for his discoveries with chloroform, which featured largely in the first book. Here, there is still experimentation with its usage, at one point it is served up as an alcoholic beverage but medically, anaesthetics have become more established and the issue now seems to be how to keep a patient alive after work has been done on them internally. Infection is the new priority.
The crime aspect comes via a woman not so keen on keeping the patients she is nursing alive and her narrative is interspersed throughout the text. I felt initially that the crime was taking a back seat compared to the medical history side of things but this is just Parry setting things us very nicely for us. Once again there were unpredictable twists and the novel builds just the way I always hope a crime novel will do.
Once again this is good quality fiction which is very readable, characters are developed (although Dr Simpson himself is more in the background) and I really want to know what is next for Will and Sarah. This series, in the space of two novels has established itself very well indeed.

The Art of Dying is published in hardback by Canongate on 29th August 2019 . Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for the advance review copy.

I was sent a copy of The Art of Dying by Ambrose Parry to read and review by NetGalley.
This novel is the sequel to The Way of all Flesh and is set in Edinburgh in 1850 approximately two years on, featuring once again Will Raven and Sarah Fisher as the protagonists. As previously there is the foray into both the medical world and the underbelly of life of the times, both seemingly well researched, and I did enjoy the fact that the murderer had a ‘voice’ at certain points throughout the book. But I have to admit that while the novel is very readable, I feel that it lacked some of the tension that its predecessor had. Still worth a read though, and I have no doubt I will be casting my eye over any further books in the series!

Edinburgh 1850, and Will Raven returns to the city after time abroad furthering his studies in medicine. He returns to take up a permanent post as a doctor in the city, but is shocked to find that Sarah Fisher, the other reason he chose to return, has moved on in her life. The two find themselves thrown together to try and clear the name of their mentor, Dr James Simpson, accused of malpractice that lead to the death of a patient.
But there is more than one mysterious death in Edinburgh. Raven and Sarah begin to see connections between a number of deaths due to mysterious ailments. It seems an angel of death is stalking the infirm, but with the Edinburgh underworld taking an interest in Raven once again, can a killer who can strike without trace be found?
This is a fascinating book, the second by Ambrose Parry – the husband and wife team of Christopher Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman. You may be familiar with Brookmyre’s name as the author of a multitude of crime fiction novels, Tartan Noir, if you like, but it is Haetzman’s research into the history of medicine that has inspired this series, which started with The Way Of All Flesh.
It is an absorbing read, focussing in part on the history of medicine – there’s quite a lot on the development of chloroform in this one. Now you may well think that the development of the use of chloroform in medicine isn’t an interesting subject – you know, I would have thought that too – but it is. The medical history stuff in this book is absolutely fascinating, but that isn’t the only strength.
The narrative focusses on three characters primarily, Raven, Sarah and the murderer. The first two are trying to find their place in the world. Raven is trying to settle into his life as a doctor and Sarah is trying to become a doctor, despite the attitudes of the time. There’s also the matter of their relationship which has struck a major complication. The murderer, meanwhile, is narrating their life experiences which has led them to their current choices.
One thing that I should say, this isn’t a mystery. It’s a thriller, with some twists and turns along the way that kept me reading, and it is a deeply satisfying read. But it’s not a whodunit – not that it ever claims to be, and well done for the publicist for not claiming it is.
This made a very pleasant change from my usual reading, and if the setting appeals, it is definitely worth your time.
Availability: The Art Of Dying is out in hardback and in ebook on August 29th. Many thanks to Canongate books for the review e-copy.

Having read the first in the Raven, Sarah and Simpson series and thoroughly enjoyed it, I was eager to return to 1850s Edinburgh. My review is short but sweet: another great book from Ambrose Parry! I was fully wrapped up in reconnecting with Raven and Sarah. Looking back on my review of the first book, this one was again, very well written. I'd said I didn't feel particularly connected to Simpson in the first book but that was much improved this time around, which I liked. The storyline itself was also quite compelling and definitely held my attention. I really cannot fault the book and would again, happily read the next in the series.

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Canongate for the ARC.

Oh My - this is just such an Excellent Read!
This is the second book in a series (the first of which I haven't read - but will) but easy to jump right into.
From the first pages and then periodically throughout the book we read about the harrowing life of the killer operating in Edinburgh in 1850.
Will Raven, a qualified doctor specialising in obstetrics, returns from Europe to become his mentor, Professor Simpson's. Assistant at his practice (and home) in Queens Street. Sarah, former housemaid to the Simpson family, now works assisting Dr Simpson and absorbing all the medical knowledge that she can.
These are Victorian times where male-dominated society has strong views on 'a woman's "place" and capabilities' and although Dr Simpson is one of the more 'enlightened', Raven struggles to reconcile his ideas of reputation and respectability and his abandoned love for Sarah the housemaid - what would his peers think of him should he considered marrying 'beneath him'.
When Dr Simpson is publicly slandered for malpractice by several medical colleagues Sarah is determined to clear his name. Eventually she convinces Raven that something is wrong with a series of deaths which have occurred, the patients all showing the same baffling symptoms prior to death. Raven thinks he's about to be lauded for discovering 'Raven's Malady' but Sarah believes otherwise.
This is a really great story involving serial killing, blackmail and slander all interwoven within the backdrop of the Simpson household and Will's and Sarah's daily lives within Victorian Edinburgh. The writing clearly portrays the atmosphere of the times, the grime, the weather, some appalling tenement living conditions and the poor who rely on Dr Simpson's practice and his family's generosity.
The characters are brilliantly drawn, the dialogue tinged with humour and the plot twists with sadness and surprise.
Thoroughly recommended.