Starred Review ALA Booklist (Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

Starred Review Hazel Sinnet wants to be a doctor, but she lives in the early nineteenth century, not a time friendly to female medical students. She is nearly on her own in the ancestral Hawthornden Castle, just outside Edinburgh: her father is away in Elba, guarding Napoleon; her brother George recently died of "Roman fever"; and her mother, still mourning George, spends most of her time hovering over seven-year-old Percy, the remaining son and heir. Hazel uses her time to study science, and while it's a given that she will marry her cousin Bernard, she is certain that he will still be supportive of her studies. When an attempt to attend anatomy lectures disguised as her brother fails, she proposes to Dr. Beecham III, who taught the lectures, that if she passes the physician's examination, she would receive her qualifications. The only problem is that she has to acquire bodies for dissection. A new acquaintance with Jack, a young "resurrection man," takes care of that need. Meanwhile, a rash of missing-persons cases is an unsettling undercurrent. Schwartz's magical novel is at once gripping and tender, and the intricate plot is engrossing as the reader tries to solve the mystery. She doesn't miss a beat in either the characterization or action, scattering clues with a delicate, precise hand. This is, in the end, the story of the anatomy of the human heart.

Horn Book (Thu Oct 03 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

In 1817 Edinburgh (a city famous at the time for medical advancements), the fictional "Roman fever" is ripping through the population. This sickness has already taken Hazel Sinnett's older brother, and she was lucky to survive it herself. Lady Sinnett, Hazel's mother, does nothing but mourn and dote on her younger son, leaving Hazel with plenty of time to study anatomy on her own, in secret, for it would be most improper for a lady to be interested in medicine. When she meets Jack Currer, a "resurrection man" who steals bodies for medical students to practice on, it seems her dream career might be within reach. A boy's disguise, a wager with a leading surgeon, and a conveniently empty estate all point to success, but deceit, murder, and vicious deeds in the darkness soon threaten her future, as does her growing fondness for Jack. The setting holds death around every corner, and both sinister and noble characters people the city. While a significant plot point feels abrupt, the (gory) tale is riveting, and Hazel and Jack are sympathetic characters. Visceral and full of sharp historical details as well as some fantastical elements, this is gothic fun for readers with strong stomachs.

Kirkus Reviews

In a quasi-historical version of Georgian-era Edinburgh, wealthy 17-year-old Hazel Sinnett would rather dress in her dead brother George's clothes to attend anatomy classes than attend balls.Fortunately, her father is on St. Helena with the Royal Navy, and her distracted mother, Lady Sinnett, is in London with her younger brother, Percy, leaving Hazel in Hawthornden Castle with just two servants for supervision. This enables Hazel to pursue her dreams of becoming a surgeon, until a sexist doctor sees through her disguise. Hazel then sets up shop at home in the dungeon and hires a young, attractive resurrection man to bring her bodies for dissection, which in turn allows her to stumble very slowly into the gothic aspect of the story: medical experiments born out of hubris and destined to end badly. The novel contains elements of mystery, horror, romance, and feminist historical fiction but unfortunately does not quite succeed at any. The science is only as accurate as the story requires. Hazel's romance with her body-stealing companion is complicated by her long-standing betrothal to her boring cousin, Bernard, son of Lord and Lady Almont, who plays a minor villain role. Hazel treats the poor from her dungeon surgery and plans a takedown of medical patriarchy, which slows the unfolding of a mystery that is signaled in the prologue. The enjoyably creepy elements and grandstanding main villain are largely relegated to the final chapters. Characters default to White.Unlikely to steal readers' hearts. (Historical thriller. 12-17)