Review: Disturbing the Dead

Presenting: the book that caused a major reading slump! I loved every second I spent reading Disturbing the Dead by Kelley Armstrong and had no idea what to do with myself when it was over. It’s the third book in her Rip Through Time series and it’s by far my favourite - they just keep getting stronger!

Here’s the book’s description:

Victorian Scotland is becoming less strange to modern-day homicide detective Mallory Atkinson. Though inhabiting someone else’s body will always be unsettling, even if her employers know that she’s not actually housemaid Catriona Mitchell, ever since the night both of them were attacked in the same dark alley 150 years apart. Mallory likes her job as assistant to undertaker/medical examiner Dr. Duncan Gray, and is developing true friends―and feelings―in this century.
So, understanding the Victorian fascination with death, Mallory isn't that surprised when she and her friends are invited to a mummy unwrapping at the home of Sir Alastair Christie. When their host is missing when it comes time to unwrap the mummy, Gray and Mallory are asked to step in. And upon closer inspection, it’s not a mummy they’ve unwrapped, but a much more modern body.

A friend mentioned that she got a little bit bored with the mystery and I can kind of see what she means. While I was invested in finding out what happened to the “modern” mummy, the other bits of the story were slightly more compelling. I wasn’t bored by it though and enjoyed the other characters I got to “meet” while Mallory and Gray tried to help solve the murder (except for, you know, the murderer - not a fan of them!).

I very much enjoyed getting back to Victorian Scotland, especially since I was just in Edinburgh (again) over Christmas. I found myself constantly Googling areas and checking my photos to see if we had ended up in some of the same places Mallory had been describing. The city, even now, is full of history that is almost impossible to fathom, especially for a tourist who’s only there for a week or so. (As busy as it was over Christmas, something I wasn’t quite expecting for some reason, it was still a remarkable place to spend the holidays.)

At the risk of being too spoilery, we get a bit more information about the time travel aspect of the story in this book. Which is kind of why the mystery took a bit of a backseat. I think my jaw was hanging open for a good portion of the story because I really wasn’t sure how it was all going to turn out!

This series may frustrate history buffs but for those of us who enjoy history but don’t actually study the Victorian era? Oh, it’s perfect. I love the time period, the location, the characters, the time travel, and the mysteries. It’s everything I love wrapped up in one hell of a compelling series. One that I really hope continues!

Historical fiction and mystery lovers will thoroughly enjoy Kelley Armstrong’s latest book, Disturbing the Dead. The Rip Through Time series is incredibly entertaining and is well worth a read. (Even if it did give me a huge book hangover!)

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Minotaur/St. Martin’s Press, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*