Book Review: Disturbing the Dead by Kelley Armstrong
By Doreen Sheridan
May 24, 2024
Mallory Atkinson used to be a homicide detective here in the 21st century. Accidentally traveling back through time to Victorian Edinburgh was, to say the least, completely unexpected. She doesn’t know what kind of magic or scientific anomaly allows her to inhabit the body of housemaid Catriona Mitchell, but she’s slowly gotten comfortable living in the household of eccentric medical examiner Dr. Duncan Gray. He and his chemist sister Isla know the truth about who she really is and have come to value her keen insight into and assistance with his work. It doesn’t hurt, of course, that she’s also helped both of them out on personal bases during the course of upholding justice and fighting crime together.
When Duncan’s other sister Annis invites them to a mummy unwrapping party, the only crime that Duncan and Mallory expect to encounter at the high society event is a crime against human decency. Doctor and assistant are both in agreement that the unnecessary desecration of a human corpse, while well in line with the Victorian fascination with the macabre, is at the very least distasteful. As Duncan says to Mallory:
“It would be science if it were the first mummy unwrapped, or if we had reason to believe it was unusual in a way that would prove useful. Experts have already dissected mummies. We understand how the process was accomplished. Now the dead should be left in peace, as that was the intended purpose of mummifying them in the first place. A person who lived thousands of years ago died, expecting to rest for eternity as their religion dictated.”
He pauses, looking abashed. “That was a lecture, wasn’t it?”
“If so, it was to an appreciative audience. I understand that graves were robbed to advance medicine, and thankfully that’s no longer necessary. I agree with exhuming a body if it means catching a killer. But people have the right to have their beliefs respected. So there’s my lecture.”
Unsavory as they may find the proceedings, Duncan and Mallory agree to accompany his much more avid sisters to the party. They are all similarly horrified however when the bandages are unwrapped and a very contemporary corpse is found swaddled in the ancient linens. With the help of 19th-century police detective Hugh McCreadie, our heroes must investigate this scandalous death, while navigating a tangled web of stolen artifacts, treacherous university politics and Edinburgh’s own mysterious underworld.
While there are significant differences between our modern times and the Victorian era, Mallory finds that some truths prove universal when it comes to policing, as Lord Muir, the rich sponsor of the mummy unwrapping party, puts pressure on McCreadie to look into his personal favorite suspect:
“Miss King will be investigated,” McCreadie says.
“Immediately,” Muir says.
I bristle, and I wait for McCreadie to push back. When he doesn’t, I see my mistake. I can say that it’s the fault of this world and how they treat the nobility, but if I were working a case back home, I’d be expected to give the same deference to any powerful person. They have loud voices and deep pockets, and we might say the law treats everyone the same, but it doesn’t.
This rueful comparison of the modern day with the late 19th century is only one of the many strengths of this terrific book, which is never afraid to point out where mores either diverge or dovetail. Another notable forte is Kelley Armstrong’s commitment to showing that the Great Britain of the Victorian era was not solely inhabited by white people, as people of color play significant roles in this series. The murder mystery here is excellently plotted as well, with subplots that are just as engaging and amusing as the main storyline. The mystery of the publications, especially, was a hoot. There is also a huge development in these pages regarding Mallory’s personal life that series fans absolutely must not miss!
Even though I hadn’t read the other two Rip Through Time novels before picking up Disturbing The Dead, I didn’t feel at all lost while reading this. I’ve been an admirer of Armstrong’s work since her Women Of The Otherworld books, and know that I can always trust her storytelling skills to take care of readers old and new. While I might be late to the party with this series, I’m so glad I was finally able to jump in, and look forward to getting my hands on the rest of these novels soon.