Resurrection Men

by Steven Harper

2 out of 5

Synopsis

Two men become friends in a graveyard in this moving novel of love, loss, and redemption.

Arthur Tor steals the dead for a living. As a resurrection man, he creeps around graveyards with his shovel, hoping to dig up corpses so he can sell them to the local medical college and pay his tuition there. He also holds a strange position in underground society. If someone is dying a slow, painful death, the family members come to Arthur and beg him to end their loved one's pain. Arthur can never refuse, and he helps the dying painlessly cross the threshold in a process he calls the Black Rounds. Unfortunately, a local judge has gotten wind of Arthur's activities and has sworn to send him to prison—or the hangman's noose.

Jesse Fair has fled his corrupt family in Baltimore and landed in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where he becomes the town gravedigger and undertaker, and he works hard to help grieving families through their pain with warmth and compassion. Some families make odd requests for their dearly departed, and Jesse discovers that the undertaker must often deal with the absurd side of death. But his venomous family is still searching for him. Relentlessly. And once they find him, Jesse will have to make a terrible choice.

When Jesse catches Arthur in the act of robbing a grave, the two of them form a strange friendship and even stranger partnership that digs deep into social taboos—and into their own souls.

In his first book since the critically acclaimed novel The Importance of Being Kevin, Steven Harper spins a heartfelt, uplifting story of suspense, life, and love against the backdrop of a Michigan town at the edge of the frontier.

Review

Doctor in training Arthur Tor, and gravedigger Jesse Tor find themselves working together stealing graves for medical experiments. Coming from very different backgrounds they have the chance to become friends, and perhaps more.

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

The book follows our two main characters.

Arthur Tor, a smart and compassionate man who comes from a poor family. Having nothing, he is the first pupil accepted on a scholarship to the local medical academy.

After Arthur accidentally insults Judge Winters, the Judge now makes it his mission to see young Arthur fail in life, driven by his hatred for doctors in general.

Jesse Fair comes from one the richest and most influential families in the country, but he no longer wants to be their prize colt, to be paraded and sold off in marriage.

He leaves it all behind and finds peace working in the graveyard.

He even finds happiness when he meets Arthur.

The story gives us an in-depth look at medical practises and patient treatments at the time. I thought this background was well-researched and it was portrayed in a way that worked well with the narrative.

You can understand some of Judge Winters' prejudices, as some of the practises at that time were barbaric, and there was no unified way of treating patients.

There was also the common (and illegal) practise of stealing bodies from graves for medical purposes.

The not-so-good.

Don't get me wrong, the writing is technically flawless; but for me it lacked emotion and believable character arcs.

There was no emotional investment, and no sign of attraction between them. One minute they were sort-of friends. Then they hook up really early in the book, and from there we are told that they are madly in love. I didn't believe any of it until much later in the book, and it made it hard to connect with the characters.

Despite their very different backgrounds, I thought that Arthur and Jesse were basically the same character, and I often had to flick back a few pages to double-check who the chapter was about.

Overall, there were some good ideas, and I was glad to see how it all wrapped up nicely; but I didn't gel with the writer's writing style.

Goodreads

Amazon