The Specimen

Jaima Fixsen

ISBN 10: 1728294908 / ISBN 13: 9781728294902

Published by Sourcebooks, Inc, US, 2024

About this Item

A haunting historical mystery perfect for readers of The London Seance Society and A History of FearEdinburgh, 1826. Isobel Tait does her best to raise her young son Thomas alone, but yellow fever has left him with a scarred heart. Even a specialist, the renowned Dr. Connall Burnett, can do nothing for him. Isobel decides to make the most the remaining time with her son.Until he goes missing. A chance visit to Dr. Burnett's collection of specimens elicits a horrifying realization: there, in a small jar among stuffed lizards and misshapen bones, is a new addition. A tiny human heart. The use of stolen bodies by Edinburgh's medical men is a controversial but open secret. But she can't shake a horrible suspicion that the doctor's a proxy killer obsessed with his quest for specimens.Determined to find proof, Isobel goes undercover as a maid in Burnett's house and soon becomes the keeper of his specimens. She'll have to gather evidence, must protect his patients, and exact justice-and not get caught.

Seller Inventory # LU-9781728294902

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Specimen
• Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc, US
• Publication Date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1728294908
• ISBN 13: 9781728294902
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

"An absorbing and expanding mystery... ripe for a bookclub discussion"― First Clue

"Propulsive and lush, Fixsen weaves an exquisitely gothic tale." ― Jess Armstrong, USA Today bestselling author of The Curse of Penryth Hall

Walk carefully, lest you become a part of Dr. Burnett's collection…

1826. Isobel Tait finds herself, by chance, staring at a tiny human heart floating in a jar. It should be of little consequence; Dr. Burnett is renowned for his collection of oddities and medical specimens, and this, a juvenile heart with a damaged mitral valve, is not the strangest thing on display. Except that the condition is rare, and that Isobel's young son, who has been missing for months, suffered from the ailment. 

A phantom pulse beats in Isobel's ears. She knows something here isn't right.

Missing persons cases are all too common in Edinburgh, where people simply vanish like mist. But Burnett is obsessed with his specimens – how far would he go to acquire a new one? Determined to investigate, Isobel joins his staff as the keeper of his collection. What she'll unearth, though, is far worse than any of her nightmares…

Based on true crimes, The Specimen is a mesmerizing story about one woman's search for truth and vengeance in the darkest of places―where the deadliest secrets lie hidden in plain sight, on a freshly dusted shelf.

"The Specimen is a fantastic read! Tense, gripping and full of fabulous characters you grow to love or hate! I devoured it in two sittings." 

– Gareth Brown, bestselling author of The Book of Doors

About the Author

Jaima Fixsen is half of the USA Today bestselling author duo Audrey Blake. She lives in Alberta, Canada.