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Speakers of the Dead: A Walt Whitman Mystery
08 hrs 52 min
Speakers of the Dead is a mystery novel centering around the investigative exploits of a young Walt Whitman, in which the reporter-cum-poet navigates the seedy underbelly of New York City's body-snatching industry in an attempt to exonerate his friend of a wrongful murder charge.
The year is 1843; the place: New York City. Aurora reporter Walt Whitman arrives at the Tombs prison yard where his friend Lena Stowe is scheduled to hang for the murder of her husband, Abraham. Walt intends to present evidence on Lena's behalf, but Sheriff Harris turns him away. Lena drops to her death, and Walt vows to posthumously exonerate her.
Walt's estranged boyfriend, Henry Saunders, returns to New York, and the two men uncover a link between body-snatching and Abraham's murder: a man named Samuel Clement. To get to Clement, Walt and Henry descend into a dangerous underworld where resurrection men steal the bodies of the recently deceased and sell them to medical colleges. With no legal means to acquire cadavers, medical students rely on these criminals, and Abraham's involvement with the Bone Bill—legislation that would put the resurrection men out of business—seems to have led to his and Lena's deaths.
Fast-paced and gripping, Speakers of the Dead is a vibrant reimagining of one of America's most beloved literary figures.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Speakers of the Dead is a mystery novel centering around the investigative exploits of a young Walt Whitman, in which the reporter-cum-poet navigates the seedy underbelly of New York City's body-snatching industry in an attempt to exonerate his friend of a wrongful murder charge.
The year is 1843; the place: New York City. Aurora reporter Walt Whitman arrives at the Tombs prison yard where his friend Lena Stowe is scheduled to hang for the murder of her husband, Abraham. Walt intends to present evidence on Lena's behalf, but Sheriff Harris turns him away. Lena drops to her death, and Walt vows to posthumously exonerate her.
Walt's estranged boyfriend, Henry Saunders, returns to New York, and the two men uncover a link between body-snatching and Abraham's murder: a man named Samuel Clement. To get to Clement, Walt and Henry descend into a dangerous underworld where resurrection men steal the bodies of the recently deceased and sell them to medical colleges. With no legal means to acquire cadavers, medical students rely on these criminals, and Abraham's involvement with the Bone Bill—legislation that would put the resurrection men out of business—seems to have led to his and Lena's deaths.
Fast-paced and gripping, Speakers of the Dead is a vibrant reimagining of one of America's most beloved literary figures.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Audio
First published March 1, 2016
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About the author
J. Aaron Sanders
3 books83 followersJ. Aaron Sanders is the award-winning author of Speakers of the Dead: A Walt Whitman Mystery. His short stories and essays have been published in such places as Lithub, Carolina Quarterly, Writer’s Digest, Library of America, among others. He earned an MFA at University of Utah, a PhD at University of Connecticut, and was a Professor of English at Columbus State University from 2008-2016. Since that time, Aaron has been living and working as a writer in Los Angeles.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 138 reviews
March 13, 2016
This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life.
Wow! I am kind of shocked by how much I ended up enjoying this book. I grabbed this book to review without a lot of thought. I later looked at it and wondered what the heck I had been thinking. I don't read poetry. Ever. Ok...I was forced to read some poetry in both high school and college but since then my poetry reading has been limited to greeting cards. In other words, Walt Whitman was not any kind of draw for me. My distaste for poetry didn't even matter because you don't have to know anything about Mr. Whitman to enjoy this book. It might even be better that I didn't know a thing about the man to be honest because I could just go along with this fictionalized version of him without any difficulties.
This story is set in New York during the mid 1800's. The story really focuses on cadaver dissection and body snatching during that time period. I love books that involve forensics or medical information so this story ended up being a great fit for me. I just found the whole topic to be incredibly interesting. This was a period of great learning and in order to learn about the human body, physicians need to be able to see how things work by dissecting cadavers. There was no easy way to acquire bodies legally so body snatching became a very lucrative business. The fact that the college at the center of the story was for women just added another layer to the story.
There is a lot of excitement in this story and I was immediately hooked. There are murders to be solved and a whole lot of suspense along the way. The characterization of Walt Whitman in this story was really very interesting. Yes, this was a fictionalized version of Walt Whitman but I really liked him as a character in this story. He was passionate about proving the innocence of his friends and saving those that he could. I liked that he used the resources that he had to shake things up and try to get the answers that he was looking for. He was willing to make huge sacrifices in order to achieve his goal often putting himself at risk. I thought the feelings between Walt and Henry was sweet and felt very authentic.
I liked the writing style in this story. The book opens with a bang and there were a lot of scenes that were action packed. The action heavy scenes were nicely balanced out with others that really made me stop and think. The descriptions of what was involved in taking a body from the grave and the dissections were really well done. I really didn't figure out who was behind everything until the very end and there were some moments that I was really nervous for the characters. It was really kind of fun to have characters show up in the book that I have heard of and I could help but grin at Edgar Poe in the story. The historical setting was very well done and added a lot to the story as well.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a different kind of mystery. This re-imagining of Walt Whitman is very thought provoking and incredibly entertaining. Once I started reading this one, I really didn't want to put it down. This is the first book by J. Aaron Sanders that I have had a chance to read but I am looking forward to his future works.
I received an advance reader edition of this book from Penguin Publishing Group - Plume Books via First to Read for the purpose of providing an honest review.
Initial Thoughts
Wow! This was really good. I was pretty much hooked from the very beginning and ended up reading the whole book in a single day.
Wow! I am kind of shocked by how much I ended up enjoying this book. I grabbed this book to review without a lot of thought. I later looked at it and wondered what the heck I had been thinking. I don't read poetry. Ever. Ok...I was forced to read some poetry in both high school and college but since then my poetry reading has been limited to greeting cards. In other words, Walt Whitman was not any kind of draw for me. My distaste for poetry didn't even matter because you don't have to know anything about Mr. Whitman to enjoy this book. It might even be better that I didn't know a thing about the man to be honest because I could just go along with this fictionalized version of him without any difficulties.
This story is set in New York during the mid 1800's. The story really focuses on cadaver dissection and body snatching during that time period. I love books that involve forensics or medical information so this story ended up being a great fit for me. I just found the whole topic to be incredibly interesting. This was a period of great learning and in order to learn about the human body, physicians need to be able to see how things work by dissecting cadavers. There was no easy way to acquire bodies legally so body snatching became a very lucrative business. The fact that the college at the center of the story was for women just added another layer to the story.
There is a lot of excitement in this story and I was immediately hooked. There are murders to be solved and a whole lot of suspense along the way. The characterization of Walt Whitman in this story was really very interesting. Yes, this was a fictionalized version of Walt Whitman but I really liked him as a character in this story. He was passionate about proving the innocence of his friends and saving those that he could. I liked that he used the resources that he had to shake things up and try to get the answers that he was looking for. He was willing to make huge sacrifices in order to achieve his goal often putting himself at risk. I thought the feelings between Walt and Henry was sweet and felt very authentic.
I liked the writing style in this story. The book opens with a bang and there were a lot of scenes that were action packed. The action heavy scenes were nicely balanced out with others that really made me stop and think. The descriptions of what was involved in taking a body from the grave and the dissections were really well done. I really didn't figure out who was behind everything until the very end and there were some moments that I was really nervous for the characters. It was really kind of fun to have characters show up in the book that I have heard of and I could help but grin at Edgar Poe in the story. The historical setting was very well done and added a lot to the story as well.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a different kind of mystery. This re-imagining of Walt Whitman is very thought provoking and incredibly entertaining. Once I started reading this one, I really didn't want to put it down. This is the first book by J. Aaron Sanders that I have had a chance to read but I am looking forward to his future works.
I received an advance reader edition of this book from Penguin Publishing Group - Plume Books via First to Read for the purpose of providing an honest review.
Initial Thoughts
Wow! This was really good. I was pretty much hooked from the very beginning and ended up reading the whole book in a single day.
February 17, 2016
Five stars all around for this novel. I choose this story because I wanted to read about the American version of Resurrection men otherwise known as Body Snatchers. Readers are mostly familiar with ones from England and Scotland because of Burke and Hare, as well as Robert Louis Stevenson's book. Many of the American medical museums I have visited have exhibits on Body Snatchers.
Sanders goes into great detail as to how this "service" was performed. He also introduced a character that was a practitioner of the forensic arts, otherwise known as a coroner. This guy was no Quincy.
Most helpful for readers was a section in the back that gave a quick synopsis of the characters in the story and a bibliography of books of intrest.
This story is well worth the time reading.
Sanders goes into great detail as to how this "service" was performed. He also introduced a character that was a practitioner of the forensic arts, otherwise known as a coroner. This guy was no Quincy.
Most helpful for readers was a section in the back that gave a quick synopsis of the characters in the story and a bibliography of books of intrest.
This story is well worth the time reading.
February 29, 2016
I was fascinated by the blurb for this book. This is a mystery in which a young Walt Whitman helps to solve the case and a historical novel rolled into one.
The novel begins with the execution of two key figures in the founding of the first medical college for women in the United States located in New York City. Walt Whitman is a fledgeling journalist working for an “alternative” newspaper. He is immediately drawn to this case and he becomes involved in the cause for medical dissection.
During the 19th century there was much discourse over medical schools using cadavers for dissection and education. Christians were against dissection as they felt that the bodies needed to be intact for “resurrection” to take place “at the end of time”. There were already medical schools and anatomy labs which had been burned in other states. “With no legal means of acquiring cadavers, medical students and their instructors had to rely on the illegal body trade run by “resurrection men”. These businessmen would troll the obituaries and then dig up the recently deceased and sell them to medical schools.”
We also meet a young Elizabeth Blackwell who is fighting to keep the medical school open and to further the cause for anatomical dissection as a value to furthering science. She will go on to become the first woman to receive a medical license in the United States.
This book is not only historical but is a great mystery based on trying to unveil the actual public figures who are behind the “executions”. Whitman reveals clues as he continues to write special articles for the newspaper, even getting together money to offer a reward to those who know who is behind the executions. I won’t reveal any more of this interesting fast paced mystery, you will need to read it and discover for yourselves!
I highly recommend this book to everyone. At the closure of the novel the author kindly adds notes about the time period, Walt Whitman, Ms. Blackwell and others who people this great book. I still found myself on the computer reading more about Walt Whitman and checking out “Leaves of Grass” to read his poetry in order to better understand how he came to be the great American poet that he was.
The novel begins with the execution of two key figures in the founding of the first medical college for women in the United States located in New York City. Walt Whitman is a fledgeling journalist working for an “alternative” newspaper. He is immediately drawn to this case and he becomes involved in the cause for medical dissection.
During the 19th century there was much discourse over medical schools using cadavers for dissection and education. Christians were against dissection as they felt that the bodies needed to be intact for “resurrection” to take place “at the end of time”. There were already medical schools and anatomy labs which had been burned in other states. “With no legal means of acquiring cadavers, medical students and their instructors had to rely on the illegal body trade run by “resurrection men”. These businessmen would troll the obituaries and then dig up the recently deceased and sell them to medical schools.”
We also meet a young Elizabeth Blackwell who is fighting to keep the medical school open and to further the cause for anatomical dissection as a value to furthering science. She will go on to become the first woman to receive a medical license in the United States.
This book is not only historical but is a great mystery based on trying to unveil the actual public figures who are behind the “executions”. Whitman reveals clues as he continues to write special articles for the newspaper, even getting together money to offer a reward to those who know who is behind the executions. I won’t reveal any more of this interesting fast paced mystery, you will need to read it and discover for yourselves!
I highly recommend this book to everyone. At the closure of the novel the author kindly adds notes about the time period, Walt Whitman, Ms. Blackwell and others who people this great book. I still found myself on the computer reading more about Walt Whitman and checking out “Leaves of Grass” to read his poetry in order to better understand how he came to be the great American poet that he was.
June 21, 2017
Audible
Gay Mystery Winner of the 29th Annual Lambda Literary Awards
I'm glad our modern eBook-readers are still not able to transmit odours. This book could be extremely unpleasant to hold in the hand.
I found the story interesting to follow, and I wanted to know who EXACTLY was implicated in the illegal body snatching, and how Walt Whitman, a young "Aurora" reporter, would prove the innocence of his friend who had been executed by a serious mistake of the New York City court.
This book though should have come with some warnings:
1) it is not a romance, and I wouldn't categorize it as a gay mystery, for me it is rather a literary fiction. As I learned at the end of the book, Walt Whitman was an American poet (I beg your pardon for my ignorance, but I have never heard about this person in my life before), and the author did a good research for this book. He took some existed biographical facts and created his own story.
2)The plot is extremely depressing as well as its setting. The main story takes place in 1843 in New York City and ranges in a dangerous underworld, mostly in the neighborhood of the lower social classes. Your constant companions in the book are poverty, despair, a lot of unappetizing scenes, corruption and lawlessness, and religious fanaticism. But it is a realistic historical fiction, and if you like this kind of books, you shouldn't miss it.
A realistic historical drama that gives you insights into some interesting facts of this period of time, educates and inspires you to google to get to know more. And... I learned about Walt Whitman.
I listened to an audio version narrated by Mark Bramhall Lee who did a very good job.
March 26, 2018
I loved it. But I also wrote it.
December 11, 2015
To be published by Plume in March 2016
This debut novel about Walt Whitman, a fledgling newsman, fighting body snatchers in mid-19th Century New York is the best kind of historical novel. It appears to be so thoroughly researched that you accept it as truth. Many of the elements in the story actually did happen and Sanders does a masterful job weaving a tapestry of fact and imagination. In the course of this thriller, you learn of the burgeoning field of medicine for women, the rise of the Tammany machine, and a bit about the journalism, yellow or otherwise, of the day. This is the type of novel that makes you want to grab your volume of LEAVES OF GRASS off the shelf to see how many of the incidents inspired the subsequent poems. The spirit of Poe permeates the narrative, and there is a welcome cameo by the writer, as well as nods by people like Horace Greeley and James Gordon Bennett. Quite like Amy Stewart's brilliant GIRL WAITS WITH GUN, an afterword outlines the historical basis for the story. As in generally the case, truth is mos def stranger than fiction.
This debut novel about Walt Whitman, a fledgling newsman, fighting body snatchers in mid-19th Century New York is the best kind of historical novel. It appears to be so thoroughly researched that you accept it as truth. Many of the elements in the story actually did happen and Sanders does a masterful job weaving a tapestry of fact and imagination. In the course of this thriller, you learn of the burgeoning field of medicine for women, the rise of the Tammany machine, and a bit about the journalism, yellow or otherwise, of the day. This is the type of novel that makes you want to grab your volume of LEAVES OF GRASS off the shelf to see how many of the incidents inspired the subsequent poems. The spirit of Poe permeates the narrative, and there is a welcome cameo by the writer, as well as nods by people like Horace Greeley and James Gordon Bennett. Quite like Amy Stewart's brilliant GIRL WAITS WITH GUN, an afterword outlines the historical basis for the story. As in generally the case, truth is mos def stranger than fiction.
November 17, 2015
What luck to find a galley copy of J. Aaron Sander's first novel on my doorstep. From prologue to final page, which I reached reluctantly and eagerly in the same afternoon, I was struck again and again by the economy and wit with which Sanders renders an impressive cast of unforgettable characters.
First among them, of course, is Walt Whitman. The Whitman of 1843 is not yet the 'good grey poet,' and it is with a deft and insightful hand that Sanders imagines the young man. If you are not immediately familiar with Whitman's life or the extent of his work, no matter; here we have a young man, precocious and compassionate to the point of self-endangerment and beyond, who navigates the shadowy world of body-snatching in the pursuit of justice for his friends.
Elizabeth Blackwell, no less than young Whitman: a diamond discovered in the novel. The first woman to receive a medical degree in America is driven by the early loss of a loved one to pursue medicine, against not only the expect social barriers to a woman's career in medicine, but also against the wrongful execution of her mentor. Talk about stakes.
Speakers of the Dead is first a mystery novel, a tightly wound, fast-paced thriller, and it will no doubt be a great discovery for any fan of the genre. And if you happen to be interested in historical novels, and if you happen to be interested in early American medicine, and if you happen to be interested in Walt Whitman, and if (and of course you are) you are fascinated by the idea of body snatching--you get the idea.
This is a mystery from an author who delivers mystery and suspense with the best of them. This is also a tender portrait of fascinating characters who negotiate a sometimes mucky and always dexterously rendered world of 1843 New York City. Whatever your initial angle of curiosity, the others will surely and rapidly draw you in to what I hope is the first of many in the series.
First among them, of course, is Walt Whitman. The Whitman of 1843 is not yet the 'good grey poet,' and it is with a deft and insightful hand that Sanders imagines the young man. If you are not immediately familiar with Whitman's life or the extent of his work, no matter; here we have a young man, precocious and compassionate to the point of self-endangerment and beyond, who navigates the shadowy world of body-snatching in the pursuit of justice for his friends.
Elizabeth Blackwell, no less than young Whitman: a diamond discovered in the novel. The first woman to receive a medical degree in America is driven by the early loss of a loved one to pursue medicine, against not only the expect social barriers to a woman's career in medicine, but also against the wrongful execution of her mentor. Talk about stakes.
Speakers of the Dead is first a mystery novel, a tightly wound, fast-paced thriller, and it will no doubt be a great discovery for any fan of the genre. And if you happen to be interested in historical novels, and if you happen to be interested in early American medicine, and if you happen to be interested in Walt Whitman, and if (and of course you are) you are fascinated by the idea of body snatching--you get the idea.
This is a mystery from an author who delivers mystery and suspense with the best of them. This is also a tender portrait of fascinating characters who negotiate a sometimes mucky and always dexterously rendered world of 1843 New York City. Whatever your initial angle of curiosity, the others will surely and rapidly draw you in to what I hope is the first of many in the series.
January 3, 2016
First, let me just say that I love books with writers as their protagonists and I love mysteries, so this book is a double-win for me!
The book features Walt Whitman as a reporter who investigates the deaths of his friends. It is set in New York, and the time and place are crucial to this story. I also love books that teach me a bit of history that I didn't even know about, and this book taught be about grave robbing and medical dissection. So fascinating!
The writing is, of course, wonderful, and Whitman is sometimes introspective, so, unlike a lot of mysteries I've read, I often stopped and reread passages because they invoked life's mysteries, and hinted at the poet Whitman would become.
Such an interesting and well-written book.
My book club is reading this book when it comes out in March, so I look forward to our discussion!
The book features Walt Whitman as a reporter who investigates the deaths of his friends. It is set in New York, and the time and place are crucial to this story. I also love books that teach me a bit of history that I didn't even know about, and this book taught be about grave robbing and medical dissection. So fascinating!
The writing is, of course, wonderful, and Whitman is sometimes introspective, so, unlike a lot of mysteries I've read, I often stopped and reread passages because they invoked life's mysteries, and hinted at the poet Whitman would become.
Such an interesting and well-written book.
My book club is reading this book when it comes out in March, so I look forward to our discussion!
November 21, 2015
Let me say plainly that Plume hit it out of the park with this one! Speakers of the Dead has it all: clever storytelling, looming mystery, smart historical vision, and a truly unforgettable protagonist. This thrilling, fascinating book opens with an unjust execution, framed by a mysterious murder, set against the backdrop of grave robbing and underworld power struggles in mid-19th-century New York City. J. Aaron Sanders--like his novel's central figure, a young Walt Whitman--is not afraid of the dark and wastes no time shining a light on shadowy spaces in a haunted world. Whitman's search for the truth about a friend's murder leads him down the gritty alleyways of political corruption, organized crime, conflicts between science and religion, social upheavals of the day, and even unmapped regions of the human heart. Should you order this brilliant book at once? Yes, indeed! Case closed.
February 5, 2017
Well, that was indeed a book where Walt Whitman solves a mystery. I guess.
The author definitely did research. I know, because that research was lovingly showcased. But nothing in the book had the charm I like in historical-author!mysteries. It was just too grimdark. It didn't make me feel happy reading it. And his boyfriend , which, no, thank you.
Elizabeth Blackwell and Edgar Allen Poe were there too, though, which bumps it up to a 3/5.
The author definitely did research. I know, because that research was lovingly showcased. But nothing in the book had the charm I like in historical-author!mysteries. It was just too grimdark. It didn't make me feel happy reading it. And his boyfriend , which, no, thank you.
Elizabeth Blackwell and Edgar Allen Poe were there too, though, which bumps it up to a 3/5.
August 6, 2016
I really liked reading about this fictionalized version of Walt Whitman and definitely recommend this to anyone who likes historical fiction and mystery/ thrillers.
(full review on blog:https://zoeymusesaboutbooks.wordpress...)
(full review on blog:https://zoeymusesaboutbooks.wordpress...)
January 15, 2017
Mildly interesting. No real attachment to the characters, weak plot, and ultimately nearly everyone dies so it felt rather hopeless. Will not be reading any potential sequels.
March 8, 2024
J. Aaron Sanders reimagines the young life of famous American poet Walt Whitman in his average years. Cast in the role of editor for the Aurora (factual) he encounters a conspiracy associated with the woman’s medical college (based in fact but fictional). This book really brings you into the religious fervor that over took New Yorkers pertaining to the educational need for corpses and the underground corpse trafficking that disproportionately affected the impoverished. I really enjoyed this book I think it was well written and fast paced and I think the medium of Whitmans life was a great way to keep readers engaged.
Other themes of this book, themes I enjoyed and really thought were well done: the importance of women in medicine, women’s health rights, abortion, the separation of church and medicine, corruption in politics and police, the power of wealth.
Other themes of this book, themes I enjoyed and really thought were well done: the importance of women in medicine, women’s health rights, abortion, the separation of church and medicine, corruption in politics and police, the power of wealth.
June 24, 2023
"Every one that sleeps is beautiful, every thing in the dim light is beautiful, peace is always beautiful, the soul is always beautiful."
March 1, 2016
Dollycas’s Thoughts
J. Aaron Sanders takes a tragic time in history, bodies being snatched from their graves, and twists it just right with a young Walt Whitman on a quest for justice. Lena Stowe has been accused of killing her husband with not much evidence. Her friend Walt Whitman tries to plead her case but is unsuccessful the Lena is hanged in the prison yard. You need to know about Lena and her husband Abraham. They have opened the Woman’s Medical College of Manhattan. Scandalous because women are not allowed to be doctors and because the students dissect corpses to learn about the workings of the body. These corpses may have been donated to the college or stolen from graves and sold to the school. In those days people believed their loved one could only ascend to heaven if their bodies and organs were intact. There were rallies and demonstrations to close the school and to stop the body snatchers. There was also a bill, the Bone Bill, something the Stowe’s supported, in the works that put an end to the body’s snatchers altogether.
This was a truly riveting story. Organ donation and cadavers used for study is common place today, but in 1843 it was a sin and illegal. Walt knows his friend Lena, did not kill her husband and knows there is some deep dark secrets behind the story. He uses the resources he has available writing for the newspaper to ask questions and print articles that will incite the public and help him find the truth. This truth comes at a very high cost.
This is a work of fiction but some of the things that happen actually occurred which can lead you to almost forget it is fiction. Whitman is joined by Edgar Allan Poe at one point in the story too. This is had my scratching my head and trying to remember their writings for things that may have been inspired from these incidents. I must say here you do not have to have read Whitman’s work to enjoy this story. Without the background, you have a young man on a mission, a dangerous mission. The author surrounds him with amazing characters, like his estranged boyfriend, Henry, and Elizabeth Blackwell, a young woman studying to become a doctor who takes over the college when her mentors are killed just to name two. There are also the public officials, students, and the men stealing the bodies and so many more.
This story reminded me a bit of Death of a Schoolgirl by Joanna Campbell Slan. In that story she turned Jane Eyre into an amateur sleuth, just as Sanders does with Whitman here. The story also reminds me of the Lady Darby Mysteries by Anna Lee Huber, as women in this story buck tradition to take on something only males are allowed to pursue.
This mystery gets quite intense and has some wonderful twists so that at times we don’t know the good guys from the bad ones and neither does Walt. Throughout the story we have political corruption, fights between religion and science, and some organized crime.
This author takes us a quite an adventure. He also gives us a man that goes to great lengths to prove his friends innocence and redeem their names and show the importance of their work. Work he wasn’t totally supportive of when they were alive but came to understand very quickly after their death.
I am excited that this book is the beginning of a series. I really want to see where the author takes this character. He is off to an excellent start. Did I mention this is the author’s first novel? He is a wonderful storyteller.
J. Aaron Sanders takes a tragic time in history, bodies being snatched from their graves, and twists it just right with a young Walt Whitman on a quest for justice. Lena Stowe has been accused of killing her husband with not much evidence. Her friend Walt Whitman tries to plead her case but is unsuccessful the Lena is hanged in the prison yard. You need to know about Lena and her husband Abraham. They have opened the Woman’s Medical College of Manhattan. Scandalous because women are not allowed to be doctors and because the students dissect corpses to learn about the workings of the body. These corpses may have been donated to the college or stolen from graves and sold to the school. In those days people believed their loved one could only ascend to heaven if their bodies and organs were intact. There were rallies and demonstrations to close the school and to stop the body snatchers. There was also a bill, the Bone Bill, something the Stowe’s supported, in the works that put an end to the body’s snatchers altogether.
This was a truly riveting story. Organ donation and cadavers used for study is common place today, but in 1843 it was a sin and illegal. Walt knows his friend Lena, did not kill her husband and knows there is some deep dark secrets behind the story. He uses the resources he has available writing for the newspaper to ask questions and print articles that will incite the public and help him find the truth. This truth comes at a very high cost.
This is a work of fiction but some of the things that happen actually occurred which can lead you to almost forget it is fiction. Whitman is joined by Edgar Allan Poe at one point in the story too. This is had my scratching my head and trying to remember their writings for things that may have been inspired from these incidents. I must say here you do not have to have read Whitman’s work to enjoy this story. Without the background, you have a young man on a mission, a dangerous mission. The author surrounds him with amazing characters, like his estranged boyfriend, Henry, and Elizabeth Blackwell, a young woman studying to become a doctor who takes over the college when her mentors are killed just to name two. There are also the public officials, students, and the men stealing the bodies and so many more.
This story reminded me a bit of Death of a Schoolgirl by Joanna Campbell Slan. In that story she turned Jane Eyre into an amateur sleuth, just as Sanders does with Whitman here. The story also reminds me of the Lady Darby Mysteries by Anna Lee Huber, as women in this story buck tradition to take on something only males are allowed to pursue.
This mystery gets quite intense and has some wonderful twists so that at times we don’t know the good guys from the bad ones and neither does Walt. Throughout the story we have political corruption, fights between religion and science, and some organized crime.
This author takes us a quite an adventure. He also gives us a man that goes to great lengths to prove his friends innocence and redeem their names and show the importance of their work. Work he wasn’t totally supportive of when they were alive but came to understand very quickly after their death.
I am excited that this book is the beginning of a series. I really want to see where the author takes this character. He is off to an excellent start. Did I mention this is the author’s first novel? He is a wonderful storyteller.
December 24, 2015
Love literary mysteries? J. Aaron Sanders’s Speakers of the Dead is about as fun as it gets. The scene in which a drunken, dancing, whiskey bottle-waving Edgar Allan Poe runs interference for Walt Whitman, so that he can escape from a graveyard in a freight wagon with the corpse they just dug up, chased by the sheriff—I mean, you’re on your way to the bookstore right now, right? That Sanders is able to blend in so much of historical Manhattan circa 1843, so much of 1840s literary Manhattan, and so much of his own abundantly imagined Manhattan of that era is absolutely astonishing. That he can do all of that in the context of a novel that both entertains and enlightens is worthy of celebration. Sanders offers us the Walt Whitman we already know and love, yes, but he also imagines for us how it was that the life Whitman lead in 1843 produced the great seismic event of 1855. His research and reportage on the “resurrection men,” the body snatchers who supplied medical colleges with cadavers, makes the book a particular kind of morbid delight. And the way he makes the famous Mary Rogers murder—the source story for Poe’s “The Mystery of Marie Rogêt”—a significant part of the plot is absolutely delicious. And yet it is his introduction to readers of the first female medical doctors in America as fully imagined characters that shows the real value and heart of this smart book. A smart book for smart people. Love it!
March 4, 2016
I have to admit that at first I wasn't happy to have Walt Whitman as this character. It just didn't mesh with the picture in my head. However, reading the notes by the author at the end really brought it to clarity for me. He tells that he took an aspect of Walt's life and then built a mystery around it. It made so much more sense to me and really changed how I saw this book.
It took a while for the mystery to really congeal in my head. It seemed to be a bit disjointed but as the story became less a horror story (it felt that way at first) and more a mystery it really caught my attention. By the end I really wanted to know what happened and who did it. AND even at the point where everyone knew who the culprit was, it was so entwined with other people we really didn't have one person to accuse. While this does not work for every book, it works here and it keeps a thread open for more mysteries.
While this isn't a romantic type of book, the romance between Walt and Henry really pulled at my heartstrings. It was sweet and really the one aspect that pulled me through the beginning of the book. I think romance lovers will love and hate that aspect of the book (I will not say why, but you will get that statement when you read it).
I give this book 4 stars. It is a good mystery and even a thriller where no one is safe and the ending is messy but complete.
It took a while for the mystery to really congeal in my head. It seemed to be a bit disjointed but as the story became less a horror story (it felt that way at first) and more a mystery it really caught my attention. By the end I really wanted to know what happened and who did it. AND even at the point where everyone knew who the culprit was, it was so entwined with other people we really didn't have one person to accuse. While this does not work for every book, it works here and it keeps a thread open for more mysteries.
While this isn't a romantic type of book, the romance between Walt and Henry really pulled at my heartstrings. It was sweet and really the one aspect that pulled me through the beginning of the book. I think romance lovers will love and hate that aspect of the book (I will not say why, but you will get that statement when you read it).
I give this book 4 stars. It is a good mystery and even a thriller where no one is safe and the ending is messy but complete.
May 12, 2016
With its convergence of realism, romanticism, and transcendentalism, Speakers of the Dead mimics the aesthetics and movements that Whitman’s poetics so seamlessly intersect. J. Aaron Sanders crafts a compelling mystery that thus contains multitudes, as it cleverly frames a disreputable moment in American history through the appeal of the nation’s most beloved poet.
See full review at www.sleuthsandspies.wordpress.com!
See full review at www.sleuthsandspies.wordpress.com!
February 22, 2016
Disclaimer: I wrote a blurb for this book! And for good reason. A mystery, Whitman, cadavers--need I say more? This is a haunting tale, a gritty page-turner, totally original. Highly recommended.
April 1, 2023
Read for the 12 Challenge and recommended by Buddy (Adam) Burgess on Facebook. I'm sorry, Adam, but I'm just not feeling this one. It's about 90% a me problem--I can't get my head around this guy
being a rough and tumble journalist taking on the bad guys. I mean, it does make sense that he's not very good at it when you have the classic picture in mind. Because let's face it, in this book he's not a good detective. Several of the suspicious characters get the drop on him...not just once, but repeatedly. His former boyfriend gets killed because of his inept style of investigation. And he doesn't really "solve" anything because he knows who killed these people--he watched the guy in action.
I can definitely see the makings of Walt Whitman, the poet. Some of the language is just beautiful--especially attributed to Walt towards the end. I appreciate the research and attention to detail. The history behind the American version of the "resurrection men" and the early days of dissection and women's medical colleges is all interesting (and gives the book what star-power I'm handing out). But as a mystery it leaves a lot to be desired. I can't say I'm eager to read another if this is indeed the beginnings of a series (as Goodreads seems to imply). ★★ and 1/2 [rounded up here] If it had been more of a straight novel and my expectations weren't looking for a good mystery, then it might have been higher. I think it fair to judge it as a mystery novel and not as a picture of Walt Whitman's metamorphosis into a poet or as a picture of the historical period, because in the author's note Sanders says, "Speakers for the Dead is first and foremost a mystery novel...."
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
being a rough and tumble journalist taking on the bad guys. I mean, it does make sense that he's not very good at it when you have the classic picture in mind. Because let's face it, in this book he's not a good detective. Several of the suspicious characters get the drop on him...not just once, but repeatedly. His former boyfriend gets killed because of his inept style of investigation. And he doesn't really "solve" anything because he knows who killed these people--he watched the guy in action.
I can definitely see the makings of Walt Whitman, the poet. Some of the language is just beautiful--especially attributed to Walt towards the end. I appreciate the research and attention to detail. The history behind the American version of the "resurrection men" and the early days of dissection and women's medical colleges is all interesting (and gives the book what star-power I'm handing out). But as a mystery it leaves a lot to be desired. I can't say I'm eager to read another if this is indeed the beginnings of a series (as Goodreads seems to imply). ★★ and 1/2 [rounded up here] If it had been more of a straight novel and my expectations weren't looking for a good mystery, then it might have been higher. I think it fair to judge it as a mystery novel and not as a picture of Walt Whitman's metamorphosis into a poet or as a picture of the historical period, because in the author's note Sanders says, "Speakers for the Dead is first and foremost a mystery novel...."
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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February 20, 2022Page 18
Whitman considers himself a deist with Quaker leanings, a man who believes that death is a curvature of the ringed self, all part of a larger cycle of comings and goings, that the mind and the soul re eternal.
Whitman considers himself a deist with Quaker leanings, a man who believes that death is a curvature of the ringed self, all part of a larger cycle of comings and goings, that the mind and the soul re eternal.
October 11, 2025
two stars bc Poe was in it and that's #myboy but this was like really bad. written like a children's ya baby's first chapter book while clearly trying to be an adult novel and also the protagonist is randomly walt Whitman for literally no discernable reason
April 20, 2018
interesting ploy with a bit of Whitman lore thrown in and some comic relief from Edgar Allen Poe. Will definitely try the next one
March 20, 2017
Such an interesting take on Walt Whitman. I jumped into this book not really knowing why it was written. So Walt Whitman decides to solve some murders, for what reason? Isn't he a writer after all? Then I read some of the thoughts from the author. It's an interpretation of some of the things/thoughts Walt could have encountered that impacted his writing style.
I was delightfully surprised by how much I enjoyed this book but I wish this could have been a series of some sort because some of the characters left you wanting more. If you're into murder mysteries and historical fiction, this is definitely something you should pick up.
I was delightfully surprised by how much I enjoyed this book but I wish this could have been a series of some sort because some of the characters left you wanting more. If you're into murder mysteries and historical fiction, this is definitely something you should pick up.
February 3, 2016
Because I am a fan of both historical fiction and mystery novels, this book really hit the spot! Here are a few reasons why you need to read "Speakers of the Dead: A Walt Whitman Mystery."
1. The polished and lucid prose makes this novel a pleasure to read.
I enjoy reading good literature, but dislike having to wade through pages and pages of excessive descriptions and literary masturbation. Thankfully, Sanders' writing is minimalist, tasteful, and unique. I really appreciate his ability to give the reader such vivid mental pictures without getting bogged down in too-lengthy descriptions.
2. The balance between mystery and history is just right.
One of the things I most enjoyed about this book was the imaginative historical work about not only Walt Whitman, but also Edgar Allen Poe, Elizabeth Blackwell, and several other characters that I had never heard of. I loved learning about New York City in 1843 and the story of Walt Whitman before he became the Walt Whitman that I was familiar with. Sanders' does an exquisite (and believable) job of imagining what Whitman's early, formative years were like and how his experiences could have shaped his later writings. I also love how he included a real-life murder mystery (of Mary Rogers) as the backdrop for the novel's main mystery. It was very clever and fun to read.
3. The author's inner portrait of Walt Whitman is both informative and compelling.
I'll admit, before I read this book, if you were to ask me "What do you know about Walt Whitman?" I would have said, "He was a famous American poet; the movie 'Dead Poets' Society' mentioned him a lot, and his work appeared posthumously in 'Breaking Bad.'" Obviously, I'm not an expert on Walt Whitman, which is why I loved this book! I learned so much about Walt Whitman and now I want to go and learn so much more about this fascinating man. The book goes beyond just imaginatively describing Whitman's actions and mannerisms, but also explores his familial and romantic relationships and his ideas about life, religion, and the role of science. The author portrays Whitman as a complex character that struggled with many of the same themes and ideas present in our society today.
This book is beautifully written, entertaining, and informative. I highly recommend that you read it.
1. The polished and lucid prose makes this novel a pleasure to read.
I enjoy reading good literature, but dislike having to wade through pages and pages of excessive descriptions and literary masturbation. Thankfully, Sanders' writing is minimalist, tasteful, and unique. I really appreciate his ability to give the reader such vivid mental pictures without getting bogged down in too-lengthy descriptions.
2. The balance between mystery and history is just right.
One of the things I most enjoyed about this book was the imaginative historical work about not only Walt Whitman, but also Edgar Allen Poe, Elizabeth Blackwell, and several other characters that I had never heard of. I loved learning about New York City in 1843 and the story of Walt Whitman before he became the Walt Whitman that I was familiar with. Sanders' does an exquisite (and believable) job of imagining what Whitman's early, formative years were like and how his experiences could have shaped his later writings. I also love how he included a real-life murder mystery (of Mary Rogers) as the backdrop for the novel's main mystery. It was very clever and fun to read.
3. The author's inner portrait of Walt Whitman is both informative and compelling.
I'll admit, before I read this book, if you were to ask me "What do you know about Walt Whitman?" I would have said, "He was a famous American poet; the movie 'Dead Poets' Society' mentioned him a lot, and his work appeared posthumously in 'Breaking Bad.'" Obviously, I'm not an expert on Walt Whitman, which is why I loved this book! I learned so much about Walt Whitman and now I want to go and learn so much more about this fascinating man. The book goes beyond just imaginatively describing Whitman's actions and mannerisms, but also explores his familial and romantic relationships and his ideas about life, religion, and the role of science. The author portrays Whitman as a complex character that struggled with many of the same themes and ideas present in our society today.
This book is beautifully written, entertaining, and informative. I highly recommend that you read it.
March 9, 2018
Good development of Whitman character, but the others are sort of flat.
April 16, 2016
Speakers of the Dead has an interesting premise centered around a young Walt Whitman, a journalist working in New York City in 1843. The story begins with the hanging of Lena Stowe, accused of killing her husband. Her husband is suspected of having murdered a young woman he was having an affair with. Walt unsuccessfully tries to stop Lena’s execution, and then vows to find the truth.
Throughout the book we are exposed to a fledgling woman’s medical college, body snatchers, autopsies, angry mobs, and corrupt officials. There is a great debate between science and religion – if someone is autopsied to gain understanding of the human body, does that destroy their soul’s chance of redemption and afterlife?
I enjoyed the setting and the real-life figures brought in to this fictional mystery. The story started out great, and had me hooked. By the end though, it had lost something for me. I think there were just too many elements going on throughout the book, and then the ending felt a bit rushed and jumbled to make it to the finish line. I believe this is the first book in a series, and I’m interested to see what the next book has in store for Walt Whitman.
From my review at Hidden Staircase.
Thanks to First to Read for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Throughout the book we are exposed to a fledgling woman’s medical college, body snatchers, autopsies, angry mobs, and corrupt officials. There is a great debate between science and religion – if someone is autopsied to gain understanding of the human body, does that destroy their soul’s chance of redemption and afterlife?
I enjoyed the setting and the real-life figures brought in to this fictional mystery. The story started out great, and had me hooked. By the end though, it had lost something for me. I think there were just too many elements going on throughout the book, and then the ending felt a bit rushed and jumbled to make it to the finish line. I believe this is the first book in a series, and I’m interested to see what the next book has in store for Walt Whitman.
From my review at Hidden Staircase.
Thanks to First to Read for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
April 24, 2016
I do not know a lot about Walt Whitman, poet, American, and then my knowledge ends. Sorry Walt, but you might have been mentioned or not. All I remember from that poetry class I took is Rochester, and my lovely WW1 poets. But never mind that! In this fictional story that blends fact with fiction we get to see him when he was a journalist and struggling writer, and not the famous man he will be later on.
New York, the 1840s. A time of immigration, cholera, a police force not always doing police work, a time of lynch mobs (those are so scary). Not a time of justice.
What we then get in this book is a mystery, Walt's friend is hanged for the murder of her husband. He refuses to believe it (and she is obviously framed is my first thought too.) He tries to get to the bottom of this and believes it has to do with the corpse business. Medical school needs corpses, corpses are dug up from graves. A nasty business.
Then we also have the Women's Medical school where it all happened, and the struggles women went through to be taken seriously. A woman doctor, madness!
It all blends together in a well written interesting historical mystery. A great era. A dangerous era for asking questions. But Walt was never afraid of getting to the truth of things.
New York, the 1840s. A time of immigration, cholera, a police force not always doing police work, a time of lynch mobs (those are so scary). Not a time of justice.
What we then get in this book is a mystery, Walt's friend is hanged for the murder of her husband. He refuses to believe it (and she is obviously framed is my first thought too.) He tries to get to the bottom of this and believes it has to do with the corpse business. Medical school needs corpses, corpses are dug up from graves. A nasty business.
Then we also have the Women's Medical school where it all happened, and the struggles women went through to be taken seriously. A woman doctor, madness!
It all blends together in a well written interesting historical mystery. A great era. A dangerous era for asking questions. But Walt was never afraid of getting to the truth of things.
March 27, 2016
Speakers of the Dead turned out to be quite an enjoyable mystery that I was eager to solve by the end. I haven't read much by or about Walt Whitman, so Whitman being the main character was a bit tangential for me, but it did make me curious to learn more about Whitman. I love historical fiction set in New York City and was intrigued by the description of a mystery involving body-snatching. (Yep, I have morbid taste in books sometimes.) This mystery was an interesting look at the seedy underbelly of NYC, as well as the practice of medicine at a time when body-snatching was actually an integral part of the research done by doctors. The characters were well-developed, the mystery was interesting, and I actually really liked the way in which nothing really wrapped up as neatly as you might want it to -- it felt more realistic.
I received an e-galley of Speakers of the Dead through Penguin's First to Read program.
I received an e-galley of Speakers of the Dead through Penguin's First to Read program.
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