What would you sacrifice to survive? Would you rob a bank, perhaps an individual? What about a body from a grave?
This is was a book hard to put down as you become entangled with the father and son as they travel into the darkest of employment for income. It's hard to define one's moral compass and what sacrifice you're willing to overlook during one's own darkest hour but this novel provides a good example.
I won't hash out any specifics that can be liable as a spoiler. The writing is good, the plot is enticing and the characters tug at your curiosity. This would make a great read for any teenage reader though I feel that it wouldn't appeal all that must to the younger.

Having been born and raised just outside of Edinburgh I have grown up with stories of the Body Snatchers who supplied the medical universities of the city, none more prominent than the infamous Burke and Hare, so when I came across this novel I had to read it! Especially as this book is not based in Scotland but America. Interestingly, there are elements to body snatching that I haven't experienced such as the snatching of 'coloured' people and what was considered legal and illegal corpses. This book is well researched and tells an adsorbing story at a good pace while highlighting social and political issues. The heart of the story is love because character's actions are motivated by love. Those snatched have been loved and those who have passed have loved. I highly recommend this book and look forward to future works by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Amberjack Publishing for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a lovely book. It was interesting and different. Definitely falls under the historical category. I'm not sure that younger readers would enjoy or understand everything that takes place in the book - I would recommend it for older or more advanced younger readers. Some of the old school slang was a little odd or difficult to get into. It's quite a short book so not a difficult read, but at the same time it's not as gripping as I had hoped. The action comes more towards the end. The book does become a bit dark, which is why I wouldn't recommend it for young readers. However, it had a very sweet ending.

A little slice of history, The Grave Digger centers around 12-year old Cap Cooper, residing in Ohio in 1875. His father get himself and Cap roped into a body snatching ploy to bring the family that bit of extra money, and Cap is quick to figure out that something is amiss when people are mysteriously dying and neither his father nor their accomplice will tell him what the bodies they dig up are for.

There were a lot of characters, and none of them seemed much more developed than whether they were "good" or "bad" - even Cap, who seemed like a good kid with a good moral compass, but other than that didn't he have much of a personality. All the other characters had a purpose, but there were so many plot points flying about because all the characters had a purpose, the book wasn't long enough to give any proper detail to them all, and definitely not to give them closure, so it would have benefited from being an extra 50 pages or so. A bit unfortunate, but nothing something that too away too majorly from the story altogether,

Most likely something a middle-grader would enjoy - it's a bit gory, but not in a nightmare-inducing way (I'm squeamish, but The Grave Digger didn't bother me) and Cap is a great protagonist if you're not looking for something deep and can suspend disbelief.

The Grave Diggers was a fun read. I liked the topic of the family needing to become Resurrectionists (grave diggers/body snatchers) to earn money for living. The macabre and supernatural elements to the story added a nice touch. There is just the right amount of suspense and surprise that will keep the reader wanting to finish. This is a great book for middle schoolers that like some sort of twist to their regular fiction.

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book as far as how spooky or supernatural it would be, and now that I've finished, I'm still unsure of how supernatural the story actually was., and have mixed feelings on the story overall.

What I liked:
Cap was a decent main character, and I enjoyed that the book showed a boy on the verge of becoming a teenager struggling with morals and his faith that his father would always do what was best.

The historical fiction aspect - I enjoy reading about lesser known parts of history, and while I was aware of the grave robbing in the 19th century that occurred to obtain bodies for medical schools, The Grave Robber is the first fiction novel I've read that focused on this topic.

Jessamyn - I wished she'd been featured more in the book, and I'd be curious to know how her and Cap's friendship developed following the events of the novel.

What didn't work for me:

The supernatural aspect (if it existed at all). I was expecting this to be focused on Cap's ability to truly resurrect the dead, and shortly into the book it seemed to be going that way, before turning into a story grounded in reality. There were hints at the supernatural, but there also seemed to be scientific/realistic explanations as well.

The fact that Cap's family is in such a struggle for money that they resort to grave robbing, but they still keep on a housekeeper, seem to have a decent house, plenty of food, etc.? It never really seemed believable that they were truly in need of money, or if they were, that other, more legitimate options, wouldn't be available.

A rushed ending that seemed to be lacking in consequences or resolutions in some areas.

And, while it worked okay for me, an adult, I was shocked with how dark and violent this book was. Several cold blooded crimes occur, a child is tortured, and there's corpses everywhere. The book is at a middle grade level, but I feel the story would be too dark or disturbing for several in the 8-12 range.

Overall, this read was decently entertaining and quick-paced enough for me to finish, but left me neither disliking it or loving it.

Thank you Net galley for the free ARC. Cap helps his father earn money by digging up bodies. But some f them come back to life and Cap is trying to find out why and what is going on. This novel was very dark and Dickensian in its characters. I really only liked Cap because of his inventor's streak.

12 year-old Cap Cooper is roped into robbing graves to help pay for his mother’s medical expenses. But he soon discovers there are some secrets that are best left buried…

'The Grave Digger' is a really unique read. The story is fast-paced and packed with mystery, creepy without getting too gothic. It’s rare to find a historical middle grade novel that addresses its context so well. The story covers several key themes – racism, the role of women and poverty – but its exploration is never heavy-handed, leaving the reader to draw their own conclusions. It’s a difficult balance to strike in middle grade fiction, but Bischoff has nailed it.

Cap is a likeable protagonist, a reluctant but curious hero, who always finds himself in the middle of the action. He’s our eyes and ears throughout, but while he offers the reader a lot of information, he gives us very little insight. The action is so fast-paced we aren’t given much time to reflect, especially as the mystery unravels at the end.

There are a couple of stand-out secondary characters: I loved the determined Delphia, and quiet Jessamyn has an intriguing backstory. It's always refreshing to see historical fiction with some diversity!

'The Grave Digger' was an enjoyable read with a brilliant story – I just wish the bones of it were fleshed out a little bit more.

The Grave Digger by Rebecca Bischoff is an awesome middle grade book I requested from NetGalley and the review is voluntary. This is such a good book! It is set in 1875 or so and it features a 12 year old boy, Cap, drafted by his dad to help rob graves with a very horrible person. What happens from there in the town, between his friends, and how he feels about himself is very interesting. Also the are some other mysteries to be solved that no one seems to notice except Cap! There is suspense, great mysteries, action, hope, despair, friendship, and just a dash of paranormal! I loved it and I think lots of kids will enjoy all the wonderful characters in here and learn how life was during that era. It seems true to the times. Cap is shocked that a girl wants to be a doctor! Great story!

I received this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review! This book was historical fiction with a twist of suspense. The creepy level was perfect for kids 10-12. It touched on several post-Civil War issues like race, gravedigging, and even a little bit of Women’s Rights. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it! 4/5 stars!

2.5 Stars

When I started this book, I think I was expecting something along the lines of Neil Gaiman's 'The Graveyard Book'...that is not at all when I got.

While this was by no means a terrible story, I just found the whole thing...unsettling.

Cap is a 12 year old boy who's enlisted to help his father and another, rather nasty fellow, help steal some recently dead bodies from the local graveyard in exchange for some much needed money to help his sick mother. I realize this book is touted as a Middle Grade book, but I would never recommend this book to anyone in the age groups it's being marketed for.

This story has no redeeming characters, and I'm not exactly sure what the message here is supposed to be, but no one really comes out looking good. There's a lot of smaller sub-plots going on that just don't add to the story in any way. If anything, they just bog it down.

The story tries to pack in so much, that you don't really get a clear picture of who anyone is. We're TOLD a whole lot of things...Cap likes to invent things, Delphia wants to be a doctor, Mina is sick, Mrs. Hardy is extremely prejudice against the colored townsfolk...but we're never shown/told WHY these things are important to each characters personality.

Overall, I rate this as a pretty middle-of-the-road story. I wouldn't recommend this for 8-12 year old's as the subject is pretty unsavory, but I feel it's a little too juvenile for anyone older.

I found the ending to be all nice and clean and wrapped in a pretty little bow. I won't give anything away, but I felt like there was no accountability for certain characters. That their despicable, disgusting actions (no matter how noble their reasons for doing them may have been) were just written off and forgiven.

That's not exactly a message I would want to share with young readers.

**I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)**

I think 12/13 year old Arin would have loved this book. It’s about a bright kid - Cap- who is roped into grave robbing by his dad to help pay his mom’s medical bills. While on one of their “jobs” Cap realised the body they’re stealing is one of his friends and somehow he brought her back to life.

It was a cute and easy read, I just wished the book went into more detail on the subplots sprinkled through the book, but I doubt a child will have the same hang ups as me XD

I received a free eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Grave Digger was quite the surprise, and in a great way. Cap gets roped into helping his father, and an unsavory sort by the name of Lum to dig up bodies for some extra cash that Cap's family so desperately needs. The tale only gets deeper, and darker from there but in a way which the intended age bracket would understand. I adore the author's use of history throughout the book, she doesn't sugar coat things and leaves the reader wanting to learn more about our history.

Honestly I was taken for surprise with several of the twists and turns that the book took. I believe that a reader, especially the targeted audience, would be as well. The chapters are short, concise and leave with a cliffhanger so you can't help but want to know what's going to happen next in the story.

Overall I give this book a five out of five, and cannot wait to see what the author comes out with next.

**Thank you to NetGalley, and Amberjack Publishing for an advance copy of this book for review.*

The Grave Digger by Rebecca Bischoff is a period middle-grade piece.

Set in 1875, Cap starts helping out in the unofficial family business, the grave robbing business.

In a similar to John Bellairs, Bischoff has created a scary, creepy story that is entertaining for kids, without being TOO scary, satanic or gory. The perfect combination for a good scary tale. While some of the period dialog seemed to be peppered into the writing a bit too heavily, there was enough meat in the storyline to help the reader imagine the surroundings.

While touching on some historical cultural issues (women in the medical profession and race issues) it wasn't so heavy handed to make the book a lesson about the past.

In short, The Grave Digger finds that sweet spot between scary and not too scary for the average middle-grade reader. With elements of mystery and suspense kids will want to keep reading page after page.

In addition, parents concerned with content and clean reads will find that this refreshingly fits the bill. Five stars.

The premise is interesting—a bright kid who’s pulled into grave robbing by his dad, and somehow ends up (accidentally) bringing the dead back to life. And the bigger mystery is who is funding these grave robberies, and what are they doing with the bodies?

I tried to put myself in the mindset of a twelve-year-old while reading this, and unfortunately it still fell kind of flat.

My two biggest issues were the characters (as in all of the ones we should care about) never seemed to fully develop, and the story felt, at times, to be going in random directions.

Cap Cooper, the main character, is an “aspiring inventor”—at least per the book’s description. There are maybe three or four times throughout the entirety of the book where his interest in inventing is even mentioned.
Honestly now trying to think about Cap and how best to describe him, it’s mostly surface details: he’s a young boy, he’s observant, he wants to help his mom, he’s ....a little on the klutzy side?
I mean the inventing thing doesn’t spring to mind, which may be trivial, but if he’s being described as such, I feel like it should be a bigger part of how he’s written.

And like I said above, this came across to me with all of the characters:
Lum is your run-of-the-mill lowlife.
Cap’s dad is a stern father and/or worried husband, depending on where we catch him.
Mrs. Hardy, the housekeeper, is frazzled and matronly.

As for the story itself, it started out simply enough: Cap is roped into digging up a grave with his father and Lum, who works with Cap’s dad during the day doing legal things to make money.
...But then it felt like it was being pulled in a different direction, brought back to the grave robbing plot line, then steered somewhere else.
To me, the “somewhere else” stories were underdeveloped, so they just ended up being a distraction.
I’m thinking it was because the author had so many ideas, and just stuffed them all in rather than cutting any out. For example, Jessamyn’s mom, the bully at school, Delphia’s petition, Mrs. Hardy’s rivalry with/hatred of Jardine, trying to find Jessamyn’s ring.
By the time the “mystery” was solved, it was more of a shoulder shrug than mouth open/eyes wide moment.

Overall, it was a decent, quick read. I don’t know if an eleven- or twelve-year-old reader would share my hangups.

I received this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A mystery is afoot in Cap's town. People are mysteriously dying, and their bodies are being stolen, with Cap being roped into the scheme by his father, who is working with another man to do the dirty work.

Pluses:
This book reminded me a little bit of Burke and Hare, and the information about body snatching was definitely interesting.

Things I didn't like as much:
The foreshadowing seemed a little weird to me, as I got confused about what certain things had to do with the main story.

Overall, it was enjoyable read, and I am excited to see what else this author writes in the future!

Rarely have I been able to find a children's book that so artfully combines elements of history, suspense, drama, and science fiction. This book is set on the backdrop of slavery, the industrial revolution, the creation of medical schools and the use of resurrectionists to obtain bodies for their classes. It follows a young boy, unwittingly made into a resurrectionist himself in order to help his father provide for his ailing mother, as he tries to figure out who is organizing these body heists, what purpose they are being used for, and whether the sickness affecting the town is in any way related. Along the way, bodies come back to life, leaving the boy trying to determine if he, born dead but revived himself, is somehow the one bringing them back.

In this historical fiction piece, the reader meets Cap Cooper, a pre-teen living in 1875 Ohio. His mother is sick and money is tight, so his father does whatever he can to support the family...even if it means becoming a grave robber. Cap is roped into helping his father and quickly learns that not all is as it seems.

This was a quick read and one that I think middle-grade students would enjoy. There is a little bit of everything in this story - mystery, suspense, history. The historical aspect of this story is unique and brings up what some living in the 19th century were forced to do to make ends meet. Cap is a well-developed and likeable character that uses his intellect to reason through what is happening in is town and help is friends and family.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amberjack Publishing for the advance copy of this book for review.

This is going to be a perfect addition to my classroom! It's written at a middle school reading level, but includes plenty of gruesome and fantastic details to keep the reader intrigued. It's historic and addresses an aspect of 19th century history that isn't often shown in young adult fiction. My kids will love reading this one.

I don't read a lot of children's fiction but once I saw this cover I couldn't resist. Terrific cover and terrific little story. Not all is what it seems, more people are dying and Cap (our protagonist) needs to find out why before his loved ones do as well. A bit creepy in spots added as a bonus! Loved it!