If anyone is interested in medical history, especially near the turn of the 19th century, they would know that our society had great advancements at this time. Surgeries were advancing, apprenticeships were ending and medical schools were opening, more disorders and conditions were being studied and documented. And all because of the work of doctors and anatomists who were able to dissect human cadavers in school before having to operate on live bodies.

Except, cadavers are hard to come by, so they had to be stolen or purchased. Which led to an increase in grave robbers and a black market for cadavers - which leads us into this story!

Molly is an orphan: her mother and father both having died from consumption (tuberculosis) and left in the care of the church. Her best friend Kitty had been murdered, her vestigial tail cut off from her body. Molly doesn't know who killed Kitty or why, but she's going to find out. That is, until someone claiming to be her aunt takes her away from the orphanage and she's sent off to live with her. 

Molly's aunt, Ava, is The Corpse Queen. Building her wealth from selling corpses to medical schools and doctors in training and she wants Molly to help. Meanwhile, Molly hasn't given up her search for her friends killer and realizes that the killer dubbed The Knifeman is killing girls with anomalies, like Kitty. As she works for her aunt, Molly simultaneously tries to find out who her friends murderer was and things get complicated. 

For one, loved the take on this! Often times with grave robbers, they're depicted as dirty thieves (which they kind of are) doing a one off job. In this book, they're shown as wealthy, with empires built beneath them. And we get to see the behind the scenes on these operating theatres and what these lectures might have looked like. Honestly, I find this stuff very fascinating and it was so cool to have the book be centered around this. 

Looking at the plot, the murder mystery behind it was kind of lackluster. It was kind of obvious who the killer was and what was going on though I held out hope there was going to be a big twist at the end. Besides that, I loved the introduction to 1850's Philadelphia and the expectations surrounding women at that time. Which brings us to the female empowerment portion!

While Molly is only seventeen, we get to meet different girls in different stations, like Ursula, a wealthy socialite who spends her time "helping" the poor and hosting parties. And we also see Ginny, a prostitute and dress-making apprentice, who lives with nine other women (and one man) who also work at the brothel. The different class situations are present and we get some good discussions and talking points from this book! Especially centered around what is expected of women, their self worth, and other ideas like that. 

Molly herself wants to become a doctor and is looked down upon for entertaining the idea. While doctors were mostly men, there were female doctors at this time, though it was quite rare. Women were expected to keep the house and take care of children, not to care for patients and perform surgeries. Molly wants to go against that expectation, like Ava did, and do her own thing. She wants to help people and give back to the community. Though she gets a lot of hate for it, Molly doesn't care. She fights for her right to be in classes and to learn with the others, which I loved seeing! We have a lot of female empowerment moments in this book.

With all this rambling, it's clear that I like the book. I love the historical timeline, the interactions and friends Molly has, and the twists and turns. While the murder mystery aspect wasn't great, the other twists in this book were! The subplots were very well developed, though the hints of Molly's romance seemed tossed in which I didn't like. The romances felt like an afterthought and I feel like they should just be taken out in general. It doesn't really add much to the story and I think it would be cool if it was without it. I was more interested in the other subplots than the overlying murder mystery plot going on too. And it felt like the author was too, because she definitely kicked it aside several times throughout the book and it wasn't nearly as developed or as interesting as the other subplots. 

Overall, I liked the book, but the mystery element and the random romances could have been better. Maybe I'm getting better at spotting the hints ahead of time, but this one just like it was in your face obvious. Either way, if you like historical fiction, mysteries, or strong female leads, then you're going to like this book!

I’m not sure how to review this book without giving any spoilers! I’ll give it my best shot.

Seventeen year old Molly Green, is an orphan who one day is mysteriously claimed by her previously unknown (to her) aunt. With the recent loss of her best friend and a mutilating murderer running rampant in her town, Molly is thrust into the murky world of Victorian era medical education and body retrieval.

This all sounds totally crazy, and it is. But, I can tell you that it’s completely enjoyable! This book never has a dull moment. Molly is thrown into a pit of vipers and she really rises to the occasion learning the world of cadaver dissection and high society as well as how to use her instincts to stay out of the clutches of danger over and over again.

This book is fast paced, full of atmospheric writing, body horror, gothic vibes and a fiery MC that you will love. There’s lots of unexpected twists and there’s no way you’ll guess the ending!

This is a very well done story and perfect for your spooky season reads!

The Corpse Queen was a pretty dark and mature young adult book. I found it very interesting to watch Molly try to navigate her new world after living in the orphanage. The book almost had a supernatural or otherworldly feel because I could not imagine a lot of the stuff that was going on in the city. I didn't figure out the culprit until close to the end so I enjoyed that it kept you guessing. The whole situation was unexpected and unpredictable. I almost want there to be a sequel to see what's down the line. Tom was absolutely my favorite and I loved how much he stood out. For me, this was a 4/5.

If you like a murder mystery containing more bodies then you can count, a one-eyed boy who steals your heart, or are a woman who wants to prove they are just as good as a man, this is the one for you.

I received a digital copy of this book free from Penguin Young Readers Group and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

WOW! Just WOW! I have no words.. okay I do, but first thank you to Penguin Teen for this advanced copy that’s been on my radar and I just fell completely in love with!!

This ‘The Alienist meets Frankenstein meets Ripper’ mash up was a drool worthy Victorian Era murder mystery. Our main character Molly lives in an orphanage. Dumped there at 13 because her parents both had consumption, she only makes one other friend Kitty. Kitty has an abnormality, she was born with an extra long spine, which makes her have a tail. These defects are what attract a murderer stalking young women; called the “Knifeman.” Molly’s long lost aunt finds her and offers her luxuries and an opportunity, to work for her as a body snatcher. Her aunt is called “The Corpse Queen” because she helps take bodies for medical studies. The world is dangerous but fascinating, and Molly wants to be a part of it to find the killer who took her friend.

With a world where women are property and told to “sit down and shut up” Molly is the type that doesn’t set that standard. She wants to be a surgeon, and where she’s laughed at for her dreams, she proves her ways.

This was delightfully wicked and much more gory than I expected and I loved for it. The story build and characters where perfectly constructed that the book grasped your attention and was hard to put down. It had everything I love in a Victorian Era gothic read. Strong headed women, a ‘Jack the Riper’ type killer and an anatomy lesson all rolled into one. And let’s not forget about the slow building tension of romance.. *pants* And an ending I didn’t see coming! I mean I read so much I usually know who’s who but that ending.. I definitely need more in this world!

Heather Herrman is now an instant auto buy author for me!!

The Corpse Queen is a dark and twisty read perfect for the fall season. Molly is taken in by her aunt and becomes pulled into her aunt's business as a grave robber. I appreciate the research that the author for the medical and science portions of this book. All the descriptions were very accurate and helped paint the picture.

The overall premise of the book was very enticing but I do think that the plot was lacking. Yes there was plenty of mystery, secrets and a bit of horror but the worldbuilding and pacing leaves a lot to be desired. Molly had very little character development and the romance felt very out of place. There are also random parts in the book that did not make much sense and throw you out of the plot. I expected a bit more from the ending and was left a little unsatisfied.

Overall, I think this book would be an intriguing addition to anyone's fall TBR but it fell a bit flat for me.

TW: death, gore, in depth medical descriptions and abuse.

A truly amazing and shocking story, this truly brings a whole new definition to dark and twisty. Follow Molly Green while she deals with the struggles of the world of living in Philadelphia 1850, dealing with men who think they’re better than her simply because of the difference of sex. Discovering she had an aunt after thinking she was an orphan with no family left, being partnered with the guilt of her best friend dying mysteriously and being determined to figure out what happened this historical thriller really gives a new definition to mystery, you get lost within the story and along with Molly are curious as to who the murderer is. Seeing a strong female lead in this story is what makes it one of my favorite books I’ve read this September, how Molly never gives up and is determined to make a name for herself, and change the world for the better is truly inspiring.

Thank you so much to Penguin Teen for sending me a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was hoping this book would be a new favorite but I didn't like it as much as I thought I would. I disliked how graphic the book was with the violent scenes of dissecting bodies and a birth. I felt quite squeamish reading those parts which is unusual for me since it doesn't bother me to read such things. But the way this one described things was awful to read so please be aware of that. I didn't totally adore our main character either. She felt very flat to me so I wasn't much of a fan.

Overall, I'm disappointed to say that this was just an okay book but nothing spectacular. I would recommend it if you like horrific and graphically written books but even though I do, it was still hard to read. I would definitely recommend this to a very specific audience, this book isn't for everyone. But I hope it finds its niche!

This book was amazing. So dark and full of atmospheric intensity. This is the best book I’ve read in a while!

Molly Green’s best friend is dead and she’s devastated. Kitty was like a sister to her and now she has to live in a world without her. But the circumstances around her death are very mysterious and Molly vows to get answers.

With no family to speak of, Molly is an orphan in Philadelphia in the 1850s. And when she is sent away, supposedly to live with an estranged aunt, she believes it is a ruse to get her in a position to be sold for labor. Much to Molly’s surprise, though, she is brought to a much nicer part of town to the home of a very real and very well off aunt, Ava.

Ava is a grave robber and has made her fortune that way. And now, Molly is to help her procure these corpses. This job is a difficult one in strength and stomach, but Molly learns quickly enough. Aside from her night job of stealing bodies, she begins to discover that she has a passion for knowledge when it comes to the science of the body. And she finds her way into an all boys class under the tutelage of Dr. LaSalle.

She meets a very eclectic array of different people in her new life. Some whom terrify her, some new friends and one boy in particular who she feels a certain spark with. But, murder and secrets run rampant in the streets and Molly has to fight for her life to find out the truth about what happened to Kitty.

This was dark and gritty and filled with some really amazing characters. I loved how strong and good Molly was and how she wanted to break the mood and learn science and medicine, which had only been a man’s game. Her compassion and care was so evident and I found myself yelling in triumph and in sadness along with her.

Great book. I have to say I went into this not sure what it would be about, thinking something along the lines of a murder mystery. And it was, but also so much more. The main character was amazing and focuses on learning about anatomy and becoming a doctor, not to mention the fact that her job is to pick up corpses for medical professionals to practice surgery on, which is so cool! Then the romance is slow burn but the CUTEST. All around this book was amazing.

The Corpse Queen blends the intensity of a murder mystery with the dark atmosphere and wild thrill of grave robbing in this haunting new tale perfect for the fall season.

In the dark, dreary streets of 1800s Philadelphia, women are disappearing and left brutally murdered all across the city. When her friend suddenly goes missing, Molly Green is determined to find the killer by taking a job opportunity robbing graves for the notorious Corpse Queen.

Overall, the mysterious plot kept me on my toes and made my head spin with theories. I absolutely loved the grave stealing aspect of the story and the cast of amazing secondary characters so much that I wanted more of them! (Especially the budding friendship, flirty banter, and tender moments between Molly and Tom!)

This book has all the makings of a perfectly spooky read with adrenaline-rushing adventures, buried secrets, a strong heroine, and plenty of skeletons in the closet. I hope there’s going to be a sequel because I could see this growing into a story with many expanding plot lines!

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Set in 1850s Philly, there’s only so much an unmarried girl can offer- especially if she is an orphan. And when Molly Green is sent to live with her aunt, she finds out just how undesirable some of those few opportunities are.
Molly must now haul the dead, bringing and finding their bodies to her aunt who ‘collects’ them for others. Through this job, Molly finds a new passion: anatomy…and being a detective as a murder is on the loose. But hey, sometimes it pays to work with the dead.

This is such a fun and dark story! It’s perfect if you love the historic aspect of books, without being too ‘historical’. It’s fun and entertaining, and the perfect start to spooky season!

Thanks to Penguin Teen for my digital ARC

"Sometimes it is easier to believe in monsters than the truth about someone we love"

Corpse Queen caught my immediate attention with its premise and as well as because of Kerri Maniscaclo's review, grave diggers? Spooky murder mystery set is Victorian time period? it had my name written all over it. Corpse Queen is a murder mystery surrounding the MC Molly- an orphan who loses her friend Kitty in a suspicious death, when a long last aunt comes to take Molly under her wing to help with her covert business of acquiring corpses, Molly takes the opportunity with the plans of her own on the side to dig into the suspicious murders happening in the city in the hopes that she could uncover the culprit who took Kitty's life.

The book is atmospheric, creepy and graphic at times due to the nature of MC's "job". I got the impression that this story is somewhat a mix between Stalking Jack the Ripper, Frankenstein and a teeny bit of Silence Of The Lambs. It was easier to read because the chapters were short and the writing is easy to follow, However the pace kind of drags a bit in the middle as if the author was not certain which way to steer the story. I wished there was more action than talk, I'd have enjoyed the scenes where MC actually robbing the graves rather than just telling the reader that she had acquired a new corpse. Although there are some good twists I could see the parts of ending coming. The romance is another lack luster element in the book, it only exists for the sake of existing without actually adding anything to the plot thus not letting the audience invest in the couple's chemistry

I am hoping there will be a sequel to the book because it certainly has the potential for that and I think it is a fantastic book to pick up during Fall/Spooky Season as a quick read

TW- Mutilation of dead bodies, corpses, death

Looking for some spooky books for fall? You can end your search here with The Corpse Queen! Murder, mystery, and vengeance oh my! Our MC was orphaned at an early age, her best friend was murdered, and suddenly she has an aunt who has stepped up to claim her after years of her living with the nuns. In exchange for living with her, Molly has agreed to work for her aunt doing something… unusual. She works with Tom to provide bodies to the professor teaching anatomy classes at the church in their backyard, all while doing some sleuthing to figure out who killed Kitty.

If you liked Stalking Jack the Ripper, you will enjoy this historical mystery book! While the romance was lacking for me, the story really made up for it and is the perfect fall read!

This was a perfect fall read. It was so quick, I couldn’t seem to put it down and wanted more once it was finished. The writing was great and the vibes reminded me of stalking Jack the Ripper. It was quite dark, which I liked but I know many might be triggered by some of the topics in this book.
I was disappointed by the ending. I don’t think romance should have been introduced if it was going to fall off halfway through and end up in disappointment. Otherwise, it’s a great spooky read for fall!

I was pretty impressed with this book. It was a quick read for me. We are introduced to Molly, who lives in an orphanage with her best friend, Kitty. When Kitty dies, Molly takes it pretty hard as she knows Kitty was killed. She makes it her mission to find out if the guy she was with killed her. Being kicked out of the orphanage to live with an aunt, she has never met Molly becomes a whole other person. One that has a job to do in the end, and she has to realize that these people are just bodies, nothing more. I loved how Molly could compartmentalize what she was asked to do, yet it was done over time. I am unsure how she could do the job after her first run-in with a corpse or at least part of a corpse. As our story unfolds, we learn that everything done is done with a price, and sometimes that price will make you think you are doing the right thing. With the buying of corpses, the unique ones are how they should be put and a killer on the loose; everyone has to be careful. As our story unfolds even further, we see how Molly finds a relationship and can solve a mystery. I enjoyed the mystery around Ava, who is Molly's aunt. When we got to the end, the mystery with her was not what I expected at all. I loved how the author was able to keep it a secret for that long. Molly as a character was just one that I loved. She is head-strong, and being in the 1800s, that was unheard of, so I thought it was great that Molly wanted to do other things and not just bow down to society and do what every other girl did. This is one that I think my students will enjoy, and I plan on buying this to put in my library for them to enjoy. This story is dark but not too dark; it is great to see a woman be the main character and do what she does.

Reviews are hard so please forgive me in advance. The Corpse Queen is an interesting read because on the one hand, I really enjoyed aspects of it. On the other hand, my expectations were thrown out the window and trampled by a carriage. Very saddening stuff.

I really loved the dark atmosphere of the Philadelphia streets! When Molly is pulled into her aunt’s body-snatching business, she does a lot of works by night. It was so interesting see how the whole “body black market” worked because it wasn’t really grave-robbing. There were so many intricacies to obtaining a body for medical students to practice on, and so much moral ambiguity, that it makes me want to do actual research. For fun. That’s how good of a job this book did at immersing me into this world.

And the women in this book! Despite all of the sexism (because yikes history), Molly stands up for herself. In fact, Molly’s aunt is the one making a name for herself, and many of Molly’s friends are just great people. At first, I wasn’t totally sold on the romance in this book. But it actually ended up being such a fantastic sign of Molly’s character arc, and what a healthy relationship based on mutual trust should look like. So I really enjoyed that!

The thing that brought down my personal rating for this book is honestly unsurprising. I’m extremely picky when it comes to YA mysteries because there’s rarely enough mystery for my tastes*. While there was a killer in the streets, that wasn’t the main focus of the book. No, the main focus was Molly’s character arc, turning this story into more of a coming-of-age drama than a mystery. That isn’t necessarily bad, it simply threw my expectations a little.

*look if it’s being pitched as a mystery i want the MYSTERY. i want INVESTIGATING. if you go two full chapters with little happening in the way of it, i am an angry bumblebee vampire. yes, we exist, and no, i will not be taking questions.
I’ll be honest: I didn’t see the ending coming. I love when there’s multiple plot twists hidden behind layers upon layers. The climax was a little bumpy but overall pretty well-written. This definitely reminded me of Stalking Jack the Ripper with the combination of atmosphere and historical mystery! Overall, 3.5/5 stars.

Thanks PenguinTeen for sending me this eARC!

The Corpse Queen is set in late 19th century Philadelphia, following 17-year-old orphan Molly Green. Soon after the death of her best friend, Molly is sent off to live with her aunt - a woman she's never even heard of before. Still mourning the loss of her friend, Molly is thrown into a world of grave robbing and secrets.

There were many things I liked about this book, from the plot to the characters to the historical setting. It was a delightfully creepy read, perfect for fans of Stalking Jack the Ripper.

I’d be lying if I didn’t mostly want to read this because it was set in Philadelphia, my home town, and was curious how the author would view the city I’ve called home my whole life! Unfortunately, there wasn’t much description of the actual area of Philadelphia besides a couple of street names mentioned but that’s okay, it didn’t affect my reading experience at all! What did though was the fact that there wasn’t much actual grave robbing (insert sweating emoji here). I went into this expecting Molly, the main character, to be literally in holes, looking over her shoulder when she dug a body out.. what we actually got was her more or less buying bodies off of other seedy characters. I also didn’t connect with anyone in the story and felt like I didn’t have a great grasp on what anyone looked like lol.

Even though The Corpse Queen had some downsides for me, I still read this book pretty much in two days and had no problems picking it up and diving in! This does get darker in some spots and feels like an EXCELLENT fall time read with some pretty awesome plot twists!

Molly is an orphan who has only one friend in the whole world, Kitty. Kitty is everything to Molly and when she dies under mysterious circumstances, Molly is determined to figure out why. Molly is suddenly sent away to live with a wealthy aunt who she didnt know existed. Her aunt Ava is not what she expected at all, in that she turns out to be the infamous Corpse Queen. Aunt Ava has made a fortune by procuring bodies for medical students to practice on and now she wants Molly to help her find the bodies and bring them to the church on her property where a professor of medicine Dr.Lavelle holds his lectures for his students that are studying to become doctors. Molly is then drawn into the dark and macabre world of body snatching and she soon realizes that there may be a connection to Kitty's death.

Set in the 1800s, this book had the best spooky vibe. The characters were good but I felt like the only character that was really well developed was Molly. The book is almost too short for is to get to know the side characters. The love interest was sweet but also just kindof there.. I didn't feel that there was enough time for true tension to build or for us to get to know Tom beyond the surface. There was some nice little twists and turns and I didnt guess who the killer was until the very last minute when it was being revealed.

This was a great book and it would be the PERFECT read for spooky season. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Teen for the E-ARC

Content warnings: Death, dead bodies, mutilation

Well, I have some thoughts and they're certainly...something. I'm all for "dark and twisty feminist historical thriller," and I liked how this book repeatedly pointed out how women almost always got the short end of the stick. That's history for you. But then you have people like Molly's aunt, Ava, who was able to rise up (with money) with her ambitions, but then contrast that against other female characters like Ginny, Ursula, and Molly's dead best friend, Kitty, and you still see exactly how society treats women who don't have money.

I admit that I don't know much about medical history or how modern medicine came to be at all, but despite that I found this well-researched, and I liked that we were learning about the body along with Molly. I really felt all of her initial fear, horror, and disgust that went along with her "job" as a grave robber. But then Molly really seems to shine to the body as a whole and being able to respect the corpse and try to honor the body and who the person was. I thought Molly felt like a very real character, though I quite hoped she and Ava would get along a little bitter (so color me surprised when that big "shock" came around). I definitely liked where the author took Molly as a character. She simply needed to be in the right environment to believe in herself. But again, I think Ava's fate is still a reflection of women during that time period and while it's sad, I can't really fault Ava for working the "system."

As for the romance... Well, I really struggled here. Tom and Molly mostly see each other and night during their assignments, so it was kind of hard to believe they started falling for one another. The romance seemed "average", and I would have been perfectly fine without it. But again, Tom's mother and whole family, really, is a reflection of the time period and it's incredibly sad because stories like theirs are real.

Overall, this was a likeable read. The writing style was good, but the world-building was a little lackluster, and the passage of time seemed...distorted, in a sense. What I mean is that the time that actually passed in this book felt longer, like the events should have taken longer to occur.