Review: The Anatomy of Ghosts by Andrew Taylor

Set in the claustrophobic and rather grimy atmosphere of 18th
century Cambridge, this book is deceptively entertaining.

With many historical novels, the sheer weight of background research can bog down
the story, as the author heaps their hard-won period detail onto the page. Determined to show that no stone has gone unturned, they can allow authentic ambience to suffocate the characters and alienate the readers. Andrew Taylor’s murder mystery, however, does not fall into that trap.

There can be no denying that the book heaves with atmosphere – one can practically
smell the stench as characters make their way through dingy back alleys or deal with overflowing chamber pots. For all the delicate niceties of college life and
etiquette, the book does not shy away from the more stomach-churning elements of life in Georgian England. Pretty saucy in places too, The Anatomy of Ghosts takes the reader on a rather fun journey into a disturbing and, possibly, supernatural mystery.

Having lost his son to the River Thames, John Holdsworth is disgusted to see how a
medium gains control over his distraught wife. In response, he writes The Anatomy of Ghosts, a book which aims to destroy the idea that spectres exist.

Unable to get over her grief, his wife is driven to suicide and the formerly prosperous bookseller faces a grim future. So when he receives a proposition to catalogue a dead Bishop’s library in Cambridge, it looks like his fortunes are taking a turn for the better. But Holdsworth soon finds that the Bishop’s
widow has an alternative mission for him.

After declaring that he has seen the ghost of a friend’s dead wife, her son Frank has been taken to a mental hospital. The mother is desperate for Holdsworth to
disprove the existence of the ‘ghost’ and return her son to health. Holdsworth’s investigations lead him into Jerusalem College’s murky world of politics and privileged young men, resulting in a brush with the brutal Holy Ghost Club and the enigmatic Elinor Carbury.

Sizzling with sexual tension, The Anatomy of Ghosts is a real page-turner with a difference. It feels worthy and intelligent without being dull and, based on my first encounter with his work, I will be heading straight to the bookshop to pick up more of Taylor’s novels.