This was such a pleasant surprise! I'm usually a scaredy cat and a story about a corpse coming back to life sounded like the perfect palate cleanser for me - and The Grave Digger did not disappoint!
The audibook was such an immersive experience and I definitely got chills throughout! Cap was a great character to follow and I felt for him - having to rob people's graves because your dad forces you to is not what I'd consider fun and Cap doesn't either. I loved how this book transported me back in time and how authentic it felt - can't wait to read more from Rebecca Bischoff!

I listened to this audiobook with my 9-year-old daughter on our commutes to school. We both really enjoyed it!

My daughter liked the dark themes in this novel - the graveyards, dead bodies, grave robbers and whisky barrels. I’m beginning to realise that children of this age have much stronger stomachs than you’d expect. She liked the Victorian setting, and the idea of a girl wanting to study medicine at that time.

The narration on this audiobook version was fabulous, with the reader putting on a range of voices without any of them sounding too over the top.

My daughter has already recommended this book to a few of her friends, which is a real compliment to the author!

An interesting story which brought to life a historical past and time in an entertaining way which may appeal to a younger audience. However for me I felt that the story dragged a little and there were too many characters to keep track of.

For my first audiobook I also didn’t enjoy the narrator and felt that their attempt to give each character a nuance to their speech was confusing but was well tried.

Not bad overall but there were many things that I feel could have been better.

Actual rating: 3.5🌟

This is my first try of listening to an audiobook from NetGalley. I honestly thought I won't be able to listen to this because the app wasn't working when I first tried. After about 2 updates, finally I was able to listen to this.

This is a middle grade story with a hint of mystery and thriller on it. We have Cap Cooper who was coerced by his father to do grave digging to earn money for his mother's medical expenses.

The narration was okay and it kept me interested on the story. I think if I have 'read' this like my usual way (via ebook), it might have been a boring read for me.

The plot was simple and I kinda guessed who the villains are halfway through. It was an okay story but not that remarkable.

***Thanks to the publisher and author for making this audiobook available for review via Netgalley.***

I actually quite liked this book, but find it kind of odd for a middle grade. I don't read middle grade books usually, so maybe I am just misunderstanding what is usually in them. The content of this book might have gave me nightmares as a child. People robbing graves and the dead coming back to life is not quite what I think of when I think of children in the age range of eight to twelve.
I would still recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a book with a bit of darkness to it. It should have a trigger warning though for violence towards children, stillborn babies, racism, and bullying.
I got the audio book from netgalley and enjoyed the narration of the book. It was fitting and probably caused me to enjoy the book even more than I would have had I read the book myself.
I did receive this book free from netgalley. All opinions are my own, as usual. I was not required to leave a review, but chose to do so.

I listened to the audio version of “The Grave Digger”. Overall, the storyline was intriguing; however, feel a bit flat on delivery.

A sincere thank you to NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio providing me a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to read this story and leave my review voluntarily.

2/5

I started out this book mildly enjoying it but really just cant bring myself to finish it. I got to 72% of the audio book and wanted to quit it after the first day of listening to it. I really don't think any kids should be reading/listening to this. This book touches on many disturbing themes and I haven't seen anyone mention this but its quite racist as well, its set in 1875 but I still don't think kids should be learning that its okay to treat people like this. Usually when we see racism pop up in books you see the main character (or anyone else) standing up for them and explain that its not right but that rarely happened in what I read. Overall, it was very eh and I don't think kids should be reading it. I thank the author and Netgalley for letting me read/listen to this and I am sorry I did not enjoy it.

I read/listened to this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I listened to the audiobook of this and first off, I’d like to say that I think the youthful tone of the narrator was a great fit for this book.

I’d also like to mention that I’m clearly not the demographic of this book. So this review is based on my thoughts as a parent and remembering what kind of books I liked at this age.

Set in 1875 Ohio (the tail end of the Reconstruction Era), you meet Cap, a 12 year old boy who loves to invent things. Due to financial circumstances for his family, his father and him end up doing some grave robbing to make money to pay for his mother’s medical bills.

During this time, medical schools would pay for stolen corpses in order to have fresh cadavers for their anatomy and dissection classes.

Cap feels conflicted because of the gruesomeness of stealing a dead body, but also because the justification being used is that “they are unwanted and won’t be missed” which for the most part translates to Black.

There was a lot of unaddressed racism in the book, and I felt very disappointed there wasn’t more commentary on it from Cap. There were multiple instances of racism and sexism that were mentioned, but we never got any thoughts about Caps feelings on them. Sadly, a missed opportunity.

I think if you are comfortable with the subject matter (grave robbing/dead bodies) then there is a decent mystery and suspense aspect that a 12-14 year old would be entertained by.

***This book was provided to me free via NetGalley for an unbiased review.

I listened to the audiobook version through the NetGalley app.

Firstly, I really liked the narrator for this audiobook. The voice(s) fit the characters well and and the narrator read with real expression and enthusiasm. The subject matter and lack of character development was where I had issues with this book.

I feel like this would have been better in the young adult category rather than middle grade. My reason for this is based on one of the main plot points being grave robbing (more specifically, a child being forced to commit grave robbery). I just personally do not think this type of subject matter is appropriate for a middle grade audience. If this had not been a part of the story at all or handled a bit differently, then it would have been more reasonable to me. Also, I do realize that this book is not targeted towards me; maybe I'm underestimating middle grade readers.

I also did not think there was very much character development in this book, or at least it was very wishy-washy development. There was also a bit of stereotyping of the characters of color in the story. Maybe the author was trying to be accurate for the setting and time the book takes place, but I think it could have been edited or rewritten a little differently than this final version.

Format: audiobook
Author: Rebecca Bischoff ~ Title: The Grave Digger ~ Narrator: Mark Sanderlin
Content: 3.5 stars ~ Narration: 5 stars

The Grave Digger is a kind of middle-grade horror story. It is quite good and entertaining, but WARNING: in my opinion, it is NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN OR MIDDLE GRADE. I would say adults who like middle-grade stories will like it, or possibly some older kids who can handle death, dead bodies, and quite a few graphic details. Even the title and blob suggest that there will be dead bodies included in the story, so here you have been warned to some extent. All readers won't like it for sure. But some, I would say, will. Otherwise, it's a nice story, with its eerie moments. It is not probable to really happen, but hey, it's a "middle-gradish" fiction/horror book.

It's 1875, Ohio. Life is tough. Cap, a twelve-year-old boy, helps his father to earn some extra money as a graverobber. Part historical fiction, horror, mystery, »middle-grade« (the main character is twelve, otherwise not for middle-grade). An entertaining read, but only for a mature reader.

The narrator, Mark Sanderlin, did a very good job in bringing Cap to life.

Thanks to the publisher OrangeSky Audio for the opportunity to listen to this! All opinions are my own.

I love middle grades and I completely enjoyed this audiobook. Although, I don't considere this book a middle grade because there's so many spooky things and talks a lot about death.

The characters were adorable and the atmosphere and intrigue amazed me.
I loved Cap and how he was smarter than even his own father!
It's a tough story with a beautiful intentions where families and friends are the most important thing.

I just couldn't gel with the narrator's voice so unfortunately only listened to a few minutes of it! The story sounded intriguing though so may look into getting the written version

As a fan of middle grade and all things spooky and weird, I was excited for this book. Even though the narration was excellent, the story didn’t hold my attention very well, and I kept wanting to nap while reading it.
While it wasn’t a bad book by any means, I would not recommend/ buy it for my little cousins, as it contained themes more suited for the YA age range, rather than middle grade. Such themes included: offhand racism, mentions of prostitution, graphic depictions of dead bodies and violence.

Cap Cooper is a 12-year-old inventor-to-be in 1875 Ohio. Unfortunately, he comes for a poor family that can't afford the doctor for his pregnant mother. In order to earn extra money to help his wife, Cap's father gets a new job with Columbus (Lum). However, it's quite a peculiar job: robbing graves of their bodies. And Cap's father needs Cap to help them...

The Grave Digger is classified as Children's Fiction, but I'm afraid I have to disagree with that. The book is quite graphic and I think that's doesn't go well with a book for children that mentions bodies. Even I, a 21-year-old girl that reads na and adult fantasy, found it unpleasant at times.

It's not just that. It also discusses Jessamine's mother sleeping with men for money (and don't get me wrong! There's absolutely nothing wrong with that!) and racism, and while I think those are definitely important matters to discuss, it seems a bit too mature for children's fiction for me. I would classify it as young adult, despite Cap being 12 years old.

I really enjoyed the story and it was easy to follow. The narrator did an amazing job with narrating the story!

Unfortunately, this wasn't for me. I had high hopes because the premise sounded right up my street but the execution fell short.

Let's start with what did work, though! Mark Sanderlin's narration was absolutely wonderful and definitely my favourite part. He really brought all characters to life and firmly rooted me in the world of the story. I also liked the setting, the atmosphere and overall historical vibes were very well written and felt fitting for the story,

However, one thing that just did not sit right with me was the racism. There is no reason for a white author to use the term "coloured" in 2021, even if it may have been used in the time period the book is set. Especially, considering that this is a book aimed at children!

Additionally, I'm wondering if maybe the events of the story are a little too dark for children. There's a lot of death and violence and while very little is described in detail, the overall atmosphere is very dark. As an adult, I didn't mind this but I feel like it's important information for any parent to know!

Overall, I just did not end up connecting with Cap as a character as much as I had hoped. The resolution to his "powers" was incredibly disappointing! Moreover, I had troubles telling characters apart which made the plot hard to follow at times.

Trigger Warnings: parental illness, child abuse, racism, death, child death, violence

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were well developed and likable. The story was well written and held my attention. Lots of spooky twists and turns with a great ending

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

☆☆☆☆

Rebecca Bischoff's book "The Grave Digger" turned out to be a very different book than I expected, but I was not disappointed. What I thought would be something of a macabre supernatural mystery set in 1875 Ohio, turned into a straight out mystery (and a bit of a thriller at times) for middle school readers.

The story follows Captain "Cap" Cooper, a clever boy from a poor family. His mother is pregnant and in need of money for doctors. His father teams up with a shady local named Lum. With young Cap tagging along to help, they rob graves of their bodies with the intention to sell them to regional medical schools. Bishopff does a decent job of exploring the moral ambiguities of this work, exploring why it was wrong, why someone might come that sort of work, and why there was a legitimate need for cadavers in the 1870s.

The story seems at first to take a turn towards the supernatural. Since this happens somewhat late in the first act, it seems like this is the direction the novel is set. I was surprised when the story took a turn toward an elaborate mystery, involving a number of important characters who aren't what they seem. This evolves into an even more elaborate plot which adults would find far fetched, but younger readers may really enjoy.
Bischoff does a decent job of providing middle school aged readers with a sense of 1870s America. During the course of the novel, we are given tastes of post-Civil War race relations. We see the role of women who are social marginalized, but can also be central to the power dynamics of a family and community. Cap's family plight speaks to the differences of class which were becoming stark as the end of the century neared. Characters he encounters also speak to the growing entrepreneurialism and inventiveness of the era. All in all, it is a good taste of the time Ms. Bischoff is trying portray.

My only criticism is how Ms. Bischoff resolves the two main storylines of the novel. The mystery thriller part is resolved in a way which I think is far fetched. However, as stated above, I think young readers will not find it so. The other storyline regarding the possible "supernatural" skill Cap may or may not have to developed is resolved in a what I found personally groan worthy. That said, readers who have not already read a shelfful of novels or seen a few hundred movies may genuinely not find it cliche as I did.

The book is good. Cap is a great main character, he's curious and smart, with a good sense of right and wrong. He's quick to connect with people and does not judge them for things they cannot change. The story is engaging and left you wondering for a long time what the ending is going to be.

This story is set back in 1875, and is about a 12 year old boy named Captain or "Cap" for short, who is 'volunteered' for labor by his father to help him with his "work" at night to earn extra money to help pay for his mother's medical bills. His mother is pregnant and has to stay in bed due to complications.

Each night they go out with their co-conspirators and sneak into graveyards and dig up graves and steal corpses. Cap does not know what they do with the bodies, only that they get paid for them. (He does find out later on however.) He then goes home to bed. He has to get up each morning for school. His mother and housekeeper are not aware of his extra activities. It is a secret between him and his father. He is not really given a choice, however he knows he is helping with the bills.

As the story plays on, it gets creepier, (I'm talking way creepier here!) and much more involved. Cap gets himself in way above his head, and can't believe how things have progressed. He really is a very caring good kid and just wants the best for everyone. I think this is a book for kids that are at least 12 and most likely older. The content is definitely too mature for those any younger. The narrator did a terrific job in this audiobook and I applaud his work. I gave this book 3 stars, due to the creep factor and maturity level for a middle grade book.

I would like to thank to #NetGalley and Orange Sky Audio for my AudioARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Ok, so at first, I was super into this - grave diggers/robbers & one finds out he can bring people back from the dead Pushing Daisies style. I was HERE. FOR. IT. But as it went along, I thought that a lot of the focus was on the work as a grave robber and side characters, and not about him having this interesting ability, which I was bummed about because that’s what what I wanted to know about most.

No spoilers here, but things did come together in the end, in an interesting way that i did like. It just ended up being that that middle section where I was completely in the dark, but didn’t know it (unlike a thriller where you know you’re supposed to be surprised) was a bit of a distraction from what was an otherwise very interesting story.

The narrator was excellent.

I would like to thank NetGalley, OrangeSky Audio, and Rebecca Bischoff for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.