Um...YES! I am here for this book! It was dark and beautiful and stunning and amazing! The character development was a bit slow at the beginning, but I felt it was fine to keep going through. The vibe was just *chefs kiss*. The pacing was also a bit slow, but picked up towards the middle/end and I couldn't put it down! Highly recommend!

“I kept thinking about what you said about caterpillars,” Tom said quietly. “The way they have to disintegrate before they can become something else. Only it wasn’t my sister that needed to change. Or you.” He held her with his gaze. “It’s the rest of the world that needs fixing. You’re perfect just as you are.”

I have feelings. Lots of them. All of them about this book. All of them positive. The sign of a great book to me is the level of emotions it evokes in you long after finishing it and this one evokes a few.

I absolutely loved Molly, I loved her steel, her resistance, her demanding presence and want to be more. She’s a character I admire greatly and one that has earned a prominent spot in my list of favorites.

Also the writing- THE WRITING YOU GUYS as someone who loves writing down beautiful book quotes, The Corpse Queen was like a gold mine- there were so many and I wish I could share them all but spoilers.

I loved the atmosphere, the topics addressed, the revelations at the climax, the entire book had me at the end of my seat awaiting where it all leads- the main characters, the side characters EVERYTHING was done so well that it made for a gripping, enthralling read.

The Corpse Queen is a ya murder mystery/historical thriller set in 1850s Philadelphia and follows Molly Green, grave robber/ body seller by night and a studying doctor by day, but her male peers are not so accepting- it is the perfect gothic, mystery cozy Autumn read and I can’t recommend it enough ♥️

I advise looking up the trigger warnings before going into this one, although this is YA and there isn’t any explicit content there are mentions of SA and body maiming

I found this to be a very interesting story. I'm aware that corpses were begged borrowed and stolen for medical purposes. I know that there were brothels and poorhouses, as well as elegant houses of the wealthy. These came to life in the story, the poorer areas more so than the wealthy ones. There was a good plot twist at the end, and little cliffhangers "did she guess right" all throughout. Molly was a strong female character, who didn't need males to save her, though she appreciated assistance.

What a twisted, dark, and macabre story!! The perfect fall and spooky read. The Corpse Queen is a feminist, historical fiction thriller with grave robbery, a murder mystery, and an underground surgical school for aspiring medical students. We follow Molly as she becomes entangled in the web of her aunt's corpse empire in 1800s Philadelphia after her best friend is killed at the orphanage they grew up in. A who-dun-it, creepy, and somewhat grotesque murder mystery, I enjoyed the setting and time period and found the end and plot twists shocking and exciting! The pacing was a little slow for me overall and the story a bit too dark, but with a lot of potential. I also would have liked more on the romance scale. But if you like dark and twisty and grisly and gruesome, this might be for you!

READ THIS IF YOU LIKE
- historical fiction
- murder mystery thrillers
- Stalking Jack The Ripper meets Frankenstein
- atmospheric and creepy vibes

CW: abortion, death, suicide, murder, corpses + mutilation of corpses, miscarriage, grave robbery, sexism, addiction

Thank you to Penguin Teen for my ARC copy!

Giving this one 4.5 stars. Descriptive tale of an orphan that is fortuitously selected for a better life... as a resurrectionist. Rubbing elbows with the medical students, she is intrigued by this new world, grimly fascinated and hungry for what it promises. This is a dark atmospheric story that scrapes at the underbelly of a world I don't think many people ponder beyond the historical footnotes. And honestly the darkness did make me wonder at the story's appeal but I I guess like the follower of a true crime podcasts - I don't think I can explain it anymore than I could put the story down. I didn't regret picking up the story! Brief jarring weirdness with a whip in one scene that didn't seem to fit with the rest of the story until a good deal later on but beyond that... a solid tale that you could recommend to any older YA (or adult for that matter!!) that are drawn to stories with an atmosphere similar to Frankenstein Chronicles. #netgalley #thecorpsequeen

What a chilling and thrilling novel The Corpse Queen turned out to be. This was an incredible read from start to finish, and it pulled me right of my reading slump. Heather M. Herrman weaved a very well-paced and well researched novel together.

I really enjoyed the main character of Molly. Molly gets adopted by her “aunt” and is tossed into the work of grave robbing. Herrman did an exceptional job of including so many historical facts and details about grave robbing that was a very prominent, lucrative, and black market business during this time period. Molly quickly learns to have a strong stomach, how to lie and deceive, and how to stand confident and poised. Molly developed an incredible way of thinking on her feet. Along with all of this she was kind, thoughtful, and compassionate. All these traits, mixed with her intelligent brains, lead her to start training in the medical field. Again, I thought the history brought in about females in medicine was interesting.

I cannot go into too much detail about the other characters, as I do not want to give any spoilers. What I can tell you is each of the characters was well thought out and executed. Most characters had a lot of gray area surrounding them which helped aid in the mystery of this book.

I often have a hard time picturing books clearly. The descriptions were incredibly well done. I really felt I had a good sense of what the people and places looked like and what was happening in every scene. I liked the length of the chapters. I felt this book was well thought out and executed.

I had the ending figured out or so I thought. I had it partially figured out, but what came after what I had already figured out had me on the edge of my seat and reading like a mad woman. A very, very well done ending. It is not a typical ending at all, and I very much appreciated that.

I had a very hard time putting this book down, and I have already recommended it to several people. This book reminded me of bits of Jane Eyre, Devil in the White City, and Stalking Jack the Ripper. All three books I highly recommend to people, and this book took many of the wonderful bits of those books and kind of rolled them all into one very intriguing story. My only “warning” would be that some things can be quite descriptive and there is some imagery of birth, corpses, and “surgeries.” I know some parents do not mind that and feel it is a very natural part of life. I know others who would be angry if their children read about some of that depending on the age. If you are an adult with a weak stomach, you might struggle with parts of this novel as well.

The Corpse Queen took its own unique path, and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of this work that combined the thriller, mystery, and historical fiction genres. An easy 5 stars for me. Even though I know how it ends, I do plan on rereading it in the future because it was so well executed.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions are 100% my own.

I'm going to try to keep this review as spoiler free as possible.

This book was EVERYTHING. Heather got me, she got me good. When I finished the book. I just sobbed. A mix of emotions ran through me that I was NOT EXPECTING. Potential slight spoiler, but this book is told in two views. 1 is our MC Molly. Love you Molly. Then the second is told from a completely different time. I had to go back and reread those sections after I finished the book, because it literally ties the whole story together. PAY ATTENTION TO THOSE PARTS. I just read through them as fast as I could to get back to the main story and my thought process for what they were... was completely wrong.

When I finished, I closed the book, and just stared straight ahead, until my husband goes 'good book?' then cue the waterworks. This book hit me on a deeply personal level. The villain in story, (I won't tell who) honestly, didn't see that one coming, and their reasoning. While deeply troubled, was honestly something I would have loved to have in my real world life. Someone who loved me so much in their own warped way, they would destroy the world for me.

This book does give strong Stalking Jack the Ripper vibes, Based solely on the aesthetic, but its a drastically different story, with a very different theme. There is murder, and mystery, and total chaos, and its magical. The cast of characters are amazing, and you will want the best for all of them. The characters are all well thought out and you see them grow and morph into the people they will become over the course of the story. And since I didn't see it coming, I imagine a lot will be surprised by the ending. I will recommend this book to anyone into historical fiction, mystery, murder stories. There is romance, but it is not the focus of the story.

5/5 will read again and again. Will recommend to all my friends. Heather A++ ma'am. You did fantastic and Penguin thank you for providing me with the eARC before I got my hands on the physical copy.

And when I tell you the physical book is just as beautiful as I expected... well just go to your nearest book store or library and check it out for yourself. You won't regret it.

*Special thanks to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!*

I was really excited for this book when I heard it was similar to Stalking Jack the Ripper and feminist. I did really enjoy it, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. However, it was still a very entertaining and mystery-filled read!

The dark, chilling atmosphere of this book was excellent! The descriptions in this book were quite vivid (and occasionally rather gruesome), which did a great job of bringing this story to life in my mind. This book explored many of the darker and unsavory aspects of 1850s Philadelphia, which was very interesting to read about, especially through the lens of our young female protagonist Molly. I particularly enjoyed reading about Molly's nighttime escapades to collect dead bodies. Issues of sexism were illustrated at length, and I really enjoyed all the feminist elements of this book. Molly fought against gender stereotypes and was determined to follow her dreams. I liked how determined and strong Molly was, but I did feel like she was slightly lacking in character at times. I unfortunately can't say that I felt very attached to any of the characters in this book. They were mostly either deeply unlikeable or underdeveloped in character. I was also let down by the romance; the "romantic interest" wasn't particularly interesting to me, and the resolution was a bit unsatisfying. I was hoping for someone more Thomas Cresswell-like, with some charm and wit, but unfortunately we didn't get that. The mystery itself was well written and, although I guessed at parts of it, I was genuinely surprised by the ending!

That's a wrap on my review of The Corpse Queen by Heather M. Herrman! Unfortunately this book didn't quite live up to my expectations, but it was still an enjoyable read. I gave it 3.5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨.

Thank you to Penguin Teen Canada for sending me an ARC via netgalley in exchange for an honest review
4/5 stars
I really enjoyed this one! It was dark, chilling, and thrilling. I thought the mystery and the murderer aspect would be explored in more detail than it was, but I enjoyed reading about Molly’s work collecting bodies. This intriguing premise kept me hooked, and I thought Molly’s character growth was really good. Molly was a good character, but at times I felt like I didn’t really know her. I would have loved to see more of her trying to fit into this new world she’s a part of, and I also would have loved to see more of her efforts to connect with her aunt.
The pacing was good, and there were many parts that had me anxiously flipping pages in order to find out what was happening. I liked the tension and the action of the ending, and the build up to finally get answers about what was happening. I also appreciated the “aha” moment when I was able to finally understand why there were random sections of first person story that clearly didn’t fit into the present story. The first person parts left me feeling incredibly confused, but I think that was also caused by the fact that I read an arc that didn’t make much distinction between chapters or sections.
If you’re looking for an exciting and spooky read this fall, or if you’re a fan of historical mysteries with strong female characters who fight to be included, I’d recommend checking out The Corpse Queen!

In The Corpse Queen by Heather M. Herrman, Molly Green sets out to get revenge only to bring about a world of change.

From the first few pages, Molly’s strength shines as she goes out of her way to save Kitty’s reputation even in death. Then, when she goes to retrieve her first package, it’s her quick thinking and the helping hand of a friend that keep her from exposing her aunt’s operation and this continues throughout the book. She is an incredibly resilient and stubborn character who rarely deviates from her chosen path, though it does take some time for her to figure out what that path is. I greatly enjoyed Molly’s journey and her character arc, especially once she turned to things other than her revenge.

Herrman does a great job with her secondary characters too. Though they appear less than I would’ve liked, each moment with them fills them with life. Tom , Ginny, James, Ursula and even the twins have lives outside the main story that makes them incredibly complex. LaValle and Ava were in a category of their own. Herrman kept them at arms length, mysterious at all times which served the plot perfectly given the many twists. I would have liked to see more of Maeve and her uncle, however. I felt Molly often overlooked them once she got comfortable with the wealth around her. Even the more unsavory characters were welcome as they completed the world Herrman created while also adding a touch of fear.

As far as the plot goes, I found myself sucked in within the first few chapters. Molly’s quest for revenge quickly becomes entangled with the hunt for the Knifeman, which is then entangled with her aunt’s body trading business until most of the subplots merge in a spectacular ending. There is enough foreshadowing that a more careful reader could have gleaned the ending, but I was just along for the ride and clever twists.

I will say that certain scenes threw me off. The book opens with first person narrative from a yet unknown character, and then switches to Molly in the third person. There are several such scenes dispersed throughout the book and they came out of nowhere each time. They do tie into the story at the end, but they took me out of Molly’s story whenever they appeared which didn’t do the pacing many favours.

Apart from this, Herrman’s writing is excellent. Her characters feel real and she paints a vivid image of historical Philadelphia’s underbelly. The descriptions are visceral and very detailed. Herrman extends the medical metaphors beyond the bodies to the world she’s built. She describes the sky as bruised on occasion, a festering wound on another, lending a very peculiar feel to the city. She also adapts her descriptions when needed, giving a grand impression of a cabaret at one time only to completely flip it when it appears in the daylight. It certainly was gorier than I expected, though it does fit the subject. Herrman doesn’t shy away from describing the corpses, ailments, and effects of death in detail, so that is something to be prepared for.

Overall I very much enjoyed The Corpse Queen by Heather M. Herrman. She provides a thrilling mystery coupled with expansive character arcs for the ones I liked the most. There are important messages woven throughout and it’s a fairly quick read, certainly something I would recommend for fans of true crime.

Initial Thoughts
I was excited to read this one. I love historical fiction so this sounded right up my alley. I’m also all for ladies kicking butt and taking names in historical fiction settings.

Some Things I Liked
The mystery and murder plots. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time regarding the secrets of The Knifeman. Props to the author for keeping me guessing.
Ladies in the sciences. I loved this as a theme. I want more books about smart and capable ladies doing amazing things in history.
Friendship and forgiveness as themes. Molly spends a lot of the book being upset with Kitty for leaving her and I really appreciated the realism in her grieving process.

One Thing I Wasn’t Crazy About
The ending. It felt rushed and clunky. I wish it hadn’t felt so random.

Series Value
I think this book wrapped up nicely. There’s not much more to Molly’s story to be told without ruining the ambiguity of the ending.

I would, however, read more books by this author.

Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for a spooky season read or something to keep you guessing, look no further than this stand alone.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I absolutely loved this dark novel. The female characters within this book made it worth reading all on their own. They are strong, powerful, and independent without being emotionless. The dark and beautiful tone of this novel extremely enhances the reading experience for this novel. The only thing I didn't enjoy as much was the romance. It felt significantly underdeveloped.

Looved! Amazing writing, world building and character development!
I wonderful mystery that will keep you guessing, and filled with surprises!

This mystery is a must for all readers, especially for the start of this spooky yes!

This was an interesting, macabre read.

Molly is living in an orphanage when a mysterious Aunt calls to have Molly brought to live with her. Her aunt is nicknamed The Corpse Queen. She has a business of robbing corpses from their graves or before they are buried and she wakes Molly to help.
At first Molly is afraid she can't do this, but soon becomes good at what she does. (Though many say because she's a woman she won't have success 🙄)

The bodies are stolen so that young men can learn to become successful surgeons. Molly decides, after seeing a demonstration, that she wants to become one and she won't let being "a woman" (insert eye roll here again) stop her. She decides she wants it and she goes for it.

Interwoven in this story, there are murders happening around town. Bodies of women being badly mutilated after their deaths. Molly finds herself a bit scared of what she'll encounter with her nightly duties but also vows to find this man because she knows he's the one who murdered her friend Kitty.

Besides the creepiness of her being a grave robber, I liked the life that she got to lead and the friends she made along the way.

If you love historical settings with some mystert, this book is for you!

“The dead do not always keep their secrets. Sometimes the living must do it for them.”

Molly Green has spent the last 4 years of her life in an orphanage and the only thing that made it bearable was her best friend, Kitty. Now Kitty is dead and suspiciously missing her prehensile tale. Molly will stop at nothing to get revenge on who she thinks is responsible. When her wealthy Aunt Ava steps up to claim her, it doesn’t come without a price; her aunt is the infamous Corpse Queen and she expects Molly to help obtain bodies for medical dissection. Molly’s given a crash course on how one acquires a body by Tom, one of Ava’s employees and she meets all kinds of interesting people.

The mid 1800’s is one of my favorite time periods, there’s a dawning in the air of things to come and the advent of invention is in full swing. This makes for the perfect setting adding a richness and depth to an already darkly atmospheric tale. Molly soon learns that there are all kinds of terrifying things that go bump in the night and not everyone is who they say they are. With a serial killer on the loose mutilating young women, is Molly in danger? Is it someone she knows? Could it be the same person that murdered and mutilated Kitty? Well, read The Corpse Queen and find out!

This is a great historical thriller that I thoroughly enjoyed! My thanks to Penguin Teen for the gifted DRC.

This book was SO GOOD. I absolutely loved the setting of Victorian era Philadelphia and the themes of death, grief, science, darkness, and women fighting for their own place in the world. The mystery kicked off from the beginning, and even when I THOUGHT I had it all figured out, there would be another twist and it ended up catching me really off guard. I adored Molly Green as a main character. She is the definition of being not like the other girls without being obnoxiously "I'm not like the other girls" and shoving it in the reader's face. She is different and she embraces who she is, but she still supports and loves other women, too, and respects them for who they are even when they are very different and I LOVED seeing that, rather than seeing women pitted against each other.

This was dark, smart, a little spooky, and there was even a cute love interest with a gnarly scar. What's not to like?

I enjoyed reading this book. It's a historical thriller about a girl starting a new life as a grave robber but is entangled in a murderer's plan. Usually, I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction but after hearing about this and reading the summary, I knew I had to check it out! This book takes place in 1850s Philadelphia which the other wrote with a dark atmosphere that totally gives a thriller vibe to it. The pacing was perfect and the author nailed it with the plot/ plot structure. In the beginning, it did take me a while to get into but once the story actually started, I couldn't stop reading! There were great plot twists in the book and also there was a lot of medical info in this book so you may or may not be squirmish. This story is so unique and original that it has been a while since I read something like this!

I enjoyed the main character Molly who is brave and has great character development in the book. I have to say my favorite character is Molly's aunt who has to build her worth in the society as females use to face a lot of sexism during that time. She also has some great secrets and kept the story alive. The side characters were also well written in this book and I enjoyed how they were very involved in the book. Also, there was romance in this book but I didn't really enjoy it and thought it was meh. I felt that the romance was just there and should have either been better or not there at all. Then again I'm a romance sucker and need a lot of romance in my books so I won't affect it with the ratings.

The ending I have to say was a tad weak and could have been better. Overall this was a great book and totally lived to the hype of mystery/thriller. There is a lot of tension and darkness in this book that it's perfect for a Halloween season read. I did have some minor problems with this book but I totally recommend reading it! This book is perfect for fans of Stalking Jack the Ripper and The Dark Infinity.

"Be brave, Molly Green. They can't scare you if you ain't afraid" ✨

Grave robbers, corpses, a murder mystery... this book was dark, intricate, and addicting. I love how Herrman wove feminism with the macabre to concoct a deliciously dark and gothic tale.
We follow our protagonist, Molly Green. Molly is an orphan living in an orphanage with her best friend Kitty. Molly is different. She is reckless and is constantly getting in trouble. Kitty is kind and gentle and the friendship between her and Molly was so sweet. 🥺
After Kitty mysteriously dies, Molly is sent to live with her aunt. Molly becomes skeptical because she was not aware of having any living family left. She suspects that this woman is buying her for domestic labor (which was common during this time)
Once she arrives at the creepy manor, she discovers that her aunt is actually her aunt- and she has a business proposition. Molly is to help her aunt, Ava, by robbing graves and stealing corpses to sell them to doctors for them to use and practice surgical procedures. Molly is initially horrified yet intrigued. As she dives deeper into the world of grave digging, she discovers gruesome and horrifying truths. To top it all of, a dangerous criminal known as the knifeman is on the loose- brutally murdering women and defiling their corpses. Hellbent on figuring out the truth of Kitty's death while robbing graves at night, Molly pursues surgical classes with the doctor who works with Molly's aunt. However, not everything is as it seems and Molly is forced to pave her way to success in a society run by men.
Twisty and horrifying truths mixed with horror and the dead, The Corpse Queen is the perfect fall read to get your heart pumping and putting your detective skills to use! 🕵🏽‍♀️
I highly enjoyed this one and absolutely devoured it.

TWs: dead bodies, miscarriage, loss of a child, blood, death of an animal, sexual abuse/assault, mutilation, death

*thank you to penguin Teen and Netgalley for providing an earc in exchange for an honest review*

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!