Besides being a historical mystery "Murder by Degrees" was also a treatise on the history of social reform, women's rights, and the history of medical education. Set in 1875 Philadelphia, it acknowledged that city's manufacturing and industrial foundations, its multicultural heritage, and its pioneering in the field of medical study.

The protagonist, Dr. Lydia Weston, was a hard working and diligent physician during a time when female doctors were viewed with skepticism by the general public, and often misogyny and derision by male members of the medical profession. In addition, she taught prospective physicians at the Woman's Medical College. Lydia had very a very modest background herself, so was able to empathize with her working-class patients and students. When one of her patients, a chambermaid for a wealthy family, comes to her, they form a friendship when she realizes the girl's intelligence and thirst for knowledge. No wonder then, that Lydia is distraught when the girl's body is found in the Schuylkill River... The police request Lydia aid them in their investigation because of her relationship with the victim. Lydia herself performs the autopsy.

I did find that the medical procedures sometimes detracted from the pace of the mystery's narrative, yet it was interesting in and of itself.

The story was very atmospheric, set as it was in a time when streets were lit with gaslight and operations and autopsies were sometimes lit with oil lanterns.

The book encompassed themes of social injustice, the exploitation of vulnerable people, infidelity, and gender bias.

Part police procedural, part literary mystery, this book made a real impression upon me. The author herself is a physician, so it is written with expert medical knowledge.

In summation, this novel was an enjoyable foray into Philadelphia's rich history as well as a riveting mystery with an intriguing plot. This is a debut novel, and I look forward to reading more in what might become a series.
Recommended!

A very captivating historical mystery. I enjoyed the setting of Philadelphia, and the era. The plot was good with many clues leading to the conclusion.
Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really enjoyed this debut! I wasn't sure where we were going to be in terms of location and time period so I just assumed it would be England because most historical fiction I've read has been England. It's not! It's Pennsylvania in 1875. A female doctor working at Woman's Medical College. I found it fascinating and I'm glad the author didn't shy away from the gruesome side of death and autopsies. I also really enjoyed the mystery! Looking forward to Mukerji's next book.

From the publisher:
Philadelphia, 1875: It is the start of term at Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania. Dr. Lydia Weston, professor and anatomist, is immersed in teaching her students in the lecture hall and hospital. When the body of a patient, Anna Ward, is dredged out of the Schuylkill River, the young chambermaid’s death is deemed a suicide. But Lydia is suspicious and she is soon brought into the police investigation.

Aided by a diary filled with cryptic passages of poetry, Lydia discovers more about the young woman she thought she knew. Through her skill at the autopsy table and her clinical acumen, Lydia draws nearer the truth. Soon a terrible secret, long hidden, will be revealed. But Lydia must act quickly, before she becomes the next target of those who wished to silence Anna.

Murder by Degrees by Ritu Mukerji was published October 17th, 2023 by Simon & Schuster.

My Thoughts: This is an enjoyable historical mystery. I really liked Dr. Lydia Weston. She was smart and sympathetic. She worked well with the police. I appreciated that she didn't do much investigating on her own. i liked seeing how the attitude from some of the police changed over the course of the book. It was notable that they chose to consult her in the first place. I liked that not all the men she encountered treated her in a condescending manner.

The plot moved along at a good pace The twists worked well. I was surprised at the ending. The details of her actions as a doctor and investigator made it more real. Overall, it is well-written.

I gave it 5 stars out of 5. I would definitely recommend this book to people who like a good historical mystery with a strong female protagonist. I look forward to seeing where Ritu Mukerji takes Dr. Weston from here.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. This did not affect my review.

Historical fiction readers who enjoy mystery and medicine will be interested in this story. The story had too many medical descriptions and details for me. Autopsies were a little too much. The dedication to the medical field Lydia had was admirable. She faced a lot of criticism and doubt because of her profession.

Murder By Degrees by Ritu Mukerji is a debut historical cozy mystery featuring a pioneering woman doctor in the 1870s. The audiobook is narrated by Gabra Zackman.

In 1875 Philadelphia, Dr. Lydia Weston is gearing up to teach her students at the start of a new term. When a body is dredged out of the Schuylkill River, the death is initially deemed a suicide. Lydia is suspicious as she knew the young woman in question, and inserts herself into the investigation.

This is a solid debut and I'm definitely interested in continuing on with the series, should more books be published. All of the characters (even secondary ones) are well developed. Even though I figured out part of the mystery, I enjoyed the plot and pacing.

One of the strengths of this book is the fact that our heroine Lydia allies herself with detectives Volcker and Davies to assist in the investigation, instead of trying to do it all by herself. They are a good team, and are able to throw spaghetti at the wall pretty well between them.

Another strength is the description of the medical classes and clinic work that Lydia performs, as the author, Ritu Mukerji, is a doctor in real life. She was a medical student in Philadelphia, and her knowledge of the city also shines. I especially enjoyed the shout out for the beginnings of the Mütter museum.

This is a time period I'm not too familiar with and it was interesting to see that slice of life.

CW: murder, description of surgery, classism, misogyny

when you have a female physician during the early times where that was rare and new, a historical setting,& you add mystery to it, and likeable characters; you have a perfect fall & winter historical mystery read!

Thank you net galled for the ARC of the novel MURDER BY DEGREES by Ritu Mukerji I requested this both because I was intrigued by the title and the fact that it is set in Philadelphia where I was born, and until a year ago, lived.. I really like books that are set in the past and found it intriguing as to how crimes were investigated without the technology that we are so used to today. I am interested in anything medical and this book delivered. DR. Lydia was a very strong character who had a good relationship with her patients. It was a strong reminder of how far women have come in the past century and a half and how far we still have to go. It was great reading about how she showed her independence and annoying, though not surprising, how men treated women. The story really held my interest and I would strongly recommend it.

A historical mystery set in 1875 Phildelphia, Murder by Degrees follows Dr. Lydia Weston as she investigates the disappearance of a young patient. I'm a sucker for a mystery including a confident, amateur investigator working with law inforcement, and this debut novel by Ritu Mukerji delivers on that front. And while I'm not typically drawn to historical fiction, I enjoy a story focused on a woman in an unconvential role for the time. I found the other characters to be fine but not especially compelling. Many seemed a bit underdeveloped.

While I enjoyed the overall mystery, setting and characters, nothing about this story stood out enough to make me anxious to get back to it. The plot felt a little disjointed, but not so much so that I couldn't follow it. If this becomes a series, I'm not sure I would pick up the next installment. However, it is a solid debut, and some of the elements that fell flat for me may improve as the story develops.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #Simon&Shuster for a free copy of #MurderbyDegress by Ritu Mukerji. All opinions are my own.

Lydia was a great heroine in this book. I really enjoyed how smart and capable she was. She uses all of her resources and knowledge to help solve this murder.

The mystery is fast-paced and intriguing. My attention was held all the way through. I liked the detailed descriptions of the medical areas of the book and loved usage of the poetry quotations. I found that both contributed nicely to the atmospheric tone of the mystery.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

A huge thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Simon & Schuster for providing this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A murder mystery set in 1875, starring a woman doctor who becomes embroiled in the police investigation when a patient of hers suddenly seems to go missing - and the body they discover in the river matches her description. We follow Lydia as she investigates alongside the police to determine what exactly happened to Anna Ward - and whether it was simply suicide, or if it was murder.

This book was a solid mystery novel, where at no point were you completely positive where the investigation was going to go, nor who was actually at fault. I enjoyed Lydia as a character - as a female doctor and a professor at her school educating OTHER women to become a doctor - she has an interesting insight to the events going on around her. I liked that while this was a mystery novel, we do spend a decent portion of the book as Lydia goes about her life and the sexism she faces for her profession.

When Lydia finds a personal diary from Anna Ward that seems to contain poetry that alludes to her knowing something that someone might want to keep secret - as well as her being frantic the last time she was seen - it adds intrigue to the case. Was someone hunting her? Did she know a secret she should not have? And while the police focus on interviewing suspects, Lydia focuses on discovering the secrets of the journal - which slowly piece together the events that lead to Anna Ward being found dead.

Mystery novels involving a complicated and intricate investigation, where you have many suspects but no clear evidence until the end, can be difficult to pull off properly. This book is able to do it convincingly, where even with there being multiple suspects and culprits, how they all fit together works extremely well. I liked how Lydia was able to work alongside the police for the investigation - but also, when she has her own leads will go off on her own.

This is a great murder mystery novel, and the meshing of the investigation with Lydia’s daily life almost felt like I was reading something similar to Katherine Arden’s Cemeteries of Amalo series.

I would only caution readers reading this if they are squeamish about descriptions of bodies, surgeries, and autopsies as while the descriptions are not overly graphic, they are described fairly well.

This mystery takes place in the 1870’s. We follow Dr Lydia Weston as she helps the police find out what happen to a patient of hers that is found dead. This mystery is one that will have you wondering what happened and why.
I like that The author also includes in this story all the issues that a women Doctor had to put up with during this period.

Well-paced mystery with developed characters and a fascinating setting. I loved visiting the streets of 19th century Philadelphia and getting to know Lydia and her struggles to be considered a real physician. The story was well written and drew me in from the very beginning. I learned a lot about medicine as well as social mores of the time. Hoping this becomes a series and we’ll get to spend time with Lydia again.

Being a female doctor in late 1800s Philadelphia is not for the faint of heart, but Dr Lydia Weston finds fulfillment, if not outright courage, in doing this very necessary work. As a professor and anatomist, she spends almost as much time teaching as she does tending to the sick. She takes quiet satisfaction not only in her ability to help the ill, but also in ensuring that other women are taught well in how to do the same.

Her work does not, however, come without opposition, usually from the ignorant and condescending:

QUOTE
She had faced so many men like Harper, those who doubted her intelligence at every turn. Usually she would shrug it off, persuading herself that focusing on insults would detract from the work. But not today. She thought of her students and the devastating hardships so many of them had overcome. She thought of her early days in Philadelphia, filled with self-doubt as to whether she would finish her degree. Even now, after more than ten years of practice, there was the need to prove herself over and over again. There was no denying the personal toll extracted by all the years of struggle.
END QUOTE

Detractors she can handle. A brand new sort of challenge arrives, however, when a patient of hers goes missing. Anna Ward is a bright young woman who’d gone into service in order to support her ailing younger brother. While she first came to Lydia as a patient, the two have since struck up a genuine friendship, with Lydia often loaning the younger woman books and discussing with her matters both medical and philosophical. Lydia becomes concerned as to her friend’s well-being when Anna misses several of their appointments in a row.

Even so, she’s utterly shocked when a body identified as Anna’s is fished out of the Schuylkill River. Lydia is soon pulled into the police investigation led by the thoughtful Inspector Thomas Volcker, whose primary assistant, Sergeant Charlie Davies, is suspicious of her involvement. This isn’t due to any suspicions of foul play on her part, but because he simply can’t understand that a woman could be not only a doctor but an asset to crime fighting. Volcker must patiently remind him:

QUOTE
“But let us give Dr. Weston an opportunity to work and not tear down her efforts completely. I once did the same for you, Charlie.”

Davies flushed. Volcker’s words stung, hitting the mark with accuracy. In his early days on the force, Davies had been relegated to patrol the beat in the tenement he had grown up in. He had chafed at the drudgery, longing to be part of a detective’s team. But it was clear there was little hope of advancement; he lacked education and his only qualification was an eagerness to learn[...] None of the inspectors had been willing to take him on except Volcker. Volcker could be critical and demanding, but he was never condescending.
END QUOTE

With this somewhat uneasy alliance, Lydia must bring her formidable mind to bear on the conundrum of what happened to Anna. Clues seem to lie in a diary Anna left behind, filled with cryptic passages of poetry. As Lydia, Volcker and Davies interview the people who’d most often and closely interacted with Anna, they can’t help but wonder whether the young woman had become involved in something so terrible that she needed to be permanently silenced. And worse, will Lydia become the killer’s next victim when she gets too close to the truth?

This engaging historical mystery features a spirited heroine ready to tackle just about any problem set in her path, using her empathy, keen wit and ingenuity to not only carry the day but to win over – or at least neutralize – those who might oppose her. Ritu Mukerji has clearly done her research as she brings the 19th century and the cutting edge medical technology of the time to life. With fillips of poetry to go with the gaslit crimes, this novel is a must read for fans of the genre.

I love stories about historical women in traditionally masculine roles. And stories set in late 19th century America, where many of these breakthroughs were also taking place. Doctor Lydia Weston is a wonderfully strong and intelligent heroine, aided by a couple of Philadelphia detectives, for whom young people, especially young women, are drawn. A consummate teacher, whether her student is a member of her college or not, she is always seeking ways to improve the minds of young people. This is how she meets Anna, a chambermaid with a curious and poetical mind. I think the author’s use of contemporary poetry to lay out clues as to what happened to Anna is absolutely brilliant.
Lydia does not shrink from autopsies and drowning victims, disconcerting for some. This is also such a well-done mystery that kept the pages turning. Not even so much as to know who did it, but to watch Lydia solve the mystery surrounding Anna’s death.
Vividly immersive, an intelligent mystery very well told. Highly, highly recommended for lovers of historical mysteries and historical fiction. Can’t wait for the next in this series 😊

Philadelphia 1875

I am truly obsessed with historical mysteries and was excited to find this author and story.

Lydia Weston is a professor and an anatomist at the Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania.
When one of the patients is found dead and in the river, everyone thinks it is a suicide.

When Lydia is drawn into the investigation, with her skills and findings, it seems it was not a suicide at all.

Cannot wait for more!

I really wanted to enjoy this book, I really did. It sounded right up my alley, especially as an aspiring doctor who wanted to delve into a fun historical murder mystery type book. I actually enjoyed parts of this book people didn't really like because the detail of the anatomy during dissections and lessons for the med students was interesting to me because there was a good amount of terminology that I was familiar with. My main problem with this book was that I just found it kind of boring. I wasn't invested in the characters, there were no twists and turns, I just didn't feel the excitement that I was craving when I picked up this book to read. On top of that, I found that although doctors help with autopsy reports for murders, they're not full-fledged detectives who are just put on cases just because it was one of their patients. I found that odd and it wasn't really explained why it was like this in the book. Overall, not really a book for me, unfortunately.

A mystery set in 19th century Philadelphia .
Dr Lydia Weston a professor and anatomist investigate a suicide of a patient of hers.
While investigating she finds that it might not be a suicide .Interesting, intriguing story with suspense, mystery,drama...
Enjoy the subject and time.
Voluntarily reviewed.

This book has a lot of potential, but unfortunately it didn’t quite work for me. I enjoyed the premise and the plot, but the characterization was lacking. There were too many ancillary characters to keep track of, and they weren’t distinctive enough to resonate with me. Then when they became relevant to the plot, I had a hard time remembering who was who and what was important about them. I liked the setting and what I saw of Dr. Weston’s character, but I needed a bit more to truly resonate with the book.

Thank you to the publisher - I received a complimentary eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Murder by Degrees is an interesting historical mystery, featuring Dr. Lydia Weston. The book is set in Philadelphia in the 1870s. Dr. Weston and her colleagues run a medical clinic and teach at the Women's Medical College.

One of her patients disappears, and Lydia is very worried that something has happened to her. When a body is discovered at the river, her worst fears are realized. The police are willing to work with her, as she has consulted on cases before and helped find the perpetrators. Her medical knowledge, and her ability to have witnesses trust her, are invaluable to Volker and Davies, who are in charge of the case.

Lovers of historical fiction will enjoy this fictional account of a woman doctor in the 1870s, and mystery lovers will enjoy a strong female amateur detective! While this book is similar to other historical mysteries, I liked that there was no need to give her a romantic interest, and the medical details.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book.