Disturbing the Dead is the third book in Kelley Armstrongs's addictive historical mystery series A Rip Through Time. I became a big fan of this author when I was introduced to her Rockton series, and now I try to read every new book she comes out with. My current favorite genre is historical mystery and thrillers, so this series is right up my alley, with a twist...time travel. It sounded a bit hokey to me at first, but it's not. It's riveting and she can't write new books in this series fast enough for me! The mystery here stands alone, but I highly recommending reading this series in order; you won't want to miss the progression of Mallory's life in her new world.

Mallory Atkinson, a modern-day homicide detective, is becoming more comfortable living in 1869 Victorian Edinburgh, Scotland. Well, as comfortable as it can be inhabiting another woman's body! She and housemaid Catriona Mitchell were both attacked in the same dark alley 150 years apart, and somehow Mallory is now wearing a Catriona suit. At least her employers know her true identity, and she does enjoy working as an assistant to Dr. Duncan Gray, an undertaker/medical examiner. Mallory now has true friends - and deeper feelings - in this time period. Victorians appear to be fascinated with death, so Mallory isn't totally shocked that she and her friends are invited to a mummy unwrapping party at the home of Sir Alastair Christie. Sir Christie isn't present when it's time to unwrap the mummy, so Dr. Gray and Mallory are asked to do the honors. Except it's not an ancient mummy under all those wrappings, but something much...fresher.

I have loved this series from the start! I crave this fascinating blend of a historical mystery, compelling characters and a bit of the mystical all wrapped together. This particular book, however, is by far my favorite. I was expecting a great mystery, but I wasn't expecting a storyline that had me snorting out loud with laughter AND bawling my eyes out! The mystery itself was fun, thrilling, and kept me guessing. I loved all the red herrings that weren't so obvious that they were in fact red herrings. Right off the bat I'm sure you can guess who was underneath the mummy wrappings. What wasn't at all obvious was the whodunit portion of our story. There were a lot of people to choose from - the female medical student who was disgusted with Dr. Christie's opposition to women being doctors, his second wife, his wife's brother who helped him with his Egyptian finds, his sponsor, someone unknown who wanted his artifacts - it's a long list of possible suspects! There's some interesting historical aspects here that are extremely interesting, such as the Victorian fascination with death. Mummy unwrapping parties were definitely not politically correct; it's hard to imagine people wanting to be thrilled by a long-deceased body being exposed, not for its scientific importance. There is also some prejudice against those who look different, like Dr. Gray, who has brown skin due to his Indian mother. Some of my favorite scenes in the story take place in the "Goblin Market", where one could get odd remedies, pieces of corpses and "relief" for women who suffer from anxiety. It was quite unreal! There was humor here, as well. An unknown writer is chronicling the exploits of "The Gray Doctor" and his beautiful assistant. Of course, the stories are overblown in order to sell broadsheets and chap books. The descriptions of the "beautiful assistant's" actions will have you rolling on the floor. The mystery part was excellent, of course, but it's the characters who bring me back to this series time and time again. Mallory is a strong female character who has managed amazingly well being thrown back in time into the body of a duplicitous, pretty, young and blonde housemaid. Her employer, Dr. Duncan Gray, and his sister, Isla Ballantyne, a chemist, are well aware of who Mallory is now. She is no longer a housemaid but assistants Dr. Gray in his cases. His sister Isla, a widowed chemist, is a good friend to Mallory. Detective Hugh McCreadie, a friend of Duncan's since childhood, is also aware of Mallory's true identity, and he is appreciative of her help and is excited to hear about the future of law enforcement. Though she is becoming more comfortable with her situation, she still struggles with some things...like fighting in a corset, which is always good for a laugh. She has to also be careful of her modern language, lest she bring too much attention to herself. She is close to Dr. Gray, and it's becoming apparent that it's not just friendship between the two of them. I just adore Duncan Gray. He now runs the undertaking business that was his father's, but he was also trained as a doctor. (Unfortunately he cannot practice medicine, as there was an incident in digging up a corpse once...) He is also a medical examiner, but not officially. The "doctor" who does autopsies is rather inept, and Duncan is allowed access to the bodies once the other guy is through with them. Duncan is very protective, but he also knows and respects Mallory's abilities. Duncan has dealt with prejudice due to his parentage, but he is well-liked and respected by most. The man is addicted to cream pastries, and Mallory has been known to get her way by bribing him with them. He is actually a very kind man, and cares very much for Mallory. It's quite apparent; who else would give a Hand of Glory to his assistant so they could dissect it together? (BTW, a Hand of Glory is the pickled right hand of a felon, cut off while the body still hung from the gallows, and is believed to have mystical powers. How sweet!) Other favorite characters make appearances, such as Mrs. Wallace (the cook, who once worked in a circus; she is not a woman you want to anger), Alice (a young maid) and Queen Mab (an herbalist). There is one huge plot twist in this book, and I will NOT mention it here; I was glad I didn't read any spoilers beforehand. I was totally shocked, and it changes the trajectory of the series. You will be gobsmacked. This is not a series to let pass by!

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley. I received no compensation for my review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.

I’m so obsessed with the Rip Through Time series. The setting, the characters, the time period, the mysteries, the adventures, the humour, the emotion, all of it. I love how Armstrong weaves together multiple mysteries, both big and small, to always keep the reader guessing and keep us on our toes. I enjoyed the Egyptian/mummy storyline in Disturbing the Dead; I learned quite a few new things, which I always appreciate. I absolutely adore the characters and their interactions. This book was particularly funny and made me laugh out loud multiple times, but it was also surprisingly emotional and I shed a few tears on more than one occasion while reading.

This series is so captivating, and I’m looking forward to the next adventure. I have my fingers crossed for another novella like we got last December because I need more of Mallory, Duncan, Isla, and Hugh in my life and a year feels like so long to wait!

*****SPOILER*****
As a romance reader, I'm used to shipping people, but I wouldn't let myself ship Mallory and Gray in the first book because I knew it was wrong. Mallory was in someone else’s body and hoped/planned to return home eventually. BUT... a) she CHOSE to return to Victorian Scotland after she was sent back to her time, and b) Gray is clearly falling for her, so…I can ship them now, right? It’s still kind of weird, but less weird? Either way, I’m curious to see where their relationship goes and if it veers into the romantic.

This installment of Kelley Armstrong's time travel mystery has Mallory and Duncan solving the murder of an archaeologist and the selling of mummy remains. As Mallory settles into the life of a Victorian woman she has now been released from her duties as a maid and has been hired as Duncan's full-time assistant. As she, Duncan and Detective MacReidy uncover clues and suspects, the underground world of buyers and sellers in illegal merchandise looms large in their search for the murderer. Adding new characters to the story-line and the possibility of romance between Mallory and Duncan the next installment should prove just the treat.

I can’t tell you how much I loved this book! I’ve been a fan of Kelley’s for years and have loved this series so much! This book was no exception … it is by far my favorite! I really love the dynamic of this group of characters. And I couldn’t love the direction that this is taking more! I read a lot of books and this series is so unique and so enjoyable. I was right in the middle of reading another book when this landed in my inbox … I immediately switched to this one! I’m so looking forward to these stories continuing - please keep them coming! You MUST give this one a whirl!

Mallory the modern Canadian detective trapped in 1869 Edinburgh is making the best of her new life. Being officially promoted to assistant of the rich, handsome Dr. Duncan Gray, undertaker/consulting detective, means she gets to do fun Victorian activities like attending a mummy unwrapping party. Their murdered host ends up being the one in the wrappings. Mallory and Gray are somewhat distracted from their investigation by the highly inaccurate but wildly popular serialization of their adventures. Solid historical grounding, nice brisk plot. Volume three offers some answers and closure about the central premise of the series, which is appreciated.

This series just keeps getting better and better!

This is book 3 in the Rip Through Time series. You are missing out if you haven't jumped into this series yet.

In book 1, Mallory was violently brought to the past, 150 years earlier, waking up in the body of a housemaid. Since then, she has etched a place for herself in her new life. She has become the assistant to the local medical examiner and between the two of them, they are unstoppable at solving crimes.

I absolutely loved the mystery tied to this one! A body wrapped up and left as a mummy!? Who is responsible and where did the real mummy go? These characters are just so charming and fun. I love that we get to know them more and more with each book. This book had my jaw on the floor at parts and was dying to see where this series would go.

This was a great addition to the series! I really have enjoyed all of the books and am now starting the countdown for the release of the next installment. Is it next year yet? This one had an entertaining mystery and has you very invested. I couldn’t wait to get to the end to see who was the bad guy and how the group would wrap it up. This book takes Mallory to some places she has been wanting to get to for a long time and answered a few of the questions we have had since the first book. I can’t wait to see what is in store for Mallory and Duncan in the future. If you have started this series already, you will definitely want to read this installment and if you haven’t started the series yet, you should pick up the first - A Rip Through Time and start it.

Mallory Atkinson (homicide detective) is still trapped in the past--literally, having somehow been yanked back to 1860's Edinburgh and now living in the body of Catriona Michell (housemaid). But she is minding less and less as she begins to make a place for herself in the eccentric household of undertaker/medical examiner Dr. Duncan Gray and his scientist sister, Isla. They and those close to them know who Mallory really is, and it has allowed her to assist in more than one murder investigation. So when a fresh corpse is unwrapped instead of the expected mummy at a macabre society gathering, Mallory gets a dangerous crash course in just how valuable Egyptian artifacts can be, and what people will do to get their hands on them.

I really enjoyed this latest in the Rip Through Time series. Armstrong has a way of making history so real, and the setup (a modern police detective living over 250 years earlier) is perfect for explaining how things worked in a way that doesn't detract from the plot. And an intriguing plot it is. So many situations and struggles that we face today aren't new (blended families, complicated feelings, found family) and are found in this book. I do have mixed feelings about the twist in the middle of this one (no spoilers here)--I do appreciate that it resolved some of the tension stretching through the series so far, but I'll wait to see how things play out moving forward to form a more concrete opinion. All said, I really enjoyed this one and can't wait for the next in the series!

I've really been enjoying the Rip series, and this is definitely my favorite so far. Firstly, mummies!! I quite liked the crime and the process they went through to solve it. It pulled in characters from the preceding book in a satisfyingly organic way, and it introduced a delightfully amusing "chronicler" of Duncan and Mallory's adventures with a Holmesian flavor. I was rather blindsided by a mid-story twist, but it did an excellent job of resolving one of the primary tensions in the base story arc. I'll admit to being a little frustrated with the slow burn, but I guess that's a sign of a well-executed slow burn! (fingers crossed for next book!)

Disturbing the Dead finds my favorite time traveling detective back on the case as a gentleman is murdered and a mummy’s bones are stole, Mallory is falling into a familiar and comfortable existence in the past but when the future comes calling, Mallory finds her place in the world is different from what she thought. The case is twisted and unpredictable while Mallory and Duncan’s story has you rooting for a romance between the couple. The characters are always memorable and unique and the mystery always slaps you with an unexpected twist for a great read. My voluntary, unbiased, and non mandatory review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

Love all her books.
and this series.
Just awesome story, mystery,suspense,drama twists,a really good surprise.
If you like mystery and time travel try it.
Voluntarily reviewed.

In Disturbing the Dead , Kelley Armstrong combines a murder mystery and a time travel aspect in a historical setting in this third book in the Rip Through Time series. Modern day homicide detective Mallory Atkinson is becoming more comfortable living in Victorian Scotland. She’s inhabiting the body of a housemaid who was attacked in the same Edinburgh alley as Mallory, but 150 years ago. Mallory is enjoying her job as assistant to undertaker and medical examiner Dr. Duncan Gray and assisting him and Detective Hugh McCreadie in a variety of cases.

Mallory and her friends are invited to a mummy unwrapping at the home of Sir Alastair Christie. When their host is missing, Gray and Mallary are asked to step in and do the unwrapping. All doesn’t go well.

Mallory is a character with plenty of depth. She’s hardworking, kind, relatable, loves puzzles, and is an idealist. She’s good at seeing clues and connections in people’s speech, mannerisms, and expressions. While she makes for a strong female protagonist that readers can cheer on, she flouts convention and is sarcastic as well as being an independent thinker unafraid to speak her mind, which isn’t normal for women in Victorian times. Gray is passionate about his work, enthusiastic, confident, occasionally relaxed and teasing. He’s a pioneer in the field of forensics, has an eye for detail, and has a scientific curiosity. Isla, one of Gray’s sisters, is a chemist who is brilliant, strong-willed, and kindhearted. McCreadie is clever, good-natured, and a bit of an adventure hound. The remaining supporting cast of characters are well-developed and provide insight into individuals in various roles in a Victorian household as well as those they interact with.

Kelley Armstrong has a fluid writing style that quickly brings readers into the well-paced story. They also get insight into the state of police forensics during this early era and a few insights into how investigations and searches occur in 1869 in Scotland. Other themes include family, relationships, friendship, racism, gender identity, poverty, helping others, how servants were treated, and attitudes toward, expectations of, and limitations on women.

The addition of two subplots adds another dimension to the story. There are some twists in the storyline with a large surprise about two-thirds of the way through. The ending has plenty of action and wraps things up nicely. There is a hint at a couple of potential romances, but nothing more. The world-building is wonderful and feels accurate for the times. Humor is sprinkled throughout the tale.

Overall, this is a moving, well-written, suspenseful, and entertaining novel with great characterization as well as some pivotal stressful and emotional moments. Understanding how Mallory gets to this time in history is explained in depth in book one so I recommend starting with it. The author’s writing style is engaging and draws readers into the story quickly. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series.

St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Books and Kelley Armstrong provided a digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. Publication date is currently expected to be May 07, 2024. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

It was nice being back in Victorian Scotland in the gripping and shocking third installment in the "A Rip Through Time" series by Kelley Armstrong. As with the previous books in the series A Rip Through Time and The Poisoner's Ring) I was fully invested in this well written and well thought out mystery. I continue to be captivated by the relationships between the characters, the setting, and their detective work solving yet another mysterious case.

In Disturbing the Dead, Mallory, a detective from the 21st century who found herself transported into the body of a house maid in Victorian Scotland, is attending a mummy unveiling with Dr. Duncan Gray. Everyone attending the event is excited to see a real mummy but end up shocked when the body that is uncovered is not that of a mummy but someone, they all know.

This is such a great series. It combines many of the things that I enjoy in books: atmosphere, tension, a mystery to be solved, great characters, and suspense. Kelley Armstrong also carried off the time travel aspect of this book very well. Mallory was strangled in the exact same alley as was Catriona Mitchell, a housemaid in Victorian Scotland, 150 years ago. Can you imagine waking up in a different time where everyone is wearing different clothing, there are no modern conveniences, you are being called by a different name, and expected to perform the duties of a housemaid. Not to mention, having to cope with a different pecking order and the expectations placed on women at that time. While Mallory initially struggled being in a different time, she was able to make friends, be accepted, and find a purpose.

I enjoyed the mystery and how everything played out in this book. I also adore the characters, their banter, the situations they find themselves in, and their teamwork. Kelley Armstrong has another hit on her hands!

Well written characters with interesting chemistry between them all. I enjoyed the banter between the main characters, especially the flirtatious bantering between Dr. Gray and Mallory. The secondary characters worked well in the story, and were just as developed.

The plot was memorable which involved an unwrapping of a mummy. This plot element caught my attention right away. I thought it was ingenious to have Mallory still maintain her contemporary attitudes and resourcefulness of her time and yet, still fit in with the Victorian times.

The author kept the story moving when in the past, but the present felt stifled. This is where the difference between four and five stars was for me. The time travel storyline felt rushed and ungenuine compared to the rest of the book. I wish the author had fattened that part of the story up with more details.

This was my first book for the series and though I was able to follow along ok, I do wish I had read the other two books first.

My review is voluntary and all comments and opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

Rating: 2.5
This was my first book in this series, and I thought it was ok. I enjoyed the premise of the book and some of the characters were enjoyable. However, for some reason, I wasn't clicking with the plot of the book. So, the novel is advertised as a standalone in a series of books, however, there were parts where it alluded to events in previous books that didn't make sense unless you read the previous books. The story doesn't seem like it is progressing well and I cannot seem to connect to Mallory at all. This book was not for me, sadly.

This is the third book in the Ripped Through Time series, and it just keeps getting better. Mallory was a 21st century Canadian detective in Scotland to be with her dying grandmother. She goes for a run and is mugged and killed, only to awake in Victorian Scotland, in the body of a teenage housemaid working in a medical examiner’s home. Dr. Duncan works with a local detective to look for the cause of death, with the aid of Mallory’s experience as a detective. In this book, they are invited to a mummy unwrapping, something Mallory finds offensive but attends with Dr. Duncan as they try to be respectful of the body they are unwrapping. To the surprise of everyone, the poorly wrapped body is actually the person who was hosting the event. This begins the investigation into the murder which goes in so many directions I never new what to expect. It was great fun.

Thank you to Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of Disturbing the Dead; this is my honest opinion.

This was the 1st book I have read in this series. I normally always love time travel stories & movies. However, this one just wasn't that great. Although a stand alone story, there were previous events brought up & left unexplained, that ultimately did not add to this story in any meaningful way. The dialog was a bit stilted. The story did not draw me in or keep me glued to the page. Something is missing from this story & writing style.

This is the third book in the time traveling mystery series about a woman who suddenly finds herself in Victorian Scotland. The series is so good however I do think it is best to start with the first book. You won't be disappointed especially if you love to read time traveling stories. There is a great twist in this book which really heightened things. I can't wait for the next book.

Mallory and her friends are invited to a mummy unwrapping party in this third book in the Rip Through Time series. She is settling in as Duncan Gray's assistant as he helps the police with their investigations and becomes one of the first forensic scientists.

When the host of the mummy unwrapping party disappears, Gray needs to step in and unwrap the mummy to prevent the well-healed guests from rioting. Unfortunately, the unwrapping leads to the discovery of Sir Alastair Christie's murdered body.

There are a number of suspects to the murder from a young suffragette protesting Sir Alastair's stand on women attending medical school to his sponsor for his Egyptological investigations to someone who wanted either the mummy for the production of medicine or who wanted the antiquities to enrich themselves.

Mallory, Gray and McCreadie explore lots of possibilities as they investigate the murder. Mallory even visits an underground market where suspicious items are routinely sold in the company of Queen Mab.

And all the while they are investigating, they are plagued by a series of broadsheets depicting the "adventures" of the mysterious Doctor Gray and his winsome assistant. Searching for the author of those broadsheets adds another task to the busy investigators.

Mallory, who has been trying to find a way back to her own time period since her arrival in Scotland in 1869, does find her way home in time to say goodbye to her beloved grandmother. But then she, with her parents' encouragement, makes the decision to return to 1869 where she has found a group of friends and a purpose for her life.

I enjoyed this story very much. I liked the modern young woman who is making her life in a time period that is not her own. I liked that she was concerned with "spoilers" - things she knew about the future which she couldn't share. I also liked the way the other characters accepted her. There was quite a bit of humor in this episode.

Once again, Kelley Armstrong puts us in 1869 Edinburgh, in Disturbing The Dead. This is the third book in the A Rip Through Time series, and now I can’t wait for book four!

Mallory, a 21st century Canadian detective, is in Scotland to be with her dying grandmother, and mysteriously finds herself transported not only to 1869, but in the body of a younger housemaid, Catriona! Mallory is the ultimate “fish out of water,” having to get used to 19th century clothing and customs, and with this being the third book, she’s doing a pretty good job of it. She’s also gotten very fond of the people in her household, who luckily are more progressive than the average Victorian. Dr. Duncan Gray is a biracial doctor who runs his family’s funeral business and does research on bodies when he can and helps the police on occasion. Gray’s sister Isla is a chemist and she’s a great character as well. They both know what Mallory’s story really is. The number of people who are privy to this information keeps expanding, gradually. Mallory is now being introduced to people as Gray’s assistant.

This time the mystery involves an unwrapping of an Egyptian mummy, for the delight of the upper-class folks in Edinburgh. When the mummy is unwrapped, though, it’s not an ancient Egyptian but a contemporary body, one that everyone there knows. A fun subplot involves finding out who is writing popular broadsheets about Dr. Gray’s and Mallory’s “adventures,” wherein Mallory is depicted only as a sexy, pretty sidekick.

There’s a delightful twist about 2/3 through the book, which was really well done.

You could read this as a standalone, but you’d miss a lot of backstory. You will simply have to accept the situation and enjoy the mystery story and the characters.

I bounced between the audiobook and the ebook for this title, which was very convenient, and allowed me to continue with the story even when I could not sit down and read - or when I could not listen. The audiobook was well narrated by Kate Handford once again.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy of this book and to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.