The Specimens

By: Mairi Kidd

Narrated by: Gerda Stevenson

Edinburgh, 1828. Two women—one rich, one poor—must navigate life against a frenzied backdrop of medical discovery, mob mayhem, and murder.

The home Helen shares in the slums of the Old Town with her lover William Burke could hardly be more different from Susan’s dreams of an affluent existence as the wife of Robert Knox, one of the foremost anatomists of the day. But as people begin disappearing, these two very different women face an impossible choice. Should they protect what lives they have or tell the truth about what they know?

This is the story of the notorious serial killings of Burke and Hare, told for the first time through the eyes of two very different women, whose stories explore the depths of the human heart in a perilous, vulnerable world.

©2024 Mairi Kidd. First published in the UK in 2024 by Black & White Publishing Ltd. (P)2026 Blackstone Publishing

Critic reviews

“A fresh, feminine take on the horrors of Scotland’s most notorious serial killers.” SALLY MAGNUSSON

“Gruesomely gripping, this story will stay with you for a long time.” SUE LAWRENCE