Needle And Bone
In this accomplished thriller set in Philadelphia in 1841, 17-year-old Annis Hargrave flees New York when she witnesses the brutal murder of a young woman by a psychopath. However, Annis and her younger brother, Ben, discover opportunities for two orphans are limited. And when Ben breaks his leg and loses his job as a stagehand, the pair face the grim choice between a quick death by starvation or a slower death working in the mills. But what seems to be a devastating blow turns out to be a stroke of good luck, for the brilliant Dr. Thomas Mütter takes Ben’s case and offers Annis work as a medical illustrator at the nascent Pennsylvania School of Medicine. However, this fragile promise of happiness is still threatened by the madman, who continues to stalk Annis. She is also stalked by the ghost of the girl whose murder she witnessed. But does the unlaid spirit want to warn Annis or is she out for revenge?
The suspenseful chase plays out across an impeccably researched picture of the early days of the Jefferson Medical College, the first medical school in the United States, and the founder of its Mütter Museum, Dr. Thomas Mütter, a pioneer in the field of reconstructive surgery, as well as the first surgeon in Philadelphia to use ether. Highly recommended.
