Overview

The Specimens is a historical novel set in nineteenth century Scotland, moving between medical schools, museums, and the streets that feed them. The story follows several women whose lives intersect with the growing world of anatomy and collection, where bodies are studied, catalogued, and displayed. We read this as a novel about who is allowed to be remembered, and who is reduced to an object once their usefulness has passed.

Writing & Atmosphere

Mairi Kidd writes with precision and control. The settings feel close and physical: crowded lecture rooms, sealed jars, damp stone buildings, and ink stained records. The language is clear rather than showy, which suits the subject well. We always knew where we were and why it mattered, and the tension builds quietly through detail rather than shock.

Characters

This is a character driven novel, even when the characters themselves are denied agency within the story. The women at the heart of the book are working class, overlooked, or already lost to history. Kidd gives them interior lives and voices without turning them into symbols. The men of science are not written as simple monsters either. Their ambition and certainty sit alongside genuine belief in progress, which makes the moral questions sharper.

Themes

The novel grapples with consent, ownership, and the cost of knowledge. It looks closely at how medical authority was built and how easily human lives were justified as material. Museums and collections are not treated as neutral spaces, but as places shaped by power and silence. At its core, this is a book about memory and what survives when a person is stripped of their story.

What Worked

• Strong sense of place: Victorian Scotland feels specific and grounded throughout.
• Clear moral focus: the ethical questions are central without becoming heavy handed.
• Multiple viewpoints: the shifting perspectives build a fuller picture of the world.

Minor Quibbles

• The structure can feel disjointed at first as the different voices are introduced.
• Some readers may want more narrative momentum rather than reflection.

Final Thoughts

We found The Specimens unsettling in the best way. It asks us to look directly at histories that are often hidden behind glass and labels, and to consider the people who paid the price for progress.

Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)