Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Way of All Flesh

By: Ambrose Parry
Narrated by: Bryan Dick, Louise Brealey
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £3.99

Buy Now for £3.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

Edinburgh, 1847. City of Medicine, Money, Murder.

Young women are being discovered dead across the Old Town, all having suffered similarly gruesome ends. In the New Town, medical student Will Raven is about to start his apprenticeship with the brilliant and renowned Dr Simpson.

Simpson's patients range from the richest to the poorest of this divided city. His house is like no other, full of visiting luminaries and daring experiments in the new medical frontier of anaesthesia. It is here that Raven meets housemaid Sarah Fisher, who recognises trouble when she sees it and takes an immediate dislike to him. She has all of his intelligence but none of his privileges, in particular his medical education.

With each having their own motive to look deeper into these deaths, Raven and Sarah find themselves propelled headlong into the darkest shadows of Edinburgh's underworld, where they will have to overcome their differences if they are to make it out alive.

©2018 Ambrose Parry (P)2018 Canongate Books Ltd
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Way of All Flesh cover art
A Litter of Bones: A Scottish Crime Thriller cover art
An Honourable Thief cover art
Skinner's Rules cover art
Mind of a Killer cover art
Return to Reichenbach cover art
Murder at Everham Hall cover art
A Brutal Chill in August cover art
Pickpocket's Apprentice cover art
The Lost Lord of Castle Black cover art
Murder in the Crypt cover art
The Hope That Kills cover art
The Turning of Our Bones cover art
The Bonnie Dead cover art
The Bookseller of Inverness cover art
The Mammoth Book of the Adventures of Moriarty cover art

Critic reviews

"Parry's Victorian Edinburgh comes vividly alive - and it's a world of pain." (Val McDermid)
"Menacing, witty and ingeniously plotted, Ambrose Parry’s debut draws you into the dark heart of nineteenth-century Edinburgh and won’t let you go until the final page." (S.J. Parris)
"Utterly compelling, this tale of Old Edinburgh is so full of characters and startling incident that I never wanted it to end." (Denise Mina)

What listeners say about The Way of All Flesh

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    580
  • 4 Stars
    202
  • 3 Stars
    58
  • 2 Stars
    12
  • 1 Stars
    5
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    591
  • 4 Stars
    147
  • 3 Stars
    46
  • 2 Stars
    15
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    523
  • 4 Stars
    198
  • 3 Stars
    57
  • 2 Stars
    14
  • 1 Stars
    6

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great listen

goo story, love all of the characters. was a free book but getting second book now.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Victorian thriller!

I thought it very intriguing and it gave an insight into the Victorian era of medicine and in particular obstetrics. I liked the use of 2 narrators for the 2 protagonists, especially considering the role and view of women of that time.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant book !

Loved it. Beautifully written. Lots of twists and turns- thoroughly enjoyed it! Looking forward to more books by Ambrose Party.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

great book

loved it! was included in membership so discovered by accident. now ready to listen to book 2

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Gripping tale

Loved this when I read it a few years ago so was pleased to find the audible version included with membership.
A very good production with two excellent narrators bringing Mr Raven and Miss Fisher to life in a way that made the story even more enjoyable.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing

Loved the writing of this book, dynamic between characters was great, love the setting and historical element, great storyline with twists and turns, very engaging! Can’t wait to listen to the rest of this series!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A crime novel with depth.

I really enjoyed this book, from start to finish. It was well researched and historically convincing. It piqued my previous interest in the Victorian city, with its diverse social mix. Concerns about an underbelly of crime and deprivation seemingly threatened the affluence, stability and power of those more privileged.
I was also fascinated by the story's focus on the medical scene, within n
Nineteenth Century Scotland. Within this area, important breakthroughs were being made. The development of anaesthesia would be bring groundbreaking developments within surgery. Likewise, the developing area of maternal medicine would eventyally bring benifits to women across all classes. However, during this period, experimental procedures, desperation and greed combined to all to frequently resulted in patients suffering torturous treatment and death in the pursuit of cures. The book did well to highlight that, whilst also having the mysterious undercurrent of a historical crime novel.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Really enjoyable!

A really enjoyable romp through Victorian Edinburg! The narrators made the characters come to life!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A well set historical caper

I felt that amidst the fun and mystery of the story, I gained a historical perspective of the development of medicine and anaesthesia. Learning shouldn't be this enjoyable, surely?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good very good

I REALY enjoyed the story very griping at times enjoyed from start to finish thank you

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!