Speakers of the Dead

A Walt Whitman Mystery

By: J. Aaron Sanders

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

Speakers of the Dead is a mystery novel centering around the investigative exploits of a young Walt Whitman, in which the reporter-cum-poet navigates the seedy underbelly of New York City's body-snatching industry in an attempt to exonerate his friend of a wrongful murder charge.

The year is 1843; the place: New York City. Aurora reporter Walt Whitman arrives at the Tombs prison yard, where his friend, Lena Stowe, is scheduled to hang for the murder of her husband, Abraham. Walt intends to present evidence on Lena's behalf, but Sheriff Harris turns him away. Lena drops to her death, and Walt vows to posthumously exonerate her.

Walt's estranged boyfriend, Henry Saunders, returns to New York, and the two men uncover a link between body snatching and Abraham's murder: a man named Samuel Clement. To get to Clement, Walt and Henry descend into a dangerous underworld where resurrection men steal the bodies of the recently deceased and sell them to medical colleges. With no legal means to acquire cadavers, medical students rely on these criminals, and Abraham's involvement with the Bone Bill - legislation that would put the resurrection men out of business - seems to have led to his and Lena's deaths.

Fast paced and gripping, Speakers of the Dead is a vibrant reimagining of one of America's most beloved literary figures.

©2016 J. Aaron Sanders (P)2016 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Boldly plotted and compulsively readable, Speakers of the Dead is a welcome discovery for any fan of literary history thrillers. Sanders's debut pulls off an elusive accomplishment, making us rethink what we know about favorite historical figures and entertaining us at the same time.” (Matthew Pearl, author of The Last Bookaneer and The Dante Club)

In Speakers of the Dead, the conceit alone is worthy of your attention, Whitman as detective, but Aaron Sanders goes above and beyond in creating a character and a world that feels both entirely authentic and yet deliriously imagined, supported by elegant prose that demands your attention. This is what you want from a good mystery, enough verve and complexity that you cannot focus on anything else, and Sanders does this as well as anyone in the game.” (Kevin Wilson, author of The Family Fang)

“A vivid and engaging adventure, written with a modern freshness and understanding of which the young Whitman himself might have approved.” (Nicola Upson, author of The Death of Lucy Kyte)

Excellent historical mystery fiction

Would you listen to Speakers of the Dead again? Why?

Yes. I was grabbed by the story/mystery. I loved the setting and historical details--1843 NYC.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Speakers of the Dead?

Walt and Henry's relationship. The dedication of the doctors is also inspiring.

Which character – as performed by Mark Bramhall – was your favorite?

Walt Whitman

If you could take any character from Speakers of the Dead out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Walt Whitman--I enjoy his poetry but knew little about his life.

Great October Creepy Story

Very engaging story and with body snatchers and murders and a little cameo from Edgar Allan Poe and its Halloween. What more could you ask? It is an interesting commentary on mob mentality that one might try to apply to our day. it is an interesting snapshot into the possible character of the famous writer, Walt Whitman. I enjoyed it very much.

Even Snow

If you like gore...

I managed to finish this story because I enjoy historical fiction. I even understand the author's purpose in describing the horror of grave robbery in such detail. I see the story's relevance in the correlation between the resistance to the dissection of the human body before the 20th century and stem cell research in our own time, but I hated the detail Bramhall went into in describing the mortification of decay order to make his point. I think I was just too squeamish for this novel.