The Death of Shame cover art

The Death of Shame

Raven, Fisher, and Simpson, Book 5

Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Get this deal
Offer ends on 15 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.
More purchase options

The Death of Shame

By: Ambrose Parry
Narrated by: Bryan Dick, Cathleen McCarron
Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £5.99

Buy Now for £5.99

1854, Edinburgh.
Respectable faces hide private sins.

Apprentice Sarah Fisher is helping to fund Dr Will Raven’s emerging medical practice in exchange for being secretly trained as a medic, should the rules barring women ever change. Sarah needs no instruction in the inequalities that beset her gender, but even she has her eyes opened to a darker reality when a relative seeks her help in searching for her missing daughter. Annabel Banks was promised a situation in a prestigious household, but there has been no word from her since she left home, and the agency that arranged her position says she never appeared.

Sarah’s inquiries lead her to reforming campaigners trying to publicise the plight of the hundreds of girls ensnared in Edinburgh’s houses of assignation. Sarah learns how young women are lured, deceived, trafficked and raped, leaving them ruined in the eyes of a society obsessed with moral purity, and where virginity is prized as a lucrative commodity.

Drawing upon real historical events, The Death of Shame takes Raven and Sarah into a treacherous labyrinth of exploitation, corruption, and immorality.©2025 Ambrose Parry (P)2025 Canongate Books
Historical Mystery Thriller & Suspense
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

'Praise for the series: Parry's Victorian Edinburgh comes vividly alive - and it's a world of pain' (VAL McDERMID)

'Brilliantly conceived, fiendishly plotted and immaculately realised, these thrillers pull off the most difficult double-whammy of all: beneath blood and butchery so real they almost stain the pages lie both heart and soul . . . Wherever Parry takes them, I'll follow' (MICK HERRON)

'A rip-roaring tale of murder amid the medical experiments of 19th-century Edinburgh. The book brings both city and period to colourful life and is a joy to read' (IAN RANKIN)

'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)

'The dark and dangerous past is brought thrillingly to life. I can't wait to read more of Raven and Sarah' (MARK BILLINGHAM)

All stars
Most relevant
Very enjoyable. And the actors reading it are very good too.
I look forward to the next in the series.

Excellent book

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

Audible Books allowed me to romp through this wonderful book.
This book deserves to sit on the top shelf of historical fiction.
So many characters skilfully led me through a compelling story of Edinburgh and the underbelly of the terrible practices of those days not really that long ago.
I could not pull my ear-buds from my ears: I just had to keep listening.
Highly recommended
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

It's a fact - this is great fiction

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

I enjoy that the characters are flawed individuals and as such their decisions aren't always reasoned, making them far more believable.

This is my least favourite of the series. it focuses more on Raven and Fischer than Simpson, and Henry is also less prominent. I hope Sarah doesn't become a 'im not like other girls', as she was starting to give off that vibe imo.
The story is good, as is the twist, but I don't think the story is as unsurprising as the others in the series

the complexity of the characters really stand out

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

What I love most about these Ambrose Parry books is the way they are all based around real events and real people in Edinburgh. Brilliantly woven strands of story, coming together in a most unexpected way, that meant I was unable to stop listening and finished this book in 2 days. More please!!!

Another cracking Raven and Fisher story!

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

I wasn’t sure if this was going to grip me like the other books but it didn’t disappoint. I was dying to know if Raven and Sarah eventually got it on. I won’t spoil it but the outcome satisfied my curiosity once snd for all. I hope there is a book 6 as these books are interesting and historically accurate as well as being exciting.

I’m going to miss Raven and Sarah

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

See more reviews