The Spendthrift and the Swallow

Raven, Fisher, and Simpson #3.5

by Ambrose Parry

Edinburgh, 1853.

In a city where reputation is everything, it doesn’t take much to destroy a man. When Cora Carlton, socialite and wife of a free-spending entrepreneur, dies suddenly on New Year’s Eve, the knives are out for her physician, the esteemed Dr James Young Simpson.

Determined to separate medical fact from malicious rumour, Simpson’s protégé Dr Will Raven and aspiring medical practitioner Sarah Fisher traverse the heights of society and the depths of the underworld to uncover a grisly truth.

In this digital exclusive short story, wander through the dark alleys of Victorian Edinburgh with Raven and Fisher, and listen on for a sneak preview of Ambrose Parry’s new novel Voices of the Dead.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Audiobook, Historical, Short Stories

Audible Audio

First published April 24, 2023

About the author

Ambrose Parry is the pen name for husband and wife Chris Brookmyre (known mostly for his crime novels) and Dr Marisa Haetzman, a consultant anaesthetist. It is the latter's interest in medical history that lead to their first collaboration, The Way of All Flesh.

Reviews

[CarolG · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having just finished Voices of the Dead, I decided I should read this short story. Even though this is numbered 4.5, it actually takes place before Voices of the Dead which is #4 and contains an excerpt from that book. So I suspect it was meant to lure readers into reading the 4th book which could be read as a standalone.

This was a sorta cute little story even though somebody died and I'm guessing the title is a play on words based on what happens in the story. Or maybe it went over my head like many short stories do. It's very short but it's not necessary to read it as a part of the series. As with many of the happenings in the books in this series, the occurrences are based on real historical facts.

I purchased the Kindle version of this book from amazon for $0.00 and I think it may still be available for that amount. Can't beat the price!

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up. A great short story, especially if you love this series.
All based on actual historical reports.

[Marjolein · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good, but just when I thought the story started to pick up it was over! Chronologically this should be read before Voices of the Dead, so on to that one!

[Rebecca Tait · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

A very short reunion will Will & Sarah. Can read this one before your coffee has time to cool.

[Sarah-Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

This shot story/novella featuring characters from an ongoing mystery series just doesn't have enough to it to provide a satisfying reading experience. I know the characters from the series, those who do't will probably find The Spendthrift and the Swallow even less rewarding than I did.

[Tina Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book of the Raven and Fisher mysteries that I’ve read. I chose it because it’s a short story so if I didn’t like it, at least I hadn’t spent a ton of money on it. 🙂🤷🏼‍♀️ The first book in this series is quite expensive when you consider I usually breeze through a book in 2-3 hours.
I liked the characters, finding them with some depth to their personalities. Since it’s a short story, there’s not a lot of time for heavy plot development and the author clearly relies on the reader to be familiar with the background of the characters and the history of their previous investigations. That being said, I found it easy to follow along the story and enjoy reading it without any background know,edge.
Liked that the author paid attention to historical accuracy. I didn’t note any obvious Americanisms or contemporary issues in the book.
I really liked the main characters. I liked the plot and the clues and the style of writing. I think I could become quite fond of Dr. Simpson too, he who enjoys his family so much.
I usually prefer my historical mysteries to have an element of Roman e to them so I’m interested to see if Raven and Fisher end up being married to each other. Surprisingly it was hard to figure it out whether they were married or not in this book.
I liked this book enough that I bought the first book in the series to read, which is saying a lot for me.

[Ross Cumming · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice wee read featuring Dr Will Raven and Sarah Fisher, in which they investigate a rather odd death among Edinburgh’s high society. An entertaining blend of fact and fiction weaved together in a very short story that’ll appeal to readers already engaged with this series.

[Maja Åström · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always, a great time

[Iza Brekilien · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 raised to 4 for GR.
Very quick read, based upon true stories, as always with this series.
It contains one of the most original deaths I've ever read about !

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

1853 Raven and Fisher investigate the strange death of Cora Carlton, patient of Dr Simpson.
Enjoyable short story.

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 I love the historical fact many of these stories are based on - horrific, but also fascinating!
A cute little short story bridging the gap I presume between the next installment of the series.

[Tex · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Spendthrift And The Swallow” (TSATS) by Ambrose Parry (the pseudonym of husband and wife team crime novelist Chris Brookmyre and consultant anaesthetist Dr. Marisa Haetzman) featuring Drs James Simpson, Will Raven, and former housemaid Sarah Fisher. It is a short story which fits between novels three and four of the #RavenAndFisher series.

A quick fire mystery which highlights the dangers of dabbling in mesmerism, and laughing out loud while opening a bottle of champagne. Loosely based on actual historical events Parry has delivered yet another engaging and entertaining, if not perhaps a little too quick fire, tale in this historical/crime fiction series.

TSATS gets 3 glasses of water over wine out of 5.

[The Cats’ Mother · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story set in between books 3 and 4 of the Will Raven series about a young trainee obstetrician in Victorian Edinburgh. I really enjoy these and the audiobook narration is excellent. Available for free on Kindle & Audible.
Will and Sarah investigate the sudden death of a young socialite to exonerate her physician, their boss Dr Simpson.

[Janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

n der Kürze liegt die Würze – und dieser Spruch trifft in meinen Augen bei der Kurzgeschichte voll zu. Es handelt sich um den fünften Teil der historischen Krimireihe um den Arzt Raven und die Pflegerin Fisher. Wobei, eigentlich handelt es sich um eine Zwischengeschichte, die als „Sneak Peek“ zum vierten Teil der Serie führt.

Den vierten Teil der Serie, Voices of the Dead (noch nicht übersetzt), habe ich am Ende nur quergelesen. Allerdings, das stimmt nicht, genauer gesagt hatte ich den Anfang und das Ende gelesen, die Mitte jedoch nur überflogen. Die Seiten zogen sich endlos und ich war leider eher enttäuscht. Das Thema fand ich langweilig und künstlich in die Länge gezogen, 100 Seiten weniger wären in meinen Augen gut gewesen.

Die Kurzgeschichte gibt es kostenlos online und ich wollte sie einfach versuchen – was soll man bei knapp 25 Seiten auch groß falsch machen?

Wir treffen also zwei alte Bekannte wieder und diese ermitteln in einem verdächtigen Todesfall. Ja, der Fall ist kurz, aber es braucht auch gar nicht mehr. Keine Längen und auf den Punkt gebracht, ein wenig Herumrätseln und fertig. Ich mochte es zudem, dass die ganzen privaten Probleme der Protagonisten keine Rolle spielten und der Kriminalfall im Mittelpunkt stand. Übrigens, die Geschichte beruht auf einer wahren Begebenheit.

Wer Lust hat, probiert das Büchlein einfach aus. Kleines Manko: Es gibt das Buch nur online auf Englisch.

[what.heather.loves · Rating 4 out of 5]

"'Simpson's enemies are whispering. They're spreading rumours that he missed something.'...
'He's going to be in Fife for the next few days,' Raven said. 'So, the plan is to get to the bottom of this before he gets back.'
'The plan?' 
'Yes. You're going to help me find out what happened.'"

A free, digital short story that was written by a husband and wife team (Chris Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman) between A Corruption of Blood and Voices of the Dead in the Raven, Fisher & Simpson medical detective series, which is set in Victorian Edinburgh. Dr Will Raven is Dr James Young Simpson's apprentice and Sarah Fisher is Simpson's nurse; Simpson is based on the Scottish obstetrician who discovered chloroform as anaesthetic in childbirth.

A standalone mystery, Raven and Fisher investigate the sudden death of one of Simpson's clients, who is alleged to have choked on a champagne cork at Hogmanay. It has the usual combination of high- and low-born Edinburgh characters found in the series, whom Raven is able to act as a conduit for. I particularly like Sarah, as a woman determined to learn and work in medicine despite Victorian society's expectations for women. Tight and pacy, as a good short story should be, it's also immersive. I read this whilst on holiday outside of Edinburgh.

[Roslin Sinclair · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was okay, but not a necessary read by any means.

I think A Corruption of Blood was published in 2021 and Voices of the Dead came out just last year so maybe Ambrose Parry felt that a Raven and Fisher mystery was needed to keep readers interested in the new release.

Perhaps some of the characters who were introduced in this book will come back in Voices of the Dead.

[Kath · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a free wee story which I guess is designed to whet your appetite, and pique your interest, for the new book which is previewed also herein. As much as I hate backstuffing in general, I am all in favour of a freebie in one of my favourite series so, having checked where the story I want to read actually ends, I dove straight in.
And it was everything I expected from both the characters and the authors - Ambrose Parry being husband and wife duo Chris Brookmyre and Dr Marisa Haetzman.
It's a short but complete tale of reputation saving. As we dive straight in I wouldn't necessarily recommend it as an introduction to the characters and series, but it is a prefect memory jog of the quality you will get from the upcoming new book due out soon.
By the way, the Audio version is also free and really well narrated by the wonderful Bryan Dick.

[Megan Collins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Socialite Cora Carlton dies suddenly on New Year’s Eve. Dr. Will Raven and MP Sarah Fisher investigate in preparation for dealing with malicious rumors regarding her physician. They discover Cora had a controlling father who was ready to cut off her funding and her entrepreneur husband appears shocked by the events of this New Year’s Eve. Thankfully a trip to the coroner’s office will reveal which witnesses are telling the truth.
* * * * *------------* * * * *--------------* * * * *
There is not much development or mystery to this digital exclusive short story, however the content is interesting. Mesmerism and freak accidents engage readers, although series fans will benefit more by connecting with established characters. It has a Victorian setting, and the flat delivery harkens to classic murder mysteries.

[Lata · Rating 3 out of 5]

My first story by Ambrose Parry, where the relationships amongst the central characters of Sarah Fisher, Will Raven and Dr. Simpson are established.

The story opens with the death of one of the doctor’s patients, and Sarah and Will investigating while the doctor is out of town. They want to head off possible nasty rumours by his detractors about the doctor’s medical skills.

The pair find a the dead woman's house missing some furniture, and a distraught husband, who said his wealthy wife died in a freak accident. He also wants Will to prevent an autopsy by the Coroner, as he’s uncomfortable with the idea of his wife’s body being cut into. The dead woman’s grieving father sends them in an other direction, leading to Sarah making a discovery that breaks the case.

I had not realized that the author used real historical people in his series. The mystery in this story was easy to solve, but the short did give me a sense of the characters of the trio in the series.

[Will Quarry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book. It is always nice to have a new read from Ambrose Parry (as a couple): the writing style is fantastic, and somehow completely different to Chris Brookmyre alone! The best bit, I think, are the descriptions, and the development of scene and character. Unfortunately, being such a short book, I think this lacks that somewhat; the story telling doesn't quite work in such a short format. Having said that, again, it is always good to have another work of theirs!

[Chrystyna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Spendthrift and the Swallow by Ambrose Parry - Good

Just a freebie short story featuring Raven and Sarah investigating the unusual death of one of Dr Simpson's patients in order to protect his reputation. A nice reminder of the characters and setting released as part of the run up to the publication of the next full novel (June 2023 - I think). Can't wait.

#review

[Janni_B · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love this book series. This title is a very short story plus a preview of the recently published Voices of the Dead. I read it while having a coffee. It's an enjoyable short story but I much prefer to be able to lose myself in the books with their more layered stories. Still it's a nice little bonus that didn't cost anything.

[Shakella "The Singing Bibliophile" Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun, funny listen. Even though it was short there were "oh my" parts and "haha" parts, and an unexpected ending. There is even an excerpt of another title by this author at the end. I think that my favorite thing about this book is the fact that it was written from true accounts.

I will be looking into this series.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story/novella preceding the 4th in the Raven and Fisher mysteries.

Raven and Fisher race to solve the mysterious death of one of their mentor’s patients before his detractors can find a way to destroy his career with it.

This was a fine (if very short) story to fill in until the next full-length novel (which is already out). I’m definitely behind.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not a fan of short stories because there’s never enough development, but this one was better than the usual one. It was an interesting and original way to kill someone with a satisfying conclusion. Now I’ll try the first book in the series.

[Christian · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent short story that gives you a taste of the series without giving any major spoilers away from the other books. Well worth a read if you are unsure of the author or if you just want more Raven and Simpson goodness.

[CHud · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a quick and enjoyable listen via audiobook. The narrator was great and his accent helped this listener to visualize the story. I would caution that anyone extremely squeamish may not appreciate some of the discriptions.

[Joshkun Mehmet · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very short story about a woman killed by a champagne cork lodged in her throat. Was it a freak accident or did her husband have something to do with it? Raven and Sarah are on the case to find out.

An enjoyable addition to the series.

[Harley Hepstall · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice short read to break up my ACOTAR journey. I was skeptical but, it kept my interest throughout. I also really enjoyed how they let the reader know this was based on a real case. I would recommend.

[Emma Swan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very short story. Enjoyable and a good way of reacquainting yourself with the world of Will & Sarah before the next book in the series is released in June.