The Resurrectionist tour of Edinburgh

Submitted: 27th August 2025

The Resurrectionist tour of Edinburgh

In this best-selling novel of dark academia in the early 19th century, The Resurrectionist brings to life the deliciously macabre adventures of a young medical student lured into the illicit underworld of body snatching. Historical fiction, true crime, and romance intertwine in a harrowing tale of murder, greed, and the grisly origins of modern medicine.

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

The Resurrectionist A. Rae Dunlap

Edinburgh, Scotland, 1828. Naïve but determined, James Willoughby has abandoned his posh, sheltered life at Oxford to pursue a lifelong dream of studying surgery in Edinburgh. A shining beacon of medical discovery in the age of New Enlightenment, the city’s university offers everything James desires—except the chance to work on a human cadaver.

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

Edinburgh University

For that, he needs to join one of the private schools in Surgeon’s Square, at a cost he cannot afford. In desperation, he strikes a deal with Aneurin “Nye” MacKinnon, a dashing young dissectionist with an artist’s eye for anatomy and a reckless passion for knowledge. Nye promises to help him gain the surgical experience he craves—but it doesn’t take long for James to realise he’s made a devil’s bargain . . .

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

The Surgeons Hall

Nye is a body snatcher. And James has unwittingly become his accomplice. Intoxicated by Nye and his noble mission, James rapidly descends into the underground ranks of the Resurrectionists—the gangs of snatchers infamous for stealing fresh corpses from churchyards to be used as anatomical specimens. Before he knows it, James is caught up in a life-or-death scheme as rival gangs compete in a morbid race for power and prestige.

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

James and Nye soon find themselves in the crosshairs of a shady pair of unscrupulous opportunists. Burke and Hare were dead-set set on cornering the market, no matter the cost. What’s more, these unsavoury characters will do anything to beat the competition for bodies. Even if it’s cold-blooded murder . . .

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

STOP 1: THE WHITE HART INN

Start your tour with a lunch at Edinburgh’s oldest and most haunted pub. Rumour has it that this was the preferred hunting grounds of serial killers Burke and Hare. The pair would lure travellers they met at the pub back to their boarding house on Tanner’s Close and murder them. Then, they would sell their bodies to Dr. Robert Knox for profit.

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

STOP 2: THE CADIES & WITCHERY TOURS

Billed as “The World’s Smallest Museum,” it contains a single artifact: a card case made of the executed William Burke’s skin.

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

STOP 3: SURGEON’S HALL MUSEUM

(Open to the public 7 days a week, 10AM-5PM.) A must-see for anatomy enthusiasts, the museum contains a dazzling array of artifacts from the city’s illustrious medical history. RESURRECTIONIST readers will delight in Dr. Knox’s class card, diploma, wax seal, and items from his private collection, along with the death mask of a post-mortem William Burke. On the way, take a picture outside No. 10 Surgeon’s Square, the location of Dr. Knox’s anatomy school (no public admissions).

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

STOP 4: GREYFRIAR’S KIRKYARD & THE VAULTS

While a simple wander through the kirkyard will showcase fascinating relics from the age of bodysnatching (mortsafes and table tombs abound!) don’t forget the guided tours on offer.

Actually, there’s a guided tour wihch grants access to areas otherwise off-limits to the public. For example, the McKenzie Mausoleum is a hideout featured in The Resurrectionist.

A. Rae Dunlap (c) Carolyn Nishon

In addition, you can visit the Vaults (where the fictionalised James and Nye are pursued during a narrow escape from the law).

Finally, the CITY OF THE DEAD HAUNTED GRAVEYARD TOUR comes highly recommended by the author.

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

McKenzie Mausoleum

Map of locations in The Resurrectionist

STOP 5: GREYFRIAR BOBBY’S PUB

Next, we have the inspiration for the fictionalised Hope & Anchor pub featured in the novel. James’s lodgings on the upper floor were the first plot point conceived for the novel. Enjoy a post-tour drink and revel in the atmosphere.

What a DEAD good tour! Thank you …and readers…. do this trail if you dare 😉