A mysterious illness ends the life of three men and Dr. Alexandra Gladstone is baffled.  However, one man survives, only to be murdered and have his heart removed.

When a local simpleton is found with the heart of the murdered man, authorities are sure they have their murderer. Meanwhile the doctor is not quite as convinced.

 An interesting period-piece with a good plot that develops nicely to a fairly unexpected conclusion.  Well written, despite a rather fussy dialect attributed to the local people (read "ignorant louts").  

Including real-life characters, Lister, Nightingale, in the plot is interesting and lends a little authenticity to the book. 

Beginning this novel I felt that I'd walked in halfway through a movie.  Rather thinly fleshed-out characters who seem a little aloof, humorless and not particularly sympathetic lead me to believe that this was not the first book with this same cast of characters and the lack of reference to the past made the heroine seem to be sort of shallow and not particularly likeable.  A little research confirmed my thoughts, HALF A MIND TO MURDER is the third book in this series.  The author should have assumed that some people are going to buy this book without having read any prior novel in this vein and should have referred to past events briefly.  

An independent woman of the Victorian era who has the gumption to become a "surgeon", seems unlikely to go to London to listen to an important lecture by Lister and then not listen.  Or interview a fellow doctor and let her boyfriend take over. 

Despite sneering at the heroine (for lack of understanding her),  I found this book more than held my attention,  was well-researched , and I 'd look forward to reading the next one, with a little more past history, please?