Title: Stalking Jack the Ripper
Author: Kerri Maniscalco
Publisher: Little Brown / Jimmy Patterson
Release Date: 20th September 2016
Genre/Age Group: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Horror, Mystery
Format: Hardcover (416 pages)
Source: Purchased
Rating: 
(This review is spoiler free!)
Synopsis
“Seventeen-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth was born a lord’s daughter, with a life of wealth and privilege stretched out before her. But between the social teas and silk dress fittings, she leads a forbidden secret life.
Against her stern father’s wishes and society’s expectations, Audrey often slips away to her uncle’s laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine. When her work on a string of savagely killed corpses drags Audrey into the investigation of a serial murderer, her search for answers brings her close to her own sheltered world.”
Review
‘Stalking Jack the Ripper‘ was always one of those books that I had a feeling I’d enjoy. Nevertheless, it sat on my TBR shelf for almost a year before I finally decided to pick it up. And boy, I regretted waiting so long to dive into this one. This book is a fantastic historical fiction, mystery and thriller that will have your jaw dropping and chills crawling up your spine. It’s set in nineteenth century London, and as you can probably tell from the title, the infamous case of Jack the Ripper is worked into the gripping plot line. It really made the story feel more realistic and terrifying. It’s not constant blood and gore though. Our protagonist is Audrey Rose Wadsworth who is a high society lady, so there are definitely some lovely tea parties in there for us readers to enjoy (and drool over the foods described). But, Audrey has a secret. She has a passion for forensic science, which definitely isn’t a profession nineteenth century women would find themselves in. Luckily, her forensic scientist Uncle allows her to study under him.
Roses have both petals and thorns, my dark flower. You needn’t believe something weak because it appears delicate. Show the world your bravery.”
Audrey Rose embodies everything I love in a protagonist. She is determined, tenacious, intelligent and above all, she is brave. Not only is this wonderful character choosing to follow her passion, but she’s going against society’s expectations to do it. Back in that time period, you could only imagine the shunning she would receive if her secret was discovered, but even so, she is eager to show that a woman can do a man’s job too, no matter what it may be. Audrey Rose had her flaws too. As someone with a peculiar passion for forensics, she feels like an outsider, an introvert. She prefers to stay away from the hustle and bustle of parties whilst her father wishes she would hurry and find herself a man to wed. Audrey is completely caught off guard when the ridiculously intelligent, and handsome, Thomas Cresswell invites himself into her life. He is another main character of this story with his own distinct, quirky personality. I can truthfully say that I would read this book over and over again for Thomas’ lines alone (They made me laugh till I cried). And, even though Audrey Rose finds him to be a pest, I consider him an absolute delight. Together, they are the Sherlock Holmes and Watson of YA.
Wield your assets like a blade, Cousin. No man has invented a corset for our brains. Let them think they rule the world. It’s a queen who sits on that throne. Never forget that.”
Maniscalco‘s writing throughout this book was fantastic. She vividly portrays the nineteenth century lifestyle around Audrey Rose and uses graphic detail when describing the poor victims of Jack the Ripper that Audrey Rose and Thomas must investigate (If you are bothered by blood and gore, this is not for you). It’s incredibly clear that Maniscalco has done her research when it comes to the forensic science aspects of the book. She takes her time depicting everything that Audrey Rose does to investigate the victim’s bodies, right down to the nitty gritty details. These were some of my favourite parts of the book, just from how well they were written. She also wrote emotion really well into her characters. Audrey Rose’s constant struggle trying to follow her passion and fit in with high society’s expectations of her really made me sympathise with her character. Her struggles truly made me sad at some points and all I wanted was to hug her. I internally cheered her on throughout the entire book.
Admittedly, I did find the identity of Jack the Ripper fairly obvious in the book. But, there were points where I slightly began doubting my predictions. So many other things were going on in this book, and I feel like knowing who the murderer was early on didn’t really take anything away from the story for me.
‘Stalking Jack the Ripper‘ was a truly fantastic read, I have found that it’s definitely rekindled my love for historical fiction, and has made me want to look into more mystery/thriller YA books in the future. But overall, I’m excited to see how the story continues. This book has gained a five star rating, which means it has for sure made it into my favourite books list.
I definitely recommend starting this series if you like historical fiction, mystery and witty characters with a dash of romance.
☾
Have you read ‘Stalking Jack the Ripper‘ by Kerri Maniscalco? And do you think you could live in the Nineteenth century?
I believe I’d like to for a short period of time. I don’t think I’d be able to cope in that time period permanently.
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