Book Review: Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

Blurb:

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. 

My Review:

Stalking Jack the Ripper fictionally solves a mystery that has remained unsolved for 129 years. 

Our heroine, Audrey Rose Wadsworth, is a peculiar girl for her era of London society. She'd much rather study forensic science and help her uncle perform autopsies than sit down for afternoon tea with other young ladies of society, much to the dismay of her father. 

And what a time to be studying forensic science it will be, when a woman is found brutally slain. Neither Audrey Rose, nor her uncle or his insufferable assistant, Thomas Cresswell could have predicted this will be only the first in a series of gruesome murders that will become infamous and be sensationalized across the morning headlines. 

Who is Jack the Ripper? As their lives are turned upside down and startling secrets are revealed in Audrey Rose's family she must join together with Thomas to stop a mad killer. What is the killer's motivation? Will they find out before the killer sets his sights on Audrey Rose? Or will the case remain unsolved?

Audrey Rose is a fantastic heroine! She chose to step away from society's expectations of that era to pursue her passion, showing that women can be feminine and fearless, even in Victorian England. Thomas's quick wit and deduction skills are awesome and his flirtiness with Audrey Rose is entertaining. I love how she fights her feelings for him in this book. They really paired well together.

The author really did her research both into the case and the forensic practices of the era and I thought the creative liberties she took fit in well with the story, making them feel authentic to the amazing world building and the true history. 

This is a wonderful debut novel and I can't wait to read more by this author. What adventures now await Audrey Rose and Thomas at their new school in Romania? I can't wait to find out! 

My Rating:

5 of 5 Stars!