4.5/5 Stars
Published September 20th, 2016
Published by Jimmy Patterson
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.
This beautiful book was such a refreshing read. From the moment I began the story, I was sucked in by the relatively dark theme and Kerri Maniscalo's wonderful writing. While I was reluctant to reading this book at first, as I am not usually a fan of guts and gore, I was so happy with what I got in return. Stalking Jack the Ripper was full of nothing but action, mystery, and chill wreaking late night adventures. This idea of writing a retelling on Jack the Ripper and his notorious murder cases is just plain genius and the basis for a stunning debut novel. Kerri whipped out surprise after surprise, and clue after clue of just pure psychotic deliciousness. I'm definitely looking forward to this sequel and cannot wait to see what Kerri has in store for us and these characters.
I would just like to take this moment to applaud all of the debut authors of 2016, because they have been knocking my socks off. It is unbelievable to think that so many of my favorite books of this year have been debuts - it is astounding. Kerri's writing style is so nice. The words are effortlessly written and stylized in a way that truly captures the essence of the plot or emotions she tries to bring across. Straight from the beginning, you're snagged by her enticing catch lines and descriptive imagery. It is so obvious how much research went into this topic. Everything is layered with such a specific precision, that it's almost impossible to find fault in the storyline, and more importantly, in the mystery. I'm currently enrolled in a professions of medicine course at my college and will soon be covering forensic medicine, which I am now so excited about because of Stalking Jack the Ripper. It's so interesting to read about Audrey and her uncle investing so much time into this practice, and to touch base with a bit of real life techniques.
These characters are so dang cool. I am a sucker for the practice of medicine, as are Audrey and Thomas, and it was just so fun to read about medicine through their eyes. Audrey is my type of main character. She's an independent, intelligent, sharp-witted, complete badass female MC and I love her. Despite the time period in which this takes place (when women weren't prominent in the work place), Audrey still goes out and practices forensics. This is that type of girl-meets-STEM that I need. In addition to Audrey, we our lovely Thomas. He was such an awesome addition to this story. Thomas was able to bring out a playful side to Audrey that was hiding beneath her scalpel and multi toothed forceps. Thomas is witty, very vigilant, and a bit of a brooder, if I'm being honest. Despite his dark and mysterious demeanor, he and Audrey are the best team for the case. These two actually remind me a bit of Holmes and Watson.
Stalking Jack the Ripper is a fantastic novel full of mystery, forensic sciences, and gory scalpels. I truly enjoyed every moment I spent reading this book and regretted every moment I delayed reading it because I thought it wasn't for me. With every flip of the page, you're met with dynamic characters, a thrilling plot line, beautiful writing, and even better than that - sutures of various techniques. If you're in the mood for a book that has the potential to keep you up until the break of dawn, with chills racing up your spine, then this is the one for you. With this start to an incredible trilogy (I believe it's a trilogy?), Stalking Jack the Ripper has the potential to shatter hearts and minds alike, and the NYT best sellers chart. I am so happy I've found myself a reliable female/STEM trilogy I'll be able to divulge in for remainder of the decade.
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