It has been awhile since I did a good ole fashioned literature review. So I'm bringing it back today with a full, spoiler free review of Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco.
First off, I LOVE the historical pieces in this novel. I'm a real sucker for London in the Victorian era and Maniscalco does a great job at making the setting realistic and believable. The attention to detail with regards to historical research stood out to me. The author uses the real names of Ripper victims, as well as the real locations of the gruesome murders. This really adds to the dimensionality of the world this novel is set in. Combining real history with fantastical characters and a fictitious plot is done well. Maniscalco achieves an interesting twist between reality and fiction. Depending on your capacity for imagination, you may find this piece of the book challenging. But in most cases if you're picking up this book it means you understand that it is a YA historical fantasy meaning that pieces of history are combined and sometimes emphasized with unrealistic elements. This book demands that you enter with an open mind & imagination. I really enjoyed the main male protagonist, Thomas Cresswell. He was a brilliant addition to this novel and in my opinion, partially outshined the main character, Audrey Rose Wadsworth. His quips and small gestures of good nature fit his personality perfectly. He was just mysterious enough to keep you guessing and just genuine enough to make you fall in love. I enjoyed Audrey Rose' dialogue for the most part but there were several points during the novel in which she came across as too naive to be realistically "stalking" a mass murderer. In part, I believe my hesitation for giving this novel five stars stems from the issues I had with Ms. Wadsworth. She came across as very intelligent at moments and in other moments she came across as relatively if not completely incompetent. I understand the need for multidimensional character traits and flaws but Audrey Rose just didn't quite seem genuine enough to me. And it's not that I didn't like her whatsoever. I did like elements of her personality. She did come across as a badass woman in a time when women's rights were practically nonexistent; however, her stupidity when it came to her own physical safety was off-putting and somewhat frustrating. You can still be a badass and also consider your own peril at the same time which is a concept seemingly lost with this character. I will be adding the rest in this series to my TBR because, despite its flaws, I did enjoy it enough to recommend. That's all for now. As always, much love. xoxo -B
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