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alicewhelehan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Anachronistic forced feminism, main character wants you to KNOW just how much she isn’t like other girls
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Gore, Blood, and Murder
shanthevillain's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This wasn’t a bad audiobook at all. It was meh. Nothing was really wrong with the book, but nothing amazing or captivating in my opinion. This was my first historical fiction book and I enjoyed the perspective of a true mystery that I’ve heard podcasts about. I could easily see this as. Season of a cute series on a streaming service. I probably will read/listen to other books in the series. It’s a nice middle ground. Any time that I thought to have a complaint, it was soon resolved, which made me feel like the author had pretty good pacing. I also enjoyed the build up of a little romance with a respectful acknowledgement of the times (since we’ve all seen Bridgerton by now lol)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Murder
Moderate: Drug abuse
kathrynleereads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Not being a big fan of fiction (although I am more partial to historical fiction), I wasn't sure whether I was going to enjoy Stalking Jack the Ripper. So when I say I loved this book, I want you to understand how deeply I mean it.
While the plot did drag a little in the middle (which I've heard is true for a few of Kerri Maniscalco's books), the characters more than made up for it.
Audrey Rose and Thomas are the perfect team in that neither of them is perfect, but their imperfections complement each other flawlessly.
My only complaint (not even a complaint, more of just a note) is that I correctly guessed the identity of the Ripper in the first 50 pages (mostly off of a fluke). I was very convinced that I was right, so watching Audrey Rose focus on all the different suspects they went through got a tad bit frustrating, as I was confident they were wrong.
I can't wait to see where Audrey Rose and Thomas go from here!
While the plot did drag a little in the middle (which I've heard is true for a few of Kerri Maniscalco's books), the characters more than made up for it.
Audrey Rose and Thomas are the perfect team in that neither of them is perfect, but their imperfections complement each other flawlessly.
My only complaint (not even a complaint, more of just a note) is that I correctly guessed the identity of the Ripper in the first 50 pages (mostly off of a fluke). I was very convinced that I was right, so watching Audrey Rose focus on all the different suspects they went through got a tad bit frustrating, as I was confident they were wrong.
I can't wait to see where Audrey Rose and Thomas go from here!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Gore, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Cannibalism, and Medical trauma
Minor: Sexism and Stalking
ohayraynay's review
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Honestly, I enjoyed the story, but it's a bit too graphic for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
mj_86's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Drug abuse, Sexism, and Death of parent
Minor: Addiction, Vomit, and Cannibalism
faelorn's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I got Stalking Jack The Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco for $5 at a Barnes and Noble sale, so I went into this book blind. The blurb was one quote on the back - something that would ordinarily turn me away from a book - but I bought it nonetheless. A cheap book will always do me in. That being said, it was a good book. I typically don't particularly like YA novels - especially not romance ones (gasp, I know) - but this one was genuinely enjoyable to me. Audrey Rose is a fun FMC, and I can see her inspiring any young adults who read this book to pursue their career even if they face stigma, just as she does. At first, I was going to rate this book somewhere around 3.25, but the day after I finished it, I found myself actually a little sad that I couldn't read the book more. I think that alone shows that I quite enjoyed it.
The Good:
- This is a fun read. The pacing is good, the two main characters have fun chemistry, and it balances suspense with character emotion well. I found myself lost in time reading this, and I really enjoyed that.
- I did not guess the killer! While in hindsight it was a little obvious, the book does a great job of controlling where your suspicions lie through the characters.
- Okay, I have a soft spot for egotistical MMCs. I'll admit it. Thomas was perfect. He's teasing, annoying, and the perfect mix of rolling-my-eyes-at-him and enjoying how he interacts with the FMC, Audrey Rose.
- I love how much it focuses on the crimes, as grim as that sounds. It's hard to balance romance and suspense, and this book does it well! I liked the pacing around it a lot, and really enjoyed how the detective work had it's own time to shine. The medical procedures around the bodies of the deceased were also really interesting.
- I loved the little section at the end of the book that explained changes the author made from real life events. It was super fun to read and you could tell that a lot of respect for the real-life victims was there.
The Iffy:
- This is 50/50 for some people, but wow do they not spare you the details of the crime scenes. Just be wary if you have a weak stomach.
- I know I'm meant to dislike Audrey Rose's father, but I wish we saw more redeeming qualities around him. He was painted as a tortured man who lost his wife, but didn't see much sympathy around it. Spoilers for a key event ->I also didn't think him kicking Audrey Rose out of the house was in character. It's a nitpick, I know, but I can't imagine such an overprotective father just saying "alright, I give up. To the streets with you, lil' miss."
The Bad:
- Wow, Audrey Rose cannot fathom not being related to Jack the Ripper. Admittedly, her assumptions are fair, but even when someone points out it may not be the case, she banishes the thought immediately. I would've loved to see more uncertainty about it, or more denial of the thought, really.
The Good:
- This is a fun read. The pacing is good, the two main characters have fun chemistry, and it balances suspense with character emotion well. I found myself lost in time reading this, and I really enjoyed that.
- I did not guess the killer! While in hindsight it was a little obvious, the book does a great job of controlling where your suspicions lie through the characters.
- Okay, I have a soft spot for egotistical MMCs. I'll admit it. Thomas was perfect. He's teasing, annoying, and the perfect mix of rolling-my-eyes-at-him and enjoying how he interacts with the FMC, Audrey Rose.
- I love how much it focuses on the crimes, as grim as that sounds. It's hard to balance romance and suspense, and this book does it well! I liked the pacing around it a lot, and really enjoyed how the detective work had it's own time to shine. The medical procedures around the bodies of the deceased were also really interesting.
- I loved the little section at the end of the book that explained changes the author made from real life events. It was super fun to read and you could tell that a lot of respect for the real-life victims was there.
The Iffy:
- This is 50/50 for some people, but wow do they not spare you the details of the crime scenes. Just be wary if you have a weak stomach.
- I know I'm meant to dislike Audrey Rose's father, but I wish we saw more redeeming qualities around him. He was painted as a tortured man who lost his wife, but didn't see much sympathy around it. Spoilers for a key event ->
The Bad:
- Wow, Audrey Rose cannot fathom not being related to Jack the Ripper. Admittedly, her assumptions are fair, but even when someone points out it may not be the case, she banishes the thought immediately. I would've loved to see more uncertainty about it, or more denial of the thought, really.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Medical content, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug abuse, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Stalking, and Death of parent
kmizzzle's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
It was a fun mystery. Loosely based on Jack the Ripper, though it the story was altered to be based around Audrey Rose. I enjoyed Audrey Rose's character; watching her develop a spine throughout the story was nice (though homegirl had to constantly remind herself of that). And Thomas was very fun, though a bit of an odd duck. I liked that Audrey Rose was doing something women of her time didn't do - she was an apprentice to her uncle, who was a coroner. There were a few things that didn't make sense by the end (e.g., the medium; the old valet and what he was talking about about) but the mystery itself was fine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Police brutality, Grief, and Death of parent
clem9's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Love the characters appart and together. And I love myself a murder mystery. Bonus point cause I guessed the murderer right
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Murder
cristina_02's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
robotnik's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Man, I'm sure there's a good story buried in here somewhere but it was really hard to find it underneath all of Audrey Rose's NOT LIKE OTHER GIRLS moments. But I digress.
I can't say I was bored with Stalking Jack the Ripper nor did I really dislike it overall. I was entertained by it. But part of the entertainment came from how stupid parts of it were.
For a book that is centered around one of the biggest unsolved serial killer cases of all time, it was really easy to figure out thatNathaniel was Jack the Ripper. Literally, within his first appearance (I don't know, 40 pages in? Something like that), I knew exactly that this character was the killer. It made it almost comedic reading through the book whenever he appeared and knowing that the narrative thought it was some big secret when it was probably one of the most obvious plot twists I've seen in recent years.
This honestly almost makes it offensive to the real life case. Jack the Ripper has been such a mystery over these years and no one's been able to confidently deduce who he really was that assuming thatNathaniel could have pulled off these murders and not been arrested and that Audrey Rose could have helped figure it out in any way is really a disrespect to all of the Ripper's victims.
Which brings us to Audrey Rose. She is one of the biggest examples of "not like other girls" I've read recently. She spends all this time waxing about how she's equal parts feminine and intelligent and it's alright for women to embrace their femininity and care about that while she cares about science. And yet she is constantly putting other girls/women down for doing just that. She does not feel like a young woman in the 1880s who's wanting to be independent and find her own way. She feels like a teenager from the 2010s who was plucked out of her time period and dropped into the 1800s and was unimpressed things weren't like modern times. You couple this with her constantly making absolutely stupid decisions, and you got yourself an annoying protagonist.
Thomas is probably the better of the two. He's just charming bloke who flirts too much. Their romance was kind of... okay? I guess? I think the biggest flaw in it is that Thomas was instantly interested in Audrey Rose - that's not the flaw - and Audrey Rose was very obviously interested in him too but she was trying to pretend she wasn't. Just like the above "trying to point out her advanced feminism", she brings up how much she doesn't like Thomas an unhealthy amount of times. How much she doesn't focus on men (one of her "not like other girl" traits) and how she specifically was not charmed by him. And yet - and yet!!! - she focuses on him sooooo damn much. Probably more than the crime at hand. For all her complaining about how annoying he is and how much she doesn't like him, she sure does spend a lot of her time thinking about him. I am honestly embarrassed by her.
The climax of the story, much like the rest of it, was just okay. Not really surprising sinceNathaniel was so ridiculously obvious that there was no shock factor. But it was alright.
Really, this book is just a big bundle of alright. I've heard mixed opinions on the rest of this series, but it has me curious enough to give it a try at some point so I'll continue it.
I can't say I was bored with Stalking Jack the Ripper nor did I really dislike it overall. I was entertained by it. But part of the entertainment came from how stupid parts of it were.
For a book that is centered around one of the biggest unsolved serial killer cases of all time, it was really easy to figure out that
This honestly almost makes it offensive to the real life case. Jack the Ripper has been such a mystery over these years and no one's been able to confidently deduce who he really was that assuming that
Which brings us to Audrey Rose. She is one of the biggest examples of "not like other girls" I've read recently. She spends all this time waxing about how she's equal parts feminine and intelligent and it's alright for women to embrace their femininity and care about that while she cares about science. And yet she is constantly putting other girls/women down for doing just that. She does not feel like a young woman in the 1880s who's wanting to be independent and find her own way. She feels like a teenager from the 2010s who was plucked out of her time period and dropped into the 1800s and was unimpressed things weren't like modern times. You couple this with her constantly making absolutely stupid decisions, and you got yourself an annoying protagonist.
Thomas is probably the better of the two. He's just charming bloke who flirts too much. Their romance was kind of... okay? I guess? I think the biggest flaw in it is that Thomas was instantly interested in Audrey Rose - that's not the flaw - and Audrey Rose was very obviously interested in him too but she was trying to pretend she wasn't. Just like the above "trying to point out her advanced feminism", she brings up how much she doesn't like Thomas an unhealthy amount of times. How much she doesn't focus on men (one of her "not like other girl" traits) and how she specifically was not charmed by him. And yet - and yet!!! - she focuses on him sooooo damn much. Probably more than the crime at hand. For all her complaining about how annoying he is and how much she doesn't like him, she sure does spend a lot of her time thinking about him. I am honestly embarrassed by her.
The climax of the story, much like the rest of it, was just okay. Not really surprising since
Really, this book is just a big bundle of alright. I've heard mixed opinions on the rest of this series, but it has me curious enough to give it a try at some point so I'll continue it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Sexism, and Violence