Audrey Rose Wadsworth prefers breeches to ball gowns, autopsies to afternoon tea, and scalpels to knitting needles. Though her father, Lord Edmund, has forbidden it, Audrey covertly studies forensic medicine and human anatomy under her uncle Jonathan mund's estranged brother prominent, if peculiar, London doctor. But "Leather Apron" is on the loose, butchering women in London's East End, and mutilated cadavers are arriving at Dr. Wadsworth's Highgate laboratory with unnerving frequency. Audrey and Dr. Wadsworth's young assistant, the wickedly handsome Thomas Cresswell, are quick to uncover the killer's grisly trademarks, sawed-off limbs and absent organs, along with an unsettling connection to the Wadsworths themselves. When Dr. Wadsworth is abruptly arrested and thrown into Bedlam asylum, the pair is left to prove d ponder s innocence. All the while, "the Ripper" remains two steps ahead, lurking where Audrey least expects. While readers with a thirst for progressive female protagonists may puzzle over Audrey's continued reverence for physical beauty and social class, Maniscalco's portrayal of scientific invention in a newly industrial era will serve as a fine first foray into Victorian classics.

Audrey Rose Wadsworth, 17, would rather perform autopsies in her uncle's dark laboratory than find a suitable husband, as is the socially acceptable rite of passage for a young, white British lady in the late 1800s. The story immediately brings Audrey into a fractious pairing with her uncle's young assistant, Thomas Cresswell. The two engage in predictable rounds of "I'm smarter than you are" banter, while Audrey's older brother, Nathaniel, taunts her for being a girl out of her place. Horrific murders of prostitutes whose identities point to associations with the Wadsworth estate prompt Audrey to start her own investigation, with Thomas as her sidekick. Audrey's narration is both ponderous and polemical, as she sees her pursuit of her goals and this investigation as part of a crusade for women. She declares that the slain aren't merely prostitutes but "daughters and wives and mothers," but she's also made it a point to deny any alignment with the profiled victims: "I am not going as a prostitute. I am simply blending in." Audrey also expresses a narrow view of her desired gender role, asserting that "I was determined to be both pretty and fierce," as if to say that physical beauty and liking "girly" things are integral to feminism. The graphic descriptions of mutilated women don't do much to speed the pace. Perhaps a more genuinely enlightened protagonist would have made this debut more engaging. (Historical thriller. 15-18)

Maniscalco-s debut isn-t for the squeamish: it starts with 17-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth deeply immersed in opening up and analyzing a corpse under the supervision of her Uncle Jonathan, with no detail or scalpel cut spared. Audrey Rose is a proper Victorian with the unladylike aspirations of understanding crime scenes, blood spatter, the brutality of murder, and exactly how a killer tears into his victim. Luckily for her, Jack the Ripper is on the hunt, and Audrey Rose-alongside Thomas, a handsome aspiring coroner-is determined to catch him. In taking on the subject of this famous 19th-century serial killer, Maniscalco is treading well-worn fictional territory, but she has created a serious, sharp-minded, and forward-thinking protagonist in Audrey Rose, whose fearlessness in the face of the decaying and the dead-while still navigating the social norms of the day-will endear her to readers looking for an engaging historical thriller. Abundant red herrings and a dash of romance round out this gruesome but engrossing story. Ages 15-up. Agent: Barbara Poelle, Irene Goodman Literary. (Sept.)

Gr 9 Up-Audrey Rose Wadsworth spends most of her time in her uncle's laboratory, studying science and medicine through the dissection of cadavers. Although she has confided in her conceited brother regarding her studieswhich are questionable at best for a young girl of her stationshe has kept her time away from home mostly secret from her overprotective father. But when her work with a series of gruesome murders pulls Audrey Rose into a serious criminal investigation, she may not be able to keep her double life from her father, or from society at large, much longer. With help from her uncle's second apprentice, Thomas Cresswell, the protagonist is determined to find answers, for herself and the murdered women, even if those answers are closer to her own sheltered life than she'd like. Set in 1888, this seamless blend of history and fiction places its characters directly in the middle of the Whitechapel murders attributed to Jack the Ripper. The heroine is strong-willed and independent, and her sassy and Sherlockian prot&3;g&3;, Cresswell, adds a satisfying romantic element to the work. While this offering is thoroughly researched, some liberties have been taken to further the plot; these are outlined in an author's note at the end of the book. Grisly period images set the mood, and strong language is included throughout. VERDICT An entertaining debut full of twists and turns, perfect for fans of historical fiction and mystery.— Maggie Mason Smith, Clemson University R. M. Cooper Library, SC

Stalking Jack the Ripper delves into the mystery of a madman on the loose in London in the 1800s. Audrey Rose is a young woman of seventeen who is not like other girls of her age and social station. Audrey Rose and her brother Nathaniel come from a wealthy family and are gripped by the loss of their mother to the sickness that has spread across Europe. In an effort to prevent the same fate for his daughter, her father tries to keep Audrey Rose sheltered within their home. She, however, has a much different plan for her life, and as the book opens, she is literally hands deep in the cadaver of a human body, helping her Uncle Jonathan perform a relatively crude autopsy. As Jack the Ripper escalates, Audrey Rose becomes more determined to stop the madness and uncover this maniac's true identity.Stalking Jack the Ripper presents an interesting view of a mystery that has never been solved. The story is rich in description and follows enough of the actual events to be believable. Maniscalco's interpretation of what may have happened in the fall of 1888 keeps the reader enthralled from beginning to end. While no one knows for certain the real identity of Jack the Ripper, or Leather Apron as he is sometimes referred to, Maniscalco's imagination lends itself to the possibility that her version is plausible enough to have happened. Well-written and easy to follow, Stalking Jack the Ripper has some gruesomely descriptive scenes that keep the reader engrossed in a perverse way. The actual pictures with each chapter show the reality of the heinous murders. This book will capture a whole new generation with the "who dunnit" question that has plagued the world for years.Juli Henley.