Title: Hunting Prince Dracula
Author: Kerri Maniscalco
Publisher: Jimmy Patterson Books, an imprint of Little Brown and Company
Published: 19 September 2017
“Bone White. Blood Red. Along This Path, You’ll Soon Be Dead” – Hunting Prince Dracula
Publisher Summary
Following the grief and horror of her discovery of Jack the Ripper’s true identity, Audrey Rose Wadsworth has no choice but to flee London and its memories. Together with the arrogant yet charming Thomas Cresswell, she journeys to the dark heart of Romania, home to one of Europe’s best schools of forensic medicine…and to another notorious killer, Vlad the Impaler, whose thirst for blood became legend.
But her life’s dream is soon tainted by blood-soaked discoveries in the halls of the school’s forbidding castle, and Audrey Rose is compelled to investigate the strangely familiar murders. What she finds brings all her terrifying fears to life once again.
My Review
Kerri Maniscalco has done it again! Much like her debut novel, “Stalking Jack The Ripper”, the sequel entitled “Hunting Prince Dracula” did not disappoint!
The novel begins a week after the ending of “Stalking Jack The Ripper”. The book gets right into the bloody, or not so bloody good stuff right at the beginning. The first death, taking place on the train, kicks the tension into high gear as Audrey Rose deals with the aftermath of Jack the Ripper’s unmasking. She is on edge herself, but she does continue to be the strong, female character we saw in the first book.
The romance burns quite a bit brighter in this novel, and with it comes much wittier, and slightly naughty comments from our dear Thomas Cresswell. We also see their relationship hit some snags that may not have been a big deal for other couples of this time, but for Audrey and Thomas, it causes some disturbances. This gives way to even more independent action taken in the book, on Audrey Rose’s part, which I absolutely loved. Though I do love this duo together in the romantic sense, I really enjoy their Sherlock & Watson vibe.
This story will keep you guessing the true identity of the murderer until the very end. I was in shock when the reveal came and all the pieces finally fell into place. It was definitely a mystery. Kerri’s writing really keeps you intrigued and guessing all the way through. I love the way she takes liberties with historical truths to create a very entertaining plot.
The one thing that I wished would have been different was the quick resolution of the ending. Much like the first novel, it felt slightly rushed. However, I would not let that deter you from enjoying this suspenseful mystery and the abundance of new characters you get to meet.
For those of you who like to listen to your books, I want to highly suggest the audiobooks of this series. I read this book, by switching between the hardcover and the audiobook. The narrator, Nicola Barber, did a wonderful job of bringing depth and emotion to Audrey Rose, as well as creating unique voices for our other characters. I want to go back and listen to both books in their entirety, as well as listen to other books narrated by Nicola.
I hope you enjoyed reading my review of “Hunting Prince Dracula” by Kerri Maniscalco. If you have read the book, let me know your thoughts in the comments. I wish the third book could be in my hands already.
Thank you for reading!
xxx
Kimberly – Whimsical Narratives
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