The Ripper’s Shadow by Laura Joh Rowland is the first book in the Victorian Mystery series. In this story, the year is 1888 and Jack the Ripper is terrorizing London. Sarah Bain, a photographer in Whitechapel, believes that she may know how The Ripper is finding his victims…and it’s her fault.Sarah is living on the edge, barely making enough from her photography to pay her monthly rent and to feed herself. So, when one of the streetwalkers of Whitechapel proposes a way to make money from illicit “boudoir photographs” Sarah accepts. However, now two of her “models” have been killed by The Ripper and she fears for the safety of the others.
Over the course of the story, Sarah collects a varied assortment of friends who are willing to help her protect her models and to discover the identity of The Ripper. Lord Hugh Staunton, a gay nobleman who she found “in flagrante”; Mick, a street urchin who she befriended after he tried to steal her photography equipment; Catherine, an aspiring actress and one of her models; and a Jewish butcher and his wife. Unfortunately, Sarah and her friends also catch the eye of the London police who are doing what they can to take down the killer as well as the attention of the killer himself.
The story was suspenseful and interesting. There were points when the pacing was a bit slow but it didn’t detract from the story and Rowland’s unique take on Jack the Ripper. I will be continuing with the series.
Rating: 3.5 stars
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