Stefan Petrucha's (Dead Mann Walking) masterful combination of historical facts, mystery and steampunk make this novel set in 1895 New York City a standout. Jack the Ripper's murderous streak stopped almost as suddenly as it began. The killer was never caught. What if the rampage stopped because Jack crossed the Atlantic to find his son?
When 14-year-old orphan Carver Young breaks into Ellis Orphanage's records, he discovers in his file a single mysterious letter from his father with the name torn off. Carver has one last chance at adoption and one last hope for finding his father. He writes to the only man he believes can help him: New York City's new police commissioner, Theodore Roosevelt. Though it seems as though his letter has been ignored, Carver is not: he's adopted by the strange and surly Mr. Hawking. Hawking turns out to be a highly skilled detective working with a top-secret agency, the New Pinkertons. Under his mentor's watch, Carver begins searching for his father and notices disturbing ties between his father and the apparent serial killer targeting socialite women. Carver wonders who his father truly is, whom he can trust and what he may have inherited from his father.
Fans of steampunk will delight in the gadgets of the New Pinkertons, from stun batons to auto-lock picks. The author incorporates excerpts from actual letters sent to Scotland Yard by the real Jack the Ripper and includes a handy "Character and Gadget Glossary," detailing the truth behind the characters and their fanciful gizmos. In this skillfully imagined, thrilling mystery, Petrucha keeps readers guessing to the last pages. --Kyla Paterno, retail coordinator and blogger, Garfield Book Company