Hunting Prince Dracula is a wonderfully haunting and cleverly crafted mystery novel from Kerri Maniscalco, author of Stalking Jack the Ripper. The novel, which involves the same characters from the aforementioned story, instead follows Audrey Rose Wadsworth and her close companion Thomas Creswell as they travel to Romania to enrol in a forensics course held in a magnificent Romanian castle. The castle and its surrounding areas are rich and alive with a history of scandal, murder and blood, and Audrey and Thomas amuse themselves in the castle’s grand library, its quaint small town and the lessons on postmortems taught by a plethora of esteemed academics. However, the adventure ultimately results in rising levels of paranoia and intrigue as members of the class and the local village end up being discovered dead–dead in the most unusual of circumstances. This then leads Thomas and Audrey on a quest to unearth the truths about the castle, about Thomas’s lineage, and a conspiracy from long-forgotten orders which aim to reclaim and rule the castle, ridding it of the academic school.
I will preface this review by saying that I have very little negative input for this novel as a whole. Having read Stalking Jack the Ripper quite some time ago, I did enjoy the novel as a whole (and have also written a review of it for the site), but Hunting Prince Dracula breaks the sophomore curse like no other book ever has. This novel was the perfect blend of everything an avid horror reader could ever ask for–a strong, witty and intelligent protagonist, a lovable and loyal sidekick, spectacular pacing and descriptions, and a plot twist that I never would have been able to predict. Maniscalco has a spectacular ability to write a first-person character, using eloquent language and structure and tapping into a period of time that readers may otherwise never have gotten a chance to inspect and analyse. The setting of the novel is as haunting as could be–an ancient castle steeped in history, with winding secret tunnels and trapdoors, murderous legends of dangerous animals, and a solid collection of believable and respectable characters, from the teachers at the academy to the servants and guards.
This novel moved me in a way that only a small subset of books ever have–the action scenes had me hanging on the edge of my seat, and though it took me some time to read it–due to school and work commitments–I was actively excited every time I had a chance to delve into its pages. Audrey Rose is a thoroughly likeable protagonist–she is not vain or selfish, she has pursuits of excellence, and she can always think for herself and continues to challenge the ideas of the male students around her by being thoughtful, well-spoken and elegant both inside and out. This book would be relatively bare without her and Thomas’s humorous, but ultimately loving, relationship. I cannot count how many times this pair of individuals made me chuckle with their dialogue, especially in a time when the plot or themes may seem to be too heavy. This novel is full of beautiful and alluring characters, but the beautiful soul that Thomas Creswell embodies never fails to capture my eye and make me smile.
This novel is already my favourite read of 2020, a feat which I never like to impose upon a novel too quickly. The elegant weaving together of the plot, pacing and character development is as seamless as could be, leaving me equally horrified and mesmerised. I cannot wait to dive into ‘Escaping From Houdini’ to explore the next escapade of Audrey Rose and Thomas.
Angel Mage–written by Australian high fantasy laureate Garth Nix–introduces readers to the city of Ystara, a land in which angels, demons, musketeers and magicians all live among one another. Throughout the land, skilled individuals enchant and produce icons, which have the power to summon specific angels to aid with daily tasks and civil battles with …
April Genevieve Tucholke’s high fantasy novel, The Boneless Mercies, sweeps the reader into a deeply evocative world that grants a feminist take on classic tales inspired by Norse mythology. A retelling of Beowulf, the story follows a band of young women called the Boneless Mercies as they abandon the life they knew and travel the …
Contagion by Teri Terry is a ticking time bomb of a novel, each chapter bringing the reader closer to the point of impact. This pre-apocalyptic dystopian novel set in Scotland follows two unique and compelling viewpoints; Shay, whose world is about to be changed forever, and Callie, who has seen everything but can communicate nothing. …
Skulduggery Pleasant – Playing with Fire is the second novel in Derek Landy’s Skulduggery Pleasant series. Following on from the events of the first novel (if you have not read the first novel, or do not want spoilers, please STOP reading right now), the novel picks up a few months after Skulduggery and Valkyrie defeated …
The trials and tribulations of an English upper class noble are thrown into increasingly dangerous–but equally hilarious–lengths in American author Mackenzi Lee’s novel ‘The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue’. The story centres around Lord Henry Montague as his affluent father sends him away on a Grand Tour throughout Europe with his sister and close …
Melissa Keil’s The Secret Science of Magic is a unique and compelling twist on the typical romance novel. Shift away from the typical “quirky” star-crossed lover archetypes, Keil has created the kind of relatable and complex character that exist in real life, but rarely ever play a starring role in the media. Sophia is so …
Book Review – Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco
Hunting Prince Dracula is a wonderfully haunting and cleverly crafted mystery novel from Kerri Maniscalco, author of Stalking Jack the Ripper. The novel, which involves the same characters from the aforementioned story, instead follows Audrey Rose Wadsworth and her close companion Thomas Creswell as they travel to Romania to enrol in a forensics course held in a magnificent Romanian castle. The castle and its surrounding areas are rich and alive with a history of scandal, murder and blood, and Audrey and Thomas amuse themselves in the castle’s grand library, its quaint small town and the lessons on postmortems taught by a plethora of esteemed academics. However, the adventure ultimately results in rising levels of paranoia and intrigue as members of the class and the local village end up being discovered dead–dead in the most unusual of circumstances. This then leads Thomas and Audrey on a quest to unearth the truths about the castle, about Thomas’s lineage, and a conspiracy from long-forgotten orders which aim to reclaim and rule the castle, ridding it of the academic school.
I will preface this review by saying that I have very little negative input for this novel as a whole. Having read Stalking Jack the Ripper quite some time ago, I did enjoy the novel as a whole (and have also written a review of it for the site), but Hunting Prince Dracula breaks the sophomore curse like no other book ever has. This novel was the perfect blend of everything an avid horror reader could ever ask for–a strong, witty and intelligent protagonist, a lovable and loyal sidekick, spectacular pacing and descriptions, and a plot twist that I never would have been able to predict. Maniscalco has a spectacular ability to write a first-person character, using eloquent language and structure and tapping into a period of time that readers may otherwise never have gotten a chance to inspect and analyse. The setting of the novel is as haunting as could be–an ancient castle steeped in history, with winding secret tunnels and trapdoors, murderous legends of dangerous animals, and a solid collection of believable and respectable characters, from the teachers at the academy to the servants and guards.
This novel moved me in a way that only a small subset of books ever have–the action scenes had me hanging on the edge of my seat, and though it took me some time to read it–due to school and work commitments–I was actively excited every time I had a chance to delve into its pages. Audrey Rose is a thoroughly likeable protagonist–she is not vain or selfish, she has pursuits of excellence, and she can always think for herself and continues to challenge the ideas of the male students around her by being thoughtful, well-spoken and elegant both inside and out. This book would be relatively bare without her and Thomas’s humorous, but ultimately loving, relationship. I cannot count how many times this pair of individuals made me chuckle with their dialogue, especially in a time when the plot or themes may seem to be too heavy. This novel is full of beautiful and alluring characters, but the beautiful soul that Thomas Creswell embodies never fails to capture my eye and make me smile.
This novel is already my favourite read of 2020, a feat which I never like to impose upon a novel too quickly. The elegant weaving together of the plot, pacing and character development is as seamless as could be, leaving me equally horrified and mesmerised. I cannot wait to dive into ‘Escaping From Houdini’ to explore the next escapade of Audrey Rose and Thomas.
RATINGS:
Plot: 10/10
Writing: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
OVERALL RATING: 10/10
NOTE – Though Hunting Prince Dracula involves the same characters as Stalking Jack the Ripper, it can easily be read as a standalone novel.
Related Posts
Book Review – Angel Mage by Garth Nix
Angel Mage–written by Australian high fantasy laureate Garth Nix–introduces readers to the city of Ystara, a land in which angels, demons, musketeers and magicians all live among one another. Throughout the land, skilled individuals enchant and produce icons, which have the power to summon specific angels to aid with daily tasks and civil battles with …
Book Review – The Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke
April Genevieve Tucholke’s high fantasy novel, The Boneless Mercies, sweeps the reader into a deeply evocative world that grants a feminist take on classic tales inspired by Norse mythology. A retelling of Beowulf, the story follows a band of young women called the Boneless Mercies as they abandon the life they knew and travel the …
Book Review – Contagion by Teri Terry
Contagion by Teri Terry is a ticking time bomb of a novel, each chapter bringing the reader closer to the point of impact. This pre-apocalyptic dystopian novel set in Scotland follows two unique and compelling viewpoints; Shay, whose world is about to be changed forever, and Callie, who has seen everything but can communicate nothing. …
Book Review – Skulduggery Pleasant Book 2, Playing with Fire by Derek Landy
Skulduggery Pleasant – Playing with Fire is the second novel in Derek Landy’s Skulduggery Pleasant series. Following on from the events of the first novel (if you have not read the first novel, or do not want spoilers, please STOP reading right now), the novel picks up a few months after Skulduggery and Valkyrie defeated …
Book Review – The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee
The trials and tribulations of an English upper class noble are thrown into increasingly dangerous–but equally hilarious–lengths in American author Mackenzi Lee’s novel ‘The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue’. The story centres around Lord Henry Montague as his affluent father sends him away on a Grand Tour throughout Europe with his sister and close …
Book Review – The Secret Science of Magic by Melissa Keil
Melissa Keil’s The Secret Science of Magic is a unique and compelling twist on the typical romance novel. Shift away from the typical “quirky” star-crossed lover archetypes, Keil has created the kind of relatable and complex character that exist in real life, but rarely ever play a starring role in the media. Sophia is so …