THE NAME OF THE STAR Shades of London

Rory leaves her small town in Louisiana to spend a year at a boarding school in London at the same time that a Jack-the-Ripper copycat killer starts dumping victims in her new neighborhood. Narrator Nicola Barber brings this mystery to life with her dramatic reading and nimble management of Rory’s Southern drawl and a variety of British accents. The decision to convey Rory’s first-person narration in a general American accent is jarring, but listeners will be absorbed as Rory attempts to adjust to her new life, develops a love interest, and slowly realizes she can see things other people can’t. A layered and engrossing mystery weaves in history, romance, culture, and the supernatural. A.F. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2012]