![]() Emma, Aiden, and Evan are assumed to be white Neesha is Indian. Student testimonials and voice-to-text transcripts punctuate the three-way third-person narration that alternates among Neesha, Evan, and Aiden. The ’90s setting provides the backdrop for tongue-in-cheek technological references but doesn’t do anything for the plot. While the school is an insidious character on its own and the big reveal is slightly psychologically disturbing, Evan’s positioning as a tragic hero with an uncertain fate-which is connected to his stalking of Emma (even before her disappearance)-is far more unsettling. Evan, a chess prodigy who relies on patterns and has difficulty processing social signals, believes he knows Emma better than anyone. Her boyfriend, an athlete called Aiden, naturally wants to find her. Brilliant chemist Neesha believes Emma has run away to avoid taking the heat for the duo’s illegal drug enterprise. When talented poet Emma disappears, three students, distrusting of the school administration, launch their own investigation. ![]() Redemption Preparatory is a cross between the Vatican and a top-secret research facility: The school is rooted in Christian ideology (but very few students are Christian), Mass is compulsory, cameras capture everything, and “maintenance” workers carry Tasers. In a remote part of Utah, in a “temple of excellence,” the best of the best are recruited to nurture their talents. Overall, though, this dark, gothic landscape is peopled with nuanced, diverse characters who keep readers enthralled.Ī gripping mystery with a compelling heroine and just the right touch of romance (Mystery. The end reveal unsatisfyingly fails to fully describe her epiphany. Given the paucity of strong, biracial female characters, it is disappointing that no mention is made (as in a previous entry) of the fact that Audrey Rose has an Indian mother and a white father. The book’s love triangle provides a steamy, consensual romance that refreshingly positions her as the arbiter of her own fate. Audrey Rose is a witty, resourceful feminist who refuses to bow to Victorian-era gender norms. The deeper she goes, the more confused she becomes about the killer-and her own desires. As the body count mounts, Audrey Rose goes undercover to investigate the onboard carnival helmed by a mysterious ringmaster, Mephistopheles. But a young woman is murdered, setting off a string of killings that forces Audrey Rose to practice her autopsy skills under the guidance of her uncle, a renowned forensic scientist, and in partnership with Thomas Creswell, her fellow apprentice and, she hopes, future husband. ![]() When forensic scientist-in-training Audrey Rose Wadsworth boards the luxurious Etruria, she anticipates a much-needed vacation before joining a criminal investigation in New York. In the winter of 1889, a luxury cruise liner leaves Liverpool, England, with a murderer on board.
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