The Return of Spring-Heeled Jack

by Michele Pearson:

You open the back door one night to let your dogs into your yard.  You notice a shadow near the fence and your curiosity causes you to hesitate one second too late.  You have fallen victim to Spring-Heeled Jack, the British urban legend come to life.  In her fourth book, Jennifer Caress takes the titular character and gives him life yet leaves many details a mystery: is he a villain or a romantic anti-hero?   And where has he been for all this time?

Jack comes into the life of Alice in the form of a violent robbery that leaves her face scarred and her already fragile marriage in tatters.  Cursing Jack’s name, Alice is later saved from a brutal attack by this same man who disfigured her.  What does Jack want with her?  Who is he?  Why does he want her to go with him on his supernatural journey?  More importantly, why does Alice want to stay with him?

I loved reading this book.  It was a very fast read, grabbing the reader’s attention from the first page and refusing to let you rest until the last page, which leaves you wanting more.  The author writes with such detail that I could hear Jack’s snake-like yet posh English accent, see Alice’s slashed face and could almost smell Jack standing behind me.  I want more tales of Jack and Alice and I hope that this is the first book of many.  As a reader, I felt a sense of frustration at the end.  There was an unfinished quality about the last scene that almost angered me but also filled me with a hope that this is just the beginning.

If you enjoy a bit of a scare and like your heroes to have a bit of an evil side, you will fall in love with Jack.  He is the new evil and a nice change from the number of Vampire/Werewolf stories that have made their way to page and screen.  If Jennifer Caress’ characters in all of her books are written with this flair, she will have a very successful writing career.

The Return of Spring Heeled Jack will be released by Black Bed Sheet Books in October.

Michele Pearson is a contributor for DarkMedia. She covers Vampire Diaries and any other films, books, etc that come her way. She reads everything from Lonesome Dove to Game of Thrones and loves epic tv series like Doctor Who and Star Trek: TNG. Michele also loves a good horror film and was able to channel that love as a judge for Shriekfest 2012. Follow her on Twitter at @GirlInRowB and check out her blog at http://www.girlinrowb.com.