The Name of the Star

Shades of London, Book 1

By: Maureen Johnson

Narrated by: Nicola Barber

Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

The day Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London marks a memorable occasion. For Rory, it’s the start of a new life at a London boarding school. But for many, this will be remembered as the day a series of brutal murders broke out across the city - gruesome crimes mimicking the horrific work of Jack the Ripper in the autumn of 1888. Soon “Rippermania” takes hold of modern-day London, and the police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man police believe to be the prime suspect. But she is the only one who saw him. Even her roommate, who was with her at the time, didn’t notice the mysterious man. So why can only Rory see him? And more urgently, what is he planning to do about her?

In this edge-of-your-seat thriller, full of suspense, humor, and romance, Rory will learn the truth about the secret ghost police of London and discover her own shocking abilities.

©2011 Maureen Johnson (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Great teen horror

What made the experience of listening to The Name of the Star the most enjoyable?

variety of accents. Humorous writing that rang true

Who was your favorite character and why?

Rory the narrator and "Call Me" Claudia the "dorm mother" for her building

Which scene was your favorite?

they are on the boys dorm roof watching London wait for Jack the ripper to appear then sneaking back to girls dorm. The ripper appears to Rory

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

no, just enteraining

Any additional comments?

Great story that manages to blend "fish out of water" Louisianian teen narration, British boarding school place setting, Jack the ripper bad guy, and ghosts. Works well. Narrator managed a wide variety of accents with aplomb. Liked really well.

Boarding school fiction with a paranormal twist.

Would you consider the audio edition of The Name of the Star to be better than the print version?

Not sure, since I haven't read it.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Name of the Star?

I really liked the fact that for the first half it read like a realistic fiction book about boarding school life in England.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Nicola Barber?

On the fence. Her accents were good but her actual normal narration was really distracting. She over enunciated which was annoying.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

"Jack is back."

Any additional comments?

Fun, quick YA listen. Nothing overwhelmingly good, but decent writing and performance and intriguing storyline.

Not your normal Ripper story.

What did you love best about The Name of the Star?

Overall story was very good, nothing specific stood out.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Rory. Because she is smart, and couragous, and she won't let anyone tell her what to do.

Have you listened to any of Nicola Barber’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

no

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes, when the ripper and rory are in the abandoned tude station.

Any additional comments?

Even though this is a YA book, i found the story entertaining and compelling. This book kept me guessing and the suprise ending was amazing. I look forward to Maureen Johnson's next book involving the Shades.

Paranormal Ripper-Related YA

It's hard to rate this novel, because it does many things.

For one, it's a YA fish-out-of-water tale about a small-town Louisiana girl who suddenly finds herself in a boarding school in London. As a glimpse of London life, popular culture, and history through an American lens, it's a very successful and often laugh-out-loud funny tale.

The novel is also a Jack-the-Ripper thriller about a copycat murderer who uses the original Ripper slayings as inspiration for "tribute" killings, with some clever and chilling contemporary updates to the 1888 story. This aspect of the novel, with its atmospheric descriptions and creepy depiction of the morbidly fascinated public at large does work on its own, although it's somewhat jarring next to the more upbeat schooldays story.

But wait, there's more! This book also serves up a paranormal coming-of-age and coming-into-your-powers narrative about ghosts (or shades), those who see them, and the secret police who are in charge of cases involving them. (Think of the Torchwood group dedicated to ghosts. I couldn't unsee Torchwood throughout this section of the novel.) In some ways the novel hangs together - thank heavens Maureen Johnson confined herself to the copycat killer and didn't go back to the mystery of the original Ripper - but in some ways this combination felt overly ambitious, as if everything but the kitchen sink had been thrown into the mix.

Johnson telegraphed at least three of the intended "big reveals" far in advance, so the mystery angle of the book fell flat. The less said about the teen romantic scenes, the better. In addition, I normally really enjoy Nicola Barber's narrations, but her varied attempts at a Louisiana drawl were so outrageously bad that they kept shocking me out of the story. Just dreadful.

I don't think I'll be following up on more of this series, but I'm not sorry I listened to the novel. Perhaps those who enjoy paranormal YA works will enjoy it more than I did. I listened to it for the Ripper connection primarily, and there were enough innovations there to make this worth my while.

awesome!

I cannot wait to get back to school and recommend this series to my students. this author is a gem!

London

What did you love best about The Name of the Star?

I just the setting of this book. I felt like I was there in London.

What did you like best about this story?

I am a huge fan of paranormal books. This one had a new take on it. The paranormal police and the sight.

Which scene was your favorite?

Any of them with Rory trying to make her way around London.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

With out giving the ending away. It is hard but, when Rory is saved towards the end.

Maureen Johnson does well with Paranormal

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes! Fun, good listen for trip or even errands around town

Which character – as performed by Nicola Barber – was your favorite?

Rory and Boo

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

yes! Fun to listen to while cooking and doing errands

Any additional comments?

Nicola Barber is great handling many different character's voices. I always knew who was saying what.

A decade of LOVING this book

I wish I could truly explain how much I love this book. I bought this originally in like 2013 at a used book store in the clearance section on CD. I liked the cover art and figured why not. I was working a job that allowed us CD players of all things so I went for it. I was instantly hooked. I’m absolutely fixated by Nicola Barber reading the adventures of Rory and the Shades of London. When I got into audible a few years later I knew this was going to be one I bought again because of how much I adore this series and still listen to the whole series at least every 6 months and cannot recommend this book enough. I WISH Maureen would write book 4, but it’s been so long I don’t know if she will or if she’s going to leave it as it stands since her other series are more popular. I’d trade in Stevie Bell for Rory Deveaux any day.

Great Story

Excellent story with strong believable characters which may sound odd considering most of them are ghost fighters. This is well written and entertaining for adult readers as well as young adult readers.

This not the normal genre I read and not an author I have read before, but I enjoyed immensely, and recommend it as a change of pace to anyone.

Good quality, mild book

This book was entertaining and I enjoyed the characters. The book before this one was so stupid I couldn't listen to the rest of it but this made you want to keep listening.