Now You See Me by Sharon Bolton

 

Lacey Flint is a young police constable in London.  She had a tough childhood and even lived on the streets for a while.  When she applied to join the force, the police thought her background might be useful in reaching out to the homeless population and she has spent much time with that group and with young girls trying to avoid the drugs and gangs around them. 

One night as she is leaving a girl's flat after reaching out to her, Lacey comes upon a middle aged woman who has just been attacked.  She has been stabbed brutally and dies before help can arrive.  Lacey is taken into the headquarters where the crime is to be investigated and then a note arrives implying that it is the work of a Jack the Ripper copycat.  Lacey knows a lot about that case as she had studied it as a girl and soon finds herself part of the team.  She likes the young DCI in charge, another woman.  Then there is Joesbury, a man who seems to suspect Lacey of being involved.  

The killings continue, all middle-aged women, each more brutal than the last and done on an anniversary of one of the Ripper's crimes.  Lacey gets drawn further and further into the case as she seems to be the target of the criminal and the police want her close, both for her expertise and to protect her.  Lacey, however, starts to think the crimes are not really a Ripper reenactment but tied to her own past and the secrets she hides there.  Will the killer get Lacey before the police can get him?

This is the first novel in the Lacey Flint series.  Lacey is a prickly character, full of secrets and unable to get close to people due to her childhood.  She has a knack for police work and investigation but seems drawn to danger and conflict.  Sharon Bolton is a British writer whose work burst on the scene and continues to be top-notch.  This book is recommended for mystery readers.