Review: The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories (ed) Maxim Jakubowski

Everyone has their favorite Jack the Ripper theory or suspect.  The odds are, we will NEVER know definitively who was responsible.  That said, This book is full of fictional stories based on various old and new theories as well as just plain imagination.  It will get us no closer to solving the crimes, but it does give us enjoyable reads of various possibilities.  

Some of my favorites from the book were:  "His Last Victim" by KG Anderson, "It's All in the Genes" by Cara Cooper, "Bluebeard's Wife" by Catherine Lundoff and "Autumn of Terror" by CL Raven.

Terri

Review: Crimes, Detection and Death of Jack the Ripper by Martin Fido

Jack the Ripper fascinates so many of us. So many theories and we never (CAN never) know for sure. This work explores the crimes, the social factors and the credibility of the police involved. He provides evidence debunking many theories and explores sources and their reliability. Each victim (and victim eliminated from the Ripper canon) is carefully discussed in detail.  He also discusses evidence that he feels has been disproved or mis-interpreted.  He tries to trace the formation of various theories and the information they resulted from.  He discusses the role of the press and politics as well as clarifying the roles senior officers played. Sometimes the book is a bit dry but the information it contains is very well-researched and thought out. The edition I read was updated from the original after new information had come to light.  His theory of the culprit may be the strongest I have seen, but then we really will never know and that mystery is probably why we find it so intriguing. This is one of the must-read sources out there. Terri

Review: The Thames Torso Murders by MJ Trow

• Print Length: 224 pages
• Publisher: Wharncliffe (August 24, 2012)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0091WB4ZI

The interesting thing about these murders is very few people even know about them. The Ripper crimes totally obscured any coverage or interest. Yet they really are just as gruesome if not more so, since only parts of dismembered bodies were found and most have not been identified. MJ Trow has written some very excellent books on the subject of the Ripper and I was curious to see how he presented this. I was put off a bit by the VERY detailed history of the Thames and its London districts. Too mu The interesting thing about these murders is very few people even know about them. The Ripper crimes totally obscured any coverage or interest. Yet they really are just as gruesome if not more so, since only parts of dismembered bodies were found and most have not been identified. MJ Trow has written some very excellent books on the subject of the Ripper and I was curious to see how he presented this. I was put off a bit by the VERY detailed history of the Thames and its London districts. Too much - information overload. And yet, probably very useful in a deeper understanding of some facets of the case. (Not to mention all the references remind me of current Sherlock locations....) The sad thing is that most of the historical documents and information has been lost (more so than even the Ripper case) so even with the obviously painstaking research done here, it will not be possible to really know much more about this series of murders. But it is interesting and it also tells us about another serial murder loose in London during Victorian times, overlapping with the Ripper's crimes. Terri

Review: The Yard by Alex Grecian

Title: The YARD

Author: Alex Grecian

When I write my yearly top ten books that I love...The YARD will be among the ten.

This book takes place in Victorian London right after Jack The Ripper conveys his message of terror.

Now there has been  murder squad formed by Scotland Yard. Walter Day heads the murder squad and the first order of business is one of their own has  been murdered and left in a trunk for dead. One by one murders happen and people disappear. With the help of forensic pathologist Dr. Kingsley, the two men hunt clue-by-clue and take London apart to find who is murdering their own and many more.

I loved this book. While there are some unsettling moments they are well worth the bile in the stomach. It has to be in this historical cozy in order for us to understand the what, when, where and why of the story.

From page one you are drawn into the story and the characters.

A side note (I loved the dancing man), don't miss this moving and extremely riveting mystery. ********** ten stars.

Pam

Review: The Bank Holiday Murders by Tom Wescott

• File Size: 767 KB
• Print Length: 260 pages
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• ASIN: B00IIWWS8E

So many Ripperologists only consider 5 murders to be his work, but Emma Smith and Martha Tabram were murdered earlier in 1888 and I always wondered myself if they truly were unconnected.  This book explores how they might be.  Their injuries were definitely not the 'same' as later known victims, but they could be consistent with a killer starting out.  And then escalating.

Regardless, this book interested me most by its trying to get beyond the 'known' 'facts' (terms I use loosely) and trying to find historical documents to find what was happening in that tiny section of Whitechapel.  Reading it made me see how tiny it actually was, and how people had to know much more than they were telling the police.

It certainly is not a sensational read, it is an historic investigation that found some interesting links and players that pretty much have stayed under the radar.  The author is cautious in his conclusions and honest.  I was really impressed.

There is also additional material on other theories and curiosities that really are a nice extra.

One thing it reminds us is that a skeptical eye is needed by any serious Ripper enthusiast.

Terri