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The Crimes of Jack the Ripper
Building up a profile of the most infamous serial killer, Jack the Ripper, Paul Roland looks at the injuries and mutilations to the various victims, and makes deductions about the weapon and his state of mind at the time.
288 pages, Paperback
First published September 28, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
December 7, 2012
Did feel like a very true to the crimes book, Roland doesn't come up with ridiculous theories about who Jack was. Various theories are discussed, and the reasons why it's felt that they can be discounted, ie the suspect was in France at the time of the murders.
August 2, 2022
A fun read! Very interesting to see how the myth of Jack the Ripper came to be and how the killer avoided the police and capture.
June 5, 2018
This is a harrowing read, I have to say. I thought it would be a good thing to add to my reading list; after all, the Whitechapel murder spree is a crucial moment in history in many ways. But it's intriguing, revolting and infuriating all at once to read the story of such ghastly crimes knowing that the culprit was never brought to justice. At least, not that we know for certain. The author gives a very complete picture of the crimes, crime scenes and methods of investigation, as well as an impressive rundown of contemporary and modern theories about the killer(s) and the potential motives. Without spoiling anything major, I'll say that Mr. Roland definitely gives us his own views about what really happened and whom we should believe. There were points when I thought his perspective was somewhat limited. For example, he doesn't think the famous correspondences from "Jack" could possibly have been written by the real murderer, suggesting that a true psychopath would never put on such a public performance. I'm really not prepared to agree; I'm sure there are forms of psychosis in which the sufferer feels the need for some kind of public forum. The suggestion that some unscrupulous newspaperman submitted the letters in my view betrays a surprisingly strong antagonism from the author toward the journalistic profession. I guess we've all read some poorly written articles, but it's too extreme for me to suppose that some up-and-coming copywriter went to the length of obtaining a human kidney just to make a splash during a time when the nation was in such mortal terror. I also think it was a little excessive to go into such detail about what Aleister Crowley's opinion was of the matter, merely because he happened to be one of the most shamelessly self-promoted aspiring celebrities of the time. Points like these missed the mark with me, but I still found the book satisfying in terms of detail. The final chapter is particularly emotional reading, as we learn that there are countless people who may have been the Ripper and that multiple eyewitnesses are likely to have seen him only moments before committing his crimes. Add to this the fact that the London police at that time failed to make use of all the resources which would have been available to them at the time, including fingerprinting and photography and it's beyond frustrating to realise that the perpetrator of such hideous cruelty may have gone unpunished for all time. Very engrossing stuff, but prepare to be appalled at some of the evil deeds you'll read described as well as a good deal of the ineptitude at dealing with the infamous Jack the Ripper.
August 9, 2011
An interesting and sensible account, managing not to get caught up in the usual 'it was the Free Masons what done it!' or the Royal Family or something. There were some editorial mistakes that made me twitch (names mixed up, etc) and I felt he was a little too eager to disprove every idea, as though that would make him more credible..but probably the best factual Ripper thing I've read.
January 11, 2018
I enjoyed this book in the beginning, but about half way through I really started snoozing. It was an information overload at some points and it didn’t need to be. This book is full of great information, there was just a bit too much of it at times.
August 20, 2020
-discussion of the vics is the weakest part, assumes they were prostitutes (I’m glad I recently read The Five so that I knew to be skeptical!) -interesting, but doesn’t delve too deep -why is this book so large?
February 10, 2017
A good overview. Actually mentions the fact that eye-witness testimony is notoriously unreliable, however seems to think that profiling is more accurate than guesswork, though as far as I am aware no studies have been able to prove this. Interesting suggestions as to which murders can actually be attributed to Jack the Ripper rather than others.
June 20, 2023
Probably closer to 2.5 Stars.
This is a great book if you're after a run through of the murders and some of the theories. But it feels weirdly quick but also a bit bloated.
The author includes pages and pages of primary sources like articles and statements in the main text of the book. It's interesting to read these things as an aside, but I felt like, if you're writing a book and doing the research, why aren't you summarising these documents yourself instead of getting the reader to wade through them?
I always like it when a non fiction book includes photos and images within the text, so I enjoyed that in this book. I think it's good that the gory details of the crimes are talked about too because it's important to see this man as a monster and not the romantic Victorian puzzle that he's become.
An okay book if you're after a summary of everything Ripper-related.
This is a great book if you're after a run through of the murders and some of the theories. But it feels weirdly quick but also a bit bloated.
The author includes pages and pages of primary sources like articles and statements in the main text of the book. It's interesting to read these things as an aside, but I felt like, if you're writing a book and doing the research, why aren't you summarising these documents yourself instead of getting the reader to wade through them?
I always like it when a non fiction book includes photos and images within the text, so I enjoyed that in this book. I think it's good that the gory details of the crimes are talked about too because it's important to see this man as a monster and not the romantic Victorian puzzle that he's become.
An okay book if you're after a summary of everything Ripper-related.
August 26, 2017
Gripping and Factual
This book is a superior read on the subject of Jack the Ripper. Splendidly recreating the 19th century Whitechapel, with all its noise and din, its stench and its hopelessness. Roland carefully examines the circumstances of the infamous crimes attributed to Jack and also studies a number of murders which some Ripperologists allege were his work. Using official police reports, autopsy findings, inquest testimony and the claims of witnesses. The author draws together a thoughtful compilation of facts without sensationalism or embellishment and draws well-argued conclusions.
This book is a superior read on the subject of Jack the Ripper. Splendidly recreating the 19th century Whitechapel, with all its noise and din, its stench and its hopelessness. Roland carefully examines the circumstances of the infamous crimes attributed to Jack and also studies a number of murders which some Ripperologists allege were his work. Using official police reports, autopsy findings, inquest testimony and the claims of witnesses. The author draws together a thoughtful compilation of facts without sensationalism or embellishment and draws well-argued conclusions.
May 7, 2017
*3.5* stars. An informative and straightforward commentary about the notorious 19th century serial killer, which concentrates on the facts, rather than producing shaky new theories regarding the identity of the perpetrator. Although there are a couple of intriguing new suspects mentioned, that I hadn't heard of before.
June 30, 2019
While it was interesting to read about the various men who were suspected to be Jack the Ripper, the author tends to repeat himself way too much. In fact, if you removed all of the repeated details, this book probably could have been condensed to a long article.
April 2, 2020
Not quite has good has I had hoped. He repeated himself quite a bit. This could of been just a long article, had he not kept repeating himself. He did come up with very different opinions and not the same ole same ole.
March 2, 2023
Drags on in many parts without saying much. The historical research (none of which is cited by Roland) is sorely lacking and vague.
Honestly, I most enjoyed the excerpts from texts of the period and would probably have enjoyed reading just those excerpts more than the book as it is presented.
Honestly, I most enjoyed the excerpts from texts of the period and would probably have enjoyed reading just those excerpts more than the book as it is presented.
January 1, 2019
accurate historical account
July 27, 2019
The facts were interesting. I just couldn't follow a lot of what was going on. It may have been the way in which the book was organized.
October 4, 2019
Probably the best Jack the ripper book I'll read to date, very not biased to their conclusion and treats it like a modern day case.
April 19, 2020
It is a good read, as it makes you more curious and more intrigued from the beginning.
August 10, 2020
It was an interesting read, a little bit biased towards his thoughts and dismissive of others without due justification.
February 1, 2021
Compared to other Ripper books I've read this doesn't really measure up. Excerpts from elsewhere fill most of the book, the rest is boring and doesn't go into enough detail.
March 18, 2021
Nice, but uneven.
July 15, 2021
I really loved how in depth the book went into the Jack the Ripper investigation and how the book tried to give all the facts of the case.
December 21, 2022
Awesome book, would recommend
October 6, 2023
Very well documented book. Lots of details and information straight from the sources. Kind of redundant on a few items but still a good read.
February 26, 2024
Very good, I had this book in a box with many other books I have just sorted through this week a total of 5 boxes....
found this gem... so had to re read it.
found this gem... so had to re read it.
Read
August 15, 2025No review from me this book really didnt make me feel the best so DNF from me
March 20, 2019
With the newly identified/confirmed killer in the news, I went back to check the theories surrounding Aaron Kosminski in this book. While he appears in the index on 7 pages, I can’t find any reference to him in the book. Strange!
March 3, 2017
Love this book I have read many times and yet still find it hard to pout down jack the ripper has always interested me highly recommended
May 19, 2015
It’s been more than a hundred years since the murderer known as Jack the Ripper prowled the streets of Whitechapel in London, and yet his grip upon the popular imagination is greater than ever. For most people, I think, he persists as an idea, an archetype than transcends his monstrous crimes, recurring over and over in popular fiction—resurrected as a foe for Kolchak the Nigh Stalker, a deathless being in Bloch’s “Yours Truly Jack the Ripper,” a planet-hopping force in “Star Trek,” a pawn of the Vorlons in “Babylon 5,” or an entity still persisting at the universe’s entropic death. Many people, however, do not require that Jack be resurrected for his life and deeds to have meaning; for them, the crimes themselves are as recent as yesterday, the fog still flows down those chartered streets, and the face behind the mask is yet a mystery in search of a solution. They are “Ripperologists,” students of the life and crimes of Jack the Ripper, and their passion is “Ripperology.” It is primarily for these people that this book was written by Paul Roland, who is well versed in crime, history and the occult.
Jack the Ripper is, of course, the unknown killer of women that has become the motif for all serial killers since then. In the autumn of 1888, he killed five (more of less) women in the heart of the greatest city in the world. While the term “serial killer” was not officially coined until the 1940s, Roland uses it often to describe Jack the Ripper, and ascribes it to the mindset of the police at the time. While none of the participants actually made the leap to set down the term in print they no doubt had it in mind, for I was surprised how close they came (astonishingly close in some cases) to using the term in the police reports and newspaper accounts cited by Roland.
In this book, Roland examines the crimes from all angles, drawing extensively upon primary source material, as well as secondary sources such as memoirs written by former Home Office and Scotland Yard officials years or decades after the fact. He looks at the victims, crimes, geography, witnesses, journalism, and investigation in minute detail. He evaluates theories and speculations of the time with the lens of years, and assesses modern efforts to pierce the identity of Jack the Ripper by returning to the source material or scrutinizing methodology to reveal flaws in procedure or logic. He separates fact from fiction, fiction from fantasy, and reveals all the hoaxes and frauds, both historic and modern. The result is an extensive and concise reference book that needs to be in the library of every Ripperologist, historian, crime aficionado, or person interested in Victoriana.
Jack the Ripper is, of course, the unknown killer of women that has become the motif for all serial killers since then. In the autumn of 1888, he killed five (more of less) women in the heart of the greatest city in the world. While the term “serial killer” was not officially coined until the 1940s, Roland uses it often to describe Jack the Ripper, and ascribes it to the mindset of the police at the time. While none of the participants actually made the leap to set down the term in print they no doubt had it in mind, for I was surprised how close they came (astonishingly close in some cases) to using the term in the police reports and newspaper accounts cited by Roland.
In this book, Roland examines the crimes from all angles, drawing extensively upon primary source material, as well as secondary sources such as memoirs written by former Home Office and Scotland Yard officials years or decades after the fact. He looks at the victims, crimes, geography, witnesses, journalism, and investigation in minute detail. He evaluates theories and speculations of the time with the lens of years, and assesses modern efforts to pierce the identity of Jack the Ripper by returning to the source material or scrutinizing methodology to reveal flaws in procedure or logic. He separates fact from fiction, fiction from fantasy, and reveals all the hoaxes and frauds, both historic and modern. The result is an extensive and concise reference book that needs to be in the library of every Ripperologist, historian, crime aficionado, or person interested in Victoriana.
September 19, 2015
J'ai dégoté à la médiathèque. Il me faisait de l'oeil, sagement assis sur son promontoire... J'avais déjà trois livres dans les mains, sachant que j'en ai toute une tonne qui m'attend dans ma chambre et sur mon Kindle... Bah, au point où j'en suis je me suis qu'un de plus ou de moins xD
Et donc le livre de Paul Roland repart sur les traces de ce bon vieux Jack. Ce n'est ni plus ni moins qu'une enquête criminelle en fait, avec le passage en revue des victimes, puis des suspects, émaillé de quelques remarques et opinions de l'auteur. Un bon livre, somme toute, quoique je l'ai trouvé quelques fois un peu trop "rapide" sur certaines choses. C'est vrai qu'en comparant avec le livre de Philip Sudgen (que Paul Roland a utilisé pour son enquête) sur le même thème et qui fait 500 pages (celui-ci n'en fait même pas 300), bon, on se demande si l'auteur n'a pas pris certains raccourcis ou autres. Je ne suis pas une spécialiste du sujet, très loin de là, mais je pense que ce livre conviendra très bien pour des personnes qui veulent simplement survoler le sujet sans entrer trop dans les détails. Il donne une très bonne impression de ce qu'était la vie à l'époque, en plus du travail d'enquêteur de l'auteur qui donne même le nom d'un nouveau suspect et à la fin, ses propres convictions concernant l'identité de Jack.
Paul Roland s'évertue même, sur la fin du livre, à "démystifier" en quelque sorte l'histoire de l’Éventreur, en avançant l'idée que Jack n'est responsable que de trois ou quatre morts sur les neuf qui ont pu lui être attribuées ; et que le meurtrier n'avait rien du gentleman timbré en haut de forme et cape noire sortant de la brume armé de son couteau pour trucider de la prostituée, cette image et la légende qui va avec n'ayant été inventée que par les médias de l'époque qui ont contribué à forger le mythe.
J'avoue avoir été un peu déçue par la fin, parce que bon, soyons honnête, moi aussi j'adore la brume et la cape et le chapeau et tous les trucs que j'ai pu lire dessus, en incluant of course mon Johnny Druitt préféré de feu la série Sanctuary. Je ne dis pas que je suis partisane des théories farfelus comme quoi un complot aurait été ourdi dans les tréfonds du gouvernement britannique ; mais un peu de mysticisme et de fantastique ne fait pas de mal, et l'auteur a juste tué tout ça dans les dernières lignes de son livre. Mais hormis ça c'est un bon livre sur le sujet, assez recherché, bien que comme je l'ai dit une personne recherchant plus de détails devrait se tourner vers le livre de Sudgen.
Et donc le livre de Paul Roland repart sur les traces de ce bon vieux Jack. Ce n'est ni plus ni moins qu'une enquête criminelle en fait, avec le passage en revue des victimes, puis des suspects, émaillé de quelques remarques et opinions de l'auteur. Un bon livre, somme toute, quoique je l'ai trouvé quelques fois un peu trop "rapide" sur certaines choses. C'est vrai qu'en comparant avec le livre de Philip Sudgen (que Paul Roland a utilisé pour son enquête) sur le même thème et qui fait 500 pages (celui-ci n'en fait même pas 300), bon, on se demande si l'auteur n'a pas pris certains raccourcis ou autres. Je ne suis pas une spécialiste du sujet, très loin de là, mais je pense que ce livre conviendra très bien pour des personnes qui veulent simplement survoler le sujet sans entrer trop dans les détails. Il donne une très bonne impression de ce qu'était la vie à l'époque, en plus du travail d'enquêteur de l'auteur qui donne même le nom d'un nouveau suspect et à la fin, ses propres convictions concernant l'identité de Jack.
Paul Roland s'évertue même, sur la fin du livre, à "démystifier" en quelque sorte l'histoire de l’Éventreur, en avançant l'idée que Jack n'est responsable que de trois ou quatre morts sur les neuf qui ont pu lui être attribuées ; et que le meurtrier n'avait rien du gentleman timbré en haut de forme et cape noire sortant de la brume armé de son couteau pour trucider de la prostituée, cette image et la légende qui va avec n'ayant été inventée que par les médias de l'époque qui ont contribué à forger le mythe.
J'avoue avoir été un peu déçue par la fin, parce que bon, soyons honnête, moi aussi j'adore la brume et la cape et le chapeau et tous les trucs que j'ai pu lire dessus, en incluant of course mon Johnny Druitt préféré de feu la série Sanctuary. Je ne dis pas que je suis partisane des théories farfelus comme quoi un complot aurait été ourdi dans les tréfonds du gouvernement britannique ; mais un peu de mysticisme et de fantastique ne fait pas de mal, et l'auteur a juste tué tout ça dans les dernières lignes de son livre. Mais hormis ça c'est un bon livre sur le sujet, assez recherché, bien que comme je l'ai dit une personne recherchant plus de détails devrait se tourner vers le livre de Sudgen.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews