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Jack the Ripper Victims Series #5
The Prostitute's Price: A Novel of Mary Jane Kelly, the Fifth Victim of Jack the Ripper
A novel that beats back our assumptions about the time of Jack the Ripper. Not the grim story of an unfortunate drunken prostitute killed before her time, but one of a young woman alive with all the emotional complexity of women today. Running from a man wanting her to pay for her crimes against his brother, Mary Jane Kelly must recover a valuable hidden necklace and sell it to gain the funds to leave London and start over elsewhere. Driven by powerful, if at times conflicting emotion, she runs the dystopian labyrinth of the East End, and tries to sneak past the deadly menace that bars her exit.
Although THE PROSTITUTE'S PRICE is a standalone story, it is also a companion novel to the novel, THE ASSASSIN'S COIN, by John Linwood Grant. To gain a broader experience of each novel, read both.
Although THE PROSTITUTE'S PRICE is a standalone story, it is also a companion novel to the novel, THE ASSASSIN'S COIN, by John Linwood Grant. To gain a broader experience of each novel, read both.
- GenresFiction
244 pages, Paperback
First published August 30, 2018
2 people are currently reading
103 people want to read
About the author
Alan M. Clark
139 books322 followersAuthor and illustrator, Alan M. Clark grew up in Tennessee in a house full of bones and old medical books. His awards include the World Fantasy Award and four Chesley Awards. He is the author of twenty-one books, including fourteen novels, a lavishly illustrated novella, a lavishly illustrated novellette, four collections of fiction, and a nonfiction full-color book of his artwork. Mr. Clark's company, IFD Publishing, has released 45 titles of various editions, including traditional books, both paperback and hardcover, audio books, and ebooks by such authors as F. Paul Wilson, Elizabeth Engstrom, and Jeremy Robert Johnson. Alan M. Clark and his wife, Melody, live in Oregon. www.alanmclark.com Visit his blog: https://ifdpublishing.com/blog
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 7, 2021
An interesting take on the Ripper's final victim. One of the things I found doing my own research on Mary Jane Kelly is how much conflicting information is out there--much of it from the victim herself. But I did like the author's take on the subject. Very well written.
January 24, 2020
full review coming soon
October 17, 2018
THE PROSTITUTE'S PRICE' is the fifth book by Alan M Clark about the five known victims of the faceless killer known as Jack the Ripper.
All five books are works of historical fiction, and Alan makes no attempt to solve the Ripper murders.
Just like the previous books Alan does exemplary job of giving the victim in the this case Mary Jane Kelly a voice.
Of the five victims least is known about of the life of Mary Jane but this has not stopped Alan doing a excellent job of providing the reader a convincing story of Mary Janes life before her fatal meeting with Jack the Ripper.
The author makes the reader very aware that these women where more then fallen women and victims of a nameless killer they were wife's, daughter's , sister's and mother's.
I personally have enjoyed reading / listening to all five books in the victim series and would recommended all five to readers of historical fiction and to readers of true crime
All five books are works of historical fiction, and Alan makes no attempt to solve the Ripper murders.
Just like the previous books Alan does exemplary job of giving the victim in the this case Mary Jane Kelly a voice.
Of the five victims least is known about of the life of Mary Jane but this has not stopped Alan doing a excellent job of providing the reader a convincing story of Mary Janes life before her fatal meeting with Jack the Ripper.
The author makes the reader very aware that these women where more then fallen women and victims of a nameless killer they were wife's, daughter's , sister's and mother's.
I personally have enjoyed reading / listening to all five books in the victim series and would recommended all five to readers of historical fiction and to readers of true crime
November 21, 2018
The Prostitute's Price by Alan M. Clark is really very addictive.
The story that develops around the figure of Mary Jane Kelly, the latest victim of the Jack the Ripper, keeps the reader glued to the pages of the book. Those few bibliographical elements known to us are amalgamated with elements of fiction to create a living, real, credible character. A Mary Jane Kelly like no one has ever seen before.
Love, betrayals, abuses and deceptions lead us to the fateful day when her body was found brutally mutilated in room 13 of Miller's court in Dorset Street, when everything changed for her.
The story that develops around the figure of Mary Jane Kelly, the latest victim of the Jack the Ripper, keeps the reader glued to the pages of the book. Those few bibliographical elements known to us are amalgamated with elements of fiction to create a living, real, credible character. A Mary Jane Kelly like no one has ever seen before.
Love, betrayals, abuses and deceptions lead us to the fateful day when her body was found brutally mutilated in room 13 of Miller's court in Dorset Street, when everything changed for her.
February 13, 2019
A well-written book is hard to put down. By the same token, a well-narrated audiobook is truly binge worthy.
Such are the books in the Jack the Ripper Victim series, by Alan M. Clark, and narrated by Alicia Rose This, the fifth book in the series, elicits a certain dread that makes it as difficult to hear as it is to stop listening. The dread comes from what anyone who has read anything about the Ripper knows of Mary Jane Kelly, the fifth and final victim in the canon. She was the youngest, and by all accounts, the prettiest, and the only one so badly mutilated as to lose all semblance of humanity. As the protagonist of this tale, Alicia Rose's dramatic narration puts you, the listener, into a place you would not want to be. Somehow, using nothing but her voice, she puts you into that place that is Victorian London's seediest. Her rendition of Clark's introductory material, sets the stage perfectly. This is historical fiction that depicts, quite plausibly, the life that Mary Jane Kelly may have lived before it was so brutally ended.
It is important to understand that THE PROSTITUTE'S PRICE is a work of historical fiction, not another book attempting to solve the Ripper murders. It is a book about one woman, who by all accounts was a young, professional prostitute at a time when women were considered chattel no matter their social standing. From beginning to end, we see that Mary Jane Kelly lived by her own set of rules and did not allow male dominance to get in the way. Whether her choices were good or bad, they were her own. Alan Clark has given each of Jack's victims a voice but none more than Mary Jane.
Clark has done a remarkable job channeling his inner feminist. The entire series portrays the strength of women. If you think about what women have done in support of family and children, you will understand that these are not the stories of drunks who were murdered. These are the stories of women who did whatever was necessary to keep body and soul together in the squalor that was London's East End. I promise you that reading these books will change your perspective on this period in history.
If I may interject a point of personal privilege here, in 1999 I was in London. One of the things on my to-do-in-London list was to participate in a Jack the Ripper walking tour which I did with my husband. Our tour guide was Donald Rumbelow, a former City of London police officer, and the author of THE COMPLETE JACK THE RIPPER, which I had read. He is a London Police historian and has written books about crime other than this infamous unsolved case. The first thing to know about these tours is that almost nothing of the actual murder sites remains today. There are no Victorian chills until you get to Artillery Lane, Spitalfields. Walking down this unlit channel, in near total darkness, evokes an almost indescribable dread. When Clark puts Mary Jane Kelly walking on the very street, a street that still exists, I was back on that walking tour remembering the foreboding I felt some twenty years ago.
Whether you read or listen (or switch back and forth), this book, and the entire series, will add to your understanding of a time of great societal change and of the hardships women had to endure while that change was taking place. Think of where we are today. We have fought for and earned rights denied to these Victorian women, yet we stand on the precipice once again. I urge you, man or woman, to read these books to better understand the ongoing plight of women.
Such are the books in the Jack the Ripper Victim series, by Alan M. Clark, and narrated by Alicia Rose This, the fifth book in the series, elicits a certain dread that makes it as difficult to hear as it is to stop listening. The dread comes from what anyone who has read anything about the Ripper knows of Mary Jane Kelly, the fifth and final victim in the canon. She was the youngest, and by all accounts, the prettiest, and the only one so badly mutilated as to lose all semblance of humanity. As the protagonist of this tale, Alicia Rose's dramatic narration puts you, the listener, into a place you would not want to be. Somehow, using nothing but her voice, she puts you into that place that is Victorian London's seediest. Her rendition of Clark's introductory material, sets the stage perfectly. This is historical fiction that depicts, quite plausibly, the life that Mary Jane Kelly may have lived before it was so brutally ended.
It is important to understand that THE PROSTITUTE'S PRICE is a work of historical fiction, not another book attempting to solve the Ripper murders. It is a book about one woman, who by all accounts was a young, professional prostitute at a time when women were considered chattel no matter their social standing. From beginning to end, we see that Mary Jane Kelly lived by her own set of rules and did not allow male dominance to get in the way. Whether her choices were good or bad, they were her own. Alan Clark has given each of Jack's victims a voice but none more than Mary Jane.
Clark has done a remarkable job channeling his inner feminist. The entire series portrays the strength of women. If you think about what women have done in support of family and children, you will understand that these are not the stories of drunks who were murdered. These are the stories of women who did whatever was necessary to keep body and soul together in the squalor that was London's East End. I promise you that reading these books will change your perspective on this period in history.
If I may interject a point of personal privilege here, in 1999 I was in London. One of the things on my to-do-in-London list was to participate in a Jack the Ripper walking tour which I did with my husband. Our tour guide was Donald Rumbelow, a former City of London police officer, and the author of THE COMPLETE JACK THE RIPPER, which I had read. He is a London Police historian and has written books about crime other than this infamous unsolved case. The first thing to know about these tours is that almost nothing of the actual murder sites remains today. There are no Victorian chills until you get to Artillery Lane, Spitalfields. Walking down this unlit channel, in near total darkness, evokes an almost indescribable dread. When Clark puts Mary Jane Kelly walking on the very street, a street that still exists, I was back on that walking tour remembering the foreboding I felt some twenty years ago.
Whether you read or listen (or switch back and forth), this book, and the entire series, will add to your understanding of a time of great societal change and of the hardships women had to endure while that change was taking place. Think of where we are today. We have fought for and earned rights denied to these Victorian women, yet we stand on the precipice once again. I urge you, man or woman, to read these books to better understand the ongoing plight of women.
January 17, 2019
Well, I tried. I enjoyed Of Thimble and Threat, Clark's earlier excursion into this material with Jack the Ripper's unfortunate victims. But this one just never seemed to capture my interest. There's nothing essentially wrong with the way it's constructed or written. It just couldn't hold my attention for long. I can't take Victorian/Old English language seriously, no matter how romanticized it may be. It ends up looking like an autistic person speaking on the written page (to me, at least). Also, I don't really find the 'occupation' of sex worker to be too interesting, and I definitely don't find it respectable or legitimate. Still, the real life photo of 'Mary Jane' is very haunting. I think Alan should have included it in this book. Why not go all the way, if you're already there? I admire this literary undertaking Mr. Clark went on, but in the end, it just didn't speak to me. It has little to do with Clark's abilities and more with my current interests.
January 7, 2020
5 CRANKY STARS
This is a historical fiction account of Mary Jane Kelly a victim of Jack the Ripper. It seems accurate to the lifestyle of the times and was very entertaining. It showed the depth of the gap between the rich and the poor. Mary Jane Kelly was just one of many women, young and old that had only their bodies to use to earn a living. All they wanted was a life that supplied the basic of needs and allowed them to live. That wasn’t always the case, but they did what they had too to survive. Some women opened houses where the girls plied their trade.
Mary Jane Kelly’s background and her life leading up to the time Jack the Ripper started his killing spree is described in detail. You develop a sympathy for this young woman. No one should have to live the life she had endured. She always blamed herself for her mother’s death. Her father was cruel and hateful towards her so when she was married off at 16, she embraced it. An accident at work killed her husband a few years later and she moved on to an Aunt’s house. It is there she learns some interesting facts about Prostitution that put her into the position to "meet" Jack.
I hope everyone will try this book. I found it depressing but fun to read. The author is very good at what he does. This new cover is just right for this story.
This is a historical fiction account of Mary Jane Kelly a victim of Jack the Ripper. It seems accurate to the lifestyle of the times and was very entertaining. It showed the depth of the gap between the rich and the poor. Mary Jane Kelly was just one of many women, young and old that had only their bodies to use to earn a living. All they wanted was a life that supplied the basic of needs and allowed them to live. That wasn’t always the case, but they did what they had too to survive. Some women opened houses where the girls plied their trade.
Mary Jane Kelly’s background and her life leading up to the time Jack the Ripper started his killing spree is described in detail. You develop a sympathy for this young woman. No one should have to live the life she had endured. She always blamed herself for her mother’s death. Her father was cruel and hateful towards her so when she was married off at 16, she embraced it. An accident at work killed her husband a few years later and she moved on to an Aunt’s house. It is there she learns some interesting facts about Prostitution that put her into the position to "meet" Jack.
I hope everyone will try this book. I found it depressing but fun to read. The author is very good at what he does. This new cover is just right for this story.
February 3, 2020
The ending of this book disappointed me. I'm not allowed to explain, but this is MY opinion.
The story itself was interesting, engaging and easy to follow. The mile long list of characters were hard to keep up with but they each were a different sort. Mary Jane was a sweet lady, who helped her friends but at the same time, her sweetness she used against others to get what she wants. She was smart and well put together for a ladybird and I really liked her.
The writing again was on point for that era and was easy to understand the majority of the time. The dialogue in some places was a bit off though and didn’t make sense but it was only a couple time it did that.
Otherwise, another great read.
The story itself was interesting, engaging and easy to follow. The mile long list of characters were hard to keep up with but they each were a different sort. Mary Jane was a sweet lady, who helped her friends but at the same time, her sweetness she used against others to get what she wants. She was smart and well put together for a ladybird and I really liked her.
The writing again was on point for that era and was easy to understand the majority of the time. The dialogue in some places was a bit off though and didn’t make sense but it was only a couple time it did that.
Otherwise, another great read.
June 25, 2019
I have read a lot of books about Jack the Ripper. As is the case in many books about serial killers, it’s the killer rather than the victims who gets all the attention. Jack is the “hero” while his victims are cannon or knife fodder. In The Prostitute’s Price, we are told the story from the perspective of Mary Jane Kelly, Jack the Ripper’s final canonical victim. Jack himself doesn’t appear until late in the book and then as a dark background character who causes fear in the streets but really doesn’t do much to influence the main part of the story. We learn about Mary Jane Kelly from her childhood up until the end of her life. And what a life it is.
Mary Jane becomes a human being. She is someone you care about, someone who you hope might be able to avoid her fate. Along the way, Mary Jane has opportunities to have a good and happy life, but far too often circumstances, or nasty relatives or customers, intervene and ruin her hopes. She is thrust into the life of a prostitute but doesn’t allow that to ruin her. Mary Jane, like many of the women in the book, does what she does to survive. She dreams of getting away from the life, yet she remains in place to help others in the life, notably an older woman named Jennifer Weatherhead.
Throughout the book, the reader is immersed in the life of London in the 1880s. The attention to detail is remarkable. You can feel the squalor of Whitechapel and almost smell the overpowering stink of the filth. The characters, both real and fictional, are alive and fully developed.
Though the end of the story is inevitable, the journey there is full of mystery and hope that maybe everything is not what you might think.
I give this book five stars because I can’t give it more.
Mary Jane becomes a human being. She is someone you care about, someone who you hope might be able to avoid her fate. Along the way, Mary Jane has opportunities to have a good and happy life, but far too often circumstances, or nasty relatives or customers, intervene and ruin her hopes. She is thrust into the life of a prostitute but doesn’t allow that to ruin her. Mary Jane, like many of the women in the book, does what she does to survive. She dreams of getting away from the life, yet she remains in place to help others in the life, notably an older woman named Jennifer Weatherhead.
Throughout the book, the reader is immersed in the life of London in the 1880s. The attention to detail is remarkable. You can feel the squalor of Whitechapel and almost smell the overpowering stink of the filth. The characters, both real and fictional, are alive and fully developed.
Though the end of the story is inevitable, the journey there is full of mystery and hope that maybe everything is not what you might think.
I give this book five stars because I can’t give it more.
September 12, 2018
A well-written book is hard to put down. I'm not talking about the traditional page-turner, I mean a book that tells a story so well that one is trapped within the pages. Such are the books in the Jack the Ripper Victim series, by Alan M. Clark. This, the fifth book in the series, elicits a certain dread that makes it as difficult to read as it is to put down. The bad feeling comes from what anyone who has read anything about the Ripper knows of Mary Jane Kelly, the fifth and final victim in the canon. She was the youngest, and by all accounts, the prettiest, and the only one so badly mutilated as to lose all semblance of humanity. Do not fail to read Clark's introductory material, for if you do, the purpose of this tale could very well be lost on you. This is historical fiction that depicts, quite plausibly, the life that Mary Jane Kelly lived before it was so brutally ended.
It is important to understand that THE PROSTITUTE'S PRICE is a work of historical fiction, not another book attempting to solve the Ripper murders. It is a book about one woman, who by all accounts was a young, professional prostitute at a time when women were considered chattel no matter their social standing. From beginning to end, we see that Mary Jane Kelly lived by her own set of rules and did not allow male dominance to get in the way. Whether her choices were good or bad, they were her own. Alan Clark has given each of Jack's victims a voice but none more than Mary Jane.
Clark has done a remarkable job channeling his inner feminist. The entire series portrays the strength of women. If you think about what women have done in support of family and children, you will understand that these are not the stories of drunks who were murdered. These are the stories of women who did whatever was necessary to keep body and soul together in the squalor that was London's East End. I promise you that reading these books will change your perspective on this period in history.
As much as I looked forward to this last book in the series, reading it left one thing to be desired. The narrator of the first four books, Alicia Rose, did such a fabulous job with evoking the women's voices and hardships that made the stories so poignant. I am hoping that she will narrate this last one as well.
Whether you read or listen (or switch back and forth), this book, and the entire series, will add to your understanding of a time of great societal change and the hardships women had to endure while that change was happening. Think of where we are today. We have fought for and earned rights denied to these Victorian women, yet we stand on the precipice once again. I urge you, man or woman, to read these books to better understand the ongoing plight of women.
It is important to understand that THE PROSTITUTE'S PRICE is a work of historical fiction, not another book attempting to solve the Ripper murders. It is a book about one woman, who by all accounts was a young, professional prostitute at a time when women were considered chattel no matter their social standing. From beginning to end, we see that Mary Jane Kelly lived by her own set of rules and did not allow male dominance to get in the way. Whether her choices were good or bad, they were her own. Alan Clark has given each of Jack's victims a voice but none more than Mary Jane.
Clark has done a remarkable job channeling his inner feminist. The entire series portrays the strength of women. If you think about what women have done in support of family and children, you will understand that these are not the stories of drunks who were murdered. These are the stories of women who did whatever was necessary to keep body and soul together in the squalor that was London's East End. I promise you that reading these books will change your perspective on this period in history.
As much as I looked forward to this last book in the series, reading it left one thing to be desired. The narrator of the first four books, Alicia Rose, did such a fabulous job with evoking the women's voices and hardships that made the stories so poignant. I am hoping that she will narrate this last one as well.
Whether you read or listen (or switch back and forth), this book, and the entire series, will add to your understanding of a time of great societal change and the hardships women had to endure while that change was happening. Think of where we are today. We have fought for and earned rights denied to these Victorian women, yet we stand on the precipice once again. I urge you, man or woman, to read these books to better understand the ongoing plight of women.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews