Jack the Ripper's Streets of Terror: Life during the reign of Victorian London's most brutal killer

by Rupert Matthews

An exploration of the Jack the Ripper murders through the eyes of the Londoners who lived through it, including eye-witness accounts and inquest testimonies.

The shocking murders carried out by an unknown serial killer in London's East End in during the autumn of 1888 dominated the news and public imagination at the time and have continued to exert a baleful influence ever since. But what was it like to live through those terrifying weeks? No matter what precautions the locals took, the killings continued.

Featuring eye-witness accounts, photographs and documents of the time, this book looks at the crimes of Jack the Ripper and their impact on the people of Victorian London. It follows the way the crimes affected the local population, the rumours that swept the streets, the alarms, the riots, the persecutions, the suspicions and the sheer naked terror of the awful autumn when Jack the Ripper stalked the streets.

ABOUT THE SERIES : The True Criminals series provides gripping exposés on some of the most twisted criminals the world has ever seen. Augmented by chilling photographs, this series provides snapshots into the minds of these villains and their deadly acts.

Genres: Nonfiction, True Crime, History

239 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 1, 2021

Reviews

[Sarah - All The Book Blog Names Are Taken · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am really torn on how to rate this one. I loved the sense of the era that the author provided, especially describing the activities of the people who lived in White Chapel and how they were determined to take care of their own. But I really hate that he kept using the word retarded to describe certain people. It’s generally not accepted as an appropriate term anymore so maybe stop?

[Reb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Personally gonna rate this one:
3.5/5 Stars.

Want to know the full history of Jack The Rippers rein of terror in East London in the 1880s? Well this book has you covered.

It was actually quite interesting how much work and research went into constructing a timeline and road map of the Five well known Jack The Ripper murders and another half dozen or so that were never fully confirmed to be Jack the Ripper murders.

One big problem I had while reading this book was that, even though a detailed timeline is structured, it wasn’t exactly linear. There’s a lot of back and forth between events that took place between the 1870s, 1880s and 1890s, with the majority of the crimes/events taking place in 1880s.

One significant part in the story that intrigued me but also disappeared me, was the fact that, after the first couple of murders occurred; a lot of the townsfolk were determined to hunt and capture Jack the Ripper themselves. Only problem was, they started going after anyone and everyone who acted “suspicious” and the police ended up arrested over dozens of suspicious men, one of whom, they eventually realized, may have been Jack the Ripper, but released him do to no probable cause.

All in all, an interesting book none the less, but maybe not one for everyone.

[Ella Franks · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who enjoys true crime and mystery, this book was perfect. It ends with all the suspects that could have committed the crimes, leaving you to wonder and make theories of your own on who did it and why.

[Kira K · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thoughts:
This is a very detailed and pretty insightful book. I only had a basic knowledge of the Ripper killings and am by no means an aspiring Ripperologist so the book enlightened me quite a bit. There are a few chapters at the beginning that help us to contextualise the murders and there's also a lot of direct newspaper quotes and direct quotes from trials which I found to be a great touch. It was interesting that Martha Turner was included in a chapter at first since she isn’t considered one of the canonical five today but the injuries and MO were actually similar and the police saw similarities when the canonical murders occurred. Two murders after the last accepted murder are also included but it shows how they can be seen as not related in comparison to the Turner murder which was accepted at the time. Overall, I don’t think Matthews really romanticised the crimes and Catherine Eddows or Mary Kelly’s mortuary pictures were excluded (while the others were shown) to avoid sharing such brutal and vulnerable pictures of the women. All the suspects were also included by the end with some being more detailed than others depending on the research and evidence behind them.

Favourite Quote:
“It is not the number of victims that Jack the Ripper claimed that ensure his lasting fame. Only five women were definitely killed by him, and certainly there were no more than eight victims. Other serial killers since then have murdered more. And although the horrific mutilations Jack the Ripper carried out were disturbing and violent, they too have been surpassed since. In the records of serial killers, Jack the Ripper is unexceptional in many ways. But he remains the most famous of them all.”

[Ainsley Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

the book was pretty boring in the beginning. i didn’t really care to know what life was like before murders. i think the sections about life prior to the murders should have been shorter. however, the author did accomplish what he set out to do. if you are looking for a book talking about Whitechapel before, during, and after Jack the Ripper's killing spree, then this is a perfect book. i’m pretty sure the author was missing many commas. for example, he said “on the other hand” without having a comma after ‘hand,’ which i don’t think is right. there were a couple sentences/phrases that just didn’t make since, and i think that it was because he didn’t add commas. i think you can make non-fiction interesting, but the author did not do a very good job at that. the author included pictures and descriptions of the murders which i didn’t really want to see, but at the same time couldn’t stop looking at. idk if it’s good or bad to add pictures. i like the way the book ended. overall, this book was really hard to finish. i read the first half in like 2 weeks, and it took 3 months to finish it. i would have dnf'd it if i had been less than half way.

[Candice's Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

its not bad. I haven't researched much on Jack The Ripper so I didn't know there were 2 attacks before a murder and then Jacks infamous 6 other murders.

This book gives you articles from newspapers and quotes from different individuals in the case. The varying accounts make it seem why thats why they never caught him and the police believed the famous Dear Boss letters to be fake. Mainly because when the letters were sent it seemed to be after details came out.

The detectives withheld some information from the public so that only the true killer would know that a uterus would be removed. Also the night he killed 2 women he was interrupted by someone on the first so other than her throat being cut she wasn't butchered and then not long after found another woman to butcher.

It was a quick and interesting read. I enjoy books on this kind of stuff. its a good change of pace when I need a new genre.

I'd say 3.5 stars rounded up. there were some things I loved about this book. Mainly it being so much to leave to the readers imagination to make your own assumptions but I wondered what was left out. The case that has remained cold for so long.

[Sir Robbiethehoo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very satisfactory book if basing it as an introduction to the subject. A nice addition to the book is the opening chapters covering life in London in the late 1880s and into the 1890s. A lot of easily digestible information is given in a relatively short book; murders covered in a fair amount of detail and suspects touched upon as well as a consideration as to how well a job the police did investigating the crime. A very good book as I say for a starting point for getting more into the subject.

Philip Sugden’s Casebook of Jack the Ripper would be my go to book for a more in-depth analysis of the subject. It has the same easy to follow and understand writing style. There is simply a lot more to read.

I think Rupert Matthews’s book could have benefited from a timeline of events - when the murders happened and any relevant accompanying information included would have been helpful.

[Dan Brand · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining. But like most Ripperologists, sometimes guilty of trying to finesse the evidence to fit the suspect. Well written, but gets carried away with polemics at times. I wouldn't argue that the Victorian establishment was pretty awful. The fact that, with sufficient reason they would have been morally capable of covering up the truth about the Whitechapel murders, doesn't mean doesn't mean it happened that way. However, something of a different perspective. And the stuff about Charles Warren is fascinating.

[Steven Loebig · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not one to read nonfiction very often, but I am very glad I picked this book up. This book was nothing but facts the entire time and included a massive amount of exhilarating information including statements, mortuary photographs, and evidence that history experts haven't heard of before.

It is a quick read because it sticks purely to the facts. I cannot recommend this book enough if you have an interest in history or the macabre.

[Courtney Dixon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great quick read providing a nice overview of the infamous Jack the Ripper murders in Whitechapel. After so much studying has been done on the first modern day serial killer, and the most notable unsolved murders in history, there's not much "new" information to come forth. This book was based strictly on facts, evidence and thoughts of the investigators of the time. Worth a read for those interested in learning about the Ripper, especially as an introduction!

[E.J. J Doble · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thorough overview of the murders and investigations surrounding the infamous Jack the Ripper, including some neat analyses of the time period and the more modern interpretations of the profiles made and their suspects. The book had NO REFERENCES, however, dropping it to a four star, but other than that it's a great book!

[Heather Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

It provides a general overview of the time period. The author didn't write academically and there were a few sentences that could have been worded better. There are no sources which make me want to give it a two star review, but as the author was respectful of the deceased I gave a 3 star review.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not very good. Trades too much on its tenuous Ripper connection.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Interesting

Good historical facts. Great read, the author didn't shy away from describing the scenes and at the end reviews the possible suspects.

[jayne bond · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an informative book...detailing the whole shocking event. Highly recommended.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative. I learned a lot I didn’t know.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative.

[Megan Woodford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very Good 👍.

[R MORLEY · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Enjoyed this book and found it very interesting.would definitely recommend .will look to see what other books this author has wrote

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eu simplesmente amei o livro, achei o uso de imagens e a escrita impecáveis!

[Snakeman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read.

[Frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very informative and enjoyable to learn a bit about the lives of the victims, whilst it was a tiny shock to see the images of the victims, I do think it helped with clarity of descriptions.
My only issue, albeit very slight, I found some chapters/pages drew on a bit more than what was needed, which made some parts a tad dull.

[Kemp Wilcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book. It kept my interest the entire time. And I learned some things I never knew before about one of the most famous of psycho murderers. As with a lot of other killers of the same caliber, he was insanely smart as he avoided detection and toyed with the media and police. Scary stuff, man. Reminded me of the book I read about Zodiac. The thought that a human being can actually be this evil is chilling. Movie monsters and horror stories don't keep me awake at night. Real life stories about people like Jack the Ripper do.

[Brianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beginning of this book was filled with history lessons on what other events were also happening in London, like the match girls strikes and the political changes. Which is informative, but not really necessary. You can skip to page 64, everything before that is pretty irrelevant to this story. Still very informative though. Don’t expect it to read like a fiction novel, it reads like what it is, a research novel about this serial killers crimes. Lots of times and events thrown at you, of course.