What is the worst Ripper book you've ever read?

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  • GUT
    Commissioner
    • Jan 2014
    • 7841

    #196
    Worst JtR book ever ????

    What about the one by that Wescott fellow, just buy a copy and see.
    G U T

    There are two ways to be fooled, one is to believe what isn't true, the other is to refuse to believe that which is true.

    Comment

    • Wickerman
      Commissioner
      • Oct 2008
      • 14864

      #197
      Originally posted by Tom_Wescott View Post
      Me too, Jon. Summing up and Verdict was a fun read, but full of errors because the authors had not kept up with the latest research of the time. The book came out along with Fido and shortly after Begg and so got lost in the shuffle.

      Yours truly,

      Tom Wescott
      I agree that Summing up and Verdict was a good read when it came out, but the worst book I read, or attempted to read was, Prince Jack, I gave up out of frustration.
      That said there are other books that I have not read and will never read because the theory is so bloody awful.
      Regards, Jon S.

      Comment

      • Damaso Marte
        Sergeant
        • Jan 2012
        • 612

        #198
        Maybrick Diary

        Comment

        • Rosella
          Chief Inspector
          • Sep 2014
          • 1542

          #199
          'Prince Jack' by a long gallop. I didn't read it for years, as it was banned in England. I think Frank Spiering has/had issues!

          Comment

          • barnflatwyngarde
            Inspector
            • Sep 2014
            • 1141

            #200
            Originally posted by Tom_Wescott View Post
            Me too, Jon. Summing up and Verdict was a fun read, but full of errors because the authors had not kept up with the latest research of the time. The book came out along with Fido and shortly after Begg and so got lost in the shuffle.

            Yours truly,

            Tom Wescott
            Doh!

            Ok, I'll give it another read.
            I'm always ready to revise my opinions.

            Comment

            • jmenges
              Moderator
              • Feb 2008
              • 2247

              #201
              And a point in favor of "Summing up and Verdict" is that it's the first book to mention Anderson's Blackwood Magazine memoirs and relate that the Seaside home ID failed because the witness was a fellow jew. A detail not in Fido (who guesses that the witness was a City PC). Which is note worthy since the book appeared the same month that Jim Swanson approached the Daily Telegraph, and so does not support the idea that the marginalia was a forgery based on modern published texts.

              JM

              Comment

              • barnflatwyngarde
                Inspector
                • Sep 2014
                • 1141

                #202
                Originally posted by jmenges View Post
                And a point in favor of "Summing up and Verdict" is that it's the first book to mention Anderson's Blackwood Magazine memoirs and relate that the Seaside home ID failed because the witness was a fellow jew. A detail not in Fido (who guesses that the witness was a City PC). Which is note worthy since the book appeared the same month that Jim Swanson approached the Daily Telegraph, and so does not support the idea that the marginalia was a forgery based on modern published texts.

                JM
                I had forgotten about the Seaside Home identification.

                I will start rereading again today.

                Looking forward to going through the time tunnel!

                Comment

                • Peter Griffith aka gryff
                  Detective
                  • Sep 2014
                  • 118

                  #203
                  How about "Bloodstains" by Jeff Mudgett.

                  Is it actually a book - it seems to be only available in electronic format at Amazon.com?

                  Amazon use these words to describe the content:

                  "Bloodstains is the startling tale of one man’s search for the truth after inheriting the personal diaries belonging to his great-great-grandfather who he discovers was America’s first and most notorious serial killer Herman Webster Mudgett. Better known by his alias H.H. Holmes"
                  ...
                  "Jeff pieces together a dynamic and extraordinary puzzle, including the strong possibility that Holmes was also Jack the Ripper"
                  ...
                  "Far more than a documentary, Bloodstains is precariously balanced on the very edge between non-fiction and the paranormal, as the author’s research of his evil ancestor quickly takes on a personal aspect."
                  Anyone actually read it?

                  cheers, gryff

                  Comment

                  • PaulB
                    Superintendent
                    • Jun 2010
                    • 2218

                    #204
                    There are plenty of contenders for the worst book about Jack the Ripper, and it depends how you define "worst", but two which in my view put all others in the shade are

                    Death of a Prince by Jeanette Han

                    Jack the Ripper: American Hero: Was Lincoln's Avenger the Whitechapel Murderer? by Jacob Corbett

                    The first is a compulsively readable account of a group of Australian ladies on a psychic tour of Britain and solving the Ripper mystery. Readable but truly awful. The second is so bad I am at a loss to describe it. The argument Corbett advances is explained in about a page and a half and in essence is that Corbett's fate being unknown he could have come to London. The rest of the book consists of the inquest reports lifted wholesale from Casebook, in one case Corbett not even bothering to remove the yellow highlighting. For this he charged a tenner.

                    The list of plain bad books such as Uncle Jack, Hand of a Woman, and so on, is ever growing.

                    Comment

                    • Tom_Wescott
                      Commissioner
                      • Feb 2008
                      • 6996

                      #205
                      Originally posted by PaulB View Post
                      n

                      Jack the Ripper: American Hero: Was Lincoln's Avenger the Whitechapel Murderer? by Jacob Corbett

                      The second is so bad I am at a loss to describe it. The argument Corbett advances is explained in about a page and a half and in essence is that Corbett's fate being unknown he could have come to London. The rest of the book consists of the inquest reports lifted wholesale from Casebook, in one case Corbett not even bothering to remove the yellow highlighting. For this he charged a tenner.
                      Oh Lord, I'd completely forgotten about this one. I have a few copies of it. I ordered only one but was sent like four. I recall checking to make sure I wasn't overcharged, but only charged for one. I was actually excited about that until I dove in to the book. Most horrid thing. I heard shortly after it was pulled from sale. Not sure why or if that's true but someone said they tried to order it and it wasn't available.

                      Yours truly,

                      Tom Wescott

                      Comment

                      • pinkmoon
                        Chief Inspector
                        • Jul 2013
                        • 1813

                        #206
                        I'm voting for my book when it's out it will be truly awfull and lacking in any real facts but it will sell and make me a load of money and that's the most important thing.
                        Three things in life that don't stay hidden for to long ones the sun ones the moon and the other is the truth

                        Comment

                        • PaulB
                          Superintendent
                          • Jun 2010
                          • 2218

                          #207
                          Originally posted by pinkmoon View Post
                          I'm voting for my book when it's out it will be truly awfull and lacking in any real facts but it will sell and make me a load of money and that's the most important thing.
                          If you figure out how to make money from a Ripper book please be sure to let me know. I've been trying without success for years.

                          Comment

                          • Bridewell
                            Commissioner
                            • Apr 2011
                            • 4038

                            #208
                            Originally posted by barnflatwyngarde View Post
                            I'm always ready to revise my opinions.
                            Are you sure you're posting on the right forum?
                            I won't always agree but I'll try not to be disagreeable.

                            Comment

                            • Bridewell
                              Commissioner
                              • Apr 2011
                              • 4038

                              #209
                              Originally posted by PaulB View Post
                              If you figure out how to make money from a Ripper book please be sure to let me know. I've been trying without success for years.
                              I'm ashamed to say that I picked up a copy of "The Facts" brand new, in hardback, for £2 a few weeks ago. I'm guessing that you didn't make much on that copy. I should point out that this post is 'off topic' for this thread - just wanted to point out that good JtR books can be had for not much money.
                              Last edited by Bridewell; 10-04-2014, 03:16 PM.
                              I won't always agree but I'll try not to be disagreeable.

                              Comment

                              • Bridewell
                                Commissioner
                                • Apr 2011
                                • 4038

                                #210
                                "Jack the Ripper - A Psychic Investigation" by Pamela Ball is a contender. The psychic involved was not helped by the quality of the information provided.
                                I won't always agree but I'll try not to be disagreeable.

                                Comment

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