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

[aspallek]

Plimmer's was the worst. I gave up when he had the Ripper fleeing over Tower Bridge which hadn't even been built yet!

[Sam Flynn]

Sorry everyone I should have made a stipulation that Portrait of a Killer should not even be mentioned

I don't see why not, Elizabeth. I'm by no means a fan, but at least Portrait of a Killer is well written and coherent in its (admittedly one-eyed) arguments. That's more than can be said for some of the dreck mentioned so far in this thread!

PS: I should add that, by "dreck", I emphatically don't mean Rumbelow or Harris.

[Suzi]

Gawd! do we mean The Worst...or the Worst written or both???

OK The Worst has to be Ivor's 'Black Magic Rituals' etc etc- the worst written is of course open to personal opinion -and I'm not getting involved here on that one- One of the 'oddest' has to be Murder and Madness' by Dr David Abrahamsen not to say it's THAT bad. To be honest everything is worth a read!...Even Mr Knight was readable -come on it was- it got a lot of us off on one!!!!!

There is of course T H E W O R S T !!!!!!!!!!!! but I can't begin to go there!!! (BAPHOMET WON'T LET ME!!! )

[Sam Flynn]

Even Mr Knight was readable -come on it was- it got a lot of us off on one

I certainly did, Suzi - for all its nonsense, The Final Solution was a gripping read. From that perspective, it could be argued to be one of the best! May God strike me down...

[Suzi]

DID GARETH SAY PORTRAIT OF A KILLER WAS WELL WRITTEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!....... well so was ' Five go to Mystery Moor!'
Aaaaaaaaagh!!

[Mike Covell]

I had to put sunglasses on when I looked at the front cover of "Murder and Madness", it's so bright! I have yet to read it properly, after several people put me off!

[anna]

..I was thinking more along the lines of:

"NODDY GOES TO TOYTOWN"................personally.

[Sam Flynn]

DID GARETH SAY PORTRAIT OF A KILLER WAS WELL WRITTEN!

I'm afraid so, and I meant it. I must be going soft in the head, Suzi.

[claire]

Oh, Five Go To Mystery Moor...that probably had a better solution than that awful Plimmer book that I had forgotten all about...my God, someone got that for me for Christmas a couple of years ago; I had a hangover when I tried to read it so assumed it was that which was making my head hurt. But now, when I try to recall it, I feel that deadening extending up my body...

Oh God.

[JustForJolly]

As one of the four Yorkshiremen said 'right'! I'm sorry to disagree with you Sam but whether it was well written or not Portrait of a Killer was awful. Just because Sickert may have written a few JtR letters, he was JtR, bloody QED. And the thought of her buying up all the Sickert paintings she could get her hands on and then tinkering about with them, pure vandalism. And I take exception to anything entitled Case Closed. Yes I'm back and more annoying than ever.

Mike, you're right, I meant the Edwards book not the Harris one.

Knight's JtR: The Final Solution was beautifully written but he should have made it a novel.

What's that terrible book about MJD that goes on about cricket for most of the book? I used to think 'bored to tears' was just a phrase, now I know different.

And anything entitled Uncle Jack, My Grandfather was Jack the Ripper or Me and my Dog were Jack the Ripper should be avoided at all costs.

I'm going to write a book naming Gladstone as the Ripper. The evidence is he used to search for prostitutes in his spare time to 'reform' them, the suspect was seen with a GLADSTONE bag, he was a religious maniac who used to self-flagellate himself after the tete-a-tete with the prostitutes to atone for his sinful thoughts and Queen Victoria couldn't stand him, probably because she knew he was JtR. There, I've just provided more evidence messing about than many Ripper books have offered in the entire books.

Elizabeth

[Mike Covell]

And anything entitled Uncle Jack, My Grandfather was Jack the Ripper or Me and my Dog were Jack the Ripper should be avoided at all costs. Elizabeth

Especially when the Uncle wasn't even an Uncle at all!

[Sam Flynn]

As one of the four Yorkshiremen said 'right'! I'm sorry to disagree with you Sam but whether it was well written or not Portrait of a Killer was awful. Just because Sickert may have written a few JtR letters, he was JtR, bloody QED.

I'm not defending her thesis, Elizabeth - I'm just bringing to mind those books I've read whose arguments were almost as flawed, but whose content and construction were orders of magnitude worse.

[Suzi]

OK now where were we with Uncle Quentin???
It wouldn't (sadly ) be allowed these days!!!! Bet it'd be H & S !!!!!

Grrrrr That's before we get into 'George' (!!!!!!!!)-and Gawd then there's Timmy!
Suz xx

[Howard Brown]

Books which omit crucial information or distort tangible sourced and available material or provide only some of the details regarding an individual are far worse than any "Epiphany" when it comes to suspect based Ripperological works. One collects books like the Epiphany to compliment their burgeoning Ripper library. One more importantly uses the allegedly "factual" suspect-promoting works of others until the day they realize they've been duped.

The bandwagon some of the "old heads" in Ripperology jumped on back in the centennial year or around that time still makes the rounds,doesn't it? As long a there is a hungry market for books on suspects, books will be written to capitalize on the interest...some are implausible,like the Epiphany and some WERE plausible until reexamined.

We have works available promoting Macnaghten as the Ripper...ostensibly researched for 16 years by a woman in her early 30's...which is an eyebrow raiser to begin with. Yet another states that the organs of the victims were nicked in the mortuary and not by the killer.

Same old,same old.

[JustForJolly]

I apologise for my audacity Sam, I hope we're still friends! Anyway I'm off now for the weekend, peace reigns.

Elizabeth