The Bank Holiday Murders by Tom Wescott (2014)

[Tom_Wescott]

For Kindle owners: My Kindle Fire (first generation) has stopped recharging completely. I don't know how to remove or replace the battery. Other than buying a new device, what should I do in order to access my Kindle library? (I've been accessing them via the iPad my workplace gave me, for now, but that may not be the best long-term solution.)

For Mr. Wescott: I think your book may be one of the first I order with my new Amazon gift card, so thank you!

Good choice! As for Kindle, all your downloads are accessible via your amazon account, so resending them to any new device is easy. I have a Kindle Fire.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[GUT]

Good choice! As for Kindle, all your downloads are accessible via your amazon account, so resending them to any new device is easy. I have a Kindle Fire.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

Yep the Kindle was a good choice but what about the book Dunny wants to order

[GUT]

For Kindle owners: My Kindle Fire (first generation) has stopped recharging completely. I don't know how to remove or replace the battery. Other than buying a new device, what should I do in order to access my Kindle library? (I've been accessing them via the iPad my workplace gave me, for now, but that may not be the best long-term solution.)

For Mr. Wescott: I think your book may be one of the first I order with my new Amazon gift card, so thank you!

I am not a big fan of reading on a device, call me old fashioned but love paper, however to the limited degree I do I use my iPad, it works really well, I had a Kindle Fire at one stage [that gave to mum] I actually prefer the iPad.

And decent electronics store should be able to do the battery for you I know that here in Aus there are a lot of stalls and stores that do batteries and screens on most devices on the spot. Also I suspect that most computer repair shops could do it. Now whether it is economical or not is another question.

[Tom_Wescott]

Yep the Kindle was a good choice but what about the book Dunny wants to order

I thought that was my book? Or am I missing something?

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Pcdunn]

I thought that was my book? Or am I missing something?

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

No, you're right, it's your book.
I'll look into the battery replacement for my Kindle...

[GUT]

I thought that was my book? Or am I missing something?

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

Just stirring Tom, no secret that I think your book is GREAT

[RockySullivan]

This book is awesome! Unfortunately it's rather short and it's over before it begins. The author uncovers some incredible leads that leave the reader with more questions than answers. A great read tho tom really is on the right track to solving the mustery

[Tom_Wescott]

This book is awesome! Unfortunately it's rather short and it's over before it begins. The author uncovers some incredible leads that leave the reader with more questions than answers. A great read tho tom really is on the right track to solving the mustery

Hi Rocky, thanks for that. Yes, I leave a ton of unanswered questions, but that's largely because I asked a lot of questions that have never been asked before. Now that they HAVE been asked, there's a potential for answers. Something I've observed about Ripperology is that you enter the subject with a single question - 'Who was Jack the Ripper?' But before you know it, that single question is a dozen, then a hundred, then thousands. The more you learn the less you know. That's Ripperology.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[RockySullivan]

Tom, how much have you looked into the torso murders? Are the Scotland Yard files on the case completely lost? Has anyone been allowed to go thru the torso files? I imagine since they case received much less attention than the ripper case there would be less looting of the torso files. Is it possible some of the torso files have not been gone thru yet? Debra A should be forced to write a book on the torso case!

[RockySullivan]

Hi Rocky, thanks for that. Yes, I leave a ton of unanswered questions, but that's largely because I asked a lot of questions that have never been asked before. Now that they HAVE been asked, there's a potential for answers. Something I've observed about Ripperology is that you enter the subject with a single question - 'Who was Jack the Ripper?' But before you know it, that single question is a dozen, then a hundred, then thousands. The more you learn the less you know. That's Ripperology.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

Cheers tom, I was expecting the book to delve into le grand so I will be awaiting your next book on him. Who do you think McCarthy/crossing ham /satchel would have been protecting? It seems you've uncovered that 35 Dorset played an incredibly prominent role in the murders!

[Amanda Sumner]

I too know neither author except here on casebook, never met them, never had and discussions with them other than on the forums, don't necessarily agree with some things they say, but both are really good books, Tom's made me think about some aspects in a different light, Helena's shed new light on Chapman, both are really well written.

I don't think one can compare these two books. I have read both and they are both excellent in their own ways, but very different. Tom delves into the Ripper case and makes one think "out of the box" but there is quite a bit of conjecture in it, simply because we don't know. His take on Pearly Poll and the landlords is very interesting. Pearly Poll does seem to be the key to at least part of the mystery. Helena's book is very factual and delves into the life and crimes of George Chapman. Both books are thoroughly researched and well written but each stand on their own merit. As a Ripper book Tom's is high up on my list, Helena's is the only thorough and best book on Chapman. Out of the two I enjoyed Helena's more but that has mostly to do with the personal aspect of reading about members of my own family. Maud Marsh was my grandmother's first cousin. Their mothers were sisters.
If one is to compare books, it has to be on the same subject, in my opinion. How does Tom's book compare to other JtR books? In Helena's case there is no comparison. No one has written and researched Chapman as thoroughly as she has done.

[GUT]

I don't think one can compare these two books. I have read both and they are both excellent in their own ways, but very different. Tom delves into the Ripper case and makes one think "out of the box" but there is quite a bit of conjecture in it, simply because we don't know. His take on Pearly Poll and the landlords is very interesting. Pearly Poll does seem to be the key to at least part of the mystery. Helena's book is very factual and delves into the life and crimes of George Chapman. Both books are thoroughly researched and well written but each stand on their own merit. As a Ripper book Tom's is high up on my list, Helena's is the only thorough and best book on Chapman. Out of the two I enjoyed Helena's more but that has mostly to do with the personal aspect of reading about members of my own family. Maud Marsh was my grandmother's first cousin. Their mothers were sisters.
If one is to compare books, it has to be on the same subject, in my opinion. How does Tom's book compare to other JtR books? In Helena's case there is no comparison. No one has written and researched Chapman as thoroughly as she has done.

I really can't argue with that comment, about comparing books such as these.

Likewise how do you compare say Bank Holiday Murders with A-Z or complete Sourcebook, or Monty's, or even any of the individual suspect books, it is all but impossible to do so.

In the case of both of these books, I was singing their praises before I even finished reading them, Monty's [Neil Bell] is not yet finished reading but I already think that any English crime library [let alone JtR library] s incomplete without it.

[MrBarnett]

I Agree Monty's book deserves a place in any crime library. It's a book to be dipped into again and again. Tom's on the other hand is a good read first time, but on subsequent reading the cracks start to show.

I've heard people saying how Tom has opened their eyes to the true nature of the landlords. Really? Go back and read his chapter The Lords of Spitalfields and try to find anything truly damning about them. Apart from Jimmy Smith's (Smith is not one of the 'Lords' in Tom's list) betting activities and associated bungs there is just the one record of an illegal boxing match, which the 'Lords', who according to Tom were the law in Spitalfields, decided to hold outside the area. The worst he can come up with is Arthur Harding saying McCarthy was a tough guy and a bully and had made his money selling old clothes and screwing poor people out of small sums of money.

Perhaps my copy of TBHM has some pages missing. If anyone can
point me in the direction of any evidence that shows these men were anything more than hard case slumlords who indulged in a little illegal betting, I'll eat my cloth cap.

More generally, in the field of wild conjecture the book is a master class.

Take one example: Tom's reason for linking Daniel Sullivan
to the Whitechapel murderers. This is because his sister Margaret had a similar name to someone (Mog Sullivan) who was mentioned in the same sentence in a single press report as Pearly Poll. Apparently Tom has intuited that these two were living together in 1888 at Crossingham's in Dorset Street and this provides a clear link between Daniel and the WM. And therefore if (big if) he murdered Mary Austin, 'there's every possibility he was one of the Whitechapel murderers'.

As it stands that's what I would describe as wild conjecture.

But when Tom neglects to mention that Margaret Sullivan is on record as saying that she was not living in Dorset Street in 1888, it moves to another level, and I personally don't see any difference between that and the cherry picking of blood evidence that Tom describes as 'cheating' when it comes from Fisherman.

And there's lots more of the same where that came from.

I'm amazed that other theories and books are torn to shreds by all and sundry on theses forums and yet this one seems to have some kind of immunity. Three words come to mind: Emperor, new and clothes.

[Ally]

Well I haven't read it yet. When I do, I'll be happy to tear it to shreds. Any day now...

[MrBarnett]

Ally,

I don't doubt it for a minute. :-)

MrB