The Complete History of Jack the Ripper

Rating:
Summary: Necessary reading for any Ripperologist.
Review: Sugden has been described as the best single comprehensive account of the Whitechapel murders, which is probably true. Although Begg's 2004 "Jack the Ripper: The Facts" (for some reason available for now only at amazon.co.uk) in some ways equals or surpasses Sugden, Sugden is still crucial reading for anyone interested in the case.
He presents chapters on all canonical victims including (rightly I think) Martha Tabram. He also suggests Millwood ought to be added to the list. He provides details on several of the other murders, including Wilson, Coles and Mackenzie, and argues they were probably not Ripper victims.
His suspect chapters include Druit, Ostrog, Kosminski and Chapman. One of best aspects of the book is Sugden's conservative approach to the evidence, which, unfortunately leaves much about the case up in the air. He basically argues through the book that all the known suspects should be discounted, but if there is one who was in fact the Ripper, it was possibly Chapman. The good thing is that his minimal speculation allows him to discount a lot of nonsense, which, unfortunately pervades the subject.
He provides a wealth of detail on all aspects of the case and covers most of the major controversies, including the nature of Stride's injuries, Matthew Packer, the Lusk kidney, or the Coles and Mackenzie murders. One of the gems Sugden includes is a rarely-cited Church Lane sighting on the night of the double event of a man probably fitting the description of the other witness reports. In each case, he includes the various opinions on the issue and then evaluates the evidence himself. On the whole, because of the nature of the evidence, Sugden remains skeptical, falling back into agnosticism with a minimum of speculation. So, for an accurate presentation and analysis of most of the available evidence, this book (along with Begg) is a must read.

Rating:
Summary: The Definitive JTR Reader. A Masterpiece!
Review: Sugden's biography of history's most notorious serial murderer is indeed "complete" and a must read for all students of the case and arm-char detectives alike. With deft story telling, a superb feel for timing and flow and exhaustive research, Sugden's narrative brings the world of Victorian London to life with vividness rarely encountered in non-fiction liturature. Every clue is inspected, every suspent examined as Abberline and Scotland Yard scour the shadowy, gas-lit alleys in the desperate persuit of a killer. Though technical at times and the accompanying photographs graphic, the book leaves no stone unturned. It puts to rest many of the rumors and false leads prevalent in Ripperania and arms the amateur sleuth with the facts needed to form their own theory as to the identity of the Phantom of Death. Read this one before any other Ripper book!

Rating:
Summary: It Doesn't get any better than this
Review: The average review for this book is five stars. That is rare, but I understand why. I have read about 15 books on Jack the Ripper. There are a few really good books out there like Jack the Ripper A to Z, but if someone asked me what would be the best Ripper book, it would be this one. I would also buy it in Hardback if you can get it for a good price. If you have read this book and come to the conclusion that George Chapman has the best chance of being the Ripper ( which Sugden does a great job in giving only facts, not his personal opinion), I would then buy a copy of Alias Jack the Ripper

Rating:
Summary: THE BEST
Review: The best. Nothing more to say. Simply the best book ever written about the Ripper (or, as a matter of fact, THE WHITECHAPEL MURDERS). Altough it deals a lot with reports, interviews and facts, you read it like a novel: I just couldn't put it down!!
Sudgen does not offer us the name of the murderer.

He introduces us to George Chapman as a plausible suspect, that's all, because at a certain point in time (around 1910), the main investigator of the Whitechapel murders (Abberline) was convinced that Chapman did it.
But Chapman was hanged by other crimes (the poisoning of three wives of him!) and never ever talked about nothing related to the Whitechapel Murders.

The book is fantastic, well researched, illustrating, teaching.

I just wonder how Mr. Sudgen must have suffered after watching the recent movie FROM HELL (with Johnny Depp playing Abberline), who was inspired by a graphic novel and displays one of the less credible versions of all about the Ripper, that of a Royal conspiracy...

Rating:
Summary: The Bible of the Ripper Case
Review: The crime investigation work in this book is impeccable, and the in-depth research of relevent facts is really something future Ripper writers should aim for. Very easy to read and digest this information on the case, which is written in an entertaining and highly enlightening manner. Speculations and phoney facts are ignored or exposed, and here we have the true facts, clearly presented, and the myths dispelled.

David Rehak
author of "A Young Girl's Crimes"

Rating:
Summary: Meticulously Well Researched Jack The Ripper History Lesson
Review: The Whitechapel murders have seen no more than several hundred books written about the case but very few can hold the same standing as "The Complete History of Jack the Ripper by Philip Sugden" because it is the most meticulously researched and venerated work on the case to date. Sugden, tired of fictionist accounts of Jack the Ripper (most notably his mistrust of works like The Diary of Jack the Ripper by Shirley Harrison and Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution by Stephen Knight that are spruced up to support a bunk Mason/Royal theory or to point the finger in the direction of what is probably an innocent suspect in order to sell copies by truckload) has delivered on the most comprehensive and historical factual account of the Ripper murders by examining and reporting on the case from the ground up. Leaving no stone unturned, Sugden delves into the initial murders at Whitechapel, before the canonical first ripper victim - Polly Ann Nichols, and beyond the final canonical ripper victim - Mary Kelly, to include no less than nine possible ripper victims that must be taken into account when reviewing the Whitechapel murders in their entirety.

Nearly every available important newspaper story, witness testimony, court hearing, autopsy testimony, letter, investigation memoir and police report relating to the case are used to piece the history of the Whitechapel murders together. Unprecedented attention is paid to the victims, the circumstances of their death, their martial status, boyfriends, education, children, parents, work and place of dwelling before their death. All makes for an exceptional record of the Whitechapel murders which is as unsparingly in detail as you will likely find in any book of its kind. It is not until page 164 that the night of the double murder is dealt with. Make no mistakes about it, this IS the reference manual to which all other works will likely be derived from and compared too.

Sugden unearths some fascinating suspects that most of us knew nothing about. Lunatics that where unaccounted for, having absconded from the eyes of the law and their asylums, where at the forefront of the investigation and a lot of these characters are explored in the book. Characters that where seen with blood stained hands at the time of murders are tracked down and revealed for first time.

Surprisingly, the book doesn't really ever get off the ground like other ripper books. When dealing with probably the most infamous serial killers of all time you would expect much more electrifying passages and comments by the author but instead Sugden opts for a history lesson and data exploration.

Essentially this is a book about a changing Victorian London, the rising of the press, Jewish expansion of the East End, social conditions and the poor, the victims and their unfortunate past, the early years of CID and how the city responded to the Whitechapel murders. Sugden even goes into detail with relatively suppressed topics like the bloodhound trials at CID, undercover investigations involving officers dressing up as prostitutes, innocent but violent vagabonds being hunted through the streets seeking refuge with the police and the creation of vigilante groups who raised reward monies and patrolled the streets.

The book is written in an extremely flat way but like we have said this all goes to prove a point - that Jack the Ripper was no talent. He was no boogeyman and he is certainly undeserving of the personality that he seems to have been accredited with throughout the ages. Yes he was a monster, a sexual serial killer, but one who could easily slip away with a prostitute at the height of the murders without attracting much suspicion - although one important witness (of the very many that are covered in this book) may have actually witnessed an attack and the suspect. In many instances Jack took chances and in all probability he should have been caught. What you are left with is a feeling that the investigators probably had their man, had seen their man, had probably interviewed their man, but didn't recognize him for what he was. The more you play down the hype the more you begin to see what conclusions Sugden is trying to draw. That the investigators had not a single scrap of good evidence to go by and didn't get the break that they so sorely needed.

In the final pages of the book Sugden covers four Ripper suspects, - Druitt, Kosminski, Ostrog and Chapman. He gives Chapman good coverage and names him as the best suspect but the reader is left feeling that that there is a good case against Kosminski because he was identified as Jack the Ripper by a witness.

Pros:
- Meticulously researched, especially the victims.
- Extremely detailed account of everything connected to the case.
- Levelheaded approach to profiling Jack the Ripper.
- Everything is kept real and factual. Very limited guesswork and theories.
- Highly detailed bibliography and references including police files and their locations.

Cons:
- Needs more pictures, especially of the investigators, more Mary Kelly crime scene photos, more Eddowes morgue shots, photographs of the alleged Ripper letters, some pictures of news articles would be good too.
- Not everyone's cup of tea. This is not something that will grip you throughout from start to finish.
- Index is extremely limited to names and places. Could be much better.
- Not all the modern day suspects are considered or covered.
- Does not delve into the investigators' backgrounds as much as the victims.

Rating:
Summary: The premier book on the ripper crimes
Review: There is no other book on this subject that can approach the quality of this one. Sugden, a trained historian, is meticulous and careful in his assessment of evidence. Instead of tiresomely fingering a suspect and then marshalling evidence in a biased fashion to convict him, Sugden dispassionately works through the evidence at hand before even turning to the consideration of possible suspects.

This is the best book, by far, ever written on the ripper case. Do yourself a favor and forget Patricia Cornwell's awful book and read this one instead.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely the Best Book on Jack the Ripper
Review: There isn't a better book on Jack the Ripper in existence. So many recent books on the Ripper have been published by authors with obvious axes to grind -- or by authors interested in making a quick buck by propounding shocking theories that fall apart under even minimal scrutiny. Sugden is a historian in all the best senses of the word -- careful, objective, thorough, insightful, and, above all, interested in the truth. If you read only one book on Jack the Ripper, make it this one.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book!
Review: This book has all of the known facts, it doesn't cloud your mind either. Some authors who write of jack the ripper write about the suspects and who they think did it and they try to get you to side with them. Philip Sudgen doesn't do that. He presents all the known facts and basically you can decide for yourself which is a very good thing. I have read most all of the books on jack the ripper and this truly is the best and written in a style that is very easy to understand. So if you are just getting interested in jack the ripper, this is definitely the book to start with, and trust me, you won't find a better book on jack the ripper than this one.

Rating:
Summary: Chilling and compelling
Review: This book is scarier than any "horror" book I've read in the last ten years, more so because it's all true. You can't comfort yourself by saying someone made it all up and it's just a story. Sugden focuses on the details, small and otherwise of what actually happened that he can document, and, using modern deductive techniques, makes educated guesses to fill in the blanks. He makes a point of saying he does not have an answer to the Ripper's identity (and pats himself on the back for doing so), although he can't resist making a guess. But, because he isn't really sold on any one answer or trying to fit the evidence into any pet theory, his reasoning comes across as highly credible and well thought out. He does tend to get bogged down sometimes in minutiae, especially in the beginning when he is trying to set the stage, but once things get going, you won't be able to put the book down. Without gothic prose or pseudo-police jargon, just by telling the story and the facts as they happen, you are brought into a terrifying mystery that remains to the present day. You'll be thinking about it long after you put the book down. I'm a veteran horror reader, and I had to sleep with the light on when I was reading this. Truth is truly far scarier than fiction.