Top FictionA blog about the best adventure, crime and spy novels to read.Patricia Cornwell

Jack the Ripper thriller book

The enigmatic and eccentric painter, Walter Sickert, had an air of mystery about him. In more recent times the accusatory finger of suspicion has been levelled at him. It is now widely believed that he may have been either, Jack the Ripper or his accomplice.

The New York Times bestselling author Patricia Cornwell spent millions researching the case and has uncovered important new evidence. Her book Ripper: The Secret Life of Walter Sickert, is a detailed account of the Ripper atrocities and the failure of the Victorian police force to solve this dastardly series of crimes.

Sickert’s art had a strange quality about it, verging on the ghoulish. He had a deep interest in the Jack’s crimes and claimed to have lodged in a boarding house where the landlady said she believed the Ripper had also lodged previously. Sickert even painted a picture depicting the Rippers room.

Patricia Cornwell’s research has been tirelessly executed and she has brought forth archival material which has not been seen before.

Ripper, The Secret Life of Walter Sickert follows on from Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper further expanding the depth of research and knowledge.

Patricia Cornwell has greatly added to this most gruesome of mysteries and her wonderful book is a must read for any sleuths among us.

Photo by Simone Mascellari 🇮🇹 on Unsplash

Jack the Ripper

How strange it is, that Jack the Ripper should, even now, still excites such horror and fascination. Many of the streets and locations of the crimes can still be found huddled among the modern city of London. On a recent evening walking tour of the area, where some of the crimes were committed, I felt a slight unease and sadness as we traced the route through the hushed side streets. We ended as darkness fell at the notorious Ten Bells public House in Spitalfieds, which had associations with the case.

The horrors that were meted out to those women in London’s East End in the late 1880’s have never had closure as ’Jack’ was never conclusively identified…or was he?

However, the gruesome crimes and the man who committed them may well have met their match.

Patricia Cornwell, the New York Times bestselling author has turned her considerable skill on to solving this appalling mystery. Cornwell is a master in the field of plotting a crime – now she shows that she can solve one too. Using modern day forensics and meticulous research she puts forth an utterly compelling case.

Has she done enough in her book to conclusively prove her theory and to give us closure at last with the true identity of Jack? You will have to read the book to decide for yourself. However, for me this was a fascinating, detailed journey through one of the most infamous crimes set against the Victorian era Patricia Cornwell has proved her case to me.

Photo by Branimir Balogović on Unsplash