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I Ripper A Novel Stephen Hunter Books

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I Ripper A Novel Stephen Hunter Books

This is a fascinating book, not just because of its content, but because of its organization and narrative strategies. In London, in 1988, there were three anniversaries: that of the defeat of the Spanish Armada (1588), that of the Glorious Revolution (1688) and that of the Ripper murders (1888). The latter drew the most attention and excitement, by a wide margin. Ripperology is now heavy industry; Hunter includes an 8 pp. bibliography and claims, in his Acknowledgments, that he has identified the Ripper. “Watch for it. It’s going to be fun,” he writes.

I, Ripper is fiction, not non-fiction, a reimagining of the manner in which the Ripper might have come to be, how and why he might have done what he did, how he was identified and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance. The answers are striking, nearly over-the-top, and—given the cultural history with which Hunter is dealing—very, very bold.

No, he doesn’t identify Queen Victoria as the Ripper, but it’s practically that striking and he does so fairly and squarely, adhering to the unofficial rule that the reader must be given all of the evidence necessary to be able to understand and solve the mystery at the story’s center.

I,Ripper has three narrators (more like 2.1). The Ripper himself has kept a diary, whose entries constitute half of the narrative. He is being pursued by an Irish journalist (nickname: Jeb) whose memoir constitutes the second half. There are also a few letters from a London prostitute, written to her mother. Their function in the story is unclear until the story’s end.

While the voices vary they are all late 19thc voices and the novel is filled with references to contemporary culture and practices. Hunter tosses off the word ‘mudlarks’, e.g. These are people who sift through the detritus of the Thames when the tide is out. His command of these details is very impressive and the number of slips can be counted on one hand.

The conclusion of the story is most impressive, as Hunter draws all of the individual threads into a single, blockbuster conclusion and subjects a villainous character to a fate that is not just appropriate but also anticipated, metaphorically and psychologically, throughout the novel.

Stephen Hunter is one of my favorite novelists and it is a joy to see him move from the world of Bob Lee Swagger to that of Charles Dickens and Arthur Conan Doyle.

Highly recommended.


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I Ripper A Novel Stephen Hunter Books Reviews

There are a lot of books, both fiction and non-fiction, about Jack the Ripper. I have read many of them. “I, Ripper” by Stephen Hunter is possibly the best fictional look at Saucy Jack that I have ever read. The tale is creatively told through two diaries; the diary of “Jack” and the diary of a newspaper reporter who is thrust into writing about the murders. Besides the obvious cast of characters Polly Nichols, Annie Chapman, Long Liz Stride, Katherine Eddowes, and of course poor Mary Kelly, Hunter has created a surrounding group that complements the primary players.
Of course the story is rife with bloody murder as well as the twisted sexuality one would expect from the Ripper. Written in incredibly beautiful and accurate Victorian English in all its varieties, the reader is transported through time and space to 1888 and the streets of Whitechapel. Following the steps of Red Jack as he chooses, pursues, and savages his victims the tension grows thicker by the word. As “Jeb”, the reporter’s nom de plume, investigates and writes of the crimes, his fascination grows. Other characters, some seemingly insignificant, are woven throughout, catching the reader’s attention and always raising the question, is that Jack?
With vibrant descriptions of the streets of London, the political atmosphere of those days, and the horrific living conditions of the poor versus the well-to-do, Hunter has created a landscape ripe with realism. His blending of fact with some believable fiction has provided a story any Ripperologist will enjoy as a tale built on truth. There are a few surprises that left me with my jaw on the floor. These shockers serve to make the story even more enticing.
I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys a story thick with suspense and tension and of course, gory murders.
I, RIPPER was definitely “outside the box.” It’s unlike anything else I’ve ever read. I love the title and how “I, Ripper” is incorporated into the story. Stephen Hunter is a brilliant writer and I also love how he told this tale in late nineteenth century British English.

The story is told from alternating viewpoints – a journal kept by Jack the Ripper and a memoir written by a newspaper writer who covered the crimes. The writer, Jeb, admits he is not very heroic, but assures readers there is a hero later in the story.

I wasn’t real keen on this book early on. The opening journal entries are graphic murders followed by graphic sexual encounters followed by graphic murders. At one point I wondered if the book was simply going to be a fictionalized recounting of everything gruesome … but then finally, Jeb begins to channel his inner-Sherlock Holmes and work up a profile of who Jack the Ripper really is – and from that point forward I was unable to put the book down.

There are some tense scenes as Hunter builds to a dramatic conclusion. There are some “twists” and a few predictable moments as well. Taken as a whole, this is an incredibly imaginative book that is sure to entertain horror/thriller/crime fiction fans 4/5 stars.
This is a fascinating book, not just because of its content, but because of its organization and narrative strategies. In London, in 1988, there were three anniversaries that of the defeat of the Spanish Armada (1588), that of the Glorious Revolution (1688) and that of the Ripper murders (1888). The latter drew the most attention and excitement, by a wide margin. Ripperology is now heavy industry; Hunter includes an 8 pp. bibliography and claims, in his Acknowledgments, that he has identified the Ripper. “Watch for it. It’s going to be fun,” he writes.

I, Ripper is fiction, not non-fiction, a reimagining of the manner in which the Ripper might have come to be, how and why he might have done what he did, how he was identified and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance. The answers are striking, nearly over-the-top, and—given the cultural history with which Hunter is dealing—very, very bold.

No, he doesn’t identify Queen Victoria as the Ripper, but it’s practically that striking and he does so fairly and squarely, adhering to the unofficial rule that the reader must be given all of the evidence necessary to be able to understand and solve the mystery at the story’s center.

I,Ripper has three narrators (more like 2.1). The Ripper himself has kept a diary, whose entries constitute half of the narrative. He is being pursued by an Irish journalist (nickname Jeb) whose memoir constitutes the second half. There are also a few letters from a London prostitute, written to her mother. Their function in the story is unclear until the story’s end.

While the voices vary they are all late 19thc voices and the novel is filled with references to contemporary culture and practices. Hunter tosses off the word ‘mudlarks’, e.g. These are people who sift through the detritus of the Thames when the tide is out. His command of these details is very impressive and the number of slips can be counted on one hand.

The conclusion of the story is most impressive, as Hunter draws all of the individual threads into a single, blockbuster conclusion and subjects a villainous character to a fate that is not just appropriate but also anticipated, metaphorically and psychologically, throughout the novel.

Stephen Hunter is one of my favorite novelists and it is a joy to see him move from the world of Bob Lee Swagger to that of Charles Dickens and Arthur Conan Doyle.

Highly recommended.