Jack the Ripper and the Case for Scotland Yard's Prime Suspect

By: Robert House, Roy Hazelwood - foreword

Narrated by: Joe Barrett

Length: 11 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

An investigation into the man Scotland Yard thought (but couldn't prove) was Jack the Ripper....

Dozens of theories have attempted to resolve the mystery of the identity of Jack the Ripper, the world's most famous serial killer. Ripperologist Robert House contends that we may have known the answer all along. The head of Scotland Yard's Criminal Investigation Department at the time of the murders thought Aaron Kozminski was guilty, but he lacked the legal proof to convict him. By exploring Kozminski's life, House builds a strong circumstantial case against him, showing not only that he had means, motive, and opportunity, but also that he fit the general profile of a serial killer as defined by the FBI today. This book:

• Is the first to explore the life of Aaron Kozminski, one of Scotland Yard's top suspects in the quest to identify Jack the Ripper
• Combines historical research and contemporary criminal profiling techniques to solve one of the most vexing criminal mysteries of all time
• Draws on a decade of research by the author, including trips to Poland and England to uncover Kozminski's past and details of the case
• Includes a foreword by Roy Hazelwood, a former FBI profiler and pioneer of profiling sexual predators
• Features a PDF containing dozens of photographs and illustrations

Building a thorough and convincing case that completes the work begun by Scotland Yard more than a century ago, this book is essential listening for anyone who wants to know who really committed Jack the Ripper's heinous and unforgettable crimes.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2011 Robert House (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

A restrained and humane account

Robert House presents a restrained and plausible reconstruction of the Whitechapel murders. His candidate for Jack the Ripper is Aaron Kosminski, a Polish Jew who was hospitalized for insanity not long after the Ripper's last and most vicious murder.

The fact that the murders stopped around the same time Kosminski was put away is only one of many suggestive facts House presents. Kosminski was, in fact, on the CID's list of suspects. FBI profilers who have reviewed the case have concluded that the Ripper was a "disorganized lust murderer," a schizophrenic and psychopath; and have also identified Kosminski as the suspect most closely fitting that description.

But House is careful to note that this is a matter of hunches and probabilities rather than certainties. Does he think Kosminski was the killer? Yes. Does he claim that he's proved it, and that the case is closed? No. Mostly what he tries to do in the book is explode some of the myths and mystique that have grown up around the case, and to demonstrate that the Ripper wasn't so much "good" as incredibly lucky.

Joe Barrett's gravelly narration is perfect for the story. One possible pitfall is the variety of English and Irish accents he's called on to provide: I think they sound pretty good, but then again, I'm an American whose main experience of English accents is in other audiobooks. In any case, Barrett gives a consistently interesting performance, maintaining the pace of the narrative despite its legal and psychological complexities.

And now, after a brief foray into the world of Ripperology - I watched two movies on the subject and read a Ripper-inspired novel while I was listening to this - it's time to put this topic back on the shelf. It's a disturbing and haunting subject, the terrain of nightmares and nausea. It's not so much that the women suffered: if the police surgeons were correct, they died very quickly, and what followed was not torture killing but the abuse of a corpse. What's disturbing is contemplating the mind of someone who would want to do that. House is a sane and humane guide, but one trip down this lane is enough for me.

Thoughtful and Well Researched

I found this to be a very well-balanced and thoughtful consideration of the possibility that Aaron Kozminski might have been Jack the Ripper. House is careful not to attempt too much - he can neither prove Kozminski's guilt nor even claim there was a consensus among those at Scotland Yard about the prime suspect - but he makes a good case for not dismissing out of hand the comments of former Assistant Commissioner of the CID, Sir Robert Anderson, or the marginialia of former Chief Inspector Donald Swanson.

The particular strengths of this work lie in 1) its exploration of what Kozminski's schizophrenia might have meant in terms of his behavior and compulsions, and why descriptions of his habits years later should not lead Ripperologists to ignore Kozminki's candidacy as the Ripper; and 2) his consideration of the geography of the murders and how they fit with what we know of Kozminki's whereabouts during the Autumn of Terror. Most of all, I especially appreciated how House put the Ripper killings and Kozminki's life experiences in the larger context of the antisemitism of the time and the particular prejudice against the "sweating" professions such as tailoring. This sheds light not only on House's main argument, but also on other aspects of the murders, such as the actions taken by authorities regarding the Ghoulston Street Graffito.

This is an able analysis of the murders with a fresh perspective and conscientious introductions of new information along the way; whether or not Kozminksi is "your" suspect, I recommend this to all who are interested in the historical period and the mystery itself.

"We may assume..."

Putting those three words in front of your wildest, least founded leaps doesn't make those leaps any more credible. Qualifying your conjecture as such doesn't make it more palatable. Falsely displaying self-effacement at the weakness of your argument doesn't excuse that weakness. There is nothing here to hold up a whole book. It rests on nothing. You can't prop up *nothing* with blithe admissions of your own nothingness. Zero times infinity is still zero. There is simply nothing here.

A very good book.

This book is well researched and written. It makes sense that the original investigators had a better idea of who the killer was than modern armchair detectives.

Excellent book. It's got me convinced

This is a must read for all Jack the Ripper buffs. I'm convinced that it's got the right guy and love how it ends.

BoRiNg

Too much uninteresting detail. Narrator not-so-good. Would not recommend. Must be better "Ripper" books out there.

YMMV

How many witnesses who saw the victims with a man shortly before their demise used language that could even plausibly be applied to Kosminski? Oh, that's right - none.

Outstanding. Well researched.

House makes the best possible case for Kosminski as Jack the Ripoer. The book does assume some basic knowledge of the case.

Writing is great. Overall good book.

The narrator was spot-on for almost all of it. At times though the accents he tried to employ we're weak and felt unpolished. otherwise completely solid.

I was very appreciative of the way that the writer frequently pointed out the difference between the evidence and the speculation. As a skeptic I found it reassuring. as a reader it confirms the high quality of research done. I was fairly interested through the whole book and did not get bored.

Dull Jack the Ripper?

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The writing is dull and dry and considering the subject matter quite a feat.

What about Joe Barrett’s performance did you like?

He is very good.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

disappointment. How can you make information about Jack the Ripper so tediously dull?.

Any additional comments?

I am sorry I wasted a credit on this selection.