Richard Cobb gives all the basic details of Jack the Ripper and his victims, details that can be find in most JTR books and details that everyone knows if they have looked into his crimes. So there was nothing new to lean here.

He did write about and include photos of “Jack the Rippers London” of today and compared them to documents from the past which was interesting.

Over all it was a ok if you looking to do a self tour of Jack the Ripper sites but I would recommend looking around for other books always.

Call it strange if you must, but ever since I was a young child, I have been captivated by "Whitechapel Murderer" Jack the Ripper. I don't remember how or when I first became aware of the Whitechapel serial murderer, but like many other amateur sleuths, I was curious about who Jack the Ripper was. Was he a baron-born schoolmaster? A bootmaker? A hairdresser? A physician? A medical student? Sadly, we will probably never know Jack the Ripper's real identity. (And no, I don't think Aaron Kosminski was Jack the Ripper, despite some reported DNA evidence.)

Richard Charles Cobb's book On the Trail of Jack the Ripper, with illustrations by Mark Davis and an introduction by renowned historian Neil R. Storey, has just been published in the UK by Pen and Sword Books. Amazon puts the book's release date in the United States as early to mid-November, Goodreads as October 31st, and Barnes & Noble as December. Which one is it? Who knows? To me, it is a mystery. Just be on the lookout for it.

The book discusses the suspects in great length, covers all of the "canonical five" victims (Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly), the "allegedly" sixth victim, Martha Tabram, and other unsolved Whitechapel murders. The author paints a picture of what each murder site looked like and how it appears now, which distinguishes the book from other "Ripper" works. When I say the author "paints a picture," I don't simply mean with words; the book also contains illustrations and both old and new photographs.

I found On the Trail of Jack the Ripper to be a fascinating book overall. However, I do have one little criticism: at 160 pages, the book is far too short. Nevertheless, true crime lovers will like reading it.╌★★★★✰

Many thanks for the ARC, I enjoyed reading this.
I have read a lot around this over the years and have always been fascinated by the subject matter. It is very well put together and amazingly researched and I learnt a lot.

Highly recommended.

The formatting of the download made this book hard to read at times- the first letter of a sentence would be a line or two up. The author is obviously very passionate about Jack the Ripper and his murders. I would've liked to have read this right before a trip to London, but I did recognize many of the mentioned areas from a Jack the Ripper tour I took in 2018. The book felt a little disorganized at times, but again, they could be from the distraction of the formatting.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Pen & Sword, for sharing the advanced readers' copy for my honest review!

"Welcome to Jack the Ripper's London"

Jack the Ripper has baffled the world for 132 years. He killed from 1888-1891. We (me) are still fascinated by his murders and his identify. He killed in a time when the police had very little forensics to utilize. DNA would not be used in a criminal case until 1986. His murders are cold cases and there have been theories about his identity since his killings began.

"Jack the Ripper is regarded as the father of the modern day Serial Killer as he is the first early example of this type of murderer." The term "Serial Killer" was not used back then. It was first used by Robert Ressler, an investigator with the FBI in the 1970's.

Ripper's crimes were brutal and be warned that this book shows the mortuary photographs of his victims. One photograph is of the actual body (thankfully not a close up - but you see enough of his last and most brutal killing). Readers also get to see pictures of where the victims were found and what is there now.

I found this book to be informative and very well presented. If you are familiar with the case, you may be familiar with most of the information on the victims and what was known of Ripper. There was a theory presented that made sense in terms of the Ripper possibly injuring himself at one of the scenes to explain a month-long break in killings. But it is a theory as if everything else. Other murders are also presented. Eleven women killed but only 5 are counted as his victims.

I enjoyed how the information was presented and found the pictures to be a nice touch. While reading this, I couldn't help but wonder who fast he would have been apprehended if the investigations had better forensic tools to use.

This is not a long book and can easily be read in one sitting if you can stomach the descriptions of the killings. It's informative and laid nicely. Fans of True Crime and history will enjoy this one.


Thank you to Pen & Sword, and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

It seems that true crime aficionados cannot read enough about the murders committed by the infamous ‘Jack the Ripper’ in 1888. I count myself in those gripped by the case as I've read countless books about the subject & I'm as fascinated as ever. This book is the literary equivalent of a walking tour around the sites which would have been frequented by those who lived in Whitechapel in 1888.

It seems wrong to say that you enjoyed reading a book about a series of real-life murders, but in this case, the focus is more on the physical places where the crimes occurred rather than the crimes themselves. (Having said that, there are several quite graphic photographs of some of the deceased). I found that the detailed photographs of the streets today & maps of Whitechapel allows the reader to picture Victorian London, & understand how small the area was where most of the murders took place. I also really liked the quick history of the Ten Bells public house.

The author goes beyond the 'Canonical Five' & asks whether several murders preceding & following the accepted victims may have also been the work of the Ripper. I also thought their hypothesis of the Ripper injuring himself at a scene as possibly being the reason for a month without attacks is intriguing given the evidence. It's a fairly short book but it keeps the attention & the author has obviously done their homework.

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Pen & Sword, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

I read my first Jack the Ripper book over 20 years ago and of all the books since I have to say this is one of my favorites.

With well-rounded research and additional information to what I've seen before, it's thought-provoking in its complexity and will be a great read for those interested in Jack the Ripper, serial killers, or unsolved mysteries in general.

Information ranging from police accounts to the economic situation of Whitechapel both before and after the killings, give you a very vivid picture of the life these people were living and why so many made the choices they did just to survive.

It's odd to say I enjoyed a book on this subject but I did and found myself walking away with more information than I had walking into it which is a testament to the research and detailed writing that went into this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this e-book, I voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Jack The Ripper is always a fascinating topic and this was an interesting book featuring facts and hypotesis.
There's a lot of details, descriptions of what happended, and even some pics of the victims.
Even if it's a well know story there's something new and it was an interesting read.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I love history and true crime so this was the perfect book for me, and one of the historical criminals that fascinates me the most is Jack the Ripper - who was he and how did he get away with it for centuries, will we ever find out who he was? I certainly hope so.
I loved the way this book was written and it felt like I was watching a documentary on a cold case, it is so well researched and there are such good descriptions in the book I felt like I was visually there.
I loved the bringing in of original police reports and the discussion of old whitechapel versus the whitechapel that there is now and how the ripper is never far away.
In many ways it was a chilling read but I loved it.

On the Trail of Jack the Ripper is about more than the "Canonical Five" and a repeated retelling of the murders. This book also has a treasure-trove of photographs (the mortuary photos in the book are generally mild), photos of what Whitechapel looked like back in the 1880s if available, and photos & maps of the crime scenes and burial plots/memorial markers.
There's also discussion of relevant items to the Ripper case: potential other victims, the socioeconomic state of Whitechapel in the 1880s and today, the effect of the murders on Whitechapel residents in general and London as a whole.
I found this to be a quick read and there's information in the book I did not know previously (e.g. Martha Tabram tends to me mentioned as a potential Ripper victim, but other names are given).
If you are fascinated by Jack the Ripper or want to learn more, I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing this ARC. All opinions are my own.

4.5 of 5.0

On the Trail of Jack the Ripper by Richard Charles Cobb simulates the London Terror Walk Tour through its captivating photography and engrossing narrative. Although over a hundred years have passed since the Whitechapel Murders occurred, you will still experience the eerie setting of those nights of shadows.

The author provides a great introduction for beginning Ripper readers and will engage with seasoned enthusiasts as it explores the case murders and similar crimes not officially assigned to Jack the Ripper.

If you love True Crime Fiction then this is a must read!

A great informative read. It doesn't go too in depth but gives an overview of the cases. I particularly enjoyed the comparison to modern day Whitechapel.

4.5 stars. Very good book but it was pretty repetitive within itself. Stating certain things multiple times to the point where I think this could have been under 100 pages with those removed. I read this in one sitting and then started reading other Jack the Ripper books. This book reignited my interest in him and the time period.

I have always been fascinated by Jack the Ripper. Any book on this topic is hard for me to resist. On The Trail Of Jack The Ripper, by Richard Charles Cobb, did not disappoint . So often. after reading so much on the topic, it is hard to find any new details on the subject but this book took a slightly different angle.

Cobb did give the basic details that everyone knows but also went into what “Jack the Rippers London” looks like today. I have always wanted to go on a Jack the Ripper tour but have never had the opportunity. All the pictures and diagrams were helpful in picturing the crime scene areas, then and now. Cobb also included several details I had not heard previously.

So often, non fiction can be very dry but this one was fascinating until the end, even knowing most of the material. An easy interesting read, I would recommend it to all who are interested in the Jack the Ripper story.

On The Trail of Jack the Ripper, is a quick read that contrasts the London of 1888 with London today. It's like taking a trip to London for a Ripper tour. It explores the crimes of The Ripper as they were in 1888 but it also shows you why these crimes were easy to commit then versus now, by showing how the city evolved over time. For someone who may never get a chance to visit London, this is a great alternative to taking a tour.
Thanks to Netgalley and Penn and Sword publishing for the advanced copy of the book. The opinions are my own.

I found this book so interesting . I really enjoyed all the details of this book. Definitely would recommend to anyone who enjoys history

Richard Charles Cobb paints a new picture for me with ON THE TRAIL OF JACK THE RIPPER, especially regarding the canonical five women. The book has some graphic portions as you could expect, but it also explores a lot of the psychology of what we know. I love how so much of the book states things that are suppositions vs facts. There is so much we do not know, and there's a reason we do not know some of the true ins and outs. The book has a steady flow and pace, but I felt like it repeated itself a bit (or maybe it was because of other knowledge I knew prior to reading?) There are some interesting photos scattered throughout, most of them I had not seen before. Cobb is definitely a Jack The Ripper expert and so much can be gleaned from reading this true crime book.

The photos shouldn’t be in there out of respect.
The writing is awkward and feels amateurish.
Some info are irrelevant or repeated

This is an excellent article about Jack the Ripper. I enjoyed reading this because I did not know all of the information provided in this concise and quick book. Because there is so much misinformation and rumour about Jack the Ripper and Pop Culture, I find this to be very interesting and it demonstrates the stark reality of what actually occurred. We will never know the true answer because we don't know how many people checked the back she killed and it was never caught.

I love a good true crime read and I am not ashamed to admit that I am fascinated by serial killers and what makes them tick, commit the crimes they did and how they picked their victims.

I love the psychology of it all and for me Jack the Ripper is a fascinating character as with him and the Victorian period in which he "operated" for want of a better word, you also get a mix of social history and an insight in to what the East End of London was like at the time.

The book was easy to follow and whilst it does contain a few of the mortuary pictures they are factual and show the injuries inflicted, they are not added to sensationalise, they just illustrate what happened and they do add to the book in my view.

The mix of old and new photos are ideal and the book is mixed with that and the events themselves; you really do get to go back in time as the author uses vivid descriptions of the sites where the murders happened as well as the general Whitechapel area overall. Not much remains now but what does he covers off really well - I have read another book that the author has written on Jack the Ripper and he is clearly an expert on the topic and it comes over in his writing.

It is 5 stars from me for this one - a must read for fans of true crime