Customer Reviews

A Study in Red: The Secret Journal of Jack the Ripper

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques

Robert Cavendish is bereft with grief at his father's recent passing. He was also surprised to learn his father bequeathed Robert a mysterious journal to be read after his death. Read by him and him alone. As he reads the journal, he comes to realize that he holds in his hands the actual rantings and admissions of Jack the Ripper! But that, as they say, is only the beginning. From those pages Robert discovers the answer to old mysteries and atrocities, answers that lead him down a path of horror and insanity. What affect can the secret ravings of a murderer such as Jack the Ripper have on a person? And what connection did Robert's father have to this secret journal?

I was immediately struck by the enormous amount of research that went into A Study in Red (The Secret Journal of Jack the Ripper). It brought 18th century London to life, making the story almost palpable. For over a hundred years, the mystery of Jack the Ripper has been investigated, written about, and discussed, but never like this. I could feel the cobblestones under my feet, hear the horses and carriages and smell the foul air of the London back alleyways.

The journal was an interesting tool, bringing the reader directly into Jack's world and the insanity inflicting him. Experiencing the journal with Robert was intense as the mysteries unfold page by page. The suspense kept me engrossed well into the late evening hours, just as Robert had... I can feel the goose bumps now.

The identity of Jack the Ripper has been explored, but never in such a deliciously nail biting manner. Although fiction, the possibilities of who Jack really was and where he came from as well as his unfortunate victims felt all too real thanks to the obvious hard work of the author to create this sensational tale.

I usually don't like Jack the Ripper fiction works, but I found "A Study In Red: The Secret Journal of Jack the Ripper" very different, yet sickeningly fascinating. I was unable to order my copy when it was first released so as you can imagine, I was very excited to order this work. Filled with illusion, I began reading and found a very exciting, suspenseful thriller. Dr. Cavendish speaks in the first person of a his fright filled days reading a journal handed down to him after his fathers passing. Dr. Cavendish soon realizes this is the journal of none other than Jack the Ripper himself.

As pointed out by another reviewer, it did seem to drag out... Especially some of Dr. Cavendish's ramblings between reading journal entries. I also found the over use of exclamation points a bit annoying, but that's just me. The entire storyline of John Terrance Ross could have been omitted and did little to fuel the already thrilling work. I didn't really care for who JtR turned out to be, but that aside, the story itself was very intriguing.

Overall, this was a GREAT book and a quick read as you will NOT want to put it down. Like Dr. Cavendish, I found myself unable to sleep peacefully until I was finished reading. I highly recommend "A Study In Red" and give Mr. Porter 4 stars on a job well done! I will be looking forward to Mr. Porter's next work, hopefully another tale about Jack.

I received this book late afternoon on a Friday and completed it in the afternoon on the following day. Talk about not being able to put a book down! This is extremely well written, and the tremendous amount of research the writer did really shows. It is as if he got into a time machine and traveled back to that time with a tape recorder and took notes. The language, the locations, the details - frighteningly accurate.

This is a whole new perspective on the subject of Jack The Ripper, which includes the feelings and perceptions of the killer himself. I would strongly recommend A Study in Red to anyone who is fascinated with this long-unsolved mystery or to anyone who is looking for a story that will absolutely captivate its reader. Superior job. Joyce

I am completely baffled at the amount of five-star ratings this book has received. To me, it was an exercise in total tedium and repetition, speckled with such literary gems as: "'Yes?' I asked, questioningly" (how else would you ask a question?); "rationality took over my mind" (are you sure it didn't take over your arm?); and "insane madness" (as opposed to perfectly sane madness, I suppose.) Not to mention Mr. Porter's love-affair with the phrase "once more" -- as in, "once more settled myself down at the desk. With my hands trembling far more than I would have thought possible just few hours ago, I reached out and took up the journal once more." How did this thing even get published?

I have to say, I bought this book because I am intrigued by the Whitechapel murders and thought it would be a fun read that would add more character to the anonymous slayer. But, Jack the Ripper's actual journal entries are so brief and uninspired (indeed, they are the ravings of a stereotypical psychopath, what with the voices calling for blood and the whining about headaches, etc.) that they fail to add any character to the Ripper at all. Instead, we are treated to a few lines of that stuff and then several repetitive paragraphs by Cavendish about how the Ripper must be going deeper into his madness.

This was a complete waste of my time and money, and anyone who likes to read because they are interested in characters, artful language, and novel ideas will most likely feel the same way.

I have to say this is not one of the normal books that I would read, however, I have to say I was just engrossed in the book and could not put it down. I had to keep reading every minute that I could, and it held my attention to the very end.

It was just moving,so well written, just pulls you into the era and time of the whole experience. I have to say it left me wanting for nothing, it was just a completely wonderful read and I would highly suggest that everyone read it no matter if its your normal type of book or not. You may be just as surprised as I was that its a book that I'm glad I read as I would have been missing out on literature that was just above and beyond what I could have ever expected. I for one can't wait for the movie to come out and will be going to see it as well, I'm hoping that the movie will make the book pop just as much, and do the book justice.
This book was just so well written, that I will be picking up more of Mr. Porters books as he now has my full attention. I'm sure he will soon have yours as well.

I have known this author for a while, and his books keep getting better and better. Very well written! The author has thought out of the box for this novel! Makes reading fun again!

Author Edward Cook

I got STUDY IN RED two days ago . I will admit that I am not a Riperlogist so I approached the book with mild curiosity, a touch of skepticism and a layman's knowledge of Jack's History.

I needed a break the day the book arrived, so I plopped down in my orthopedic recliner, aligned my coffee cup, tobacco, ash tray, adjusted the light and immediately became immersed in the protagonists
dilemma. In fact the reading experience became so intense that I wound up taking a break from the action every time he did. I had to. If he went for coffee, I went for coffee. If he had to walk, I had to walk. When he went to sleep I would take a break for a few minutes, but I could not shut my eyes. I had to get back to the book. I finished it that evening. The story really sucked me in and wrung me out.

I think my first though after completing the book was, 'I wonder how long it took the author to get well after he finished writing this?'

It was an intriguing read that I would recommend to anyone. A fascinating study of how the skeletons in the closet of our ancestors can still be heard rattling today.

A Study in Red by Brian L. Porter and published By Double Dragon Publishing, tells the story of Robert Cavendish who inherits a journal from his deceased father. The journal itself reveals a dire family secret, who was the Whitechapel Murderer.

The journal passed down from great-grandfather and finally to Robert, leaves him intrigued and baffled. In being a psychiatrist, he has diagnosed several clients with different mental disorders. But can he understand the mind of a killer?

Porter does a fine job of bringing in the diary of this serial killer of the 1800's with flare and wisdom. The story is rich in researched detail of the time period in the diary and any psychiatric terminology.

In this story, Porter grasps the concept of the White Chapel murders and adds a special circumstance to it. Ripperologists may like this story, may not, but they can't deny the ability to see what this killer could have thought; see the details of the victims, the madness that struck the killer and his surroundings. And like Robert, try to analyze why the killer did what he did.

The character was meshed well with the storyline diary. Not once should a reader get bored by reading this book, but intrigued at what happens next. There is even a twist at the end one would not expect.

One maybe critical of this book in saying it is too long. The character's feelings have been said enough, but really pick this book up and read it. It's not only amazing, but spine chilling. And please tell me how many books can say that?

In reading A Study in Red - The Secret Journal of Jack The Ripper, I came across a passage written by Porter that explained why I couldn't put this book down.... "there was a thrill attached to all the horror I was exposing myself to, not a pleasant thrill, but a thrill nonetheless." To me the "thrill" was wanting to know the full story. With the available resources for research today it just might be possible for a writer to compile all of the evidence and form a conclusion that wasn't possible 100 years ago. Was the Ripper a man sick in body as well as mind? Did he seek help from others? Did he tell someone else what he had done and not been believed? And why kill just prostitutes? Were they to blame for his illness? Or was it his own father that was to blame? Yes Porter tells you the story is fiction, but is it really? I'm not really sure anymore.

I've enjoyed reading this book. It's a cross between a "fiction" and a "true crime." So if you enjoy either genre you will enjoy A Study in Red. Do keep in mind that this book is very descriptive.

A Study in Red begins with a mysterious warning, compelling the reader to read on. What follows is a horrific tale of butchery, bloodletting and madness, the tale of the secret journal of Jack the Ripper.

Page, by warm sticky page, Brian L. Porter compels us to follow as Robert receives a very old stack of papers upon his father's death. Puzzled and curious, he begins to read the odd journal. Sleep eludes Robert and he barely eats enough to stay alive as the journal of Jack the Ripper engulfs his fevered brain. Robert hears voices and sees shadows, even though he is quite alone. His study seems strangely cold, although the pages of the journal are unaccountably warm, as warm as blood, and for some odd reason, a queer London fog has gradually surrounded his house.

Is Robert going mad? Has the Ripper somehow found a way to cross the boundaries of time into the present? Reading the grisly accounts of the Ripper's murderous deeds would unsettle anyone, but what otherworldly force seems to have overtaken Robert? Somehow, he seems unusually close to the Ripper's story and to his own ancestor's apparent involvement with one of the most heinous murderers of all time. This is a story that will chill the heart and draw one in like no other. Perhaps you, too, will be compelled to open A Study in Red, to learn the truth of the secret journal of Jack the Ripper.