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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
outstanding, powerful, suspense until the very end, : Brian L. Porter at his finest, September 9, 2009
Legacy of the Ripper:
By Brian L. Porter
A legacy is defined as anything handed down from the past from an ancestor. Some bestow monetary awards, others furniture and some even jewelry. But, in the case of Dr. Robert Cavendish in the book A Study in Red the legacy bestowed upon him was quite different. His father, when he died, had his journals given to Robert by his solicitor and the end result was anything but rich, gratifying or happy.
Being a direct descendant of Jack the Ripper, Dr. Cavendish was presented with his journals and required to read them in order to understand the rationale behind his motives and mind for his killings. But, it destroyed him and left him in such a catatonic state that he became sick, ill and could not function or perform his daily routines.
In his second in his Ripper series once again the master of science fiction, mysteries and thrillers, Brian Porter, gives us more insight into the mind of another killer, or supposed killer, Jack Reid, Robert's heir, or nephew.
Being the master craftsman he is the author switches between the past, the time period of the true Ripper murders and what we soon learn to be the present, in this book the early 21st century. Because a person is a descendant of a murderer, butcher and killer, does that mean that person's genes are a part of you and if they are does that mean you will inherit them? Does that mean you will become one and the same with that person? We are about the re-enter the world and mind of one of the most elusive and creative killers that ever walked this earth: Jack the Ripper. Has he returned in the body of Jack Reid who is next in line and has received the dreaded journals which recount his killings and the ones in the present that mirror his exactly from the way the murders were executed and the days on which they took place? Only time will tell as you read this book and learn what horrors will befall the people now.
Xerox machines are used to create exact copies of an original document. Imagine someone doing the same thing with crimes that were committed in the past and now xeroxing them in the present. In 1888 Jack the Ripper mutilated, maimed, killed, disfigured and disemboweled many young women because he thought they were not worthy of breathing life anymore because of their vocation. Prostitution was never legal in England though many young women resorted to that profession in order to live, feed their families and survive. Jack the Ripper was infected with a deadly venereal disease by one of these women and went on a rampage of hate, killing and destruction to rid the world of as many as he could before succumbing to the disease. We are not really sure because his identity remains unknown and he was never caught.
Jack Reid is in Ravenswood a maximum-security facility for the criminally and mentally insane. Insane and troubled yes, murderer, that has not been completely decided. After standing trial for killing three women he tries to relate his tale of horror and imprisonment that led up to his arrest and incarceration. The direct descendant of Jack the Ripper and next in line to receive his journals from his late uncle Robert Cavendish, he becomes entranced and mentally kidnapped by what was written in them and soon becomes one and the same with the events in them as his late uncle did.
What makes these crimes so unbelievable is that they are being committed on the same days and in the same exact locations as the first murders over 100 years before. Two police officers, and one Ripperologist re-read, revisit and rethink all of the evidence and come up with only one conclusion: Jack Reid might be innocent. The killer as Jack the Ripper was methodical, neat and did not even leave one piece of evidence behind to help the police identify him. But, in the third murder that Jack Reid supposedly committed he left himself covered with the victim's blood and more. Even the way the murder was committed did not exactly match the third one in 1888. Added to that Jack's description of his being held prisoner by a young man named Michael and repeatedly kept in a drugged stupor and a mystery man who claimed knowledge of all of the murders and held him captive so he could complete his goals, made it reasonable for the police to reevaluate their findings and try to get him free. But, was this the right decision?
Dr. Ruth Truman is the psychiatrist assigned to evaluate Jack and work with him in order to have him finally admit his guilt and more. She is relating the events in this book as she learns about them and narrates much of the book as Jack does too. How do all of the characters come together? The persistence of one Police Sergeant and one Ripperologist who would not give up until they found out the truth would help find out the truth behind the murders. Nor would lead Inspector Holland give up without a fight to find out just who was behind these heinous crimes and if what Jack related to them in their interview at Ravenswood was really fact or fiction. Did the journals really exist? Was there a man named Michael who worked with this mysterious man to frame him for these crimes? Was this person related to him and have the same mental disorder that seemed to run rampart in his family?
From Whitechapel, to Brighton to Warsaw Poland these elusive killers have left their mark. But what will astound you is the ending and not until the last paragraph of the last page will you learn the truth or think you learn the truth. The killer: Was he caught? Is he dead? Is he still at large? Only Brian Porter knows for sure and you the reader will have to decide for himself/herself. Can the pages of a journal carry something in it so powerful and so dangerous that it causes the reader to become tortured, tormented and terrorized by its contents? Can murders be carbon copies to resemble those from the past or even the present including the timing, the locations and dates of the murders? I won't tell you. You need to decide the facts yourself and weigh the evidence. In the words of Jack the Ripper and the elusive Brighton Ripper: "I have important work to do, and I don't have a lot of time to prepare." Brian Porter prepare to receive my rating for this book and we hope you will not keep us in any more suspense and write the sequel so that we really know the ending to this outstanding novel. I am sure there is much more to come. Who will inherit this Legacy next? Who knows? Would you want it?
I give this book: 5 Ripperologists to help solve the crimes and Five Sergeant Wright's to assist.
Fran Lewis: REVIEWER
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Continuing Saga of the Legacy of Jack the Ripper, July 19, 2009
'Does violent death have a name? Can evil truly be born into the world, evil so deep that it is bred into the genetic make-up of an individual? Until I came to this place and met the man who made me begin to suspect that such an evil could exist, I'd have been as dismissive as most of my profession at the prospect of such a possibility... Dr. Ruth Truman, Psychiatrist.'
Porter's book A Study in Red tells about the Secret Journal of Jack the Ripper. As the story goes, Robert Cavendish, who was a psychiatrist in modern day, received the journal from his father, who received it from his father, who received it from his father. The original Cavendish was also a psychiatrist who had a patient he found to be no other than the famous Jack the Ripper. Thus began the story of A Study in Red - The Secret Journal of Jack the Ripper.
After Robert Cavendish's death the journal was passed on to his nephew Jack Reid.
Upon receiving his "legacy" Jack's life becomes twisted in what will be known by modern day London as the "The Brighton Ripper Case." Murders are taking place following the same pattern as those of the original Jack the Ripper.
Wright and Holland have worked the case from the first murder. With the help of Alice Nickels, who is a "Ripperologist," a plan is set to capture the modern day Ripper hopefully before he strikes again. This plan ends with the capture, trial and institutionalization of Jack Reid. But did he really commit these gruesome murders? If so, did he do it alone? He insists that there were others that actually set him up and committed the murders. He even admitted to having received the journal and to the effect reading it had upon him. The police believe the journal never existed but was instead a fixation of his distorted imagination. So after Jack's removal from society and the murders ceasing, it appears that the police really have found and caught their man. But what happened to the journal and legacy? Will the present owner, whoever it might be, pick up where Jack supposedly left off? Read Legacy of the Ripper and find out for yourself. I think you will be as surprised as I was.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Prepare yourself; Jack is back!), October 22, 2009
"Legacy of the Ripper' by Brian Porter...
You know the part in the front of a book that reads, 'This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously' - Brian Porter writes in such a style that it's difficult to distinquish fact from fiction. What I mean by that is, his portrayal of the characters are so brilliantly mastered that when reading you tend to believe they exist. His unique ability to not only draw you into the story, to make you feel as if you're experiencing the terror, is disturbing - yet invigorating...
After reading 'A study in Red' I found myself thinking about the book often and hoped this talented author would grace us with a sequel - thankfully he did and it's entitled 'Legacy of the Ripper.' Once again he takes the reader deep into the bowel of Whitchapel and into the mind of a sadistic serial killer known as 'Jack the Ripper' then into the mind of another killer known as 'Jack Reid' or is he? Has Jack Reid inherited his ancestors murderous traits? You walk in the shoes of Dr. Ruth Truman, the psychiatrist assigned to evaluate Jack Reid, and Jack Reid himself as they narrate much of this horrific and disturbing tale. You're introduced to many new players in this masterpiece and all are colorful and intriquing.
There is not any doubt you will be left wanting more. Will we see a sequel to this second masterpiece of terror? I bloody well hope so!
Review by Barbara Watkins, author 'Nightmares & Daydreams'
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by Brian L. Porter
