They’re all colours and they’re all connected. But what happens when the yellow member is certifiably insane? Do they stop him from his rampage, or join with him forever?
This story was really and truly weird. And not in a, huh,
that was a little weird, but fun kind of way. Just in a… yup. That was weird. I
don’t know how to feel about it kind of way.
Which is pretty much all I have to say about it. I’m not
sure what was happening. I definitely didn’t really get into the flow of it. And
I still think about the short story with a lot of confusion while I’m trying to
write this review. The language was kind of good (which is why I actually read
it). But it was a little too convoluted and confusing for my poor little brain…
Harry’s friends, Bill and Georgia are about to get married. There’s just one little problem…. Georgia is nowhere to be seen and there’s a revenge-hungry faery on the loose.
Every time I pick up a Dresden Filesshort story, I feel an insane urge to run up to my shelf and grab whichever novel I’m up to. There is just something amazing about this series that makes me want to sink my nose into it every time. But, I did exercise some self-control after reading Something Borrowed… because I have a pile of books I’m currently reading that is fairly high (I’ve been told I have to get them off the couch and use some restraint).
You know that any wedding set in the Dresden Filesworld is going to be entertaining. And things are probably going to be blown up because Harry Dresden is involved. This short story doesn’t disappoint on any front. It also involves insulting the future step-mother-in-law and a great little switcher-oo of the bride. Like I said, it’s impossible to be boring when reading one of the Dresden Filestales. Although, it was also quite sweet because there was the kiss of true love (I’m pretty sure there were two, but there’s enough ambiguity in the second one that you can’t be entirely positive).
Something Borrowedis an incredibly sweet, fun and entertaining read. I was so sad when it was over, although also quite happy considering there was a happily-ever-after ending to it all. This is the perfectly dramatic wedding – the best man is in plaster, the groom almost marries the wrong woman and there’s an insane fae running around trying to get vengeance. If you want a story of calamities that will make your own nuptials look kind of tame… definitely read this. Actually, just read this short story anyway. It’s absolutely brilliant.
He’s the son of the Ripper… and he’s finally found him. But now he wants one last favour from the man who abandoned him.
Many of the stories in the The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories collection have a bit of a focus on genetics. What would the children of the Ripper be like? The grandchild, the many times great-grandchildren? And mostly I’ve enjoyed them… but something about this slightly more fantastical take on the same story gave me a few heebie jeebies. Not sure why, but it definitely made me feel not so comfortable.
Of all the stories I expected to read, one where the child begs
the father to perform another murder really wasn’t one of them. Especially when
the child is doing it to regain his sight… and there’s something completely off
about him as well. Although I can’t pinpoint that one so closely. It’s just
uncomfortable and weird. This entire story. Weirdly uncomfortable. Not one that
I thoroughly enjoyed.
This is a fairly clever story, but not one that I would be
likely to read again. There is just something about it that is a little too
intensely creepy for my taste. But it’s still very well written, and a
completely imaginative Jack the Ripper story… one that is probably going to
haunt me for a little while longer.
She thinks that she’s finally found the love of her life. But, when she finds out that he’s been seeing another woman… she might just crack.
This was a nice, creepy little contemporary take on the Jack
the Ripper mythos. For starters, it is in present day and deals with his
descendants. For another, it is written from the point of view of one of these
descendants. You spend most of the time wondering who is about to get
themselves murdered… and just what genetics do mean for the serial killer gene…
or if there even is one. Actually, this definitely swayed me towards the belief
in a serial killer…
Nature versus nurture is a constant debate. One that
seriously fascinates me. This tends more to the angle of nature. That genes can
give us certain tendencies that aren’t great. Alright, not great is an
understatement… this is talking about serial killers with no real purpose other
than death. It makes yo concerned for who the real descendants of Jack the
Ripper could be… if there are any (I’m kind of hoping not).
The flip in the culprit of the story took me completely by
surprise. I like that there were two people who had a genetic tendency to be
killers. The genetics aren’t really what I blame their actions on (we’re all
masters of our own fate), but it still made things incredibly tense and spine
tingling as I read about the different backgrounds of two people who aren’t overly
nice. But it does raise a number of questions.
Title: The Keys to the Door Author: William Meikle In: The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories (Maxim Jakubowski) Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one) My Bookshelves:Crime, Historical fiction, Horror Dates read: 20th September 2019 Pace: Slow Format: Short story Publisher: Robinson Year: 2015 5th sentence, 74th page: And, by Jove, I did indeed feel something: a certain coldness and dampness in the air.
Mary was born on the same night as a horrific murder took place. Now, they’re trying to exorcise the Ripper and give the young woman her bid for freedom.
Unlike every other short story in The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories collection, this one had an intriguing element of fantasy. Nothing too overt, but enough that I had a bit of a smile and a feeling of fantasy nostalgia hanging across my face when I turned the last page. And a few goose bumps, considering the fact that it had a kind of horror spin on it.
The poetry of having the woman who is the primary victim
also being born on the same night as the final Ripper victim and having the
name of one of his victims helped to add to that eerie feeling. The setting of
an old building, a candlelit room and a haunting spectre further compounded
this feeling. It made this one of the more enjoyable stories and, ironically,
less dark than many of the others in this collection.
I liked the sense of closure at the end of this tale. It not
only put the spirit of Jack the Ripper to bed, but also let the lead detective finally
say his own goodbyes. It also hinted that the darkness within the killer was
something more than just the average serial killer… which I kind of like
since we will never know who it was, or why they did it.
Title: A Head for Murder Author: Keith Moray In: The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories (Maxim Jakubowski) Rating Out of 5: 2.5 (Readable, but not worth reading again) My Bookshelves:Crime, Historical fiction Dates read: 11th September 2019 Pace: Slow Format: Short story Publisher: Robinson Year: 2015 5th sentence, 74th page: Who better, the prince has reasoned, than the greatest batsman of his day to save the day.
A group of gentlemen gather to play cricket and discuss their passions. But does one of them have a head for murder?
This story felt so very, very British. After all, it starts
off with the cricket whites and a bunch of gentlemen playing the age-old sport.
Just something which is far too English to be ignored… and then it jumps over
into the realm of Jack the Ripper and things get really intense really quickly.
I’ll admit, while I was reading this story, I wasn’t really
paying attention. But I gave it a low score because even though I wasn’t paying
attention, it also didn’t draw me in at all. As I’m trying to write this
review, I just have these vague recollections of moments throughout the tale. Nothing
obvious and concrete… all just very… vague.
From my hazy memory of this tale, I remember that Jack the Ripper was moving in more privileged circles… I liked that it took this spin. Most of the other stories thus far in the The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories collection have taken more of a working-class angle to the killer or the telling of his choices. This, instead made it sound as though he was of a higher class and far removed from the realities of the victims who he butchered.
Title: Bloody Valentine Author: James Patterson Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect) My Bookshelves:Crime, Thriller Dates read: 28th August 2019 Pace: Fast Format: Novel Publisher: Arrow Books Year: 2011 5th sentence, 74th page: ‘I’m her sister-in-law,’ Leila protested.
Killing isn’t murder, when it’s necessary.
Mega-rich restaurant owner Jack Barnes and his second wife Zee are very much in love. However, their plans for Valentine’s Day are about to be torn apart by the most violent murder.
Who is the strange figure plotting this sick crime? Who hates Jack that much? There are plenty of suspects living in Jack’s fnacy block of flats. Is it one of them, or could it be the work of an outsider with a twisted mind?
One thing’s for sure, the police have got their work cut out solving this bloody mess.
This gory murder mystery will make you feel weak at the knees.
I read this in almost one sitting. Not just because it was
spine-tinglingly creepy, but also because the writing was so unbelievably
fantastic that I just couldn’t look away. Luckily for me, it was an incredibly
short read. One that I look forward to picking up again and again in the future.
Although, maybe a little further into the future since I like to get a decent
nights sleep as often as possible…
Whether it’s on the TV or in one of my books, I do really
love a strong murder whodunnit. There is just something so much more fun and lively
when you spend every moment of enjoying a story also wondering just who the
murderer is. And, sometimes even more importantly, why they did it. this
was one of those few stories that I didn’t really have much of an idea who the culprit
was until the eleventh hour. Normally there’s a red herring, or some character
that just seems skeevy and… well, wrong. There really wasn’t one in this story.
There were plenty of interpersonal issues and relationships, but none that made
me go “nope, you’re a baddy”.
Patterson manages to perfectly walk the line between graphic information and leaving everything up to the imagination. You don’t spend the entire time reading this story feeling icked out by what is done to the victims, but you also don’t feel safe whilst reading it. The horror is there, but many of those moments are filled in by your own imagination. It’s a perfect balance, and one that is incredibly difficult to find.
Bloody Valentine isn’t the book that you want to read
before bed time. Or, maybe even before Valentine’s Day. But it is a story which
you should pick up. It’s a great introduction to a new author and a quick read if
you’re not entirely sure what you actually want to read at the time… definitely
one that I suggest and will be picking up again myself.
He thinks he’s seen the face of the killer, and he’s determined to help find him. But could he have been mistaken? Did he really see the face of the killer?
This is the first story in the The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Storiescollection which deals with racism as an aspect of finding the killer. Although there was an obvious aggression towards Jews at the time, none of the tales in this collection have specifically addressed this topic. Which made this kind of amazing. After all, a tale of perceptions, understandings and inherent racism is always going to be a good kind of read.
This was a story that seemed to be about the “true” identity
of the killer. About what he actually looked like, not about how easily
misconceptions can occur. But I liked this angle much better. After all, we’ll
never truly know who the Ripper was, and all we have to go on are reports based
on others’ thoughts and perceptions.
My favourite part of this short story was the ending. The feeling
of shame and guilt that the narrator felt when he realised that he let his
prejudice destroy a good man’s life. And the moment when he realises that his actions
had consequences, although he is not necessarily held responsible for them.
Title: His Last Victim Author: K.G. Anderson In: The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories (Maxim Jakubowski) Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!) My Bookshelves:Crime, Historical fiction, LGBTQI Dates read: 31st July 2019 Pace: Slow Format: Short story Publisher: Robinson Year: 2015 5th sentence, 74th page: After all, his brother, a member of my dressing club, was the friend who’d told me about the opening with Scotland Yard five years ago.
The police really want to catch the Ripper, and one man decides to embrace his secret side to do so. But, at what cost?
I really wasn’t expecting a tale of a cross-dresser in a collection
of Jack the Ripper stories. Like, at all. Although, to be fair, I rarely expect
to come across such a tale, so when you’re reading about historical fiction and
retakes on a notorious serial killer… there isn’t much that could be farther
from my mind.
I enjoyed the idea of a man dressing as a woman to try and
catch one of the worlds’ most notorious serial killers. The fact that the man
who stops it all is also one of this ilk and grouping just made it all the more
fun. Actually, I thought that this could have been a much longer story with many
more nuances. Or maybe it’s just my need to read stories which feature trans
and cross dressing individuals in a positive light…
The happily ever after in this tale was kind of perfect. Not
only was the Ripper stopped, but the narrator also found himself in a moment of
happily ever after with an understanding wife. And, everyone who had been a
part of the capture of the villain was mentioned in the final words, letting
you know that they all lived long and prospered.
Tom needs a good story to keep his job. But, when he starts to cross a line to create one, he might find that the cost is far too high.
I seriously, way too much loved the ending to this tale. There
was a gruesome, horrifying sense of poetic justice to the tale and the idea
that the true evil walked off into the night all alone. Which, whilst it is
something I don’t often appreciate, it was something that worked brilliantly
well for this storyline.
From a little back research, I’ve quickly come to understand
that there are many who believe that the “Dear Boss” letters are a hoax. One
made up by the newspapers of the time to capitalise on the insanity of the
time. And the horror. This is the first story I’ve read which uses this as a
story plot. One that is quite dark and twisty and more than a little scary. And
one that I think worked beautifully well.
Not only does this short story provide what feels like a
plausible background to the “Dear Boss” letters, but it also gives a hint as to
why there is a bit of mystery surrounding the Ripper’s last victim. The one who
some people aren’t 100% is the woman she was identified as. In this case, she
may have been a poor schmucks wife instead.
Earth and Skye 