Book Review: Jack by Max McBridge

This was a cool concept, executed very well. Jack the Ripper always makes for a smashing good story, albeit a very dark one. There is so much confusion, fear, horror and mystery around his actions and identity. They provide excellent fodder for storytelling, and McBridge does a great job taking the mythos behind the man and turning it into an original and entertaining tale.

The plot dances back and forth in time, setting the scene in Jack’s time then turning to the modern era in which an exhibit about the Ripper triggers theft, mayhem, secrets, revelations, and a scavenger hunt to uncover the truth about what happened in Whitechapel so many years ago…

This was a fun – if you can call a story about the Ripper “fun” without being thought weird – read. McBridge does a great job setting the scene for his tale. The characters are well-crafted and robustly established. The sense of adventure that follows James and Alice through their hunt for answers feels like a movie – in the best way. The family angle was well managed and the whole story well plotted and designed to keep readers guessing until the end. The Big Reveal was a twist I didn’t see coming, and an original spin on the Ripper mythology.

I really liked this one!

Thanks to the author and publisher for my obligation-free review copy.