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georgesreads's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this! Every story was fun and full of gore. It was an incredibly well written book with a perfect balance of fact and fiction- whilst the stories could be read in any order (standalone) I appreciated how each of them linked subtly. This is on KU for free people :0
My favourite story is Funny Little Games and that enough has got me ready and poised to invest in more from this author. I can fully recommend this!!
My favourite story is Funny Little Games and that enough has got me ready and poised to invest in more from this author. I can fully recommend this!!
amy_da1sy's review
3.0
This wasn’t as good as I was expecting it to be,however it did have some fairly good stories.
the_evergrowing_library's review
5.0
I picked this up on a recommendation and I thought it was a series of short stories.
I mean it is, but it’s actually more of a sequential narrative of events happening built around the Jack the Ripper period of Whitechapel.
I read a book by Alan Moore last year that did a similar thing over a much broader timeframe and it was one of the best books I read last year, so it was wonderful to see a similar thing done with intertwining stories. It felt incredibly immersive, like a fluid moving city.
This was a very clever book. The research put into it, the weaving of events/plot and the breadth of the stories was fantastic.
It really felt like an ever-changing city in the midst of turmoil and how each story marked changes in the events to follow was great.
The writing as a whole was great and very English in its use of language. I really love when slang and dialect is used within a novel.
My favourite ‘section’ of the book was hands down ‘The Barber’, which was a beautifully written piece of work.
I really appreciated the sense of Jacks evil seeping into the very core of Whitechapel and bringing out the worst in people like some fetid plague.
While taking a well known entity, Harding still managed to create something fresh and unique and I feel like he is an author to watch.
I mean it is, but it’s actually more of a sequential narrative of events happening built around the Jack the Ripper period of Whitechapel.
I read a book by Alan Moore last year that did a similar thing over a much broader timeframe and it was one of the best books I read last year, so it was wonderful to see a similar thing done with intertwining stories. It felt incredibly immersive, like a fluid moving city.
This was a very clever book. The research put into it, the weaving of events/plot and the breadth of the stories was fantastic.
It really felt like an ever-changing city in the midst of turmoil and how each story marked changes in the events to follow was great.
The writing as a whole was great and very English in its use of language. I really love when slang and dialect is used within a novel.
My favourite ‘section’ of the book was hands down ‘The Barber’, which was a beautifully written piece of work.
I really appreciated the sense of Jacks evil seeping into the very core of Whitechapel and bringing out the worst in people like some fetid plague.
While taking a well known entity, Harding still managed to create something fresh and unique and I feel like he is an author to watch.
bookstarreviews_'s review
5.0
5⭐️
What a brilliant collection of horrific, gruesome and disturbing reads
What a brilliant collection of horrific, gruesome and disturbing reads
davemusson85's review
5.0
To make a great debut, as opposed to just a good one, you must cover a few bases. Your writing needs to be excellent – obviously – likewise your story, which needs to be compelling and original, but you also need to have that certain added extra, an additional hook to burst through the noise and convince people to start reading the damned thing in the first place. Jack Harding’s debut collection, Ripper Country, has all of that in spades.
As you might have guessed from its title, this book transports you to the East End of Victorian London – Whitechapel during late 1888 to be precise, a tough community living in fear of a mysterious madman with a thirst for blood. But this is about so much more than just another examination of Jack the Ripper, and a pondering of who that maniac might have been. Across the stories gathered in this one, Jack Harding manages to both weave his own fictional world while also pulling in enough fact to make you wonder if this talented author hasn’t secretly perfected time travel and has spent his time writing this one by watching live, huddled in a dark alleyway with cobbles under your feet and the stench of piss, poverty, and death all around.
Over the course of the 18 pieces collected here, Harding holds your hand and guides you round this horrid little place and not only lets you peek into its dark corners – he forcibly shoves you into them and blocks your exit when the horror becomes too much, and you want to turn and run. The stories introduce us to a range of folk, all haunted by the actions of the Ripper, and takes us through several years – from the ill-fated 1888 right up to 1940s London by the end. It’s so immersive; through Harding’s cutting prose you can see, taste, and feel everything…and it’ll set your heart thumping.
There is plenty here that is noteworthy – especially from a debut release. First, the way in which Harding brings this whole piece together over the course of its pages, with occasional lines of dialogue that crop up more than once, or references to events we’ve already seen happen is all impressive. It’s done effortlessly, and far less hackneyed than many established authors can manage.
Second, well, there’s the horror. This book is unashamedly scary. The blood of its victims dribbles through its pages, the fear of everyone involved digs under your skin the further you go, and the overwhelming feeling of paranoia and suspicion will have you checking over your own shoulder more than once.
But third, it’s the quality of writing here that really shines through. If Ray Bradbury had a fucked up, street-hardened, dark-souled transatlantic cousin, chances are he goes by the name of Jack Harding. It’s equal parts nasty and elegant – much like the range of incredible illustrations that act as the cherry on top of this delicious cake, courtesy of Joe Worral, Tim Childs, and Nicola Spencer.
In short, this one is a triumph and marks its publisher – Blood Rites Horror – as one with a fine ear for sounding out exciting new talent, following on as this one does from recent debuts by Jamie Stewart and Christopher Badcock, who happens to introduce Ripper Country. It leaves you wanting more from Harding, which is handy as not only can you already find two terrific short stories out there (React and Driving in the Dark), but he’s got a second collection coming out later this year.
Ripper Country, will hook you in, chill you to the bone, and leave you feeling like you’ve had a close shave with something unfathomably sinister…what’s not to love about that?
As you might have guessed from its title, this book transports you to the East End of Victorian London – Whitechapel during late 1888 to be precise, a tough community living in fear of a mysterious madman with a thirst for blood. But this is about so much more than just another examination of Jack the Ripper, and a pondering of who that maniac might have been. Across the stories gathered in this one, Jack Harding manages to both weave his own fictional world while also pulling in enough fact to make you wonder if this talented author hasn’t secretly perfected time travel and has spent his time writing this one by watching live, huddled in a dark alleyway with cobbles under your feet and the stench of piss, poverty, and death all around.
Over the course of the 18 pieces collected here, Harding holds your hand and guides you round this horrid little place and not only lets you peek into its dark corners – he forcibly shoves you into them and blocks your exit when the horror becomes too much, and you want to turn and run. The stories introduce us to a range of folk, all haunted by the actions of the Ripper, and takes us through several years – from the ill-fated 1888 right up to 1940s London by the end. It’s so immersive; through Harding’s cutting prose you can see, taste, and feel everything…and it’ll set your heart thumping.
There is plenty here that is noteworthy – especially from a debut release. First, the way in which Harding brings this whole piece together over the course of its pages, with occasional lines of dialogue that crop up more than once, or references to events we’ve already seen happen is all impressive. It’s done effortlessly, and far less hackneyed than many established authors can manage.
Second, well, there’s the horror. This book is unashamedly scary. The blood of its victims dribbles through its pages, the fear of everyone involved digs under your skin the further you go, and the overwhelming feeling of paranoia and suspicion will have you checking over your own shoulder more than once.
But third, it’s the quality of writing here that really shines through. If Ray Bradbury had a fucked up, street-hardened, dark-souled transatlantic cousin, chances are he goes by the name of Jack Harding. It’s equal parts nasty and elegant – much like the range of incredible illustrations that act as the cherry on top of this delicious cake, courtesy of Joe Worral, Tim Childs, and Nicola Spencer.
In short, this one is a triumph and marks its publisher – Blood Rites Horror – as one with a fine ear for sounding out exciting new talent, following on as this one does from recent debuts by Jamie Stewart and Christopher Badcock, who happens to introduce Ripper Country. It leaves you wanting more from Harding, which is handy as not only can you already find two terrific short stories out there (React and Driving in the Dark), but he’s got a second collection coming out later this year.
Ripper Country, will hook you in, chill you to the bone, and leave you feeling like you’ve had a close shave with something unfathomably sinister…what’s not to love about that?
magpie_666's review
4.0
I'm not the target audience for this collection as my brain glazes over when the setting is Victorian times. But, I've enjoyed what I've read of Jack's short stories so far and so wanted to show some support to a great writer.
I really loved how the stories were connected and I think this, along with the good writing kept me invested right to the end.
For anyone who has an interest in Jack the Ripper or a Victorian setting I'd really recommend this collection.
I really loved how the stories were connected and I think this, along with the good writing kept me invested right to the end.
For anyone who has an interest in Jack the Ripper or a Victorian setting I'd really recommend this collection.