Dust and Shadow: An Account of the Ripper Killings by Dr. John H. Watson [Paperback]

Review: This is a first novel for Ms. Faye and it is subtitled "An Account of the Ripper Killings by Dr. John H. Watson." As a Sherlockian scholar, I maintain a database of Sherlockian pastiches, parodies and related fiction. Among other things, this database keeps reference to the subjects of its entries and "Jack the Ripper" is the single most popular subject for pastiche writers, other than "The Hound of the Baskervilles." There are at least seventy five different items on file about attempts to tell the story of JACK, including Ellery Queen's excellent "A Study in Terror" and Carol Nelson Douglas' two volumes from her Irene Adler series; "Chapel Noir" and "Castle Rouge."

The literature on the Ripper killings is also complex and lengthy. Numerous individuals have been nominated for the role and reasons for the abrupt end to the killings are also legion. Among the Sherlockian offerings, the number of ripper suspects approaches seventy five with almost as many explanations offered for the end to the killings. Although the Sherlockian works are often interesting, they offer little in the way of solid evidence from history for their resolutions of the questions left by the events. The true Ripper Literature tends toward the `Police Procedural' school and is often merely gross, with little entertainment value except to sensationalists.

In this book, one is taken by the Good Doctor along on an investigation by The Master into the world of monsters. This is not the world of Vampires and Ghosties; instead a sense of growing horror brings both the investigators and the reader to the awarenes of the monsters that dwell amongst us, the human monsters that may be our neighbors or our contemporaries. Holmes and Watson are driven to face this reality and to find ways to deal with apparently `motiveless crimes.' Holmes says "But I have repeated to myself Cui bono? until I can feel the words burned upon my brain, and the only answer is No one." This adjustment in outlook is what made the Ripper Killings so difficult for contemporary society to deal with. No one could believe that Jack wandered around like a normal person, killed his victims and then dissolved back into the crowd of humanity in Whitechaple.

This novel presents an interesting solution to the identity of The Ripper and to the resolution of his fate. So far as I have read, it does not duplicate other proposed solutions, but it does seem to fit the established facts. There are a number of `unestablished facts' that surround the Ripper Murders but many of those have been debunked by one author or another and many are discussed here. The activities of Press and the reactions of the denizens of Whitechaple are well covered in this book, in fact, they are integral to it. I wish I could call it a `pleasant read' or a `good Holmesian tale,' but it is not either of these things. It is dark and disturbing and frustrating. Holmes is discouraged, the Doctor is outraged and Scotland Yard is held up to ridicule by everyone involved.

The resolution is believable and the identity given for the Ripper is plausible. The book is hard to leave for even a moment and the usual distractions of Americanisms and untimely slang are mostly absent. Holmes' investigation is real to the reader and his frustrations are apparent. The book is well worth reading and deeply disturbing.

Reviewed by: Philip K. Jones, February 2009.

Having grown-up on a steady diet of Sherlock Holmes' stories as well as the macabre tale of Jack the Ripper [thanks to mom who is an ardent true crime fan], my interest was piqued by this latest pastiche of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes' stories. Though I'm no Sherlockian scholar, I thought Lyndsay Faye's debut was well-written and made for a riveting read, engrossing me in the period details as much as the intriguing plot and character development.

In "Dust and Shadow", the master detective Sherlock Holmes, and his able sidekick Dr John H Watson undertake to solve a series of gruesome murders committed in the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. Those familiar with the story of Jack the Ripper know that the number of victims attributed to the Ripper totaled five in all: Mary Ann "Polly" Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth "Long Liz" Stride, "Catherine Eddowes", and "Mary Jane Kelley". In this pastiche, the author attributes another earlier murder to the Ripper, that of Martha Tabram, who was murdered on Aug 7th 1888, a victim of multiple stab wounds [39 in all].

In the process of solving the murders and uncovering the killer's identity, Holmes himself falls victim to the press of the day, and his very reputation is put on the line as he has to deal with speculations that he himself may have something to do with the murders. Thus the stage is set for a true potboiler, with rich period details and complex characterizations that had me racing through the pages.

I am amazed that this is a debut novel by the author - she writes with flair and assurance, and through the authentic re-creation of Whitechapel in 1888, manages to transport readers into a world that seems altogether familiar. The resolution of the Ripper's identity is also deftly managed, and though this is once again pure speculation, I'd have to say, Ms Faye made quite a convincing case. "Dust and Shadow: An Account of the Ripper Killings" is a great period thriller, and will appeal to fans of the genre as well as fans of both Holmes and "the Knife".

The idea of Sherlock Holmes facing off against Jack the Ripper is such a natural (they "operated" in the same time frame) that one is surprised that Conan Doyle didn't use it himself. But no worries, at least a dozen others have used it since. Probably the best novel version is Nicholas Meyers' "The West End Horror', and, undeniably, the best film version is "Murder by Decree" starring Christopher Plummer as Holmes and James Mason as the best Watson ever! All of which is a long-winded way of saying that each new version must be viewed by, not the originality of the idea, but how well each writer pulls it off. By that standard, first time author Lyndsay Faye pulls it off very well indeed, thank you. Her Holmes, Watson, indeed all her characters, are more than credible as human beings and, within the confines of paying all due homage to the Conan Doyle canon, she manages not a few very interestting surprises of her own. A must for Sherlockians and a damn good read for anyone else!

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