Who was Jack the Ripper – find out for FREE in our huge giveaway

Could we get any more generous? My novel, The Rhondda Ripper, previously published as A Policeman’s Lot, now joins our massive promotion and is available  for immediate free download HERE. It joins Arkansas Smith II and The Dead Walked as part of our massive promotion.

The offer is for a limited period only so download the eBook now

All I ask if you take advantage of this promo is that you please leave a review, good or bad, on Amazon and please share this info with your Facebook, Twitter and Google+ followers.

Think you know the Jack the Ripper story?

Think again.

Police Inspector Frank Parade

Inspector Parade carries out his daily duties in Pontypridd, duties complicated by the presence of 500 members of Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show, not to mention the thousands attending the show every day. A series of depraved murders quickly makes things even more complicated.

Soon Frank Parade find himself on the trail of a killer which stretches backs to London’s Whitechapel killings

Jack the Ripper case torn open

In  my 2009 novel, A Policeman’s Lot I offered a new take on the infamous Jack the Ripper murders – My story cast doubt over the death of the fifth official victim, Mary Kelly and even went so far to suggest that there was no Ripper as such, and that the final victim may have been the key to the atrocities. The book was fiction true enough but I firmly believed the explanation for the killings in the novel and now new evidence has knocked me off my feet – The BBC are reporting that new evidence is rewriting what we know about the JACK THE RIPPER CASE – maybe they’ve been reading A Policeman’s Lot.

The Jack the Ripper murders provoked a nationwide panic whipped up by press sensationalism. Violence, especially violence with a sexual frisson, sold newspapers. But violent crime never figured significantly in the statistics or in the courts. In A Policeman’s Lot, I suggested that only four of the killings were done by the same hand and that the final killing enabled the killer to escape because….well, I’ve already given too much away but read the book

“Fresh material has come to light which may suggest she was not Mary Kelly but someone else,” says Marriott. “If that is the case, there is a motive and likely suspects for her murder.”DR Xanthe Mallet, University of Dundee


If that is the case it also adds credence to the theory put out there in my novel.

The new evidence will be presented on the BBC’s National Treasure’s Live which will be broadcast tonight on BBC1 tonight.

A Policeman’s Lot by Gary M Dobbs is available in both print and eBook.

Good Reads discussion of a Policeman’s Lot
Ebook edition
Print edition

Jack the Ripper – The Solution awaits

Patricia Cornwell in her mega selling book, Portrait of a Killer fixated squarely on painter, Walter Sickert and presented a wealth of evidence to suggest that he was the fiend responsible for The Whitechapel Killings, that he was indeed Jack the Ripper. Before her Stephen Knight had in his, The Final Solution provided a link to the brutal murders and the British Royal Family.  In the early 1990’s we were asked to believe in the sensational find of the century when Jack the Ripper’s Diary turned up in Liverpool, but after some initial excitement the book has been denounced as a fake. Over the years there have been a long list of names suggested as to being the Ripper, but in all these names never has the theory given in my novel, A Policeman’s Lot been put forward. Is this because the suspect has been pulled out of left field? Hell, no – the name I have put forward in my novel has been associated with the case since the murders were first investigated.

Why then has this name never come forward before?

Well, simply because it turns all the previous theories, all the speculation and indeed the killings themselves on their head. It provides a credible explanation for what happened during that autumn of terror. Was the Ripper real or an invention of early tabloid journalism?

But it’s a work of fiction, right?

Indeed it is, but I firmly believe the basic concept behind the plot – that Jack the Ripper was never discovered because….well, that maybe giving too much away. The book’s out there – in PRINT and eBook. It’s had a number of good reviews and I’ve had several readers give me the grand praise that they couldn’t put it down.

It’s been out digitally for the best part of a year and in print only a few weeks. It’s sold a few but has not reached the audience I genuinely feel it deserved. Why? Blowed if I know – I keep pushing it in posts such as this and reviews have been turning up on Amazon. Hopefully it’s a slow burner and it will explode anytime soon.

Should I give away the name of the person I have identified as the Ripper, I wonder? The book is not so much a whodunnit after all and the reader knows a few chapters in who the guilty party is, but it is only when the book has played out that all the elements come together, and a credible explanation is found. I feel that if I gave away the identity of the suggested killer here that it would push sales, but I’m not going to. Although I secretly hope some reviewer will let the cat out of the bag and start a debate.

And so all I can say is that the book is the result of several years of research into the Ripper Killings and leave you with some quotes from the various reviews. But if anyone does buy a copy then I thank you and hope you will see fit to leave a review on Amazon – even if you hate the book. Though without wanting to sound arrogant I don’t think that will be the case. Click on the relevant image for either the print or eBook version.

And so those reviews:

Dobbs has done his research and packs a lot into his novel. We become immersed in a time and place on the cusp of the twentieth century. Old methods of law enforcement are yielding with the introduction of new technologies. Economic changes create new problems and social pressures. 

What an end.  The author uses Parade and Buffalo Bill to offer his own truly unique solution to the greatest unsolved serial killer mystery in history.  

The colour of the setting, the atmosphere and the characterization are all top-class. The story starts rather low-key, but once you get to the killings, everything steps up a notch and grabs you by the throat. A “historical police procedural” is the most effective way I can describe it. The storyline’s multiple, concurrent strands reminded me a bit of the J. J. Marric (John Creasey) Gideon books, as did the well-observed “common people” characters. The difference here is the way they’re thrown into greater relief by their contrast with the celebrated Buffalo Bill and his show people. Your choice of this background for your first Pontypridd novel was a stroke of genius. From Keith Chapman AKA western writer, Chap O’Keefe

Another review from THE MACK CAPTURES CRIME WEBSITE – Police Inspector Frank Parade prepares for duty after the last good night’s rest he will enjoy for a while. For Parade, the policeman’s lot is to maintain order in a six mile area with a handful of constables. But today is going to be more hectic than usual: several hundred cattle have to be moved through town on market day and Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show has just pitched camp. This is just the beginning of Parade’s problems which will include deaths, robberies, fights, an escaped convict, illicit tavern activity, an overly attentive landlady, and a revelation in the Jack the Ripper case.

The hook that gets readers’ attention is the connection to Jack the Ripper and a satisfying and well set hook it is. But A Policeman’s Lot is, at its core, a police procedural. Pontypridd in 1904 was cosmopolitan in many respects but still retained a frontier flavor: …the streets were often lawless — river traders, gypsies, pickpockets, drifters, even escaped convicts had to be contended with. The story follows Inspector Frank Parade as he puts in long hours monitoring the activities in town, investigating crimes, and schooling a likable but inexperienced young constable. At the time and place the book is set, the police were still developing as a professional organization and didn’t have a widespread trust among the public, telephones were not widely available making communication over distances a problem, and forensic analysis was limited. In this environment, the police had to rely on techniques still used today: collect evidence, interview everyone, observe, find patterns.

Frank Parade makes for a quite interesting character. I see him as the kind of man that made the British empire — brave, honorable, and dedicated to service. As a soldier, he saw action in the Second Boer War then traded Army khaki for the blue of a policeman. He is unwavering in his defense of the law, sets high standards for himself and his men but is not a martinet. Watching the sober Frank deal with the freewheeling Wild West Show made for a fun study in contrasts.

About the Ripper connection I’ll only say that it fits nicely into the story and has enough fact to make it a credible plot line. It also lets us see Parade performing good, solid police investigation. I checked some of the Ripper forums after I finished the book and was astonished at the passion with which the case is studied.

A Policeman’s Lot is an entertaining story that brings together one of the last icons of the American West, a look at British police work while the force was still in its infancy, and one of the most widely known murder cases in history. I highly recommend it to readers who enjoy historical crime fiction and police procedurals.

Jack in print

I am pleased to announce that my novel, A Policeman’s Lot, previously only available as an eBook, is now available in a handsome paperback edition – check it out HERE

Product Description

Think you know the Jack the Ripper story? Think again! Inspector Frank Parade carries out his daily duties in the Welsh industrial town of Pontypridd, duties complicated by the unprecedented presence of 500 members of Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show encamped outside the town, not to mention the thousands attending the show every day. A series of depraved murders quickly makes things even more complicated. Buffalo Bill stands squarely in his path when Parade tries to investigate the likely possibility that one of the hundreds of show members is involved. And soon enough Parade’s own superiors are blocking his inquires, too. Still more deaths occur as Parade sifts through the thin evidence available and finds a trail that may lead to the perpetrator of the most heinous crime of the 19th Century—London’s “Ripper” murders. Shocking revelations come thick and fast. The greatest criminal mystery in history is about to be solved by a Welsh copper and an American Legend.

AMAZON CUSTOMER REVIEWS:

It was no surprise that I would like this book. The author had previously entertained me with two fine westerns(as Jack Martin).

Inspector Frank Parade of the Welsh town of Pontypridd heads a two man police force that is busy enough. When Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show arrives with it’s five hundred performers and eight hundred livestock, never mind the thousands attending the shows, things get a lot worse.

Then the murders start up, involving a sixteen year old series of unexplained deaths. Throw in a thief, once arrested by Parade, who had threatened his life and had escaped prison by murdering a guard, a number of home break-ins, and superiors who want a fast, easy solution, and you have a fast moving novel that doesn’t let up until the end.

And what an end.

The author uses Parade and Buffalo Bill to offer his own unique solution to the greatest unsolved serial killer mystery in history.

4.0 out of 5 stars Jack the Ripper revisited,July 3, 2010

By

Charles Gramlich (Metairie,, LA United States) -Gary Dobbs (AKA Jack Martin) continues his string of fast paced books with “A Policeman’s Lot.” Not a western per se, as are his Jack Martin books, “Policeman’s Lot” still has some of that western sensibility and it even features Buffalo Bill Cody and his Wild West show on a visit to England, Wales in particular.

The story takes place a number of years after the Whitechapel murders but ties back to those murders in a most interesting way. I won’t give more away because the twist at the end is original and took me well by surprise. Yet, it made perfect sense within the storyline of the book.

“A Policeman’s Lot” is only availble at this time on Kindle or as a PDF file. Fortunately, I have a Kindle and was able to enjoy it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Wild West Wales . . .,June 21, 2010

By

Ronald Scheer “rockysquirrel” (Los Angeles)This tightly plotted and cleverly conceived crime fiction novel is set in the Welsh town of Pontypridd in 1904. Our central character is police inspector Frank Parade, who on a normal day has his hands more than full. Parade’s job gets even more complicated when Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show comes to town. There is Bill Cody, larger than life, and not all that cooperative, especially as one of his employees turns up with his throat slit. And thus begins a murder investigation that generates a slag heap of difficulties for Inspector Parade and produces a string of corpses.

Dobbs has done his research and packs a lot into his novel. We become immersed in a time and place on the cusp of the twentieth century. Old methods of law enforcement are yielding with the introduction of new technologies. Economic changes create new problems and social pressures.

And there’s the entertaining collision of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show with turn of the last century, coal-mining Wales. Cowboys and Indians wander through some of the scenes, and Bill Cody himself figures into the plot at key points. Well drawn, he is a self-important presence used to being regarded as a living legend. Meanwhile, Inspector Parade is a thoroughly enjoyable creation. Happy he is when he’s on duty, which is nearly all the time. Such is a policeman’s lot.

Jack The Ripper’s Back!!!

London 1888

A string of brutal murders

A sensationalist press campaign

This sordid and brutal affair has become part of folklore, Jack the Ripper is today seen as a cross between Dr Jekyll and Dracula and the poor women who perished at the hands of the unknown killer, real flesh and blood people, have become generic prostitutes, Victorian white trash, in the mish-mash of fact and fiction. Over the years various theories have been put forward as to the identity of the killer who glides, vampiric cape aflutter, through our consciousness on a miasmal cloud – some have been plausible, others have been laughable.

Lewis Carrol and Arthur Conan Doyle are just two of the most ridiculous subjects put forward as the Ripper.

There are people who have devoted much of their lives to the study of the case – Ripperologists they call themselves and as a collective they are responsible for much of the learned and studious, as well as some of the most bizarre, books on the subject.

Jack has been claimed by the media and treated as any of the villains of Gothic literature – movies have played with the story, Jack has faced off against Sherlock Holmes and Billy the Kid as well as showing up in HBO’s excellent, much missed, Deadwood. In comic books the prototype serial killer has become something of a super hero hunting down Victorian vampires. And go into any fancy dress shop and you can get a Naughty Nurse -, er sorry, a Jack the Ripper costume. For an anonymous killer we seem to have a good idea what he looked like.

 

Currently available my debut mystery/crime novel, A Policeman’s Lot published by Solstice Publishing offers yet another take on the Ripper story. And I’m not alone – many writers have used the Ripper within their fiction.

So what is it about the Ripper that makes it okay for us to create fictions around the character?

We would never dream of writing a novel intended to entertain around the likes of Ted Bundy or Fred West, and yet is there a difference? Does the fact that the Ripper killings were never solved make it morally okay to build entertainments around what were, in reality, a brutally cruel series of killings?

I don’t know the answer to that.

These questions were very much in mind when I was writing the novel, but I did a lot of research into the crimes, read reams of documents, visited murder sites, almost broke my back carrying books from the library and spent two enjoyable days with a Ripper expert visiting what remains of the murder sites. I felt that if I was going to write this book then I needed to believe the theory the book gives to the identity of the killer and I really do.

In the novel we are introduced to Police Inspector Frank Parade – his beat is Pontypridd, a busy town in industrial South Wales that rests at the foot of both the coal rich Rhonnda and Cynon Valleys. The year is 1904 and the world famous Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Circus is in town as part of its European tour. Parade is not impressed and finds Cody a braggard. Cody for his part feels very much the same.

‘We mostly shoot blank rounds of course,’ Cody said, ‘and when we do use live ammunition it’s usually nothing more than buck shot. Doesn’t go too far.’

‘Of course.’

‘And we don’t usually walk around armed. After all this isn’t the Wild West now.’

‘I’m pleased to hear it,’ Parade said with a wry smile. ‘I don’t think we could cope with a gunfight on Taff Street.’

Into this mix comes a grisly series of killings that have their origin in the London Whitechapel killings of 1888. Before the book is over the identity of the killer will finally be revealed, the case solved by a Welsh Policeman and an American legend.

Jenkins didn’t know what the town was coming to – there were policemen everywhere a person turned, and now there were cowboys and Indians riding about shooting people willy-nilly. It was fast becoming the Wild West around here.

The thing I’m most proud of here is that the theory given as to the Ripper’s identity is unique, has never been put forward before and yet it’s a name that has always been known to those familiar with the case. It also makes perfect sense and fits the known facts and what’s more I don’t know where it came from. It just developed in the writing and then in the research I found some uncanny details that fitted so well. Since completing the novel I have continued with my research into the killings and I believe now, more than ever, that I may actually have something here. But then I suppose any writer, trying to pimp interest in his book, would say that but honestly I really do…

Jack the Ripper
Case Closed
A Policeman’s Lot

Available now – AMAZON, SMASHWORDS, BOOK DEPOSITORY, SOLSTICE PUBLISHING AND ANYWHERE EBOOKS ARE SOLD.

“Then the murders start up, involving a sixteen year old series of unexplained deaths. Throw in a thief, once arrested by Parade, who had threatened his life and had escaped prison by murdering a guard, a number of home break-ins, and superiors who want a fast, easy solution, and you have a fast moving novel that doesn’t let up until the end.

And what an end.” Author, Randy Johnson

RELATED HERE

Jack the Ripper unmasked

Often called the world’s first serial killer – The Jack the Ripper mystery was never solved and to this day remains the object of fascination to many.

My novel, A Policeman’s Lot offers a new and unique theory as to the identity of the killer.

Inspector Frank Parade carries out his daily duties in the Welsh industrial town of Pontypridd, duties complicated by the unprecedented presence of 500 members of Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show encamped outside the town, not to mention the thousands attending the show every day. A series of depraved murders quickly makes things even more complicated. Buffalo Bill stands squarely in his path when Parade tries to investigate the likely possibility that one of the hundreds of show members is involved. And soon enough Parade’s own superiors are blocking his inquires, too. Still more deaths occur as Parade sifts through the thin evidence available and finds a trail that may lead to the perpetrator of the most heinous crime of the 19th Century—London’s “Ripper” murders.

Shocking revelations come thick and fast.

The greatest criminal mystery in history is about to be solved by a Welsh copper and an American Legend.

A SELECTION OF THE AMAZON REVIEWS:

“It was no surprise that I would like this book. The author had previously entertained me with two fine westerns(as Jack Martin).

Inspector Frank Parade of the Welsh town of Pontypridd heads a two man police force that is busy enough. When Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show arrives with it’s five hundred performers and eight hundred livestock, never mind the thousands attending the shows, things get a lot worse.

Then the murders start up, involving a sixteen year old series of unexplained deaths. Throw in a thief, once arrested by Parade, who had threatened his life and had escaped prison by murdering a guard, a number of home break-ins, and superiors who want a fast, easy solution, and you have a fast moving novel that doesn’t let up until the end.

And what an end.

The author uses Parade and Buffalo Bill to offer his own unique solution to the greatest unsolved serial killer mystery in history.”   Randy Johnson

***

“Gary Dobbs (AKA Jack Martin) continues his string of fast paced books with “A Policeman’s Lot.” Not a western per se, as are his Jack Martin books, “Policeman’s Lot” still has some of that western sensibility and it even features Buffalo Bill Cody and his Wild West show on a visit to England, Wales in particular.

The story takes place a number of years after the Whitechapel murders but ties back to those murders in a most interesting way. I won’t give more away because the twist at the end is original and took me well by surprise. Yet, it made perfect sense within the storyline of the book. ”    Charles Gramlich

***

“This tightly plotted and cleverly conceived crime fiction novel is set in the Welsh town of Pontypridd in 1904. Our central character is police inspector Frank Parade, who on a normal day has his hands more than full. Parade’s job gets even more complicated when Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show comes to town. There is Bill Cody, larger than life, and not all that cooperative, especially as one of his employees turns up with his throat slit. And thus begins a murder investigation that generates a slag heap of difficulties for Inspector Parade and produces a string of corpses.

Dobbs has done his research and packs a lot into his novel. We become immersed in a time and place on the cusp of the twentieth century. Old methods of law enforcement are yielding with the introduction of new technologies. Economic changes create new problems and social pressures.

And there’s the entertaining collision of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show with turn of the last century, coal-mining Wales. Cowboys and Indians wander through some of the scenes, and Bill Cody himself figures into the plot at key points. Well drawn, he is a self-important presence used to being regarded as a living legend. Meanwhile, Inspector Parade is a thoroughly enjoyable creation. Happy he is when he’s on duty, which is nearly all the time. Such is a policeman’s lot.” Ronald Scheer
***

“The colour of the setting, the atmosphere and the characterization are all top-class. The story starts rather low-key, but once you get to the killings, everything steps up a notch and grabs you by the throat. A “historical police procedural” is the most effective way I can describe it. The storyline’s multiple, concurrent strands reminded me a bit of the J. J. Marric (John Creasey) Gideon books, as did the well-observed “common people” characters. The difference here is the way they’re thrown into greater relief by their contrast with the celebrated Buffalo Bill and his show people. Your choice of this background for your first Pontypridd novel was a stroke of genius.”   Chap O’Keefe