A sensational new theory - and an insight into the late Victorian city through an intensively researched social history.

Between May 1887 and February 1891, a succession of horrific murders shook Victorian London. During a reign of terror lasting nearly four years, numerous women were attacked. The police at the time believed the killings comprised two distinct sets - with two different killers. Several were attributed to the relatively unpublicised `Thames Torso' series while the majority found their way into the Met's `Whitechapel' or Jack the Ripper file.

Despite the best efforts of contemporary detectives, no-one was ever prosecuted for these crimes and, until now, no convincing suspect has been put forward for both sets of murders. This ground-breaking work has examined new lines of enquiry generated by recent scholarship. With several `Thames Torso' killings now attributable to his hand, `Jack' it seems was culpable in upwards of sixteen assaults - at least thirteen of them fatal. This individual was amply possessed of the three `cardinals' of the murderer - means, motive and opportunity - and the authors offer long-sought solutions to several case conundrums such as the Goulston Street `evidence', the enduring `Mad Doctor' theory and the Pinchin Street `cross-over'.