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The Ripper Affair
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The Ripper Affair
Unavailable
The Ripper Affair
Audiobook10 hours

The Ripper Affair

Written by Lilith Saintcrow

Narrated by Moira Quirk

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

Currently unavailable

Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

The enthralling conclusion to the Bannon and Clare trilogy from New York Times bestselling author, Lilith Saintcrow.
Sorcery. Treason. Madness. And, of course, murder most foul...

A shattering accident places Archibald Clare, mentath in the service of Britannia, in the care of Emma Bannon, sorceress Prime. Clare needs a measure of calm to repair his faculties of Logic and Reason. Without them, he is not his best. At all.

Unfortunately, calm and rest will not be found. There is a killer hiding in the sorcerous steam-hells of Londinium, murdering poor women of a certain reputation. A handful of frails murdered on cold autumn nights would make no difference...but the killings echo in the highest circles, and threaten to bring the Empire down in smoking ruins.

Once more Emma Bannon is pressed into service; once more Archibald Clare is determined to aid her. The secrets between these two old friends may give an ambitious sorcerer the means to bring down the Crown. And there is still no way to reliably find a hansom when one needs it most.

The game is afoot...

Bannon and Clare
The Iron Wyrm Affair
The Red Plague Affair
The Ripper Affair
The Damnation Affair (e-only)
For more from Lilith Saintcrow, check out:
Gallow and Ragged
Trailer Park Fae

Dante Valentine Novels
Working for the Devil
Dead Man Rising
Devil's Right Hand
Saint City Sinners
To Hell and Back

Dante Valentine (omnibus)
Jill Kismet Novels
Night Shift
Hunter's Prayer
Redemption Alley
Flesh Circus
Heaven's Spite
Angel Town

Jill Kismet (omnibus)
A Romance of Arquitaine Novels
The Hedgewitch Queen
The Bandit King
Blood Call (coming August 2015)
LanguageEnglish
Release dateAug 19, 2014
ISBN9781478983545
Unavailable
The Ripper Affair
Author

Lilith Saintcrow

Lilith Saintcrow was born in New Mexico, bounced around the world as an Air Force brat, and fell in love with writing in second grade. She is the author of the Dante Valentine and Jill Kismet series, as well as the bestselling author of the Strange Angels YA series. She lives in Vancouver, Washington, with her children, dogs, and assorted other strays.

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Reviews for The Ripper Affair

Rating: 3.763888944444444 out of 5 stars
4/5

72 ratings20 reviews

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  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I really enjoy the steampunk world in which this series takes place-the clockwork horses, a magical London with many of the same issues as Victorian England, a queen whose body houses both the person and the Spirit of Rule.However, this is not a case where the books in the series can be read alone. I had read the first which at least gave me some idea of what was meant by primes and mentaths but hadn't read the second which put me at a disadvantage for understanding where much of the emotional tension in the story was coming from. One of the most difficult things about the third installment is that Miss Bannon is not very likable. Yes,she has to be strong to be in charge in the male-dominated world of the time, and she does have a few moments of vulnerability, but her constant distancing of herself and her conviction that she know better than everyone else all the time are annoying. Ultimately, if you enjoy steampunk, the series is worth a look. Just make sure to read all three in order.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The third book of the Bannon & Clare series continues the story of an alternative London filled with dark, dirty secrets that have a nasty habit of refusing to stay hidden.The game is most definitely afoot, and even though there were some endings indicating this could be the last book, I like how the author left some openings just in case her fan-base, me included, are vociferous enough to get her to share another tale of her steampunk sorceress and troubled sleuth.I didn't have books one and two when I got this one from the publisher. Luckily, my library did. I read all three books in one week, which should be a testament to how much I enjoyed Saintcrow's foray into steampunk.For all my fellow steampunk aficionados, I highly recommend you check out this trilogy, especially if you have read any of Gail Carriger's work. Most definitely an entertaining read.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Synopsis: Someone is running around London killing prostitutes. Bannon and Clare find that this killer is also a threat to Britannia and may bring her completely down. Anther Prime is somehow involved, and it takes both Bannon and Clare to sort out this riddle.Review: There are lots of twists and turns in this one and it appears that a character from a previous book is a part of this one,
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I really enjoy the characters in this series, and I liked this installment, although it was a bit gorier and grimmer than I would have liked. Sometimes I also want to give one or another of the characters a bit of a kick in the butt, but they are so intriguing that they keep me reading. I like the complexity of the alternate Victorian London the author has built, and the intricacy of the system of magic. I do hope there will be more!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    In a world subtly different to ours, where magic works and London is Londinium and Victoria is Victrix there is a killer whose murders seems to be undermining the power of England. Bannon and Clare have to fight it, stay alive and deal with the consequences of previous actions.I liked it and I found it interesting.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I didn't love the first book in the series, but I'd received a review copy of the third, so I jumped ahead.The pity of it is that it sounds like the second, which I haven't read, deals with Saintcrow's alternate version of the Irish rebellion, and includes an acknowledgement of political complexities. This third (and final?) volume deals with the aftermath of that, which is intriguing, and the Ripper murders which, though they are used to good effect here, I found myself surprisingly unable to care about. I do think the series improves; it's just not really for me.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I really wanted to like this one as it seemed to have a lot going for it with steampunk and Jack the ripper but i just could not get into the story. Usually I don't have a problem jumping into a series midway as most authors bring the reader up to speed rather quickly, although when I requested this for early review i did not know it was part of a series. Yet Saintcrow seems to seems to take for granted that the reader has also read the first two books as I was left scratching my head at times wondering what was going on and trying to figure out the rules by which this world worked and because of this i just found a lot of what was going on rather dull. Would tell anyone to read the first two before reading this one as you might get more enjoyment out of the book then I did.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The third book in the series has Clair dealing with loss and new information on just what Bannon did in order to save his life at the end of book two. Clare has tried pulling away from the world and refusing requests to work until the Queen shows up at her house and finally gets her involved in a case. With this case you find out more about Clare's childhood and even at the level she lives now where she came from still affects how people interact with her. This does touch on the the Jack the Ripper cases but the murders are used to magically fuel someone trying to take over England. I really lie the setting and the background that go into this story universe and I'm bummed that I don't know if there will ever be any more. It is a nice melding of Steam technology and magic that really works.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    First off, I have not read the other books in this series, but that did not affect my enjoyment of this book. It stands alone very well.I liked the slow revelations of each characters personality and history with hints of secrets told in earlier books and intimations of secrets to be revealed in the future.This book is just enough based on real Victorian England and strange steampunk alternate universe. I found the little details really enjoyable. I also like both the protagonists and really appreciated Clare's naivete, he is in many ways an ingenue, which is so often portrayed as a purely female characteristic. Emma puts up with him very well.I adored Emma. I might find her abrasiveness to be a bit of a pain in real life, but I think I'd find her virtues far outweigh her vices.I'm going to be reading the previous books and looking forward to any books that follow in this series.World owning.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    The Ripper Affair is another intriguing tale in Saintcrow's Bannon and Clare series, and I enjoyed this book just as much as the previous two. The Ripper Affair begins with Clare in danger and as the events unfold tension comes between Clare and Bannon. This tension makes it hard for these two to work together especially on a case that Emma doesn't necessarily want to get involved in. Both Bannon and Clare need to work through their own issues to solve this case, but this case also shows why they work so well together and compliment each other. I am also enjoying the slow pace of the Emma and Mikal storyline because it leaves me hungry for more. Overall The Ripper Affair is another excellent adventure in this series that I would most definitely recommend if you enjoy steampunk, magic, and mystery. Received a copy of The Ripper Affair through LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I don't usually struggle when picking up a book mid way in a series but I am a third of the way through this book and am still trying to figure out things like what Clare is. Mentath? And I have read too many books lately with girl Clairs so that is confusing too. And Mikal and Emma, also called 3 or 4 other things. I probably won't finish it. It is a very unique world and I probably would like it better if I read the first two.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I received this book from early reviewers and I was excited to read this book as I had seen other books by the author that I thought I might be interested in. The book is good and I give it 4 stars for an original plot (from an idea that has been done a lot--the Jack the Ripper murders), interesting characters an interesting setting and a clockwork world like no other I have read. I had the same problem as many of the reviewers in that I had a hard time getting into the book as I hadn't read the other books. The world is complicated and uses words like Mentath that are not explained. (A Mentath is a cross between Mr Spock and Sherlock Holmes. A reader can figure out what is going on but cant sink into the world as much as you would like while you are trying to figure it out.On whole read the other 2 books before reading this one. Then you can really enjoy it.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I was really excited to get this book as an Early Reviewer. I've read the first two books in the series, and it conveniently came the day before a cross country move; I was happy to have something to keep me entertained. That said, I was kind of disappointed in this book. It starts of with a bang- quite literally -and soon decisions that Emma made in the past are starting to haunt her. Claire is asking questions she can't, or doesn't want to, answer. As their relationship becomes more strained, Britannia herself comes to ask Emma to help solve a series of murders that are draining the very spirit of the country. Bannon and Claire are on the case, hoping to solve the murders before time runs out...As the characters continue to change and grow, relationships become increasingly strained. While on the surface this seems like a natural occurrence, it starts to bog down the narrative. There are only so many times I want to listen to a character beat themselves up over choices made and not made. I felt like most of the book was Emma chasing her own tail, while Archibald was chasing his. It almost felt like I was reading the same sections over and over again, with no forward movement to the plot. It got a bit tedious, and I found it hard to really lose myself in the book. Reaching the end was satisfying, but not entirely enjoyable...
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The title gives away the villain of the piece, but with mentath and Prime involved, Saintcrow's take on the murderous spree brings a different motive to the bloody events. Britannia's very spirit is being weakened, and the ruling spirit is left no choice but to seek aid with the Prime she despises. For Emma Bannon, service is bittersweet - more so as her relationship with both Archibald Clare and her Shield Mikal are stressed by certain recent undertakings. For all it's action and adventure, this installment is, as the previous two, curiously opaque and impersonal. And yet I stayed up far too late finishing.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I received a copy of this book through the Early Reviewers program. I did not realize this was the third in a series, but it managed to stand pretty well on it's own. I figured out much of what was going on in this alternate version of Victorian London after the first few chapters. I recommend that this *not* be where anyone else starts, though. The mystery is set in a very odd steampunk-magical version of London, with a "Mentath" based on Sherlock Holmes, complete with cocaine, tossed in to boot. The main character is a very strong wizard ("Prime"; not sure how to best describe her since I missed the original novel; and of course it's highly improper that she is a lady with powers), that is asked by the queen to investigate a series of murders. Sherlock/Mentath tries to help but is having a bit of a nervous breakdown.I actually really love mysteries with supernatural elements, and while at times the complexity of the magic was a bit distracting (because I missed the first books), the pacing was very good, with a fair amount of suspense. There are multiple story threads, and they all weave together very well. I enjoyed the book and the curious world-build enough that I'm going to look for books 1 and 2.Also, Kudos to the author for NOT mentioning Jack the Ripper by name in the book anywhere, but including all the names of his victims. Thank you.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This was a June Early Reviewers book. I had read the first book in the series, also as an ER selection, but missed the second book. This is the third of the "Bannon and Clare Case" series. Best described as fantastical steampunk, the series pairs the Prima sorceress Emma Bannon with the logical, rational mentath, Archibald Clare in the solving of threats to Britannia, the underlying spirit of Britain. Clearly, dark and momentous events occurred in the second book which soured Emma's relationship with Britannia and stressed Clare's logical capacities. Still, they are both pulled into the mystery of a series of murders in the Eastron End of Londinium, ones that appear to be weakening the ruling spirit of Britannia.These books portray a murky and haunted London in the best of times, and they are dark in atmosphere. The narrative maintains a distance and reserve around the protagonists even as we access their innermost thoughts. This would not be a comfortable place, and it is not a comfortable read. The author builds suspense and develops a coherent plot, and many will love it much more than I do, who prefer a more intimate connection.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is the third book in the series featuring Emma Bannon, a Prime (very powerful sorceress), Archibald Clare, her mentath (a Sherlock Holmsian style mentalist), and Mikal, her Shield (a protector-warrior with strong magical powers of his own). I read the first but not the second in the series before this one and highly recommend the first two be read before starting this one. Though some reviewers seem to think it is okay as a stand-alone, I think it would have been much more enjoyable had I read the second before reading this, but I was too impatient to wait. Anyway, in this one, a series of gruesome Jack-the-Ripper style murders have shaken Britannia (literally as well as figuratively), and Emma has been called in by the queen to solve the case. Clare is not as useful to her as he normally is because he is still reeling from a shock he has only recently suffered.I think I like Saintcrow's Dante Valentine series better, partly, I think, because the writing is less esoteric. Sorry, not sure that's the right word, but you know how sometimes you read a novel so lyrical that the writing obscures the action and/or meaning of the story? Well, this was one of those. I got it, just that it took a lot more work than I wanted to expend on something that was supposed to be fun reading. It still gets a 4 star rating, because I did enjoy it, just not as much as I'd hoped.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I got this early review copy and dove right in without bothering to track down books 1 & 2 in the series. It's pretty easy to figure out the basic world, a magic enabled steampunkish take on Victorian England. Bannon is a powerful sorceress, Clare is a mentath, basically a Sherlock Holmes figure. Clare is totally off balance and Feeling things due to the tragedy that kicks off this book and Bannon's been drafted by the Queen (and her ruling spirit) to solve the Jack the Ripper style murders that are threatening to overthrow the current rule by magical means. I requested this due to a fascination with the Ripper mythos and I liked the author's take on it. I was a bit put off by how I was bombarded with unfamiliar terms straight off the bat, reminded of people who say they don't like fantasy due to all the made up words (hopefully it's explained why all the horses are clockwork in a previous book). The strains between the Lady that Bannon is now (with a distaste for her stays that comes up over and over) and the Whitechapel urchin she used to be, as well as fall out from previous misadventures made for an interesting tale, but Clare seemed to get short shrift, probably as he wasn't himself.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    I tried to read this book several times but just couldn't get through it. I didn't enjoy the writing style - it just didn't flow well for me. It actually was too distracting for me to get interested in the story.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy.allthingsuf.comPerhaps the best of the series thus far, THE RIPPER AFFAIR is the confluence of a dark mystery, an exploration of London’s altered and haunting landscape, and the emotional growing pains of Bannon’s little family. A fantastic book for any one of these elements, combining all three makes for a relentless, mesmerizing read.Though the title evokes a sensational murderer from our own world, THE RIPPER AFFAIR is very much focused on the social and magical results of these murders in their own alternate world. Victorian strictures bind each of our characters in different ways, but THE RIPPER AFFAIR reveals the depth of their feelings below the social constraints. While my favorite reveal was a glimpse of Bannon’s Victorian views on “proper womanhood”, a great deal of the narrative also follows Clare’s changing understanding of what his magical partner is capable of, despite being culturally conditioned to view her in terms of her tiny, feminine physicality. Not so much a romance as the continued flowering of respect and partnership, the mentath’s struggle with Feelings was deftly woven into the story, neither telegraphing an outcome nor diluting the mystery with melodrama.While much of Urban Fantasy’s “steampunk” leans towards the glossy and glamorous, Bannon & Clare offers a slow, rich stew of danger and grit and horror. From the city itself to the primal magic of its inhabitants, THE RIPPER AFFAIR is the stunning legacy of Gothic Romance, Horror, and Urban Fantasy.Sexual Content: References to prostitution, kissing.