Mary Jane Staples

The Ghost of Whitechapel Mary Jane Staples

When fiery Bridget Cummings advertised for a lodger, she did not expect a policeman to apply for the room. She wasn't fond of the coppers, believing them to be traitors to the poor of Whitechapel, but her younger brother and sister moved PC Fred Billings in the moment Bridget's back was turned, and she seemed to have little say in the matter. Still, she had to admit that she was glad of his company in the walk back from her late-night washing up job, particularly when a young girl was found in a nearby street with her throat cut.

The discovery of the body of Maureen Flanagan, who was, the neighbours believed, a respectable woman, naturally stirred memories of Jack the Ripper. His horrific crimes had shocked the neighbourhood only 12 years before, but Chief Inspector Dobbs of the City of London Police believed, like most other police officers, that the Ripper was dead. But when a second body was discovered, and Bridget noticed a strange man following her, the neighbourhood was alert to the possibility that the terror had returned....