Books like White Chappell, Scarlet Tracings

I am genuinely unsure about how to rate this one; on one hand, there is some jaw-dropping writing on display, particularly in the sections detailing the exploits of the jaded, amoral 'bookmen', which are rendered with such midnight black humor they become brilliant expressionist grotesque - Bacon canvases captured in prose. On the other hand, as the book progresses the varying narratives become so fragmentary and the writing so oblique that I'd be hard-pressed to say what was occurring and what the point is. So then, four stars for some parts, two for others. Multiple readings and patience are mandatory for this one, and knowing Moore's From Hell (and the Ripper case in general) is a big help.