The Lodger vs The True Face of Jack the Ripper: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Jack, Serial murders, London

The Lodger Marie Belloc Lowndes · 1913 ★★★★☆ 4.1 286 pages · ≈ 5 h 18 m · Challenging

The Lodger is the first known novelization of the Jack the Ripper story. It follows the lives of Mr. and Mrs. Bunting, a maid and butler. An eccentric lodger, Mr. Sleuth, arrives at their lodging-house just as a wave of…

England Classic Literature Mystery History

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Cover of The True Face of Jack the Ripper

The True Face of Jack the Ripper Melvin Harris · 1994 ★★★☆☆ 3.5 220 pages · ≈ 4 h 04 m · Moderate

Melvin Harris, the man chiefly responsible for exposing the "Ripper Diary", now reveals the true face of Jack the Ripper. Harris disposes of all previous candidates and by using FBI techniques he tells the story of how…

Murderers Serial murderers True Crime Biography & Memoir

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Side by side

The verdict

Readers rate The Lodger highest: The Lodger 4.1 · The True Face of Jack the Ripper 3.5.
The Lodger has the widest readership — 9545 ratings behind its score.
The Lodger runs the darker storyline; The True Face of Jack the Ripper stays the lighter read.

How to choose

New to the genre? The True Face of Jack the Ripper Moderate vs Challenging for The Lodger In the mood for something dark? The Lodger a darker storyline than The True Face of Jack the Ripper Want something lighter? The True Face of Jack the Ripper an easier tone than The Lodger

Scores by source

	The Lodger	The True Face of Jack the Ripper
Goodreads	4.1 (9545)	3.3 (42)
Hardcover	3.1 (10)	—
Apple Books	4.0 (375)	—

Reception

	The Lodger	The True Face of Jack the Ripper
Ratings	9545	42
Editions	163	5
Film adaptations	1	—
Want to read	4756	24
Reading it now	387	—
Written reviews	555	3
Wikipedia attention	1376	—
Pages	286	220

Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: The Lodger or The True Face of Jack the Ripper?

The Lodger has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Lodger 4.1/5, The True Face of Jack the Ripper 3.5/5).

Which is shorter to read: The Lodger or The True Face of Jack the Ripper?

The True Face of Jack the Ripper is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The True Face of Jack the Ripper (220 pages, ≈ 4 h 04 m); The Lodger (286 pages, ≈ 5 h 18 m).

Which is harder to read: The Lodger or The True Face of Jack the Ripper?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Lodger: Challenging; The True Face of Jack the Ripper: Moderate.