It was mild monsters like these that made Jack the Ripper go after young women, she decided: who could tolerate yielding the world to someone who behaved as if she had given birth to the very world herself?

“And it's a cold place the world, especially when warmed by arsen.”

“Well, I learned to cook. At my age," she told him. "What's next? Art therapy? A…”

“If you're ever in doubt, throw a pepper in the air. If it fails to come down, y…”

“YOU HAVE YOUR OWN LIFE TO LIVE, IRIS, AND AT ITS END, THE ONLY OPINION THAT AMO…”