Frank H. (perryfran) reviewed on 7/16/2011 + 1185 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

Interesting murder mystery taking place on the ill-fated Lusitania. Max Allan Collins is great at combining history and a good mystery. I recently read his "True Detective" which takes place during prohibition-era Chicago and would highly recommend it. In this one Collins really makes you feel like you are on the Lusitania in 1915 - he has great descriptions of the ship itself, the passengers, and crew. He uses S.S. Van Dine as the narrator (Van Dine wrote several mystery novels in the 1920s featuring detective Philo Vance). Van Dine's narration really has the feel of the early 20th century. Most of what Collins includes in this book is historically accurate including German saboteurs being on the ship and what happened to historical personages including Alfred Vanderbilt and Elbert Hubbard. Overall I enjoyed this one mainly for the historical background on the Lusitania and its passengers and fate.

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