When he was 10, my brother was obsessed with the Titanic movie. He watched the second half of our VHS box set (the part where it sinks) over and over, to the point where the whole family can tell you details of what happened that no casual viewer should be able to. He filmed his own version, using some ingenious tricks that bolstered his editing abilities that would later serve him well (hello, @materialbasics!), and built and painted a model of the ship with my dad. I am 90% sure I bought him this book to display beside his model - goodness knows he was not going to read it.
“The Titanic’s passenger list reads like a who’s who of the glitterati. Among her most illustrious passengers is the rich American banker Thaddeus Nugent Tarr, a man ruthless in his pursuit of power and money - and in turn pursued by disturbing rumors of corruption and a death threat that has followed him across two continents. Yet it is only his former butler, the Englishman Henry Blexill, working aboard the Titanic as a wine steward, who dares to answer the haunting questions surrounding Tarr’s shadowy past. Had Tarr ordered the deaths of striking mine workers and their innocent families? Whose blood had Blexill found at the gatehouse of Tarr’s summer estate? And how was Tarr’s beautiful mistress involved?
As the magnificent Titanic steams ever closer to its tragic destiny, the two men find themselves locked in a mortal struggle: one to uncover the truth and the other to bury it forever beneath the icy waves of the Atlantic.”
Published 30 years ago, and entering our home from a used book sale 12 years ago, the book travelled to my brother’s room, to the cottage, and back again to my parent’s house, before being shucked to my apartment to sit on my shelf, finally being cracked open because a pandemic has forced me to sit in my apartment alone and either a) contemplate my innermost thoughts or b) read to avoid them.
I chose option b - and I don’t regret it. This is a solid read for fans of crime novels in historical settings. There is cold-blooded murder, a belligerent boss, a beautiful girl…. all you need for a successful story of this type. My main complaint was the description of the ship and its architecture and layout - I kept thinking “Okay! We all watched Titanic!” only to realize a bit later that this book was published 7 years before the Titanic movie came out. My bad. I’m not big on setting description in general, so this can be chalked up to personal preference (and the fact that much of what occurred before the turn of the millennium blends together for me).
Beyond my personal scruples with setting descriptions, I really enjoyed select characters, such as Henry Blexill, the butler/wine steward/protagonist, and the very realistic Mr. Thaddeus Nugent Tarr. His name explains exactly who he is - he spreads violence, greed, jealousy, and spittle like tar, black and viscous, drowning those closest to him. I also enjoyed the analysis of the old money/new money dynamic, with Britain and its strict hierarchies, and America and its dream. It brought back memories of Gatsby and his elaborate parties, trying to buy respect from old money. Plenty of the financial jargon was lost on me, and I skimmed much of it, but it stoked the fires of Thaddeus Nugent Tarr near the end, which was an effective way to move the plot forward and raise the stakes.
Thaddeus Nugent Tarr. Say it aloud. What a great character name.
Throughout the book, I was wondering why the type of booze the characters were drinking was important (maybe a clue?). For one character, it made a significant appearance near the end, but for the most part, it wasn’t explained until I read the author’s biography - he’s the wine expert for the Toronto Star, and has been for 40 years! I imagine the different wines and ports that feature in the novel would impress a wine connoisseur or sommelier. Sadly, I’m neither, and I’ve recently graduated from university, and therefore, only graduated from Smirnoff Ice to rum and cokes. I’ll get there someday, Mr. Aspler!
Overall, a nice used bookstore find. Nothing better than reading Canadian authors and books.
3 stars of 5.
Do you have any historical fiction favourites that I should add to my list? Comment below!
Happy reading,
Holly
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