Synopsis

October, 1929.

Murder books passage on the British luxury liner Queen Victoria, turning the ship’s nurse Maeve Chandler into an amateur sleuth apprenticing under the tutelage of mystery writer Agatha Christie.

A passenger dies in full view of the first-class dining salon, followed by a millionaire, apparently leaping overboard a day before the New York stock market crashes. Add in an abusive husband pushed down an open lift shaft and a crewman left to cook against a boiler in the ship’s engine room, and a killer will walk free when the ship reaches New York unless Maeve and Agatha can unwind the clues — but with 2,935 suspects on board, every revolution of the Queen Victoria’s propellers means time is running out.

343 pages plus a bonus chapter for the next book in the series, a reader’s guide for book clubs, and a lexicon of definitions and people from the era who are mentioned in the book.

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Review

Just when I thought I had figured out the murderer, a new twist was thrown into the mix.

This mystery is entertaining and educational. While I have been on cruise ships, I learned more about the vessels of the early 1900s from this novel. The topic is very well researched.

The book has several intriguing characters, with an appearance by Agatha Christie. I thought that was a surprise until I read the synopsis! Between Agatha and Maeve, they are determined to solve the crime of the deaths on board the Queen Victoria. Were these deaths murders? Were any of them accidental deaths? The details are slow to reveal, but the pieces come together in the end. The truth was a surprise. While I did guess a portion of the mystery, there were quite a few details that I didn’t have to uncover the whole truth.

I liked Maeve’s character. She is smart, kind, and a bit klutzy. She even admits it several times throughout the story. I chuckled at her Halloween costume and how many didn’t get it. Remember, this is 1929, and movies, especially talkies, aren’t yet a big thing. The author even throws in the market crash of October 1929 to add additional woes to the passengers aboard the ship.

A potential romance is brewing between Maeve and the new Primary Medical Officer, Leslie Harper. It will be interesting to see what happens in future books.

Overall, a good read with many details. We give this book 4 paws up.

About the Author

Scott’s fascination with the golden age of trans-Atlantic luxury liners began at an early age with reading Walter Lord’s Titanic classic, “A Night to Remember.” The later discovery that sinkings were not the norm and that ships actually crossed the Atlantic without incident didn’t dampen his enthusiasm. He wanted a ship to put in his parents’ backyard to play with after elementary school; unfortunately, being a fifth-generation Texan and living inland in Dallas, ocean liners are hard to find. After graduating from the University of Texas with a degree in journalism, Scott channeled his energies into a career in broadcast news, working for all four major network affiliates, then afterward doing training and corporate videos. Following that was a stint doing media for non-profit entities.

Along the way, and despite his best efforts, he collected one Emmy® nomination, 19 Telly Awards, three Aegis Awards, two Addy awards and five Best Newscast in Texas awards from the Associated Press, as well as an honorable mention from PR News for blogging for a non-profit. Outside of media and broadcast, he is the author of “A Little Theatre”, a two-act comedy that has been produced by several Texas community theaters with relatively few over-ripe tomatoes thrown at the actors.

Scott is an actor himself, having over thirty community theatrical productions to his credit as well as working as an interactive performer at Texas’ Scarborough Renaissance Festival® (where he says he wouldn’t have worn the white hose if he didn’t have the legs for it) and in murder mystery productions (usually as the victim).

To further warp his personality, he was an actor and writer for an old west gunfight show (again, usually the victim).

In his free time, he enjoys writing, reading, Lionel trains, and repairing/restoring radios from the 1930s – 1950s.

But the call of the sea persisted….and ultimately found voice in the Voyages of the Queen series.

So, in a way, he did finally get that ship to play with; sadly, people keep getting killed aboard it.

He shares a home with his legal counsel, Gabrielle, two cats, and a confused dog.

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