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Unsinkable
A DOOMED VOYAGE
April 14th 1912. The maiden voyage of the world's most luxurious passenger liner, Titanic.
A DARK PAST
Each passenger has their own reason to make the crossing, but for former Special Branch police officer Arthur Beck it is the only way he can escape the demons of his past.
Also on board is Martha Heaton, a female journalist sent to cover the great ship's journey and prove herself as a serious reporter.
A FEARFUL ENCOUNTER
As the huge ship nears the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, Beck and Martha are closing in on a murderous criminal. But, with time running out, they must stop him - before it's too late...
April 14th 1912. The maiden voyage of the world's most luxurious passenger liner, Titanic.
A DARK PAST
Each passenger has their own reason to make the crossing, but for former Special Branch police officer Arthur Beck it is the only way he can escape the demons of his past.
Also on board is Martha Heaton, a female journalist sent to cover the great ship's journey and prove herself as a serious reporter.
A FEARFUL ENCOUNTER
As the huge ship nears the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, Beck and Martha are closing in on a murderous criminal. But, with time running out, they must stop him - before it's too late...
- GenresHistorical Fiction
390 pages, Paperback
First published March 29, 2012
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81 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
February 9, 2022
I read Unsinkable many years ago now but I do remember I absolutely loved it. I loved Dan James take on the sinking and how it happened and THAT ending!!! Just brilliant.
May 8, 2012
There was a time in America (and in Britain, too, I suspect) when, if you’d asked folks what they knew about the sinking of the RMS Titanic, you would have drawn a blank.
Yes, I know that’s hard to believe, but it’s absolutely true.
In the four decades that passed after she took her two-mile plunge to the floor of the North Atlantic, other tragedies of greater note, including two World Wars and a worldwide flu epidemic, gradually erased the disaster from public consciousness and, by the early 1950’s, had caused it to be largely forgotten.
That changed radically in 1955, with the publication of Walter Lord’s smash bestseller, “A Night to Remember”, a book in which he compiled the first moment-by-moment account of the disaster based on scores of interviews with passengers who survived it.
Lord’s book, and the film that followed, had an impact that led to an awakening of interest on the part of, oceanographers, playwrights, filmmakers and other writers.
Robert Ballard, who discovered the vessel’s wreckage in 1985, once remarked that Lord’s book was the beginning of his fascination with the sinking and one of his inspirations to undertake the search.
Meredith Wilson cited the book as an influence to undertake his 1960 musical, “The Unsinkable Molly Brown”, later a movie.
In 1997, “Titanic” opened on Broadway and won five Tony awards.
In that same year, James Cameron released his epic film with a completely different story, but with the same title.
And there are currently 239 paperbacks available for sale, on Amazon, that deal with the disaster.
So did we really need another one?
Actually, we did. And my thanks go out to Dan James who has written it.
The book is called “Unsinkable”, and it combines meticulous research (the author is a seasoned journalist) with rich imagination (he’s also a best-selling fiction author).
James begins his tale with two factual incidents the “Houndsditch Murders” and the “Sydney Street Siege”, both of which occurred in London, both of which involved the killing of policemen and in both of which a Latvian revolutionary criminal by the name of Peter Piaktow (or or Piatkov, Pjatkov, Piaktoff) was implicated – but never caught.
What if, James surmises, Piaktow (dubbed Peter the Painter by the press of the time) attempted to escape to America aboard the Titanic? And what if a Special Branch officer desperate to apprehend him also sailed on that same ship? And what if he teamed-up with an attractive lady, an American reporter whose easy ways he found quite enchanting?
It all makes for a cracking good read.
And, even though we know from the outset what’s going to happen to the ship, James still manages to supply us with a totally unexpected surprise ending.
I immensely enjoyed this book and heartily recommend it.
Yes, I know that’s hard to believe, but it’s absolutely true.
In the four decades that passed after she took her two-mile plunge to the floor of the North Atlantic, other tragedies of greater note, including two World Wars and a worldwide flu epidemic, gradually erased the disaster from public consciousness and, by the early 1950’s, had caused it to be largely forgotten.
That changed radically in 1955, with the publication of Walter Lord’s smash bestseller, “A Night to Remember”, a book in which he compiled the first moment-by-moment account of the disaster based on scores of interviews with passengers who survived it.
Lord’s book, and the film that followed, had an impact that led to an awakening of interest on the part of, oceanographers, playwrights, filmmakers and other writers.
Robert Ballard, who discovered the vessel’s wreckage in 1985, once remarked that Lord’s book was the beginning of his fascination with the sinking and one of his inspirations to undertake the search.
Meredith Wilson cited the book as an influence to undertake his 1960 musical, “The Unsinkable Molly Brown”, later a movie.
In 1997, “Titanic” opened on Broadway and won five Tony awards.
In that same year, James Cameron released his epic film with a completely different story, but with the same title.
And there are currently 239 paperbacks available for sale, on Amazon, that deal with the disaster.
So did we really need another one?
Actually, we did. And my thanks go out to Dan James who has written it.
The book is called “Unsinkable”, and it combines meticulous research (the author is a seasoned journalist) with rich imagination (he’s also a best-selling fiction author).
James begins his tale with two factual incidents the “Houndsditch Murders” and the “Sydney Street Siege”, both of which occurred in London, both of which involved the killing of policemen and in both of which a Latvian revolutionary criminal by the name of Peter Piaktow (or or Piatkov, Pjatkov, Piaktoff) was implicated – but never caught.
What if, James surmises, Piaktow (dubbed Peter the Painter by the press of the time) attempted to escape to America aboard the Titanic? And what if a Special Branch officer desperate to apprehend him also sailed on that same ship? And what if he teamed-up with an attractive lady, an American reporter whose easy ways he found quite enchanting?
It all makes for a cracking good read.
And, even though we know from the outset what’s going to happen to the ship, James still manages to supply us with a totally unexpected surprise ending.
I immensely enjoyed this book and heartily recommend it.
January 18, 2016
With some poor editing and a character I really disliked (Martha Heaton) I just did not enjoy this novel as much as I hoped I would.
May 20, 2018
Unsinkable
This was a very good story and most of the facts were right, there were a few mistakes in the sinking but all told it made you feel the era. It would have been nice to have a happier ending but that's life. A good read.
This was a very good story and most of the facts were right, there were a few mistakes in the sinking but all told it made you feel the era. It would have been nice to have a happier ending but that's life. A good read.
June 21, 2020
Pff this book made me feel things I haven't felt since the last time I watched 'Titanic' the movie...
August 8, 2023
Only okay.
September 8, 2019
An okay book. I like how it followed the stories of a few different characters to try and give a sense of what the sinking of the Titanic had been like for people of different classes. It was mostly well written but the editing was pretty awful. So many spelling and grammar mistakes...it was distracting.
April 5, 2016
Actual rating: 2.5 stars. I was perfectly happy to give this book three stars...and then the ending happened. I know books don't have to have a happy ending and that goes double for books about the Titanic, but, no, that ending was too depressing. The book actually did a good job of meshing the plot and the setting. The Titanic wasn't just a hook. But that ending, though...
July 4, 2012
A good read, but not as good as the books the author writes under Dan Waddell
January 20, 2015
Not a bad book, but I couldn't get into it at all.
March 9, 2015
A good thriller and, of course, a gripping depiction of the Titanic. However, I only gave it one star because I hated the ending!! (Won't say more, since that would involve spoilers.)
April 5, 2014
disappointing ending character wise
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews