Murder on the Lusitania is a 'period-piece' mystery, set on the maiden voyage of the Lusitania trans-Atlantic cruise ship in 1907.

Edward Marston is the author of the highly successful 'Railway Detective' books, and the switch from rail to sea hasn't affected his ability to produce an enjoyable, intriguing plot and interesting characters. An excellent way to spend a winter's afternoon, sitting in front of the fire and being transported back to the glitz and glamour of the golden age of the ocean liners.

Lighthearted, snappy dialogue, a quick pace and delightful characters make Murder on the Lusitania a genuine pleasure to read. The setting, aboard a luxury ocean liner, is reminiscent of Agatha Christies Death on the Nile, with its exotic place as the perfect setting for a mystery. Well written and fun, Marston's detective is old-school with procedure, but young and clever. His supporting cast is well rounded. Recommended for fans of mystery books heavy on intrigue and psychology, but light on gore. Looking forward to the other books by this author.

Great first book in this series by Edward Marston.

The Lusitania is embarking on it's maiden transatlantic voyage and on board is an undercover detective working for Cunard called George Porter Dillman. His detective skills are put to the test almost immediately with the theft of blueprint drawings from the ships engine room. The Chief Engineer is most annoyed and wants the culprit found asap! Also taxing George is the theft of jewellery and a valuable Stradivarius; but there is also the small matter of the discovered body of a troublesome and extremely nosy reporter.

There is a great cast of characters on board the luxury ship, it's 1907 so you will feel like you are sailing with the cast of Downton Abbey almost!

I look forward to reading the rest of the series as well as his Railway Series of books.

I really enjoyed this book by Edward Marston. It was very well done and interesting. Would definitely recommend this to anyone.

This is the first of Marston's "ocean Liners Mysteries",murders that were written under the name Conrad Allen. All of the books center on George Porter Dillman, who worked originally for the Pinkerton Detective Agency but now works directly for the Cunard Line of "Steamships" In this case he is traveling on the Lusitania on her inaugural voyage from Liverpool to New York.

There are the assorted people that you would expect on a 'fin-de-siecle' drawing room mystery. A Count, a woman of 'mystery', a known gambler, woman of easy virtue, old married couples and spinster woman. Image the "Grand Hotel" crowd on an ocean liner.

So people get robbed of their jewelry, a 'stradivarius violin is stolen, etc. Someone murders one of the journalist traveling on the liner to report on it's maiden voyage, and some of the boats blueprints are taken from the cabin of the head engineer. It reads easily and has all the pinache of Fantasy Island.

family, family-dynamics, Atlantic-ocean, ocean-liner, historical-fiction, historical-places-events, historical-research, historical-setting, history-and-culture, reporter, theft*****

This book has some of my favorite elements: historical setting, murder/thievery, private agents as well as an amateur sleuth. A good foundation is laid before getting down to criminal acts and the multiple characters are brought into sharp focus. So let the sleuthing begin! Loved it!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Allison & Busby via NetGalley. Thank you!

A Mystery Series Opening on a Maiden Voyage

In 1999, published under the pen name Conrad Allen, a mystery was released. It featured a murder aboard RMS Lusitania during its maiden voyage. It was the first of eight mysteries featuring detectives George Porter Dillman and Genevieve Masefield aboard various Atlantic liners in the years prior to World War I.

“Murder on the Lusitania,” by Edward Marston, rereleases the book. Marston, like Allen, is a pen name used by author Keith Miles, the one he most commonly uses.

Dillman’s role is revealed gradually. He has been hired by the Cunard to operate undercover among the passengers aboard Lusitania during its 1907 maiden voyage. He is traveling as a first-class passenger, with the other passengers unaware of his true role. His mission is to mingle among the passengers keeping a watch out for petty criminals (pickpockets and thieves) and professional gamblers who might be working the passengers.

At first things go much as Dillman and the Cunard expect. Dillman initially finds himself serving as a goodwill ambassador, rather than as a detective. Then Henry Barcroft, an obnoxious freelance reporter travelling first class, is found dead in his cabin. Plans of Lusitania, which earlier disappeared from the Chief Engineer’s office, are found with the corpse.

Dillman has two mysteries to solve. Who killed Henry Barcroft and why did Barcroft steal the plans? Both seem insoluble. Barcroft made numerous enemies among the passengers during his brief existence aboard Lusitania, so Dillman has a surfeit of suspects. Why he had the plans seems even more mysterious. Was this industrial espionage done for Cunard’s American competitors? Was Barcroft planning an expose about Lusitantia? Or was it something else?

Whatever the reasons, Dillman needs to solve both mysteries before Lusitania docks at New York. Lusitania’s captain and crew are keeping the murder secret to aid in the investigation. (A task simplified by Barcroft’s unpopularity.)

Dillman begins to receive assistance from another first-class passenger, Genevieve Masefield, an upper class Englishwoman. Masefield, like Dillman has a past she wishes forgotten. The two soon form an unlikely alliance, and begin uncovering secrets about the passengers relating to the theft and murder.

“Murder on the Lusitania” has been out of print for over twenty years. Yet it remains as entertaining as anything written this year and over the intervening years. If you missed it earlier, this relaunch of the series is an opportunity to become acquainted with a first-class mystery series.

“Murder on the Lusitania,” by Edward Marston, Allison & Busby, 2021, 288 pages, $12.95 (paperback), $5.99 (ebook)

This review was written by Mark Lardas who writes at Ricochet as Seawriter. Mark Lardas, an engineer, freelance writer, historian, and model-maker, lives in League City, TX. His website is marklardas.com.

Thank you to NetGalley, the Author and the Publisher with providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Although I'd never heard of this series before, after seeing lots of positive reviews I thought I'd give it a go. This felt like a classic detective/murder mystery, and I was hooked into the story from the start. I loved how each chapter almost always ended on a cliffhanger, and really enjoyed the setting as it added to the claustrophobia around the whodunnit.

In summary, this was an excellent cosy mystery that set up the series well. I hope to read some of the other books in the series now!

I was already a fan of Edward Marston's Railway Detective books so this was a 'must read' for me. and I wasn't disappointed. Set on board a well-known luxurious liner with a host of interesting characters each hiding their own secret leads the reader on an enjoyable trip, I look forward to the next in the series.

In 1907 George Dillman is traveling undercover in first class on the Lusitania to keep an eye out for all never-do-wells that are traveling on the liner. He meets and pals around with other passengers to get a feel for all of them. When a man who has been acting horribly is found dead almost everyone in first class is a suspect.

I love old time ocean liners and this book was wonderful. What a fun read it was. I will read more from this series.

Edward Marston is a new author to me, but the title attracted me to this book. An interesting storyline based on the inaugural sailing of the Lusitania. There is a feeling that most of the passengers have something to hide and the inevitable murder occurs once sailing is underway. A good read .

I absolutely loved this ensemble murder mystery! Previously released under Conrad Allen, this is the first in a series being rereleased for new readers. Taking place in 1907, the setting of the famed ocean liner the Lusitania offers an intriguing setting that should compel most readers -- I know it did for me!

I felt like I was able to learn the experience of traveling on an ocean liner in the early 1900s in a really fun way -- through a murder mystery.

If you like mysteries with a large cast of possibilities, period pieces and historical settings then this is one to add to your list!

September 1907. George Dillman sets sail from Liverpool to New York on the Lusitania's maiden voyage. Posing as a passenger, Dillman is in fact an undercover detective hired by the Cunard Line to keep an eye out for petty crimes. But after some uneventful days aboard, the ship’s blueprints are stolen and then a body is found. As Dillman works to get to the bottom of the crimes, he makes an unusual friend, first-class passenger Genevieve Masefield, and the two uncover secrets aboard the ship that prove explosive. For all intents and purposes this is a good old fashioned locked room mystery written brilliantly. This author, who writes under a few names, writes historical mysteries all involving different eras and topics and they are all amazing in portrayal of time but also detail. All the characters in this book are very colorful and entertaining and the mystery aspect kept me guessing. I am looking forward to more in the Ocean Liner series. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

The Lusitania is embarking on its maiden voyage to America in September 1907. George Porter Dillman joins an eclectic group of first class passengers, ostensibly returning home to sort out his future, but in reality working as an onboard detective in the pay of Cunard. He expects a quiet journey, but a dramatic theft of blueprints and a murder put paid to that notion. His attraction to fellow passenger, Genevieve Masefield, soon finds her helping with his investigation.

I thoroughly enjoyed Murder on the Lusitania, which is a light, old fashioned read with a few interesting twists it is well researched and definitely makes the reader feel transported each time he picks it up that he is in the early years of the 20th century. The narrative mostly comes from the point of view of George Dillman but with other characters contributions when necessary.

Always love any of Edward Marston's series. Anything by him can be guaranteed an enjoyable read. This is the first in the Ocean Liner series. Not sure why murder on a massive ship seems a lot more glamorous and fun, but it is! Another form of 'locked room' as the murderer cannot escape, short of jumping overboard. Beautiful cover too.

The very well plotted and charmingly characterised story is very fast paced entertainment and I found I was very anxious to discover who the murderer was. What a surprise it was when the denouement was reached! I absolutely loved this splendid historical mystery which has been researched so thoroughly by the author who has many other similar books to his name. Well recommended.
Thanks to Netgalley and Allison & Busby.

First in a new series by this very prolific author who writes under several names. George Porter Dillman is hired to work as a private investigator on the Lusitania’s maiden voyage. He meets all sorts of interesting characters, many of whom could be the villains once the crimes start piling up.

I received this ARC via Netgalley and Allison & Busby, in return for an honest review. The 1907 maiden voyage of the Lusitania ocean liner is the setting for a murder mystery, set in style. George Dillman is uncover as a first class passenger to monitor passenger behavior and keep an eye on anyone who might have illegal activities in mind, such as professional gamblers or thieves. As he encounters first class passengers, the various personalities are well described and you quickly form opinions about them. When one passenger, a known journalist, has complaints lodged about boorish behavior, Dillman is asked to speak with him ‘unofficially’. However, the man is found murdered in his cabin and there are way too many suspects in first class alone. Then a series of thefts occur and Dillman is determined to solve the crimes in the time remaining before the Luisitania docks in NY harbor. A very enjoyable mystery and one I recommend. I hope the author does more in this style.

A delicious tale of crimes and misdemeanors set on the high seas as we follow the various adventures and misadventures of a very disparate group of colorful characters thrown together on the British ocean liner Lusitania as it sails between Liverpool and New York. Elegantly written, highly entertaining and full of delightful twists and turns, this captivating historical murder mystery is unputdownable from start to finish.
An Edwardian fictional tapestry that deserves to be enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Allison&Busby for this terrific ARC

7th September 1907. George Porter Dillman has been employed by the Cunard Line as an undercover detective on the maiden voyage of the Lusitania, from Liverpool to New York. Soon the first theft takes place, then a murder. Can Dillman recover all the stolen items, and find the murderer before they dock in New York.
A well-written, and entertaining historical mystery. With its cast of varied and likeable (mostly) characters. A good start to this series.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I did like this but I found it a little slow to get going. The story was good and I likes the two detective type figures in this. The action was interesting and the final third was really exciting and the payoff was worth it.

This is a great classical mystery which takes place in 1907 on the maiden voyage of the Lusitania.

George Dillman is on Lusitania as an undercover detective, who is pretending to be a regular first class passenger. Early conversations are discussions on whether the ship will beat the Germans on the time from Queenstown to New York. Dillman meets a very ambitious newspaper man named Barcroft, who is annoying several of the passengers, as well as the Chief Engineer on the ship. He sees a very attractive woman Genevieve Masefield, who is taken under the wings of Carlotta and Abigail Hubermann, who are elderly sisters. He likes Cyril and Ada Weeks, whom he met on the train from London to Liverpool where the ship left. He is interested in the Rymer family, who were also on the train with him. Their daughter Violet appears to be very withdrawn. We soon find out that her parents have brought her on the trip to get her away from the very unsuitable man, she is in love with. The reader finds out that this man, Philip Garrow, got on the ship in second class when it stopped in Queenstown, and is gaining the help of a steward to get a note to her (one of the stories to follow in the book).

Early on, the Chief Engineer finds that important diagrams he had in his cabin have been stolen (while the cabin was locked) and the purser asks Dillon to find them. The purser later gets complaints about Barcroft writing an article about the famous violinist Etzak Weiss, a first class passenger, after having a conversation, and Weiss is very angry. The pursar calls Dillon to to go to Barcroft's cabin and talk to him. Passengers should not be written about unless they have agreed to a public interview. However, Dillon finds the door open, Barcroft on his face on the rug with a gaping wound on his head, and unopened Champagne in the ice bucket. The ship's doctor and his assistant take the body away. They all decide to keep the murder quiet until they arrive in port, and the body is stored in a freezer.

There is never a dull moment on the Lusitania. The day after, there are robberies from cabins during a concert, and later, Weiss's Stradivarius violin is stolen. Thus, Dillon has a lot to take care of with robberies, gambling, and a murder. There are also two very attractive women who are getting some of Dillon's attention.

The characters are fun, the action is pretty constant, and there are several good stories going on within the ship. As we near the end, it gets very exciting.