I received the ARC of this book, courtesy of NetGalley and it was so much more than I expected. Not only does it recount the tragedy of the Titanic and the end of the Edwardian era, but it covered historical and geographical tangents related to selected passengers and staff. Such a well researched and interesting book!

This is not a book for the fainthearted. If you want to know every single miniscule detail about the life and times of the Titanic, great! This book is for you. Unfortunately for me I'm only interested in the ship itself and that made this book a very long, drawn out, painful process for me. I skimmed the first several chapters and that made it more tolerable. Unfortunately for me this was not a very good book. 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3 stars.

This was such a fascinating read! The author details multiple passengers and crew on the Titanic and their experiences, lies, secrets, affairs and so much more. Such a different read than other non-fiction books that I have read about the Titanic- a very pleasant surprise! Highly recommend. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: The Ship of Dreams: The Sinking of the Titanic and the End of the Edwardian Era by Gareth Russell
(Published by Atria Books)

On 14 April 1912 at 11:40 p.m., on her maiden voyage, White Star's RMS (Royal Merchant Ship) Titanic, also known as "The Unsinkable Ship" and "The Ship of Dreams" hit an iceberg.

The transatlantic passenger liner sank 2 h 40 min later on 15 April 1912. Over 1,500 perished; 705 survived.

Gareth Russell's thorough and encyclopedic narrative covers macro and micro perspectives from the influence of world events down to personal triumphs and ordeals, in the building, launch, sinking of the Titanic, and its aftermath.

Russell's account commences in Belfast at the shipyard at Harland and Wolff where owner, White Star Line, is beset with labor and newbuilding construction issues with new working class demands at the dawn of the Irish Revolution and the Birth of the Irish Republic.

He infers to political and social upheaval in the scuttling of the "joie de vivre" opulence and extravagance of the Edwardian Era (1900-1914), "La Belle Epoque" ending summarily in 1914 at the outbreak of World War I. This milestone perhaps also signified the so-called "End of Empire" during the reign of George V.

"Ladies and Children First!" Perhaps a microcosm as such was demonstrated in the boarding of the Titanic's lifeboats when aristocracy, social hierarchy and stations in life were taken of little if any significance, and the fates of all were determined by lowly seamen in charge.

He relates a vivid if dreadful depiction of those 160 final minutes on a starless night in the frigid North Atlantic Ocean, with disbelieving passengers, who didn't feel the impact of the collision, hesitant to leave the warmth of their staterooms, down to the last meal ate, the final music played, the panicked deployment of lifeboats; and re-enactments of what might been the final throes of anguish and uncertainty of Captain Edward Smith and architect Thomas Andrews (who both perished with the ship), owner Joseph Ismay (who was accused of abandoning ship), and those of terrified passengers and crew.

He includes numerous debunked myths which came about after the sinking, i.e. that the Titanic was replaced before launch by its twin and damaged sister, the Olympic, and scuttled on purpose with a plan to save all passengers that went awry, etc.

The ill-fortune which befell White Star did not end with the sinking. The Britannic, subsequently built, was commandeered during WWI and in turn sank at the Dardanelles. Ultimately, a merger with Cunard marked White Star's effective dissolution.

He expounds on the lives of survivors, and the fate of the world as it enters into the First World War (1914-1918), commencing with a rather detailed account of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914, two years after the sinking of the Titanic. Then onto WW2, to the ordeals of certain Jewish survivors and others, and finally, to the late 20th century and the tragic suicides of some of Titanic's most prominent patrons.

This is, from beginning to end, a captivating read!

Review based on an Advance Reading Copy from Simon & Schuster and Atria Books through NetGalley.

The sinking of the Titanic was one of the most horrific losses of life, with over 1500 dead. The giant luxury liner was touted to be unsinkable, but went down on its maiden voyage, the vessel struck an iceberg, ripping a gash down the side of the ship that was beyond anything that the designers could have imagined, and it led to catastrophic results.

In Ship Of Dream,s, Gareth Russel takes us into the lives of six of the more celebrity figures on the Titanic, and the aftermath of the sinking. It was something that would change their lives, and many others in such a short time. For the ones who survived, it would stick with them for the rest of their days, marking each year that passed.

This was a book that was hard to put down! I was drawn into the stories of these families, and the heartbreak that was so prevalent on that night. For one family, they chose to stay together rather than be separated, resulting in loss of life for all.
This book is a MUST read for anyone who enjoys history on the Titanic, or history in general! Well thought out, masterfully written, and a winner all around!

If Downton Abby was a book on the titanic this would be the book.. It is written lavishly and with many flourishes that I felt were unnecessary but its also trying to rehash a story that has been told countless times so i give the author a little wiggle room to do that. It was a long read and I was bored. I enjoyed books like the Indianapolis and Dead Wake better.

ARC from Net Galley

After reading many books on the Titanic I was mildly interested in this book, then I was "wow'ed" by the facts and writing style. What a great history lesson AND A WARNING FOR WHAT WE THINK MAY BE "UNSINKABLE" TODAY!

Check out this true tale of false pride and deadly consequences

This is brilliantly researched and captures so many unique details about the Titanic. It is hard to find new facts or insights about this famous ship, as it has been written about so thoroughly. However, the author has been able to do just that! I highly recommend this one!

The sheer amount of detail Russell exhibits in this book is simply astounding.

Focusing on a small number of people aboard the Titanic (their respective fates withheld until the sinking, if you weren't already in the know), the stage is set by including this varied and interesting set of people, their histories laid out in impressive detail. One may get the feeling they get when thumbing through The Begats at first, but take heart, as Russell's work picks up and rewards the reader.

You get to spend the first half of the book learning about your select few (and the ship's background, of course), then the list of people fans out, following up with the fateful night--which is probably really why you're reading this. The special element that Russell contributes is just how curious of a marker that the sinking of this ship was, in retrospect. It's likewise easy to extract feelings of melancholy and sadness, especially considering the subject matter, but, at least for me, Russell helped to spotlight the event's peculiar place in time, and those whose legacy is tied eternally to it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advance read.

Calling all Titanic aficionados! This book is the ultimate masterpiece on the Titanic. Gareth Russell has written a detailed account about the Titanic. He followed six passengers. Through their eyes we have a good look at society in the early 20th Century. It took me a few months to read this. It is a book to take notes and make charts about the ship, the people etc. It would be fun to have a small group read this book over a few months and meet periodically to discuss. I received an ARC of This book from NetGalley and Atria Books in exchange for an honest review.

Calling it quits- at least for now- on this one at 50%. I love the history of the Titanic, and I went into this book thinking it would be like Dead Wake- a well researched history of the Titanic and the implications of its sinking on society.

Instead, this is a long, meandering tale of several people who were on the Titanic, but with major diversions into their life histories, and the life histories of people who were not on the Titanic. After awhile, I just couldn’t anymore; it was so many people and historical events to try to keep track of, with the only commonality being that they sailed on a ship together.

I have read multiple books about the Titanic. I've read many, many facts and tales about the building of the ship, the White Star Line and its leaders, the race to build bigger and faster passenger ships in the early 1900s, the passengers, causes of the sinking, the trial and aftermath of the accident, etc. All that reading, and this book still provided details and information I had not read before! Gareth Russell digs down into the Edwardian Era and the people/time that created the Titanic and its sister ships. He also gives details about six different passengers on the ship....their privileged lives, what led them to be on board, and their fate.

So interesting!! I loved every single word of this book! Buying a copy for my non-fiction keeper shelf!

First off -- this book is non-fiction. This is not a narrative story or filled with fictionalized drama. This book presents facts -- lots and lots of details. The writing style keeps it interesting, but be aware that this is 300+ pages of non-fiction -- not a story. Russell gets down to the nitty gritty of society at the time, details about specific passengers, text from reports, letters, telegrams, facts about the ship and other ships of the day, the crew, interior of the ship compared to other ships of the era, the White Star Line.....I could keep going. There is a lot of information tucked into this book. Readers who like Titanic facts but don't enjoy reading non-fiction might want to skip this one. I love non-fiction, so all of the details, facts, information did not bother me one bit. Loved it!

This is the first book by Gareth Russell that I've read. I will definitely be reading more! It is obvious that he did a huge amount of research and I like his writing style. The facts are all laid out in an interesting manner. I read this book slowly -- one chapter a night to let all the facts and details soak in. In my opinion, this is the best book on the Titanic and its sinking (that I have read). Interesting, sound research, and an in depth look at the aftermath of the sinking and the era that created larger, faster and much fancier passenger ships. Awesome read!

**I voluntarily read an advance readers copy of this book from Atria Books via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

The Ship of Dreams is a lovingly written and researched volume that centers on the sinking of the Titanic, but also encompasses the history of the society that invented her.

Gareth Russell focuses on just a few of the passengers, and lets us look into their lives and family histories. The author delved into these surrounding histories with a completeness that I must admit surprised me. It wasn't at all the book I was expecting.

One of the passengers Russell introduces us to is The Countess of Rothes, or Lucy-Noelle Martha Leslie, who was traveling with a companion and her maid. Her life history was educational for its depiction of the aristocracy in England during the Edwardian Era. She was also remarkably kind and generous, the type of person I would expect to be lauded in a history such as this.

Russell also illustrates the story of Ida and Isidor Straus, an older American couple who did not survive. As the lifeboats filled with women and children first, Ida and Isidor refused to be separated, and decided to go down with the ship, together. He was the co-owner of Macy's department store and had also served as a member of US House of Representatives. He came from a family of Jewish immigrants, and had known hardship and prejudice.

Thomas Andrews, managing director of the Harland and Wolff shipyard, also went down with the ship, while gallantly trying to save as many passengers and crew as possible. There are few people like him.

There was also teenaged Jack Thayer, son of John B. Thayer, second vice present of the Pennsylvania Railroad, who, after seeing his mother off on one of the lifeboats, jumped into the ocean just before the ship went down, and miraculously made it through the freezing night. He lost his father and was forever haunted; decades later, he would be one of the ten survivors to end his own life.

And then there was Dorothy Gibson, and actress, who in contrast, comes across as extremely shallow. Her life continued to be--interesting.

J. Bruce Ismay, a man who found a place in one of the lifeboats, was tormented forever afterwards with public disgrace, perceived as a coward for not giving up his space for another. He wasn't the only man shamed in this manner, an attitude that seems shocking, now.

There were only about 713 survivors, out of about 2229 on board The Titanic, and on that tragic night, some people were subjected to a test of character few ever have to face. There were enough lifeboats to save just a third of the the humans suffering that night, a situation that never should have happened. The Titanic's legacy is improved safety, and a mandatory lifeboat drill before every cruise. These days, everyone knows where to find a life vest, and everyone knows where to report, in the event of a disaster.

The bottom line is, the Titanic's sinking was caused by excessive speed. More caution should have been taken while navigating icebergs. And sadly, when catastrophe struck, no one was prepared--not the crew, who did not realize how much time was needed to deploy the lifeboats, or the passengers, who did not know where their life vests were, or where to report.

This was the first history I've read about The Titanic. I found it fascinating and would recommend it highly.

Thank you, Atria Books and Netgalley for an experience that I would not have otherwise had!

When I saw this offered I debated a bit about requesting a copy because so much has been written about Titanic that the thought occurred to me about what could [possibly be new in this book. I'm glad I requested it because the answer is a resounding yes, there is more to learn about the Titanic. From the days of construction to her final hours, the point of view in this impressive and entertaining historical book, the reader follows various passengers on their voyage into history.
The world is changing and World War One is fast approaching and seeing these last days through the lives of an actress, Dorothy Gibson, Lucy Leslie, Countess of Rothes; American tycoon John Thayer and his son; British aristocrat Tommy Andrews; and Ida Straus, a Jewish-American immigrant. By weaving their stories with the Titanic and the world as they knew it and what it was becoming, this is a masterful story that brings history alive in incredible detail. Yes, there is a fresh way of looking at the Titanic, there is new information and I enjoyed the time it took me to read every word. It was never dull or dry as so much history can be. This history came alive with his wonderful writing style, placing the reader on the decks, in the lavish cabins and into a new world in the making.

I received an advance reading copy (ARC) of this book from NetGalley.com in return for a fair review. Much has been written about the ill-fated Titanic over the years, but this book takes an interesting approach. The author, Gareth Russell, chose six first class passengers and their families who were on board at the time of the sinking and details their lives before, during, and after the tragedy. Among those he depicted were a silent screen actress, a British aristocrat, a maritime architect, a wealthy American and his teenage son, as well as a philanthropist from the States. As we got to know these people on a more personal level, we desperately wanted to save them, but as everyone knows more folks died than survived the sinking and not all of them came home. Russell's description of the ship's first and final voyage was gut-wrenching. It is unimaginable what they all endured and what the survivors had to witness that awful night. The people that boarded the Carpathia were forever changed and had to deal with the horror they saw for the rest of their lives. It's just something many of us never really think about. For example, I had no idea that at least ten survivors ultimately committed suicide. My only complaint was that in some cases, the author traced the passengers' roots back farther than was really necessary. Of course, it was interesting to learn about how these people came to be on board the ship, but reading about their ancestors was at times a bit much. There were also way too many footnotes that I found distracting. Overall, however, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in historical events and/or the Titanic itself. Gareth Russell did a great job bringing the people and the ship to life. I look forward to more books by this author.

Russell goes into exquisite detail in The Ship of Dreams: The Sinking of the Titanic and the End of the Edwardian Era. Sometimes that was good thing for me, and sometimes it wasn't so great. While being fully aware that in addition to being about the Titanic and its doomed journey this book is also about some of the first class passengers that traveled on the ship, the parts that covered extensive and somewhat excessive history about those individuals felt tedious at times. When the background related to the character of the individuals and the reason for them being on the ship, it was great backstory. When it related back their family history over the past five generations, not so much. The parts related to the ship and the journey itself were intricate and mostly fantastic and engaging - although at points here too Russell went into detail so fine that most people would probably glaze over. I definitely had points while reading when I was rooting for certain people to make it safely home. While Russell definitely spends time laying out the personal history of some of the people, some of the events in Britain leading up to the sailing (including the death of King Edward VII), and events and personal follow-up after the sinking, this book to me is not so much focused on how a certain era ended, beyond mentioning that it was becoming increasingly difficult for the titled class of England to hold on to large family estates than it is the people that traveled on the Titanic, how they handled adversity and the ship itself.

This is a beautifully researched story of several passengers on the Titanic. I thought I’d read extensively about this remarkable doomed voyage but the author has found a way of making it new, exciting and engaging. Six passengers from America and the UK are followed throughout the course of their journey. As events unfold, their past, present and futures are depicted. Obviously we want them to survive but their fates are not revealed until we have learned about how they wound up on this particular voyage. Planned, chance, luck? Choices are key. Some want desperately to survive and some feel their fates are predetermined. This is the end of the Edwardian era and the end of the incredible Gilded Age as the decade comes closer to World War I and the race to more modern times.

Was the design of the Titanic flawed? Was the race for speed in crossing the Atlantic a big factor. All are carefully researched and evaluated.
While I liked and admired the work of this talented young author, I found myself wishing for a more interesting read. I am not saying this is a boring book but it is not a book I would choose again. I just don’t care enough about this moment in time and prefer a more romantic story or even a thriller. This at times is like reading historical fiction but one where you know what is coming.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book had me in tears. I have been obsessed with the Titanic since I was a young girl so following the various passengers and crew was simply chilling.
This has been one of the best books about the Titanic I have ever read, and I have read a ton.
It was so well written and well researched.
I love the journal stories that had never previously been recorded being established in this novel.
I found it fascinating that there was so much about the survivors in this book .I feel that is something we don't normally discuss. I could not imagine the survivors guilt they suffered with.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to review this title.

Just when you think a subject has been studied to pieces, that nothing new can be written about it, along comes a book like Gareth Russell's The Ship of Dreams. Thanks to intense research, Russell brings readers into the lives of first class passengers Lucy Leslie, Countess of Rothes; Thomas Andrews; Ida and Isidor Straus and others: the American millionaire businessmen, British aristocrats, and glamorous movie stars who were among those who sailed on Titanic's maiden voyage. Readers are swept into the day-to-day life on Titanic through Russell's meticulous attention to detail, his brilliant writing style making you feel as if you are on the deck with the passengers. This holds true both before, during, and after Titanic hits the fatal iceberg- making for some chilling scenes.

The opulent furnishings and gilded luxuries of the first class cabins strike many of us today as symbols of an ending era. Russell takes this further, connecting Titanic and her passengers to the changes of society that would come with the end of the Edwardian era and the beginning of World War I. Russell follows specific people to help connect readers to aspects of the larger world of which Titanic is a microcosm: the British aristocracy, the slowly changing class system and the Irish Home Rule Crisis; the early days of the movie industry and the economic competitions that contributed to the making of American millionaires as well as the Titanic and her sisters; the immigrant experience of Jewish-Americans, the connecting of the world through technology like wireless communication, and more. Occasionally these shifts from individual stories to the world at large were a little clumsy and hard to follow, but I largely found them both relevant and interesting.

Russell examines many of the long-held myths of Titanic: that steerage passengers were locked below and unable to get to the lifeboats; that fires in the engine room or substandard metal contributed to the sinking; that the sinking was itself an insurance conspiracy by the White Star Line, and more, He carefully and without prejudice examines each myth in its turn: why they may have arisen and how accurate (or more often, inaccurate) evidence suggests they were. What do we know about Titanic from physical evidence versus survivors' memories and how accurate could those memories be? What images are seared into our collective minds from movies and yet are not wholly rooted in fact? The Ship of Dreams explores the Titanic as both a symbol of an era and a clash of man and nature. While its focus is more limited than other books that try to explore the entire experience of the ship from staff to steerage, it certainly deserves to take a place among the greatest and most defining book on the iconic ship and her place in history.


I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

A look at different people aboard the ship. Looks at the ship before it departed, during it time on the water and after it crashed. A look at what the survivors did after and mentions the film in the 1990s.