Wait! Before you watch the movie Titanic one more time, stop and read The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria instead! The world was listening and watching live as survivors fought to leave and the glamorous ship sank. They say “life is in the details” and there is an abundance of them in the account. I found this focused attention made those on the ship seem more like real people so I appreciated the care to include them. This telling ranks right up there with some of the great ship sinking stories. Look for it!

A fascinating read a look at the horror of the fate of the Andrea Doria.A book history buffs will devour.I learned so much from this book highly recommend.#netgalley #st.martinpress

When the Andrea Doria set sail, everyone figured it would be another routine voyage. No one could have envisioned what horrors awaited in the middle of the ocean.

This book was amazing in more way than one. I enjoyed getting into the history, the stories, the mechanics of what made it all happen, which mistakes were made (by both sides) and how the event could have been avoided.

If you love history, this is one book that you need to read! It was well-rounded, and brought the Andrea Doria to life once more!

The most exceptional work of narrative nonfiction I’ve encountered since Close to Shore.

The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria is a stunning, captivating, and thorough account of the wreck, sinking and aftermath of the eponymous luxury liner that did everything right that the Titanic did wrong...and sank anyway.

King and Wilson’s harrowing account of the ship’s final sail before tragedy struck reads like fiction. I couldn’t put it down.

The level of detail the authors have managed to pack into this dense but never boring read is incredible. The story is told largely through accounts of survivors, allowing us a personal, intimate connection to the hard facts of the incident while still showcasing the painstaking research involved.

The section of the book devoted to the wreck and subsequent sinking of the Andrea Doria is absolutely terrifying (so evocative that I felt like I was there), and the events leading up to it and following in its wake prove to be equally captivating, thanks to the masterful storytelling abilities of King and Wilson.

An absolute must read if you love shipwrecks, the history of luxury travel, or even if you just loved the movie Titanic but could have done without the fictionalized love story and bad acting.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. The sinking of the Andrea Doria has not had the impact on human imagination as had the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. This modern ship likewise should not have sunk, let alone collide with the Stockholm. The history of the ship and the narrative of the collision are very interesting and readable. The problem with this story and those like it is the seeming mandatory human interest stories that accompany. These are dull and not impactful. They unfortunately drag down the entire book.

The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria by Greg King is a great read! A real engrossing page-turner and worth the time of a read!!

Princess Fuzzypants here: Most people know the story of the Titanic from book and film. That fateful Night to Remember is imprinted in our collective imaginations. Yet 40 plus years later, another liner plying the North Atlantic sunk to the bottom of the ocean so close to land, they were in the final hours of their crossing;. The loss of life on The Andrea Doria was small compared to the Titanic. They had sufficient lifeboats. They had modern, for 1956, technology. They could not imagine she could falter and sink but within 11 hours, she did precisely that.
Human errors again contributed to the tragedy none less than the inexperienced officer alone on the Bridge when The Stockholm swerved into the pathway of the liner and split her hull. Many of the deaths were from that initial collision, some victims literally thrown from their bunks and tossed to their deaths. The officers and crew of the Stockholm, the ship that caused the crash, never assumed any responsibility even when it was proven fatal mistakes were made. The captain and crew of the Doria were pilloried in the press unfairly but regardless of who was to blame, it is a story of courage, of loss, of failure and success.
This book gives the disaster the human face it deserves telling the stories of many of the passengers and crew, some of whom made it through the night and some of whom did not. It is told with compassion and clarity. It is a story that begs to be told... and read. I found it hard to put down.
Five purrs and two paws up.

What could be more exciting than a large cruise ship on a collision course to disaster? I thought of A Night to Remember, The Poseidon Adventure, or Titanic. The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria has the potential to be an equally great movie. However, as a book, not so much.

The book is extensively researched, and it shows. Literally, every fact discovered, whether relevant or not, is thrown into the mix. Pages on cruise ship passenger volume reductions due to competition from air travel. Chapters on cruise ship design and the aftermath of World War II on Italy. In addition, most of the cruisers’ stories are relayed to the nth degree. All are told—not shown. With 218 first class passengers, you can see why the collision doesn’t occur until 25% into the book. By that point, I was exhausted and had already started to skim read the rest.

If you are writer penning a story set on a 1950s cruise ship, this book would be an excellent resource for setting. Or if you love the history of maritime disasters, I highly recommend this book. However, for those readers, like me, looking for an exciting disaster thriller, look elsewhere. Or wait for the inevitable movie based on the book. That dichotomy makes the Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria difficult to rate. I’ll average it to 3 stars.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Received this through Net Gallery and I'm so glad that this book was written, "The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria". The way it was written is the best I have ever seen on any kind of book about a ship and what happens to it! It was so personal in the crew,the captain and All the people who traveled on that ship that time in 1956. Personally,I had never heard of this cruise ship and I have learned so by in the way it was written. The lives of the passengers,the ship and just All the way everybody reacted and what really happened. I'm not going to tell what happens,you need to read this fantastic story of everyone's life story that was aboard this magnificent ship and what happens afterwards. When you do finish this incredible story you will know these people and remember what they went through and feel like you have and had known them personally!

The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria is a compelling account of the tragic end of the Italian ship Andrea Doria. The authors delve into the lives of the victims and also the actions of the crew. This holds the readers interest as much as any novel.

Not many writers can bring history to life in such a vibrant way but the partnership of Greg King and Penny Wilson made me feel like I was on the scene. The Andrea Doria was the jewel of the Italian cruise lines and people were eager to sail on her, enjoying luxury every moment of their time on board. She was sleek and elegant with custom art work and modern fittings.
This was her 101st sailing and it was summer, July 25, less than twelve hours from port. The trip had been trouble free up to that point but, even if it hadn't been it was thought that with all of the modern technology on board and the warm southern route she traveled, all was well. As an iceberg felled the Titanic, the Andrea Doria was a victim of weather - fog. Two liners were heading towards disaster, the other one the Swedish liner Stockholm. When they collided the whole world watched the tragedy unfold in real time. When the numbers were released the death toll was 51, of which 10 were children.
From the glitterati, of actors, musicians, the rich, the poor and the middle class enjoying a once in a lifetime vacation, the very best of people and the not so nice about people played out for the world to watch. Not only were they watching the rescue underway but they were also watching the end of the era of the great ocean liners. So many people, so many stories to tell.
This was one of those special books that drew me in from the first pages and I read it within two days. The writing style flowed well and I lost track of time. After having enjoyed this book I am looking forward to finding their previous books. I'm certain I will not be disappointed.
My thanks to the publisher St. Martin's and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I like a good disaster book. This one was very informative as I knew next to nothing about the sinking of the ship Andrea Doria in 1956. Obviouslywell-researched, this book compiles the accounts of many of the survivors and also tells what happened to many of them after they survived the sinking. Amazing that so few people died, yet still a tragedy.

I knew about the Andrea Doria and its ill-fated last voyage - my ex is obsessed with ships and so while we were together I too learned to be "obsessed" with ships. While his obsession mostly lies with Titanic, the SS United States and the H.M.S. Hood and that tragedy, the Andrea Doria often flitted into conversations [something I didn't remember until I read this book - one of the survivors of the wreck is active in the saving of the SS United States and that is why both her name and some of the revelations shared by her with the author seemed familiar to me] and though I didn't really know all the details, I knew that it had been a real tragedy. So when this book came up on NetGalley, I knew I needed to read it. Because apparently all that ship talk rubbed off on me. ;-)

This book was...wow. I learned so much about this and about the passengers and the aftermath. And this is not a happy story - much like Titanic, so many things went wrong in the chaos of the aftermath of the wreck and it is a wonder that anyone survived. And the actions both during the rescue and afterwards by the Swedish line, in my opinion, was nothing short of criminal. And the struggles of most of the survivors afterwards was just a sad epilogue to what was a horrific night.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who knows anything about ships and ocean liners, who has heard, but not really read anything about the Andrea Doria or just likes a good book about a tragic event. Reading about the building of the ship and the days at sea leading up to the tragedy was fascinating and the way that people stepped up to help save their fellow passengers was absolutely awe-inspiring. And the ones that were lost to the sea...well, I recommend having some tissues ready. You'd have to be dead not to be moved by the stories of the dead.

Thank you to NetGalley and to St. Martin Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read many books on the great passenger ship disasters, including some on the Andrea Doria. Most are written by fantastic authors giving us the stories from the perspectives of engineers, technical professionals and other "experts". Greg King and Penny Wilson have joined to bring to life the personal stories of passengers aboard the Andrea Doria. Including photos and articles from the accident itself, this personal perspective gives so much depth and feeling to the already emotional story of the rescues and sacrifices of so many people. I dont know why no one had written this version before but I'm so glad that this view has been added to the Andrea Doria's story.

This is not a simple tale of an ocean liner that sinks into the sea one night. This is a mixture of individual stories combined into one incredible book, brought to life through the responses of different people as they reacted to the unexpected. Courage and tragedy, self-sacrifice and fear driven by imminent death – these and other human elements are present, exposing the best and the worst of human nature that accompanies any type of disaster.

Thure Peterson’s hours-long battle to rescue his wife is a tension-filled testament to what a person will do to save a loved one. One can imagine what is going through Captain Peter Calamai’s mind as he insists he will remain on the Andrea Doria, essentially “going down with the ship.” Countless others have their stories retold, and authors Greg King and Penny Wilson do their best to involve us in the actions and emotions of all of them.

I did feel a bit lost in the beginning when the authors introduced all the people, and more than once I wished there was a section I could refer to that would help me keep all the names straight. Fortunately, the characters are constantly revisited, and it was much easier than I thought to remember who was who. For those who wish to explore further, the authors have included a Notes section as well as an extensive Bibliography.

I’ve read many books on historical events, but seldom have had the pleasure to read one that involves you in the people and their stories as this one does. This is a gripping story that I finished in a 24-hour period. Highly recommended. Five stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a complimentary copy of this title.

It is easy to look back and see in the Doria’s unfortunate end the last gasp of an era. She burst forth from a resurgent Italy, a floating repository of art and tradition, and wove a glamorous spell over her passengers.”

Admittedly I started reading this gem before Christmas. I just couldn’t focus on it, call it stress, holidays or whatever, I couldn’t sit down and read more than a couple of pages. Fast forward to now, we’re dealing with an uncertain and stressful time and so, I picked it up and couldn’t put it down.

This book explored and gave so many details, many I honestly had to skip, because my brain just couldn’t get around all of it. I soon found myself engaged and could see how the Andrea Doria and the Titanic accidents and tales sounded so very alike. The passengers recounting terrors and panic cries, they were so well written I could hear the fear in the retelling of that fateful night.

I recommend this book! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and comes out on bookshelves on April 7! Thank you again to the authors, St Martins Press and NetGalley!

This book is thoroughly researched and includes the actual accounting of events by many of the passengers and crew. The first six chapters describe the various passengers and their lives before the tragedy, and the layout and decoration of the beautiful Italian ocean liner Andrea Doria, one of the last of its kind. The descriptions of the passenger's struggle to survive and rescue others is emotional and heartbreaking. I couldn't stop reading!
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book!

I hadn’t known much about the Andrea Doria other than it sank after colliding with another ship. Here it comes to life, following several passengers through the collision and sinking, and what their lives were like after.
The fighting between the Swedish-American Line and the Italian Line is surprising in a way. The Swedes were so aggressive in airing accusations at the Italians, yet they were viewed as civilized and respectable. The Italians were just a decade away from being allied with Hitler, they had the Mafia, were hotheaded and corrupt. But it turns out, the disaster rests squarely on Sweden’s third officer, Carstens-Johannsen.

This book was so well written! Fascinating and very well-researched story of the fateful last trip of the Andrea Doria. I found it hard to put down - the ship, the characters, the accident, the aftermath - I felt like I was right there on the boat, and knew each passenger’s personal story, and all were followed from beginning to end. This was a subject I’d heard of for a long time and didn’t realize just how interesting, how tragic a story it was. No stone was left unturned. I so enjoy learning (new to me) history, and The Last Voyage fit the bill to perfection. A catbird seat to a preventable tragedy that showed countless examples of inspiration, courage, luck, determination, and pluckiness. I plan to read other books by this excellent writing team. Highly recommended!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is well researched and well written. The author’s writing style is engaging and brings history to life on the pages. The books focuses on the passengers and events leading up to the sinking of the Andrea Doria and the unfortunate aftermath where the Swedish ship (Stockholm) was absolved of wrong doing. Years later it was proved that the collision was the fault of the Stockholm.

This is an excellent book and I recommend it to anyone who is looking for a good read about one of the last luxury ocean liners.

I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog. I also posted it to my Facebook  page.