"The last Voyage of the Andrea Doria" by authors Greg King : Penny Wilson is an excellent view of the incredible accident that happened in a heavy fog in 1953.
The accident was unavoidable according to all accounts,if only the Swedish Captain and Crew paid attention to what the weather and their instruments were telling them.
The Captain of the Andrea Doria and Crew were also guilty of negligence and cared only for themselves,in as much as the passengers,were never told anything about what to do in case of an accident or where to go for help.
Almost every crew member,with the exception of a few,were consumed with themselves and didn't bother to help,even though people were dying.They were even accused of stealing passengers life jackets.
The total of people that died in the accident were passengers,over 50.Crew members 5.
Many lives were destroyed and were never the same.Many were afraid of water for the remainder of their lives.
This book.was available due to many interviews with the survivors,reports etc.
I have read several books on this subject and this is one of the best.
Thank you to Net Galley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this at my leisure.

In July 1956, the Italian ocean liner Andrea Doria left Genoa, Italy bound for New York. More than 1,600 passengers and crew were aboard. The Andrea Doria was the pride of Italy...a beautiful luxury boat with every amenity, even murals painted by famous artists. The sailing proved to be a safe, quick passage. The ship had been designed for speed, safety, and comfort. There was more than enough lifeboat space in case of problems....but no problems were foreseen.

Until....

On the evening of July 25th, 10 hours away from NYC, the Andrea Doria was struck by another ship, the Stockholm, in heavy fog. Both ships were badly damaged. The Stockholm was not in danger of sinking. The Andrea Doria, however, was doomed.

The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria provides information about the ship, its crew and captain, the passengers, the events that fateful night and the aftermath of the accident. It is obvious that the authors did painstaking research on the ship and the sinking. The facts are given in a very interesting, informative manner. I was not bored once while reading the 340+ pages of this book. So much information...but well-written and interesting.

It is amazing that only 51 people aboard the ships died due to the collision. And despite problems lowering lifeboats from the Andrea Doria because the ship was listing too far to one side, all passengers were evacuated as quickly as possible. Other ships in the region came to help, even the Stockholm. It was a huge and costly rescue mission, seen around the world as the media filmed the event from circling airplanes.

Wonderful book! I kept thinking what a contrast this event was compared to the sinking of the Titanic just 40+ years before. What if other ships had responded to Titanic as quickly as they did the Andrea Doria? It could have ended very differently for so many people!


This is the first book by Greg King and Penny Wilson that I have read. I will definitely be reading more! I very much enjoyed this book!


**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from St. Martin's Press. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

"The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria" joins a large body of "Titanic" books in describing the story of a shipwreck. What it does differently, however, is tell the story through of a host of figures, often in their own words, both throughout the sinking and in the trauma/aftermath they faced for decades beyond the ship's sinking. Greg King and Penny Wilson's book does a careful job of assessing the evidence for the cause of the sinking (and the culpability) and without being lurid, acknowledges some of the awful ends met on that fateful night.

What's good: This is a unique and highly readable book about a shipwreck well known but far distant in popular memory to "Titanic." It places the ship and its passengers in a specific time/place, connecting the passengers to a well-known world of pop culture.

What's iffier: The start is a bit slow and it takes a bit to understand why the book is going, seemingly character by character, setting up how they arrived on the ship and their lives on the ship. Once the immediate accident occurs, however, the narrative tightens and that time spent building knowledge of the individual passengers pays off.

I had always heard about the Andrea Doria but I did not know much about what had happened. The book does a cursory look at the crew, passengers, and the ship itself on the sinking of the luxury liner.
This book is NOT a deep dive into the mechanics or the actions of individuals....and there are other books out there for that.
This book gives a great look at how the ship was set up, the crew, and passengers.
The book details how the crash happened and the ultimate sinking of the Andrea Doria.
Overall, its a great book.
My only issue that I had with the book, that it goes ON AND ON about the passengers. I could NOT keep track of all of the passengers and their stories.
I wish that the authors would have focused on a handful of passengers and then told the story. I think it would have made a much better book.

Here we go again:
A large, fast luxury liner
The pride of its country
Built with the most modern safety features
Plenty of lifeboats
Experienced Captain
Bad weather
Atlantic Ocean
Big gash in the boat

Which brings us to the story of the Andrea Doria and “The Sinking of the World’s Most Glamorous Ship.” Authors Greg King and Penny Wilson have written a close up and personal story of the Andrea Doria. Fortunately, there is one major difference between the Andrea Doria and the Titanic- 1,660 passengers and crew were rescued and survived, 46 people on the ship died as a direct consequence of the collision. This is their story.

For a country attempting to rebuild its shattered economy and reputation after World War II, Andrea Doria was an icon of Italian national pride. A grand luxury liner, sleek on the outside and dazzling with Italian art and charm on the inside, this was an ocean liner that provided a dream experience. The book begins by introducing us to the passengers and crew. We meet celebrities and society people in first class and interesting and talented people in Cabin Class and Tourist Class. Some were returning to America after a holiday or business in Europe, and some were emigrating to the USA. Most of them raved about the beauty of the swimming pools, the food and service. On many deck chairs was a book that was popular at the time, A Night To Remember, about the sinking of the Titanic!

The stories of happy families and couples as they cruise are poignant, as we anticipate what fate awaits them on the last night of the cruise. On a foggy night, twelve hours from New York City, the ship Stockholm collided with the Andrea Doria. Even though we know that most will be saved, the individual stories of the passenger are harrowing and heroic. The Andre Doria began to list severely after the crash, which rendered half of the lifeboats inaccessible and useless. The passengers had to struggle to move to the upper decks on a ship that was slanted and filling with water, oil and fuel. Then they had to wait for hours on the decks, hanging on for dear life, until other ships and boats could arrive and dispatch lifeboats to rescue them.

The book closes with stories of how the survivors fared in the days and years after the crash. Interestingly, some people even cruised again! The book also covers the resulting lawsuits. Both ship companies maintained that they were not to blame. At times a bit dry and repetitive, overall this book showcases the love and interest that the authors have for the story of the Andrea Doria.

I received an advance digital copy from Netgalley and the publisher. This is my honest review.

The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria by Greg King and Penny Wilson

It is no surprise that the Andrea Doria was in a collision at sea with another ship in July, 1956, just a day or so out from arriving at its destination in New York Harbor. The horror of this collision is played out through most of the book.

While the first six chapters set up a Who’s Who of the passenger manifest, the real adventure starts at chapter seven. There were over 1,000 passengers on the Andrea Doria and you will come to know why they chose this ship, who is married to whom, where their cabins were, and daily events on the ship and who participated. While this may seem tiring, it is important to know all this when the collision occurs. Some lives were saved or lost by playing an extra card game or by being asleep in a particular cabin.

What actually occurred that night may never be resolved, but the traumatic memories of the survivors lasted a lifetime. There were many conflicting stories as to the weather, the Andrea Doria crew’s behavior to act in a crisis, and as to whom survived and succumbed according to “eye witnesses.”

The Andrea Doria hung on hours longer than the Titanic or the Lusitania, but the Italian ship builder and captain were deemed at fault by the court of public opinion. The writer of this story would argue that, and place the blame on the third in command on the Stockholm, the Swedish ship with whom they collided.

As an adventure tale at sea, the story of the Andrea Doria will get your attention and leave you realizing that no matter how good technology gets, it is still up to humans to do their jobs properly to keep us safe.

My thanks to #StMartinsPress and #NetGalley for an advance copy of this title for my review.

Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley in exchange for a review.

The wreck of the Andrea Doria led to one of the most memorial stories about a shipwreck – that of a young girl who fell asleep in her bed on the Andrea Doria and work up on the deck of the Stockholm. It is amazing luck and tragedy for her stepfather and sister died. Linda Hardberger (nee Morgan) perhaps is the most person, the image, that one associates the most with the Andrea Doria. Whether this is due simply to her story, or also to who her father was, can be debated. But in many ways that story has become the central point of the Doria shipwreck in many narratives. It is to the credit of King and Wilson that they do not do this and give equal (if not more) time to various people who were not famous after the wreck.
King and Wilson not only provide background on the captains of both vessels but also of the rules of the sea of the time, and of various passengers. There is an overview of the lines as well as the placement of cross ocean travel. The description of the wreck and the rescue is balance and clearly presented. While the background information might make the beginning of the book dry for some readers, when the voyage starts, the writing propels the reader forward quite easily.
It is to the authors’ credit that they provide information on the survivors and their lives after the wreck. More importantly there is an excellent analysis of the question of guilt as well as how the question played out in the media. The media analysis is particularly good and well done.
The book is an excellent read and offers a good history.

First thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest opinion of the book.

I absolutely loved it. Great storytelling of a truly tragic, unforgettable and unnecessary tragedy. The book not only explores the accident that occurred, how it could have been avoided and subsequent dives to recover artifacts, but it tells the story of families, passengers and those affected by it.

You get to know some of the crew as well too not only on the doomed ship but on those ships that helped come to its aid.

I found it captivating and a highly recommended book even if you are not a maritime fan.

The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doris is a thorough researched book. This book includes a lot of information and is not a quick read. It is well written and is a important read.

An immersive read, The Last Voyage of the Andrea Doria explores one of maritime's ultimate tragedies - the sinking of a cruise ship with thousands of lives on board. Meticulously researched from both records and oral testimonies of the crew and passengers, this book is perfect for fans of other maritime tragedies like the Titanic or the Lusitania!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my opinion.

5 stars

Mr. King and Ms. Wilson have certainly done their research on the Andrea Doria. It is obviously . coupius and detailed. There is a bibliography included for those who wish to further search for tidbits about the Andrea Doria, her history and her sad sinking.

I appreciate the facts given in the book about the actual accident that sank the ship. Who was where and who did what to avoid or make the collision between the Andrea Doria and the Stockholm inevitable. The authors spoke well of the panic that ensued not only on the ship, but among those loved ones waiting for the passengers sailing into New York. I was somewhat surprised and heartened to learn of the various organizations and department stores that rendered aid to the survivors.

Then there were contradictory and conflicting stories told by the survivors about the conduct of the Andrea Doria crew and their lack of assistance given to the passengers. In addition, the authors cover the inevitable official inquiries in the aftermath of the collision. When the results of various inquiries are listed, the reader only has to decide for themselves who is ultimately to blame for the crash.

While the writing was a little dry in that it for the main was a recitation of bare facts about passengers and the interior/exterior of the ship, it did give a good accounting of both some of the luminaries aboard and the appearance and design of the ship. Since I think in pictures, it gave me a good idea of her – and I Googled her as well...I did not know, for example, that the ship was named for a real person. I found that interesting.

I watched a television show not long ago where a search and salvage team dove on her. It was very poignant.

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for forwarding to me a copy of this informative book for me to read, enjoy and review.

This book was a little hard for me to get through. It felt a bit like a text book and I wasn't drawn into a story. There were some very interesting parts about the ship, but overall, it was just ok for me.