I found this a clever book and I enjoyed the way he started this book club. Very different from what you would have first thought. Very fun

Overall nice historical fiction novel about three people who enter each others lives in extraordinary circumstances and form bonds. This book will please people who like an historical fiction novel with a little romance and very little to do with the actual Titanic.

I have to say that I only enjoyed about 20% of this book. The other 80% I found to be pretty unengaging and has put me in a massive slump. As someone who usually physically reads a book within a week, this took me over a month with no other physical books in between.
The three main characters felt flat the majority of the time and I wasn't very invested in their stories individually or as a unit. The structure of the story was well organized although I didn't expect the story to follow such a long timeline. This takes place over 3+ years and the only way I knew of that passage of time was because we jumped from the Titanic sinking and then to WW1.
Overall, I should have DNF-ed this book. It was not the historical romance for me, the love triangle between Yorick, Hans, and Zinnia felt awkward and I struggled through the story immensely.
I can see this story being for someone who is interested in queerness in the 1900's, historical romance, love triangles, and tragedy. It just happened to not be the story for me.

I wouldn't call a shared near-miss of going down with the Titanic a meet-cute, but it did bring together the right people to star in this tragic love story. One man who couldn't believe his luck--he had a ticket to travel on this most famous of ships, and didn't use it-- and gathered together the other people he could find who were meant to be on board but were instead still very much alive in Paris. One of these people, Yorick, happened to own a bookshop, and the Book Club was born. He selected the books they read and sent them out with themed candies made by one of the other survivors. Each survivor had a story to tell about why they didn't board the ship that fateful April day, but the most compelling stories involve the lives these people live afterwards, always thinking of how they avoided calamity.

Zinnia and Yorick each have a complicated relationship with a third member named Haze. The three of them orbit around each other in a complicated dance that never fully resolves itself. The book is suffused with Yorick's own book reviews--they are central to the plot-- and a longing each of the three feel for a life that is just out of reach. Schaffert paints a picture of pre-WWI Paris that is nostalgic and wistful, as though the characters somehow know it won't always be as it is. There is a melancholy dripping from every paragraph that makes the characters all seem a little haunted by their survival. I found myself hoping for answers to the questions they could not ask themselves, and longing for an ending that could not be. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the ride.

Going into this novel, I thought I knew what I was going to expect but I was off and I love that! Following Yorick, Zinnia, and Haze's relationship was such a trip, Also, the book element had to be one of my favorites! The Timothy writes and describes these books and what they mean really just reminds readers how important books are to our life's journey and reminds me personally as to why I LOVE reading.

This is one historical novel I will be handselling with my heart!

I wanted to love this, but it just wasn't the book for me. I wasn't a fan of the love triangle angle. As much as I love romance book stories, I was expecting this to be more a book about friendships.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

What if you survived the most famous maritime disaster of your time, but only because you didn’t get on the ship? Those who escaped disaster only because they didn’t use their tickets on the titanic form a club of sorts to share their luck and confusion. The story follow yorick, and her tumultuous relationship with haze and zinnia, as they navigate a love triangle.

3.75 stars.

Once you get past your initial disappointment that the book is about people who *almost* went on the Titanic... but didn't, it is quite an enjoyable read! (Also, as a reader, I'm also a sucker for books that are about books - I adored that part of the story!)

Overall an enjoyable, digestible and well-worth read!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

A group of people who were supposed to be on the Titanic but then for various reasons did not board, end up forming a group to discuss their unique situation. At first they met out of curiosity, but then decide to form a book club based on the suggestions of Yorick, who curated the second class library on the Titanic. As they get to know each other, Yorick, Zinnia, and Haze in particular bond and thus start a love triangle centered on letters Yorick writes for Haze to send to Zinnia. Overall, a bit convoluted and mostly tragic as no one seemed to get what they want. The book club scenes with the group were more interesting than the love triangle.

Yes, his real name is Yorick. He was supposed to be on the Titanic but was not, given leave of his job before the boat pulled away on its unfortunate journey, yet his name was still listed among the dead. There were others like him, people who were meant to be on the boat and ultimately did not go, making them sort of survivors without having ever gone through the event. A few of these people get together to form the Titanic Survivors’s Book Club, and thus begins the story of Yorick the bookseller in Paris.

I have a lot of feelings about this book. I did enjoy it, in the end, although it felt a little meandering. The story isn’t really about the Titanic or anyone who was actually aboard (until the end, at least), but it is about a love triangle, a changing world, and things you see but can’t have. The book was interesting and original, although I may have wanted it to be “more.” More of what, I don’t know. I enjoyed the wartime details of the plot, the sepia-toned moodiness of the overall setting, and I believe the author accomplished what he set out to accomplish. I feel like this story and a few of its plot points could have been polished until they shone a bit brighter, but overall it was a clever story in a time I adore.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

If you're craving a literary voyage back to the early 20th century, "The Titanic Survivor's Book Club" by Timothy Schaffert might just be your ticket!

While the romantic entanglements didn't quite light my literary fire, I must admit, I'm not one for love triangles. The plot, though well-crafted, felt a tad low stakes for my taste, leaving me yearning for a bit more excitement. However, for readers eager to delve into the historical period of the Titanic, this novel serves up a tantalizing slice of the past. So, if you're ready to set sail on a journey through time, grab a copy and prepare to be transported to a bygone era of glamour and intrigue.

For weeks after the sinking of the Titanic, Yorick spots his own name among the list of those lost at sea. As an apprentice librarian for the White Star Line, his job was to curate the ship’s second-class library. But the day the Titanic set sail he was left stranded at the dock. After the ship’s sinking, Yorick takes this twist of fate as a sign to follow his lifelong dream of owning a bookshop in Paris. Soon after, he receives an invitation to a secret society of survivors where he encounters other ticket holders who didn’t board the ship. Haunted by their good fortune, they decide to form a book society, where they can grapple with their own anxieties through heated discussions of The Awakening or The Picture of Dorian Gray. The story evolves to a love triangle between Yorick, Zinnia and Haze, and, unfortunately, the other interesting survivors are not mentioned as much. I thought the story of the three main characters was slow in spots but was well written all the same. I am also not a fan of homosexual relationships being prominent in the story.

The premise of the story was interesting as it was about those who survived the Titanic by NOT using their tickets and boarding the ship. I wish the other book club members had figured more into the story, and more books were mentioned. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book.

“The Titanic Survivors Book Club” is, in essence, a love triangle that began with the formation of a book club. The survivors mentioned had, in one way or another, cheated death by not boarding the Titanic. They had their tickets, but fate intervened and spared them. Through an invitation, these bunch of survivors gather sporadically throughout the years in a Paris bookshop owned by one of those said survivors. A friendship, and subsequent triangle, blossoms between Yorick, Zinnia, and Haze (short for Hansel). The book follows these 3 friends one year after the sinking of the Titanic through the beginnings of World War I.

Don’t let the title fool you. This book has nothing to do with the sinking of the Titanic. It is a story of unrequited love, jealousy, friendship, sadness, and war, with the occasional book references thrown in, not to mention a small take on Cyrano de Bergerac films as well. This is also a love letter to books and how they have affected and shaped the proprietor of the bookshop, Yorick, through his life (including being named after the Shakespearean character). The other survivors of the club are in the peripheral of the story, popping in occasionally when the club sporadically gets together. The backdrop of Paris gives a hint of historical reference when World War I breaks out and most of Paris feels as though they’ll be spared, until they’re not, sending the 3 friends in different locations and paths while war rages on.

I loved this book. There were so many quotable passages contained within the pages. The writing was so eloquent and beautiful. As a librarian and an avid reader of any book/genre imagined, I have read probably over 1,000 books in my over 50 years. While I’m thoroughly invested in almost every book I’ve read, very rarely do the characters stay with me well beyond my finishing the book. The 3 characters in this book have stayed with me even a week after I finished it, and I credit the incredible writing of the author, Timothy Schaffert, for the emotion contained within the pages.

The only drawback for me would be to say that I did not enjoy the ending. I was a bit disappointed in how it was written and would have liked a different sort of closure for these characters. It felt rushed. My only hope is that the author will revisit Yorick in a sequel.

I will be seeking out other Schaffert books to see if his exquisite writing is captured in his other novels or was just reserved for this particular one.

The Titanic is my weird niche history obsession, so I was really excited to read this book about survivors who band together in a book club. This was... not quite that. It was actually about people who were supposed to be on the ship but then for a variety of reasons never boarded, so the title isn't ~entirely~ accurate. However, I still thought that the cast of characters that made up the book club were interesting, and each of their reactions to realizing that they had just missed likely drowning on the ship were intriguing. I particularly liked the toymaker who had made all of these Titanic-themed toys, but now felt that selling them and profiting off of the tragedy would be morally wrong.

Despite its name, this book focuses very little on the book club itself, and more on three specific characters who are locked in a love triangle (Yorick is in love with Haze, Haze with Zinnia, and Zinnia with Yorick). To be honest, I didn't care about these messy, messy relationships; none of them were fleshed out enough to justify all of the dramatics these three went through.

Interesting concept, deceiving title.

After you’ve narrowly avoided death in a notoriously tragic shipwreck, how do you approach your remaining days? For the memorable personalities in Schaffert’s (The Perfume Thief, 2021) exquisite novel, their chance survival encourages them to pursue their desires. But what if these yearnings conflict or remain unrequited? Having opened a Parisian bookshop after his secret library of controversial volumes got him replaced as the Titanic’s librarian, or so he believes, Yorick convenes a book club for fellow eccentrics who also missed boarding the fatal voyage. While Yorick falls for Haze, an impoverished photographer, Haze grows romantically obsessed with part-Japanese candy heiress Zinnia. Relations among this trio of beloved friends become complicated after Yorick reluctantly begins a Cyrano de Bergerac-style correspondence to Zinnia under Haze’s name. Then the Great War disrupts everyone’s lives. Schaffert writes stylish, intelligent fiction that casts new light on familiar settings, and his appreciation for lush details feels so very Parisian. This isn’t a standard cozy novel about book clubs but rather an elegantly moody take on love, literature, and the indelible connections they create. (Reviewed for Booklist, 3/1/24 issue)

Thank you so much to Netgalley for my arc.

I thought this was going to be a book about Titanic survivors in all honesty. But it wound up being a tragic love story and I was not expected that.

I was disappointed but since I did like some of the characters, I stuck with reading it although the writing style is not something that I am used to.

I can't say too much because it was completely different and I was disappointed to see its not.

Thank you for my arc!


This book was not for me. The premise seemed interesting but the writing itself was overly written prose that could not keep me engaged. I ended up skimming most of the book because I wanted to be done.

Alas, a book about books and the Titanic which is not actually about books or the Titanic.

This was a great premise for a novel and I was really looking forward to reading it. Unfortunately it’s not exactly what it appears to be.

This book is mostly about a doomed love triangle, which is well written and reasonably well imagined, but it’s also boring if you’re not a fan of tragic romance and if you were expecting the book to be more about…well…what it claims to be about.

And it’s a shame the story didn’t focus more on those things, because the bits that ARE there about the characters’ connection to the Titanic and about the bookshop are quite good. I wanted more of this, especially about the protagonist’s love of and relationship with books. It’s the best part of the novel, and it’s sadly underutilized.

Nothing about this book is poorly done, and if you like romance, especially of the star-crossed variety, then you’ll likely enjoy this more than I did. I just wish publishers would be more honest in their plot summaries, because this one isn’t what it purports to be, and that’s going to make a huge difference in who the intended audience is.

Well-written book but moves along slowly, especially in second half. Evocative setting. Paris in WW1 era comes alive. Readers may find the title misleading—the novel singles out three of the book club’s members and glosses over the others.

Firstly, this book captivates with its eloquent prose and vivid descriptions. Initially drawn in by its title, which resonated with my fascination for all things Titanic, I was pleasantly surprised to find it really had nothing to do with being on the ship. Instead, it was about the Titanic survivors; not through tragedy but through the absence of a fateful decision. The beginning intrigued me since everyone seemed quite mysterious. As their stories unfolded, I found myself enjoying their unique stories and loving their personalities. I also enjoyed the subtle romance and little love triangle. I found it charming reading a book about books. Overall, it proved to be a thoroughly enjoyable read and one that I would recommend to others.