A Crown of Stars by Shana Abe

May 19, 2026

A Crown of Stars by Shana Abe

English actress Rita Jolivet is starring in one of the new motion pictures, but after she appears at the movie's New York premiere, a family emergency calls her home to England. She hurries to book passage on the first ship leaving New York and considers herself extremely lucky to be able to book one of the last available cabins on the Lusitania, especially when she finds both her brother-in-law and her agent are also aboard.

Almost everyone knows about the Titanic, but most people would be hard pressed to tell you anything about the Lusitania, Cunard's flagship liner. While Titanic sank due to a series of poor decisions and an unstoppable force of nature, the sinking of the Lusitania was a war crime. The ship was torpedoed by a German u-boat about a mile off the coast of Ireland in the middle of the afternoon. They were supposed to receive an escort of British destroyers to see them safely into harbor, but for some reason, the escort never materialized. Some historians maintain that the British prime minister knew that the Germans had threatened to sink the Lusitania but did nothing about it because he felt that was the only way to draw the United States into the war, due to the high number of Americans traveling aboard the Lusitania. There were British war ships in the area after the ship was torpedoed, but they did not go to the assistance of the survivors in the water because they feared that there were still German submarines in the area trying to draw them out to be torpedoed. Instead, the Irish fishing fleet as well as other private citizens went to the aid of the survivors, pulling as many as they could from the icy Atlantic waters, offering them shelter and basic necessities, and later collecting as many bodies as they could find.

The main character Rita Jolivet was a real person, as were many of the characters in the book. She was a rising actress in the new moving picture industry, and she survived the ship's sinking. The descriptions of the aftermath are horrendous. Highly recommended for readers of historical fiction.

The Lusitania

Rita Jolivet

Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan

August 31, 2025

Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan

On the night of June 14, 1838, the boiler on the steamship Pulaski exploded, sinking the ship and killing 128 passengers and crew. Only 59 people survived. In 2018, the wreckage of the Pulaski was found off the coast of North Carolina. History professor Everly Winthrop is enlisted to curate the museum exhibit of artifacts found on the wreck.

DNF at 60%. I just didn't care about any of the characters, but especially not Everly and her mountains of baggage that the author keeps shoving at the reader. Also, Everly had an attitude of "I'm so much better than you are because I live here." I picked up this novel after seeing a program about the Pulaski on the Discovery Channel, where the author was interviewed about the disaster. The ship is called the Titanic of the South and had many of the same characteristics as the Titanic (loads of wealthy passengers, not enough lifeboats, valuing speed more than safety, etc.). I was far more interested in the lives of the people on the ship than I was in the present day characters. Disappointing since I have read and enjoyed other books by this author.

A model of the SS Pulaski

Lazarus Man by Richard Price

November 30, 2024

Lazarus Man by Richard Price

When a five story apartment building in Harlem collapses, there are a lot of questions: how did this happen? Why did it happen? Who is missing? How will this affect the survivors? And mainly, how did a man survive being buried in the rubble for two days, yet escape with minimal injuries, and how will it change his life?

Price writes literary fiction and I have read some of his previous books such as Clockers and Lush Life. Based on reviews, I wasn't sure if I would enjoy his latest book, since some readers complained about the slowness of the story and the POVs of multiple characters. A lot of readers seemed to be expecting suspense or an action story, but that's not what Price writes. Once I started reading, I read over half the book in a single day (it's really remarkable how much you can read during the commercials while watching an NFL game). Characters are imperfect, thoughtful, and well-developed. Will appeal to readers of literary fiction, especially Colson Whitehead's Harlem novels or James McBride's fiction.

Brownstones in Harlem

The House is on Fire by Rachel Beanland

November 9, 2023

The House is on Fire by Rachel Beanland

On December 26, 1811, a packed house watches a play followed by a pantomime at the Richmond Theatre in Richmond, VA. Sally Campbell and her sister-in-law are watching the entertainment from a crowded third floor box, when someone shouts "the house is on fire!" A stampede to exit the building ensues with men trampling women to escape. When the staircase down from the third floor collapses, the women are trapped.

Based on the true story of the Richmond Theatre fire in 1811. There are four narrators: Sally, a white society lady; Cecily, a slave attending the play with her mistress Maria; Gilbert, a slave who helps rescue people from the theater; and Jack, a stagehand with the theatre company. During the pantomime, a lit chandelier was raised to the ceiling above the stage and the cords holding the fixture caught fire, which spread to the scenery and the hangings. The structure was essentially a large wooden barn and it went up like dry tinder. 72 people died in the fire, with about 2/3 of them being women and girls. Many died when they jumped from the second or third floors. The Richmond Theater fire remains one of the worst fire disasters in U.S. history. Well-researched, will appeal to readers of history as well as historical fiction.

Etching of the Richmond Theatre fire