This historical murder mystery set on an Atlantic crossing in the 1920s is unlike my usual reading choices but it turned out to be a good choice nonetheless. The whole story takes place over a four day period in November 1924 as the cruise liner Endeavour approaches New York from Southampton with two thousand passengers and crew on board. When an elderly man is found dead at the bottom of a staircase, the ship’s captain assumes – and hopes – that it’s an accident. However, James Temple, a Scotland Yard inspector, happens to be one of the passengers on the voyage and, after examining the body, he is convinced that the old man has been murdered.

This is a typical. "whodunnit" kind of story but with lots of twists and turns. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

3.5/5.

I wasn't sure what I would think about this book but was eager to find out. It has a very Agatha Christie vibe to it and I really enjoyed it. Well worth a read.

A historical, locked-room mystery just hits the spot sometimes and for some reason, I particularly enjoy them amidst luxury settings in a cold, unforgiving environment like the ocean.

In 1924, the Endeavour has left Southampton on its way to New York. An elderly man is found dead on deck and the captain and crew are willing to rule it a tragic accident. But there is a Scotland Yard detective on board, who can’t shake the feeling that foul play is involved. Officer Timothy Birch is assigned by the captain to accompany Temple in his investigation and Birch eventually realises that there may be more to Temple’s insinuations than just suspicion. But with thousands of passengers on board and only a few days until they dock in New York, time is running out.

Although it’s a huge ship, the Endeavour feels incredibly claustrophobic throughout the novel. Even on the more opulent decks, the atmosphere has an eerie chill and is incredibly unsettling. Of course, the fact that there is no escape other than the harsh depths of the ocean, ups the fear factor for the remaining passengers, should they realise that a killer is on the loose.

It becomes apparent quite early on that Timothy Birch has his own personal struggles going on. He occasionally talks to his friend and fellow officer Wilson about the horrific circumstances that his family is currently faced with and he came across as a desperate man, who just wanted answers and justice. Birch is smart and figured some things out a while before Temple did, so I grew a liking for him in the way that I do for amateur detectives.

A Fatal Crossing has some incredible twists and the final chapter literally put my heart in my mouth. It’s written in a very clever style with every loose end thought about carefully. I had no idea that it’s Hindle’s debut, which is extremely exciting. I can’t recommend it enough for Christie fans, who are looking for a fresh new voice.

“The rain fell all night. It poured relentlessly, hammering upon the Endeavour’s deck and rattling against her steel funnels. Still, she carved her way through the Atlantic. She might be slowed, but even in conditions as hostile as these, she could never be stopped.”

My thanks to Random House U.K. Cornerstone for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘A Fatal Crossing’ by Tom Hindle in exchange for an honest review.

I was attracted to this mystery novel by its nautical setting and the dramatic 1920s styled-cover art.

In November 1924, the ocean liner, Endeavour, has set sail from Southampton to New York carring 2,000 passengers. When an elderly gentleman is found dead at the foot of an exterior stairway, the Captain is ready to declare it a tragic accident.

One of the passengers, Scotland Yard Detective James Temple, approaches him and advises that he feels that there is more to the situation than meets the eye. The Captain reluctantly agrees to Temple conducting an investigation though he assigns Ship’s Officer Timothy Birch to accompany him. Temple is quite grumpy about Birch’s presence.

The investigation takes some interesting turns, including the discovery that a priceless painting is being transported on board, its existence known only to its owner and the dead man! Meanwhile, the passengers continue to roam the ship unaware that there might be a killer in their midst . . . No further details to avoid spoilers.

Birch is the novel’s narrator so we experience the investigation through his eyes. Temple appears to be a brusque character though one determined to find answers.

I found this an entertaining classic style detective mystery with plenty of suspects, red herrings, and twists.

The ocean liner proved to be an atmospheric setting with its maritime traditions and the various classes of passengers, from the posh first-class to the cramped quarters of third class. Happily there were no icebergs!

On a personal note: as a child in the late 1950s, I made this winter North Atlantic crossing on a Cunard ocean liner with a similar capacity to the fictional Endeavour. Our liner had her maiden voyage in 1921, so contemporary with the novel’s ship. Elements of the week-long voyage have remained deeply imprinted on my memory. So, reading ‘A Fatal Crossing’, was a nostalgic experience.

I applaud Tom Hindle’s ability to capture the claustrophobic atmosphere of life on board as well as the primal magnificence of the North Atlantic.

The proof copy didn’t contain Acknowledgments and I wonder if they might contain background material including any research the author undertook on the ocean liners of the period.

Definitely recommended.

The Fatal Crossing is a whodunnit with a nod towards Agatha Christie.
The Endeavour sets sail to New York with 2,000 passengers and crew on board. When an elderly passenger dies after falling down a staircase the Captain thinks it’s an unfortunate accident but James Temple, a Scotland Yard detective suspects foul play. The Captain gets an officer Tim Burch shadow the detective and investigate. It turns out there are a number of passengers going to the New York Art Fair and an extremely rare piece of art has been stolen.
I found the story moved along at a good pace with my interest held by the main plot and sub plot which led to a great ending with a twist that I didn’t see coming.

We all know I like a good murder mystery! Tom Hindle’s debut is reminiscent of the Golden age cosy locked room mysteries. Mysterious lost paintings, art theft, gangsters, and murder all take place on the Endeavor’s trip from England to New York! It really had that old fashioned ‘whodunit’ feel that I was expecting. The 1920’s glamour of the the first class on the ship, the warren’s of corridors and cabins on the lower decks gave a huge sense of scale while still keeping the cast list of characters intimate enough for the reader to learn enough backstory about each of the potential suspects.

I really liked the writing style. The narrator inner monologue giving us an account of the investigation were again reminiscent of Christie or Conan Doyle’s work. He was an empathetic, is slightly slow witted character taking a while to warm to the stages on the investigation but also to realise his own excitement at taking part in the investigation. I really enjoyed how his character built and it developed.

Temple our intrepid Detective unfortunately fell a bit short for me. He was quiet stereotypical of the surely, argumentative detective and didn’t develop much from that. He was a little boring and even when secrets were revealed didn’t gain much more of my interest. I also found the pacing in the middle a little slow, it lost my attention for a little but as the pace picked back up again so did my enthusiasm for the mystery. I am glad I stuck it out at the final revels and twists made this an overall exciting and unpredictable read that I enjoyed.

On a ship going to New York an elderly gentleman's body is found at the foot of a stairwell .The Captain thinks it is an accident , however there is a detective from Scotland Yard on board who believes it to be murder . The Captain reluctantly gives permission for the detective to investigate provided he is accompanied by one of his men. The detective is not happy about this but in the end accepts this condition and the 2 men try to piece together what happened. Later another body turns up which also happens to be suspicious . What is happening and why is the detective on board , all comes to the surface as the story unfolds. This story brings to life the feelings of being on the ship , the difference from being in first class to being in third class and even the way the crew exist whilst on board. An interesting story with many twists.

3.5/5 fatal Crossing is Tom Hindle's debut novel. It is set in November 1924 on a passenger ship named The Endeavour as it sails from Southampton to New York with 2,000 passengers and crew on board. A passenger is found dead at the foot of a staircase and ship's officer Timothy Birch calls it a tragic accident. But it soon changes tack and an investigation begins, involving James Temple, a Scotland Yard inspector, in itself suspicious. Meanwhile, the other passengers are trying to enjoy their crossing but there is a growing sense of unease as the killer remains free to roam.
A quality Christie-like murder mystery, well crafted and easy to read. Plenty of atmosphere, glamour, suspicions and a twisty turny plot keep the reader entertained until a satisfying ending. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House For the arc.
3.5/5 7/10

A Fatal Crossing by Tom Hindle
Pub Date 20 Jan 2022
November 1924. The Endeavour sets sail from Southampton carrying 2,000 passengers and crew on a week-long voyage to New York.
When an elderly gentleman is found dead at the foot of a staircase, ship's officer Timothy Birch is ready to declare it a tragic accident. But James Temple, a strong-minded Scotland Yard inspector, is certain there is more to this misfortune than meets the eye.
Birch agrees to investigate, and the trail quickly leads to the theft of a priceless painting. Its very existence is known only to its owner and the dead man.
With just days remaining until they reach New York, and even Temple's purpose onboard the Endeavour proving increasingly suspicious, Birch's search for the culprit is fraught with danger.
And all the while, the passengers continue to roam the ship with a killer in their midst.
A fatal Crossing is Tom Hindle's debut novel; it
is a well-written who-dun-it murder mystery on board a 1920's cruise ship.
Tom has a descriptive writing style which adds to this atmospheric story.
There are many red herrings to keep you guessing. Although this is a unique storyline, it did feel like it gave the nod to the great Agatha Christie in composition.
Thoroughly enjoyable, I look forward to seeing what Tom has in store for us next.
I am happy to recommend it.
I want to thank NetGalley, Random House Uk, Cornerstone and author Tom Hindle for a pre-publication copy to review.

It is 1924 & the liner Endeavour is sailing to New York.. When an elderly gentleman is found dead at the bottom of some steps it seems like an accident but James Temple- of Scotland Yard insists it's murder. Timothy Birch, a young officer is appointed to accompany Temple. It is the captain's last voyage before he retires & he is already eying his cigar box, looking forward to lighting up at the end of the trip & wants a quiet time! Temple is far from happy but has no choice. The story is reminiscent of Agatha Christie with all the suspects & witnesses corralled in one place. There are clues, misdirections & red herrings scattered around as the unlikely pair seek to solve the murder before they reach New York.

I really enjoyed the setting & the sense of time & place of this book. I did struggle to warm to any of the characters & was left with more questions than answers. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

Set in 1924 aboard the luxury line “The Endeavour” sailing to New York, the story starts when an elderly man Is found dead. Did he slip in the rain? Or was it something more?
When another passenger identifies himself as a Scotland Yard detective and insists on investigating, Officer Timothy Birch is asked by the captain to escort him/provide assistance. With only 4 days until the ship docks in New York and the passengers disperse, can the truth be uncovered?
The investigation progresses with all the twists & red herrings that you would expect. However there will be a number of moments when you think you’ve worked out what’s going on, but you probably won’t have foreseen the coming twist!
It has many of the hallmarks of Agatha Christie & similar “Golden Age” novels. I understand that the author wanted to create a “closed room” style mystery and whilst there were enough characters involved without having to deal with all 2000+ who were on the ship, there was no reason to believe that the murderer had to have come from within this small group. As such the “closed room” premise didn’t 100% work for me.
However, overall, it was an enjoyable mystery, and I will look out for more by the author.

1924 and the liner 'The Endeavour' is sailing to New York when one of the passengers is found dead. For Officer Tim Birch this is an inconvenience but when a man identifies himself as a Scotland Yard detective and insists on investigating, Birch is drawn in. With only a limited time to catch the killer and with plots a plenty onboard the two race to unmask the killer before the ship docks.
This is a book which appears to be a simple 'Christie'-esque throwback novel in which an overly complicated plot involving class and art is central. However there is more lurking, subplots around organised crime and mental health actually make the story more compelling and the final twist is very clever.

This is the debut book by Tom Hindle and is one of the best books I have read in a long while. The setting is a cruise ship going from Southampton to New York. A body is discovered outbound and a detective James Temple, who is on his way to New York presents himself to the Captain and offers to investigate the death, the captain insists that he is accompanied by one of his officers,Timothy Birch is volunteered. The investigation progresses and with all the usual twists and turns and red herrings they come to a solution.. I found the whole book very well presented especially set on board a cruise ship very reminiscent of the Golden Age of crime and has a well planned plot with a very unexpected final twist worthy of any of the great crime writers. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading more of Tom Hindle's books. Try it - you will not be disappointed.

. I requested this from NetGalley because it’s a murder mystery on a 1920’s cruise ship and but it’s actually quite hard to explain what’s going on without spoiling it all. Many of the passengers are on their way to an art fair in New York and as well as the murder there is a stolen artwork to deal with. And on top of that, you see it all through the eyes of Timothy Birch, an officer on board the ship who is running away from a tragedy at home but can never quite escape it. This is page turning and atmospheric and I thought I knew where it was going, but i was wrong. I might have figured it out if I hadn’t been convinced of my rightness and had thought a bit harder about the other possible options! It’s hard to tell though once you know – even if you go back and read again, you can never read it again like you don’t know!

This is a complex and engaging mystery novel, with plenty of suspects, lots of red herrings and a strong sense of time and place. Although I felt that there were times when the plot was starting to become quite convoluted and I was struggling to keep track of who was who and who did what, I kept going and was rewarded by some spectacular plot twists near the end which I thought I had worked out in advance, but most definitely hadn’t!

It's 1924 and on board of The Endeavour that sets sail from Southampton to New York are over two thousand passengers.
But when one elderly man is found dead four days before reaching New York, everyone assumes that it is a tragic accident until Detective James Temple from Scotland Yard takes an interest in the death.
Appointed to him is officer Tim Birch to help him investigate the death.
But not everyone is whom they say they are on ships log including the deceased.
Famous art dealers, priceless artwork destined for New York.
Who is prepared to kill for a priceless work of art?
One of the best 'who done its' that I've read in a very long time.

I liked this book. The atmosphere was set pretty well. The ship is described in a way that you can definitely visualise the environment. The writing was clear and easy to read but a little slow. However the twists and turns kept the story interesting. The characters weren’t bad, Birch was a little irritating as he felt naive to the world around him. I can see why this book is compared to Agatha Christie. Overall this wasn’t a bad mystery.

Thank you to Random House UK for this advanced copy.

My absolute favourite types of cosy mysteries are locked room or closed circle mysteries (where it can only be a specific set of suspects due to limitations of location etc) So when I saw that A Fatal crossing is about a murder on board a ship on the Atlantic, I jumped at the chance to review. The author does a great job of taking us to 1924 through the characters and descriptions. I loved that it had an Agatha Christie-esque feel to it and gave me the cosy mystery vibes I was hoping for. The cast of characters all had secrets and it was never quite clear what part they were playing which meant everyone was a suspect, which to be honest is exactly what you want as a reader! The plot had so many twists and turns I could never quite pinpoint who the killer could be and I loved that. And I was shocked when we do finally get our answers to the mystery, not what I was expecting at all! This was a wonderful read and I think fans of cosy murder mysteries with a dash of thriller will enjoy this.

An enjoyable closed-room-style mystery with a novel setting. Hindle brought out the atmosphere and setting of the book in a very vivid and evocative manner, which was thoroughly enjoyable to be immersed in. The mystery itself was well-paced (once it got going) and had its fair share of twists. My biggest disappointment were the characters who felt rather flat and were very difficult to connect to (especially our protagonist and narrator, for whom we see little fleshing out until towards the end of the book.) As such, whilst it was readable, it wasn't until the final third or so that it became un-put-down-able.

Overall, it was a good read and an enjoyable little mystery, but not a new favourite.

It's November 1924, and The Endeavour has just set sail for New York, carrying 2000 passengers. When an elderly man is found dead the Captain is happy to declare a tragic accident, until Scotland Yard Detective James Temple steps in, adamant there is more to it. With the help of ship's officer Timothy Birch, Temple begins to investigate, and soon discovers links to the theft of a priceless painting. The clock is ticking, with only a few days before the ship docks and all passengers disembark, Birch is feeling the pressure, and begins to mistrust Temple's motives. Can the pair determine what happened to the passenger before it is too late?

An interesting one here, something a little different to a lot of my recent reads. Set in 1924 this one follows the Golden Age mystery style of the time. Being out at sea you have the locked room type mystery with only a limited number of suspects and nowhere for them to go.

I found Birch a difficult character to warm to. We learn early on that he is troubled and his home life isn't particularly happy, but we don't find the details of why until later. It serves to make him a reserved lead, and one that doesn't have a lot of close friends aboard the ship. He's quite brusque and not the sort of character you feel you want to befriend.
Temple is even more unlikeable, being very rude and unwavering in his determination. The pair together make for quite the team to lead the novel.
The supporting characters are well described, and fitting for the time of the novel. Being mostly well to do passengers, they have certain appearances that must be kept, and are rather scornful of the police investigation.

The mystery is well thought out and reasonably well paced. There is plenty happening throughout the book, and several developments to the plot as the story progresses. I liked the setting of being on a ship, it felt rather luxurious and decadent, and seemed very fitting for the cast of characters we had. The ending took me by surprise, it certainly wasn't what I had expected.

One thing I did notice was that I got muddled with the timings on a few occasions - I had felt that more days had passed than actually had according to the book. That could well be me rather than the writing, but I did get a little confused, especially given the short time frame the book is set over.

I enjoyed reading this one, and would definitely be interested to see what else Tom Hindle writes.

Thanks to NetGalley, Random House UK and Cornerstone for an arc in exchange for an honest review.