The second book I’ve read in the past few days on the titanic I found this book so absorbing. I was fascinated by the circumstances that saved some from perishing in the tragedy. They range from the rich and famous to family members traveling in third-class who managed to escape the sinking while the majority of the passengers sailing in those accommodations would not survive. Absolutely recommend this brilliant piece of history!

I have always been fascinated by the story of the Titanic. The "Unsinkable" giant of the ocean was fated to sink on its maiden voyage on a freezing April night of 1912.

Bryan Jackson's work is superbly researched and well-written. I raced through the book - it is accessible and enjoyable. A must-read for anyone who's interested in the Titanic.

Many thanks to Bryan Jackson, NetGalley, and Pen & Sword for this copy.

There are so many factors at play for why Titanic sank, that solely blaming the iceberg that tore her open is a bit silly. Over the years so much information has been discovered and made public, that chances are you have heard about everything the author discusses (if you are obsessed like I am) even if all of that information has not been confined to one book/article/etc.

There are a myriad of reasons why Titanic sank and the author posits that she was doomed before she even left Southampton on April 10th, 1912. We know about the lack of lifeboats, the rivets and sub-standard metal, the lack of wind, the missing binoculars, the lack of true watertight bulkheads (since they did not actually go all the way up to the deck above), the ignored ice warnings, Captain Smith's decision to maintain speed, and so on.

What the author has done is taken every single issue, devoted a whole chapter to its discussion, and broken down piece by piece every part of the puzzle that lead to 1,500 senseless deaths. That is the core of what the book is about, and he does not spend time recounting the disaster itself minute by excruciating minute, because that has been done several times over already. He focuses on each issue that contributed to the sinking.

The author also looks at the reasons as to why some would live while so many others would die. Specifically of course, in third class, where the majority would not make it to the decks in time to get a seat in a lifeboat.

One issue that is not often discussed is the fact that Titanic should not have even set sail in April. The original date was March 20th. However, when Olympic collided with HMS Hawke in September of 1911, many resources being used to build Titanic were shifted to making repairs to Olympic, thus pushing back her launch date. Given the weather conditions, this is huge, because warmer weather of course meant that icebergs were drifting farther south at that point than they would have been in March.

Given all the positives I have discussed, you might be wondering why only three stars. I have thought about it a lot and my reasoning for this is that there was not any new information here. I liked reading the book, it was well-researched and each flaw was given its fair share of ink. But I do not consider it a 'new and unique' look at why Titanic sank.

Even so, I do believe this would be a good book for anyone interested in looking specifically at each failure that lead to Titanic's sinking. It is clear and concise, while still offering thorough explanations.

Recommended.

The sinking of Titanic still fascinates more than 100 years after it happened. The overarching question is why it happened, when the ship was supposed to be unsinkable. Bryan Jackson gives 14 specific circumstances that contributed to Titanic's demise. "Why the Titanic Was Doomed" is a must-read for any Titanic history buff. Jackson's reasonings are simple, straightforward facts. They paint a picture that, at times, had me shaking my head at the human folly that led to this disaster. I came away knowing more and understanding better how and why Titanic sank. Definitely a worthwhile read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pen & Sword for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love the Titanic and I love that this book brings up such interesting theories.

Extremely well researched and the pace of the story is spot on, considering the fact that some of the facts mentioned here are not necessarily understood by all readers.

Jackson tackles a very worn subject matter and manages to give us information we did not have.

Very, very interesting and I loved picturing all of it in my mind.

First sentence from the preface: It is an understatement to say that much has been written about one of the world's most famous ships, Titanic.

First sentence from the introduction: Ask someone what caused the Titanic to sink and they will tell you, 'It hit an iceberg.'

Premise/plot: Bryan Jackson argues in his book that the Titanic was doomed before it ever left the shipyard. He organizes his book around fourteen main circumstances. But within each "main" circumstance, there seemed to be more additional circumstances that would reasonably lead to trouble or "doom" for the Titanic. For example, the first circumstance is "A Delayed Maiden Voyage," the third circumstance is, "Telegrams That Could Have Changed History," and the twelfth circumstance, "The Coal Strike that Increased the Death Toll."

The first hundred pages (give or take) are sharing all the reasons--or circumstances--why the Titanic was doomed. The last hundred pages (give or take) are sharing about the aftermath of the Titanic. The book goes into great detail--before, during, and after. And it brings in related subjects. Like other ships--the Olympic, the Britannic, the Carpathia, the Californian.

My thoughts: I LOVED this one. It was packed with facts and details. While I had definitely heard some of these facts before, there were plenty new-to-me facts that kept me turning pages. Reading all these facts--the way he compiles these together--it is easy to form a big picture. It is easy to conclude alongside the author that yes, the Titanic was doomed.

I loved both sections. I found the first half fascinating and engaging. I couldn't stop reading. Yes, I knew what happened and what was coming. But I was learning. And what wasn't "new" information was being put into context in a better way. Instead of being "scattered" or completely random tidbits, I was putting everything together into a whole picture. The second half might be considered side tangents--in some ways--but I found it still to be of interest.

Excellent book about the sinking of the Titanic, especially if you are looking for the specifics and nuts and bolts aspect. Amazingly detailed and a step by step approach on how this supposedly unsinkable ship, sank to the icy depths of the North Atlantic Ocean. Fascinating stuff.

I really love the amount of information that I learned from this book, even having read several other books about Titanic. The information was presented in a clear, organized way. I couldn’t put it down.

Thoroughly researched, Why the Titanic was Doomed brings all of the issues the Titanic faced into one well written book. Jackson shows a clear passion for the subject throughout the book and lays all the facts on the table for the reader to fully understand what happened. It wasn’t just the iceberg, it was many things, small and large, that led to the disaster, all of which can be found in this book. Utterly fascinating and well worth a read.

'Why the Titanic Was Doomed' is a well researched and well written account of how and why the disaster occurred, I was impressed by how Bryan Jackson was thorough in detailing each aspect, and yet it still felt relatively 'bite-sized' which I think was due to concentraing on the failures themselves that ked to the sinking (rather than a complete account.

I also liked how he wasn't too entrenched in a viewpoint on how much one factor played a part, and both sides of the 'what-ifs' were presented without bias.

Lastly, I felt it struck a very good tone over the tragedy and the lives lost, it was handled sensitively not sensationally.

The only criticism I'd potentially have is that the Britannic section was maybe not needed, as interesting as it was - the Olympic part made sense as part of what affected the Titanic, but as the Britannic came after, it wasn't the case and maybe deserves a place in a different article or book instead!

Overall, I really enjoyed the book, and would like to thank Netgalley and Pen & Sword for the copy of this book provided for an honest review.

Different take on other Titanic books. Interesting and informative. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

I have always been fascinated about the Titanic ever since I was small, even more so as I had ancestors on the fated vessel and so it is a personal interest for me. This book was very well written and had obviously been well researched. Everyone knows the story of the titanic and I have researched a lot myself but this book contained information that I didn't know and so I learnt a lot.
A very emotive yet fascinating read.

I've always enjoyed learning about the titanic I just never liked the 3 hour movie. But I did enjoy this book learning about what might have lead to the the ship sinking.

224 pages

5 stars

Bryan Jackson does a very good job in telling the reasons he believes that may have contributed to the Titanic disaster on April 14-15, 1912. He lists potential structural problems such as rivets and the metal used. Something I’m so glad he mentioned was that the “watertight” bulkheads weren’t watertight at all. They did not reach all the way up to the bottom of the deck above. I have always focused on this problem, and I am glad someone finally put the issue in writing.

He also speaks of the environmental conditions and the human error which may have also contributed. He even discusses the Olympic’s collision with the HMS Hawk and how that could have had an effect on the disaster simply by delaying the Titanic’s sailing time.

He did not fail to mention the tragic human cost of the ship’s sinking. He treated the people with care and kindness. I was pleased with this. He was completely neutral in reporting the issues with some survivors who were ostracized for their actions. He simply reported their actions (as we know them), and left it there without comment or condemnation.

The book contains an appendix and some wonderful pictures of the building, launching and sea trials of the great ship. Also included are several more interesting pictures of people and artifacts.

This is a very well written and plotted book. It is laid out in clear and concise chapters in an easy to read format. While it is history, it is not at all dry. I recommend it to any Titanic aficionado or those who are interested in ship disasters or ships in general.

I want to thank NetGalley and Pen & Sword/Pen & Sword History for forwarding to me a copy of this interesting book for me to read, enjoy and review. The opinions expressed here are solely my own.

A must read for anyone who wants to know What Happened in terms of the Titanic’s sinking.

This is a history of the Titanic mostly focusing on the technology involved, but also the environmental factors and human error that all added up to contribute to the tragedy.

Jackson’s book is well presented and technical, but not at all dry, and, despite the academic approach, still manages to break you heart as he walks you through events, step by step, showing all the missed chances for the disaster to be prevented.

He also never forgets the human cost of this maritime disaster, using quotes from people who there to speak about the sinking and making this 100+ year old history fresh and relatable, while also making sure to try and keep out bias and judgement.

Jackson presents the long list of items that contributed to the sinking in a concise and easy to read manner, some well-known, such as the captain choosing to not slow down in the dark as they entered the ice fields, others shocking, such as the 1,000 year event of a super-full moon that caused record high tides, bringing record amounts of ice down into the shipping lanes.

Highly recommend for anyone interested in the Titanic.

A fascinating insight into why the Titanic may have been doomed even before that fateful night in April 1912.

Well written, easy to read, it had my emotions all over the place - tears, shock, anger, joy for those who were saved. The layout also helped the ease of reading; having it split so that each chapter explored something different worked really well.

A must read for those with an interest in the Titanic.

I really enjoyed this book by Bryan Jackson. It was very well done and I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.

This is one of the more interesting books I’ve ever read about the titanic. It’s a narrative of all the things that went wrong in the voyage that contributed to the sinking. Sam I was aware of and some I’ve never heard it before. Incredibly interesting and worth reading!