A Fatal Crossing: Agatha Christie meets Titanic in this unputdownable mystery

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With the wedding guests trapped as they await the police, old secrets come to light and family rivalries threaten to bubble over. I am not sure this is a novel that knows what sort of mystery it wants to be. The surface level details and tropes situate it more as a modern novel making nods towards Golden Age detective fiction. It begins with a list of notable passengers for instance and the WW1 experiences of one of the main characters, provides echoes of other modern day written, but 1920s-set mysteries, such as the Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear. However, the tone of the book, the dysfunctionality and unpleasantness of the characters, and the way they approach detective work, place the narrative more into the hard-boiled camp. Those seeking the former “Maisie Dobb” style may struggle with the central duo and might dislike the ending, whilst those who love the latter style may find the denouement more appealing with its Patricia Highsmith vibes but might not relish the long time the narrative takes to arrive at its destination. While most of A Fatal Crossing conforms with a traditional "whodunnit" mystery format in the traditional style, the dramatic ending comprises a shift into thriller territory, with a great twist that I certainly didn't see coming! James Temple, the other key protagonist, was also a character I struggled to engage with, although for different reasons. Initially, I quite liked his combative verbal sparring with the ship’s captain, who is reluctant to let Temple investigate. Here’s is an excerpt of their interview: A very clever plot and a final twist which will delight Agatha Christie fans. You will love it!!!' Ragnar Jónasson

When an elderly gentleman is found dead at the bottom of a staircase, Tim believes it to be a terrible accident, but James Temple, a surly Scotland Yard detective, is suspicious right from the start, and he’s determined to investigate. The ship’s Captain isn’t happy about this, it wouldn’t do to have the passengers believing there’s a killer on board, but he allows Temple to proceed as long as Tim shadows him as he carries out his interviews. With Tim’s personal problems though, he’s possibly not strong enough mentally, to deal with the proceedings. A tantalizing and captivating plot, filled with detail and texture to enhance the feeling of the halcyon days of the liners and their times' Shots Magazine 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. Literally the worst thing I have ever read. I only finished it because it was chosen by my book club. It felt like I was reading a year 11’s GCSE coursework for creative writing, the descriptions were so poor and repetitive. How many times can character’s nostrils flare? They were also so one dimensional. The ending was also disappointing and felt unfinished. I appreciated a few twists, but all felt rushed and put together at the end as if the author was deliberately leaving it unfinished to try and get a sequel out of it.The action unfolds at a rip-roaring pace in this perfectly executed homage to the Golden Age of crime, which features a deviously devised plot boasting a final twist worthy of Christie herself. I absolutely loved it' Anita Frank Tom Hindle writes this section well as I thought it was good that this initial discovery of the body contains humour, yet also the initial clues and questions that the reader might not want to consider. For example, he writes: So A Fatal Crossing is lightweight and unconvincing, but sometimes charming. The ship, the Endeavour, has 2,000 people on board, but when a death is discovered, it is assumed to be an accident – an elderly man falling down a steep gangway and hitting his head. But James Temple, one of the passengers, pushes himself forward, claiming to be a Scotland Yard detective and saying it is murder. Temple is fantastically rude and arrogant to everyone he meets, including people he wants favours from, and while I’ve met many very rude successful people, this just doesn’t ring true. The ship’s captain, Captain McCrory, is on his last voyage, and is sublimely uninterested in the fact that there might be a murderer on board, both when Temple beards him in his cabin, and later when evidence mounts – and indeed when there is more violence. His attitude, too, is a bit hard to fathom – most ship’s captains in fact and fiction are all powerful and very concerned to maintain their authority, take all decisions and lead everything that’s going on. McCrory doesn’t seem to care less, but he does allocate a junior officer, Timothy Birch, a misfit with a big personal problem which gradually becomes clearer and more important to the story, to keep an eye on Temple and work with him as far as possible. Whilst the plot was generally well structured, it felt too slow - the whole story takes place over just four days, but the narrative made it feel like several weeks. Fewer clichéd descriptions and less outrage on Birch's part would have gone some way towards remedying this, but the whole book would have benefited from more stringent editing and refinement. Set in 1924 over a week long crossing from Southampton to New York, Tim Birch, the Ship’s Officer, finds himself assisting a Scotland Yard Detective in investigating the death of an elderly man on board. It’s generally believed to be an accident, but the detective thinks otherwise. They have four days to complete their investigations.

But at least, that made him have something in common with the other characters because they were just as flat. When I say flat, I mean Ewan-McGregor-in-Trainspotting-flat ( physically speaking!!). Birch is supposed to be more interesting because the reader learns early on that SOMETHING tragic happened in this past that he is still not over yet. All we know is that it’s a familial tragedy that makes him alienated from the rest of the crew, boohoo. There were some incredible twists to the plot, none more than the final twist. I would never have seen that coming and I really didn't sense any foreshadowing even on reflection. Raymond maybe had me wondering at something but I wasn't sure what.Slated for in February 2022, Arrow publishing director Emily Griffin acquired world rights, including audio, in the book from Harry Illingworth at DHH Literary Agency. With twist after gut-punching twist, A Fatal Crossing really is an ingenious thriller. Highly recommend' M. W. Craven

As a furious squall swept down Lake Michigan on June 23, 1950, a DC-4 with 58 souls on board flew from New York toward Minnesota. Minutes after midnight Captain Robert Lind requested a lower altitude as he began crossing the lake, but Air Traffic Control could not comply. That was the last communication with Northwest Airlines Flight 2501. On the private island of Castello Fiore - surrounded by the glittering waters of Lake Garda - the illustrious Heywood family gathers for their son Laurence's wedding to Italian influencer Eva Bianchi. A Fatal Crossing by Tom Hindle is a mystery set on the Endeavour, a cruise liner travelling to New York in the winter of 1924. This piece of historical fiction grips us from the very start when Timothy Birch, the ship's officer, is led to deal with the death of an elderly gentleman. When detective James Temple demands an investigation, the ship’s captain insists Birch accompany Temple throughout.

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Set almost 100 years ago ( 1924), A Fatal Crossing deftly combines a sense of its period setting with the plot structure and dramatic devices that readers expect a century later.

I really wanted to enjoy this book. I love Agatha Christie so a murder mystery set in the 1920’s sounded right up my street. Unfortunately I didn’t find myself particularly engaged in the story, or really caring about the outcome.

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What took the cake though was the ending. My initial review said that I gasped out loud – I did!!!!! – but upon reflection, I think it’s an utterly underserved plot twist meant to do nothing but that: induce gasps. I don’t want to compare it with GOTs “Red Wedding” because different things happen, but it was about as unexpected. I usually LOVE unexpected plot twists, I live for them in my murder mysteries, but this one was so out of the blue, so far-fetched, ungracious and ungrateful to everything that came prior that it felt wrong and unearned. It’s super hard to talk about it without spoiling anything but it’s basically meant to turn the whole novel on its head and make you see it in a different light. I just thought it was lazy writing to make an otherwise super dull plot and average novel more exciting. I mean, I’m 100% pro-choice, I just wish the author had chosen a different ending for this book. November 1924. The Endeavour sets sail to New York with 2,000 passengers - and a killer - on board .