#1 New York Times BestsellerFrom the bestselling author and master of narrative nonfiction comes the enthralling story of the sinking of the LusitaniaOn May 1, 1915, with WWI entering its tenth month, a luxury ocean liner as richly appointed as an English country house sailed out of New York, bound for Liverpool, carrying a record number of children and infants. The passengers were surprisingly … The passengers were surprisingly at ease, even though Germany had declared the seas around Britain to be a war zone. For months, German U-boats had brought terror to the North Atlantic. But the Lusitania was one of the era’s great transatlantic “Greyhounds”—the fastest liner then in service—and her captain, William Thomas Turner, placed tremendous faith in the gentlemanly strictures of warfare that for a century had kept civilian ships safe from attack.
Germany, however, was determined to change the rules of the game, and Walther Schwieger, the captain of Unterseeboot-20, was happy to oblige. Meanwhile, an ultra-secret British intelligence unit tracked Schwieger’s U-boat, but told no one. As U-20 and the Lusitania made their way toward Liverpool, an array of forces both grand and achingly small—hubris, a chance fog, a closely guarded secret, and more—all converged to produce one of the great disasters of history.
It is a story that many of us think we know but don’t, and Erik Larson tells it thrillingly, switching between hunter and hunted while painting a larger portrait of America at the height of the Progressive Era. Full of glamour and suspense, Dead Wake brings to life a cast of evocative characters, from famed Boston bookseller Charles Lauriat to pioneering female architect Theodate Pope to President Woodrow Wilson, a man lost to grief, dreading the widening war but also captivated by the prospect of new love.
Gripping and important, Dead Wake captures the sheer drama and emotional power of a disaster whose intimate details and true meaning have long been obscured by history.
more
Dead Wake tells of the people who sailed on the Lusitania, giving you insights into their lives and how they came to be sailing on the ship. It also tells of the commandant of the German U-boat that fired the torpedoes at the Lusitania, as well as other ships, and gives you pause as to why the British government didn’t do more to provide military …
Erik Larson is one of my favorite authors, and this is my favorite book by him. His talent is weaving intricate stories of real people in the historical situations in which they find themselves. Why were they traveling on the Lusitania in spite of printed warnings? What actions did they take that doomed them or saved them? What happened after? A …
On May 1, 1915, early into WWI the luxury ocean liner, Lusitania, leaves NY harbor late and consequently puts them into the path of a German U-Boat. Mr Larson takes on the sinking of the Lusitania from the perspective of the people on the boat using accounts by people interviewed after being rescued, memoirs, and family members. He makes history …
I enjoy Eric Larson’s writing style. You can tell he does an extensive amount of research when writing his books. I was aware of some of the history surrounding the sinking of the Lusitania,but Larson really brings the people involved to life. I highly recommend this novel.
Eric Larson is one of my favorite authors and he did not disappoint me with Dead Wake. Based on a true encounter it brought alive the tragedy of the Lusitania and the lives of the people lost. It was a wonderful book.
Erik Larson gives readers another well-researched, well-written biography dispelling the myth that explosives were as significantly responsible for the RMS Lusitana’s sinking as the torpedo that struck her. Viewpoints from Captain Turner, Captain Schwieger, passengers, crew, and rescuers are interwoven throughout the chronology of the Lusitana’s …
This is the Titanic-esque story you never heard about. Larson does an amazing job of making fact read like fiction, and weaves in tons of interesting little details.
Amazing. Another coup from Larson as he describes the people, decisions, and back stories to the depths of the ocean and back. Bringing history to life as a cruise boat navigates dangerous waters is told in a riveting way. While the first 100 pages can be overwhelming with detail and number of characters, the pieces come together as the story …
Unfortunately, none of my high school profs really taught WWI, so we skipped over most of the intriguing info in this book. I live in Chicago and saw the WWII submarine, so can’t even imagine how a WWI looked. Well written, riveting, and heart wrenching. My husband, an old navy vet, is enjoying it immensely.
This book did read like a novel. He writes of historical events we all have heard about. But his in-depth research brings to light the terrible circumstances that were responsible for the tragedy and deaths. It tells the story of the survivors and the dead. A great read!
A tremendous accomplishment. There are so many elements of this story that will forever remain in my psyche. Haunting. I learned a great deal as well in terms of the unleashed sub commanders, and how closely they compare to modern day terrorism. Room 40, and all its skullduggery, was fascinating and so difficult to comprehend with respect to the …
Erik Larson is a great historical writer! Read all his books!
Larsen’s tale of the sinking of the Lusitania on the eve of US entry into World War I is meticulously researched and yet reads almost like a novel. He makes the history come alive.
Fascinating insight into how events happen or don’t happen and how they can have an immense effect on the world
Fascinating
Erik Larson is my favorite author of historical events. I have read most of his books and with only one exception, they are all excellent. This book talks about the sinking of the Lithuania off the coast of Ireland during World War I.
Erik Larson’s books are such an education, including this one! He makes historical events so easy to read/understand.
All of his books are interesting!
As always Eric Larson does a great job of bringing history to life.
The writing almost took me to the ship on its fateful voyage. Well worth the read.