"Wonderful historical mystery"
George Porter Dillman and Genevieve Masefield did such
a good job unmasking the murderer on the Lusitania, the
cruise line has hired them as ship detectives. For nine
months the duo sailed from England to New York but their
faces were becoming too recognizable so when the Great
Northern Steamship Company asked for their services, they
were free to accept. They boarded The Minnesota in Seattle with their
destination the Orient but the captain is worried about one
of the passengers, Rance Gilpatrick, an unsavory
smuggler. Everyone who knows Rance believes he is working
his trade on the ship but nobody knows what he's smuggling
or where he has stashed his booty. While George and
Genevieve are working different angles to get close to the
gangster, a Catholic missionary priest is garroted to
death. The target was really a diplomat who was going to
conduct secret meetings in Japan. The daring detective duo
hope to keep the diplomat safe while finding out what Rance
is up to if they want to keep their perfect ocean sailing
record unblemished. MURDER ON THE MINNESOTA is a picturesque mystery, so
much so that readers will feel the urge to take a cruise to
the Far East just like the protagonists did. The story
line is fast paced with plenty of twists and turns to keep
the reader from guessing what the villain's ultimate goal
is. Once again Conrad Allen shows his natural talents as a
wonderful historical mystery storyteller who makes the
first decade of the twentieth century come vividly alive to
his readers. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted December 2, 2001
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