From the Publisher
Highly informed, compellingly written . . . there was a great deal more to the story than its heart-wrenching tragedy.” —The Wall Street Journal
“A fascinating account of a ship, its passengers, and its terrible fate.” —Publishers Weekly
“The deliberate sinking of the Lusitania by a German U-boat in 1915 has been shrouded in mystery and intrigue that continue even as the 100th anniversary of the tragedy approaches. . . . More than a chronicle of the tragedy, this offers a penetrating look at the end of the Edwardian era.” —Booklist
“The Assassination of the Archduke creates a compelling and readable account of the private life of the imperial family headed for doom.” —Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“An entertaining challenge to a century of misconceptions.” —Kirkus Reviews on The Assassination of the Archduke
“King marshals an amazing amount of information in a very fluid, compelling fashion. . . . It's eye-opening, and even fun, to visit this extraordinary group in its time and place.” —Booklist on The Court of the Last Tsar
“King has a vast knowledge of the subject, and those who are fascinated by the life of the royals and aristocratic intrigue will find much to delight in. . . . For those who are intrigued by the Russian high court, there is no better escort.” —Publishers Weekly on The Court of the Last Tsar
“Any book by Greg King is a book to be kept and savored. . . . This book is a great work of scholarship and a wonderful read” —Peter Kurth, author of Tsar on The Court of the Last Tsar
“King marshals an amazing amount of information, and just as amazingly he presents it all in a very fluid, compelling fashion.” —Booklist on The Court of the Last Tsar
“A comprehensive reexamination of the 78 days of the Ekaterinburg captivity, the murders themselves, and the 1991 exhumation of the bodies. . . . The authors engage in a complex game of historical detection that ultimately results in a controversial new perspective on an old but ever-captivating topic.” —Booklist on The Fate of the Romanovs
“Biographies of Victoria are plentiful, but King's special approach, his limited focus, certainly makes this new one far from redundant.” —Booklist on Twilight of Splendor
From the Publisher - AUDIO COMMENTARY
"Those who relish tales of the rich and famous will appreciate this book, but the real joy is in the authors' detective work and attention to detail." —Kirkus
Kirkus Reviews
2014-11-20
On the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Lusitania, King and Wilson (The Resurrection of the Romanovs: Anastasia, Anna Anderson, and the World's Greatest Royal Mystery, 2010) dig for clues to unanswered questions.The details surrounding how the elusive information disappeared uncover guilt on all sides. The British Admiralty had to protect the fact that they were transporting contraband in a ship sailing without a flag. The local coroner's inquest, the British Board of Trade's hearing and a U.S. District Court all dismissed charges of negligence. The admiralty never sent escort to protect the Lusitania as she entered British waters, and the captain acted contrary to orders. Even the journal of the U-boat captain has been altered. Did he fire one or two torpedoes? The German government published a warning as the Lusitania was about to sail from New York, proclaiming that ships misusing neutral flags found in British waters would be subject to destruction. Prior to this statement, the "Cruiser Rules" codified by The Hague in 1899 required enemy ships to give warning, demand a search for contraband and allow the ship to be abandoned before sinking it. In January 1915, England ordered her merchant vessels to sail under false flags and carry munitions, knowing Germany would respond in kind. First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill referred to the Lusitania as "live bait," hoping to draw the Americans into the war. The ship was the last of the great Edwardian ships, as her upper-class passengers showed, some of whom had actually been warned by Germans not to sail. The authors devote inordinate portions of the text to biographies of passengers and still more to the lives of the survivors, but their exploration of the facts surrounding the mystery is the primary pleasure of the book. Those who relish tales of the rich and famous will appreciate this book, but the real joy is in the authors' detective work and attention to detail.
