Ship detectives Genevieve Masefield and George Porter Dillman have left Cunard for a while, and embark on a new high seas adventure. This time they are sailing on the steamship Minnesota, built in 1904 for the Great Northern Steamship Company. The Minnesota was different than the Cunard line in that it was actually a freighter that took paying customers. Anyway, Masefield and Dillman are off to China and Japan, and have been brought on board because of the possibility of smuggling. However, it's more than smuggling that causes them trouble -- a murder quickly sends them into action in their undercover capacity.

The idea of detectives at sea on true-life, historical ships is a good one. However, in this particular installment of the series, there's a bit too much fluff (describing in detail the ladies' fashions, the interior of the ship, and as usual, listing every man who's infatuated with Genevieve Masefield) and not enough meat to the mystery. I'll put this one into the "it's fun to read" category, but it's not a truly serious mystery.

If you like series mysteries or you enjoy something different in the historical mystery zone, then you'd probably be okay with it. If you want something more serious, then this one may not be the book you're looking for. Overall, it's fluffy but there's enough of a mystery to hold your interest. ( )

Not a bad story. Set in the 1900's, it reminded me a little of Agatha Christies style, but not so good! ( )