Only interesting as a historical artifact really, this book was sickeningly melodramatic; the terribly antisemitic caricature was awful too. ( )

One April night over a century ago, the world's largest ocean liner, on her maiden voyage, despite her reputation as unsinkable, strikes an iceberg and sinks with a massive loss of life. This book, in part, is her story. What makes it of note? The story was written years before the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. The fictional ship, the Titan, has almost the same name as the real-life vessel. Morgan Robertson's story is far better known now because of the eerie similarities with the tale of the Titanic than for its literary merit. Similarities aside, the story of the Titan is just that, a short story, not a novel, and most of it does not even deal with the actual shipwreck. But that doesn't keep it from being a fascinating read. Author Robertson writes in the somewhat florid style of fin-de-siécle adventure literature familiar to readers of Conan Doyle and (later) Edgar Rice Burroughs (though Robertson is nowhere near being the writer they are). The rest of the book is filled with three other stories with a nautical bent, one of them almost as eerily predictive of Japan's war with America in the Pacific nearly a half century later. They are all interesting adventure yarns with some real humanity involved. We're not talking Balzac here, but this collection of stories has a strange appeal, especially, I expect, to those who don't believe in coincidence. ( )

Title: The Wreck of the Titan
Author: Morgan Robertson
Pages: 108
Year: 2012
Publisher: Pocket Star
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Don’t let the length of the novella make you think there isn’t much there as that would be a grave mistake. Here is a tale that was written before the true disaster of the Titanic. There are some similarities with the true event in this tale, but there are also vast differences. The novella was originally penned in 1898. While there are a few places of antiquated language, most of the story is quite gripping and easy to read. It was amazing to read about a fictional ship that was created before the real ship, Titanic, existed. Most readers have read several novels based on the Titanic, and I am one of them. However, this novella I found to be enthralling and spellbinding for the few hours I sat and read.
The main character is a disgraced sailor named Rowland who understands the seas but loses his battle with the bottle often. Once a man of seas with a title, he is now a regular seaman who longs for a lost love he cannot have under any circumstance. When he sails on the Titan, who should be aboard but the long-lost flame and her husband along with their small daughter. What ensues is a tale of lost love, life, tragedy, and redemption!
The story is unlike any I have read, and I hope readers will take time to enjoy a masterpiece from the past brought to the present day as it was written for new audiences to revel in. Grab a copy and then enjoy a couple of hours in the best story you’ve enjoyed in a long time! The ending is a stroke of genius that surprised me! The redemption of a man who worked hard even when falsely accused and thrown aside is simply moving! Don’t pass this gem up! Read it and let others know about The Wreck of the Titan!
Note: The opinions shared in this review are solely my responsibility. ( )

El Titanic se hundió hace 100 años. Publicamos ahora uno de esos curiosos libros que han atraído a muchos lectores a lo largo del siglo XX, ya que fue escrito catorce años antes del famoso naufragio y cuenta una historia prácticamente idéntica: un transatlántico llamado Titán se hunde en las aguas del océano Atlántico al chocar con un iceberg.

This was an okay book. The main thing it has going for it is it’s foreshadowing of the sinking of the Titanic. It was a little eerie some of the similarities of events in the story and real life. ( )