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The Midnight Watch

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The Midnight Watch

By: David Dyer
Narrated by: Robert Fass
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About this listen

On a black night in April 1912, fifteen hundred passengers and crew perish as the Titanic slowly sinks beneath the freezing waters of the North Atlantic. Charting the same perilous course through the icebergs is the SS Californian, close enough for her crew to see the eight white distress rockets fired by the Titanic. Yet the Californian fails to act, and later her crew insist that they saw nothing.

As news of the disaster spreads throughout America, journalists begin a feeding frenzy, desperate for stories. John Steadman is one such reporter, a man broken by alcoholism, grief and a failed marriage. Steadman senses blood as he fixates on the Californian and his investigation reveals a tense and perplexing relationship between the ship's captain and second officer, who hold the secrets of what occurred that night. Slowly he peels back the layers of deception, and his final, stunning revelation of what happened while the Titanic sank will either redeem the men of the Californian, or destroy them.

©2016 David Dyer (P)2016 Audible, Ltd Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Sea Adventures Adventure Thought-Provoking
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Where does The Midnight Watch rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is an excellent perspective on the Titanic story. It is not the best book I've read this year but it is one that I enjoyed immensely.

What other book might you compare The Midnight Watch to, and why?

I would have to say A Night to Remember by Walter Lord. This is the flip side of that night in the Atlantic.

What does Robert Fass bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

I always get more by reading books myself. As I was sick I found the audible reading less of a strain on my eyes.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes. When the wife of Herbert Stone tried to give her husband a legacy by telling Steadman what a beautiful man he was.

Any additional comments?

If you like the story of the night the Titanic sunk you'll enjoy this story. Stanley Lord, captain of the California comes across as a self-centred jerk till the end when Dyer allows Steadman to give the elderly captain an out for his culpability on that night.

Historically intriguing

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Beautifully captured the intricacies of human nature and its failings in relation to a mammoth disaster

Great book

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I nearly didn't persevere with this book, but once I got into the story, I just wanted to see why the distress signals were ignored. Kept me interested then until the end, which was very thought provoking. The narrator's voice was a bit annoying, but otherwise a great book.

Thought Provoking

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I loved this book. The narrator is wonderful. There were phrases which I wish I had written down as they were just so beautiful and deserve to be remembered. The story is so important. I have no idea if much of it is true, but it was brilliant nonetheless.

The most beautiful phrases

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For anyone as fascinated by Titanic as I am, this fictional story based on the facts of Captain Lord and the Californian is a must. The relationship between the Captain and his second officer, and an unrelenting journalist make for an intriguing tale. I recommend this book.

A moment in history

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