“When I started conjuring up the second adventure for the Agatha Christie Book Club, I wanted to take them on an exotic journey à la the infamous Orient Express—one of my favourite Hercule Poirot settings—and began looking around for ideas.
Boy, did I get lucky.
In the late 1800s/early 1900s, there really was a classic steamship called the SS Orient that sailed between London and Sydney, via the Cape and the Suez. According to my research, it was a sparkling ship, brimming with luxurious fittings and eclectic characters, and host to several rather suspicious deaths.
What a brilliant backdrop for my book club friends!
While I have tweaked some minor details for the sake of this contemporary plot (including the original itinerary), much of the information about the ship is authentic and my sources are listed in the bibliography at the back—with thanks.
This is fiction, however, folks. So I’m sad to say the SS Orient has not been recommissioned nor is there a real-life replica floating about as I have imagined here, but an author can dream can’t she?
And a book club can jump aboard for the ride…
Bon voyage!“
FOR MORE ON THE ORIGINAL SS ORIENT:
The SS Orient Story by Roy Clifford and Dave Knight
collections.museumvictoria.com.au/items/404048
Hop Aboard for Just 99c
Thanks to the good folk at BookBub, I’m running a special global promotion for the second adventure in my best-selling, award-winning AGATHA CHRISTIE BOOK CLUB series: Murder on the Orient (SS).
From now until January 10, the eBook can be purchased for just 99c — in the US, the UK, Canada, Australia and India.
To grab your copy, just click on a link below.
Happy (cruisy) reading everyone.
xo Christina