J. Bruce Ismay was an upper-crust Englishman who always did what was expected of him. He went to the best schools, married the right society girl (even though he was in love with someone else) and vowed to his staunch, unfeeling father on his deathbed that he would take over the family shipping business and build the biggest, most opulent ship the world had ever seen: the RMS Titanic. What an accomplishment! We all know the story of how the ship sank … or do we? Ismay saved as many people as he could on that fateful night, and finally, with no women and children in sight, he stepped into the last lifeboat … and was branded a coward and a traitor forever. The world needed a scapegoat for the sinking of the Titanic and Ismay became the perfect target. He had a powerful enemy in the United States — newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst. Hearst condemned Ismay nationwide before the rescue ship Carpathia even landed in New York. Hearst’s cause was aided by William Alden Smith, a ruthless senator with presidential aspirations, who led a "witch-hunt" investigation into this high-profile disaster. Although there was no solid evidence against Ismay, Senator Smith managed to drag the hearings on for months. More than 3,000 passengers brought lawsuits against the White Star Line for loss of life and property, which only fueled Ismay’s intense survivor’s guilt. When he was forced to resign from the White Star Line, he spent the rest of his days as a recluse at his estate in Ireland, haunted by the ghosts of that fateful night to the point of near insanity. THE LAST LIFEBOAT is the story of the Titanic that has never been told. This epic tale explores not only the tragedy itself, but the sensationalized trials and aftermath of the night that changed the world forever.

A Most Anticipated Book by Real Simple ∙ SheReads ∙ BookBub ∙ and more! Inspired by a remarkable true story, a young teacher evacuates children to safety across perilous waters, in a moving and triumphant new novel from New York Times bestselling author Hazel Gaynor. 1940, Kent: Alice King is not brave or daring—she’s happiest finding adventure through the safe pages of books. But times of war demand courage, and as the threat of German invasion looms, a plane crash near her home awakens a strength in Alice she’d long forgotten. Determined to do her part, she finds a role perfectly suited to her experience as a schoolteacher—to help evacuate Britain’s children overseas. 1940, London: Lily Nichols once dreamed of using her mathematical talents for more than tabulating the cost of groceries, but life, and love, charted her a different course. With two lively children and a loving husband, Lily’s humble home is her world, until war tears everything asunder. With her husband gone and bombs raining down, Lily is faced with an impossible choice: keep her son and daughter close, knowing she may not be able to protect them, or enroll them in a risky evacuation scheme, where safety awaits so very far away. When a Nazi U-boat torpedoes the S. S. Carlisle carrying a ship of children to Canada, a single lifeboat is left adrift in the storm-tossed Atlantic. Alice and Lily, strangers to each other—one on land, the other at sea—will quickly become one another’s very best hope as their lives are fatefully entwined.

This is the story of two Titanic survivors; a young crewwoman, Ruby, and an East End man, Nashey. The story begins in spectacular, if shocking fashion, aboard the Titanic as it’s sinking. An important scene, which Ruby later realises was the genesis of her becoming a Suffragette, takes place in a lifeboat. Ruby and Nashey are left traumatised and horrified – not just by the disaster itself, but by the failures of the ship’s officers. Ruby is also profoundly affected by the misplaced trust in, and subservience to, these men. Readers are then taken to New York, and on to Halifax, Nova Scotia, before the novel unfolds in Suffragette London, 1912-1914. Much of the story takes place within the militant struggle for Votes for Women, into which both main characters become drawn through different avenues. Ruby gets involved in Mrs Pankhurst’s WSPU, which sees her imprisoned, hunger-striking and being force-fed. Nashey is initially interested in social change rather than the vote – but a different Pankhurst working down in the East End impresses upon him that the former will follow the latter. Through the five p’s – publicity stunts, protests, political speeches, prison torture and police tactics – we see the lengths to which the women and government went to ensure they would prevail. A main character then questions the direction the movement is taking. But out of this apparent Suffragette autumn comes a women’s spring… Suffragette Autumn Women’s Spring is, predictably, a fast-paced page turner, but characterisation and interpersonal relationships are important themes, brought in through cracking dialogue. This gripping work of historical fiction will appeal primarily to women and has been inspired by a number of sources, including Sylvia Pankhurst and her books on the Suffragette movement, Hilary Mantel and Arthur Morrison.

Panic, despair, shocking inefficiency, and a dash of heroism. Two lengthy narratives by passengers who had a thorough knowledge of the sea and by members of the ship's crew. 26 illustrations.

A sweeping dual-timeline novel from the bestselling author of The Girl from Bletchley Park.

It has been more than one hundred years since the RMS Titanic sank to the bottom of the North Atlantic ocean. The disaster has captivated history buffs and non-history buffs alike, and it is easy to see why. Some of the most illustrious people of the day were on board: some survived, and some did not. Legends abound about whether the ship’s maiden voyage was cursed. And then there is the ship itself: arguably the most luxurious vessel to ever travel oversea. Inside you will read about... ✓ Conceiving of and Building the Titanic ✓ The Ship of Dreams ✓ Setting Sail ✓ The Passengers ✓ The Iceberg and the Sinking ✓ The Aftermath ✓ The Titanic Remembered and Re-Discovered The disaster holds secrets and stories of love and bravery, cowardice and greed. Explore these and other themes that surround the sinking of the grand ship, Titanic.