Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee | YA AUDIOBOOK REVIEW

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Southampton, 1912: Seventeen-year-old British-Chinese Valora Luck has quit her job and smuggled herself aboard the Titanic with two goals in mind: to reunite with her twin brother Jamie–her only family now that both their parents are dead–and to convince a part-owner of the Ringling Brothers Circus to take the twins on as acrobats. Quick-thinking Val talks her way into opulent firstclass accommodations and finds Jamie with a group of fellow Chinese laborers in third class. But in the rigidly stratified world of the luxury liner, Val’s ruse can only last so long, and after two long years apart, it’s unclear if Jamie even wants the life Val proposes. Then, one moonless night in the North Atlantic, the unthinkable happens–the supposedly unsinkable ship is dealt a fatal blow–and Val and her companions suddenly find themselves in a race to survive.

Stacey Lee, master of historical fiction, brings a fresh perspective to an infamous tragedy, loosely inspired by the recently uncovered account of six Titanic survivors of Chinese descent. 

Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee | YA AUDIOBOOK REVIEW

LUCK OF THE TITANIC BY STACEY LEE
AUDIOBOOK REVIEW

I read my first book by Stacey Lee, The Downstairs Girl at the end of 2019, and really enjoyed it. The author has a wonderful way of telling historic tales with a focus on Asian characters. And when I saw the author was coming out with a new book I knew I wanted to read it. Even with Titanic in the title.

LUCK OF THE TITANIC is a young adult historical novel which describes the life on board of the Titanic beautifully. And it mainly focuses on the relationship between the main characters Valora and Jamie, twin siblings on board of the Titanic.

The author is known for writing stories that are based on historic facts. In this case she told the untold story about the eight passengers of Chinese descent that were on the Titanic when it sank in 1912. The atmosphere of the book, thanks to the glamours background of the Titanic itself, was undeniable. But when looked beyond the first class, it became obvious how the different classes of passengers on the Titanic were treated. There was this vast gap between the first deck and the third and their occupants. And the different stories, the people and the sinking of the boat itself made the book come alive. But it also reminded me why I, until today, have NOT watched the movie TITANIC. The ending is just too heart wrenching for me to enjoy it.

Afterwards, I read an article about how many people actually survived the sinking. How badly the lifeboats were mishandled, and the many mistakes that were made during the emergency evacuations. And it’s just not possible not to get mad about it. All these lives lost, because of human errors. But even though, I feel this book is a great one for anyone interested in historical fiction with a YA focus. The novel was well written, beautifully told, and put a different spin on a known and tragical historical moment in our history.

I’m looking forward to the author’s next book, but I’m now joking when I say I hope it has a more uplifting ending.

THREE STARS

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Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee | YA AUDIOBOOK REVIEW