The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan

Rule Number 1 in reading: NEVER read a book you have never read before and are looking forward too after you read a Modern mindblower.

I bought The Lifeboat whilst I was still reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (my To Read Pile is desperately low….) and I was looking forward to reading it like you wouldn’t believe. It promised me difficult circumstances, brutal sociological decisions, and strong women’s rights support. What I got was disappointing, predictable, and a little bit sad. The book had all of the right ingredients but it just didn’t work for me.

 The Lifeboat is Charlotte Rogan's debut novel. The story is based a few years after Titanic and just on the cusp of the first world war. It follows the plot of Titanic but starts straightaway from the sinking of the ship. This could have been a very good thing because it leaves you as the reader a completely blank canvas to read bias free. The general plot is that survivors from the ship manage to get on a lifeboat but the raft is over its limit. If they want to survive difficult decisions need to be made by the people on the boat i.e. Who’s going to jump?

However, it all felt very vague to me. But perhaps that was the point.

I have read other reviews on this book and everybody else loves it which leaves me wondering whether it’s because I had just read a book that blew me away.

Despite the fact that I wasn’t as impressed with it as I wanted to be I would definitely recommend giving it a read. It does leave you wondering and you do find yourself thinking about it even after you’ve finished it.

I’m going to try and read it again in a few weeks. If I change my mind I’ll come back and let you know!