Distant Waves by Suzanne Weyn

Title: Distant Waves
Author: Suzanne Weyn
Average Price: $17.99 U.S. ($22.99 CAN) Hardcover
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publication Date: April 2009
Number of Pages: 330

Science, spiritualism, history, and romance intertwine in Suzanne Weyn's newest novel. Five sisters and their mother make their way from a spiritualist town in New York to London, becoming acquainted with journalist W. T. Stead, scientist Nikola Tesla, and industrialist John Jacob Astor. When they all find themselves on the Titanic, one of Tesla's inventions dooms them...and one could save them.

I absolutely adore the cover. The floating dress with the tulips gives it a slightly eerie and mysterious feel that catches my breath. I love the way the dress folds at the bottom and the cluster of bubbles. This cover is probably the only reason I picked up this book.

When I first started this novel I wasn't sure what to expect. This book is set a hundred year into the past so of course you can claim it as historical fiction which is not my favourite. However, I was excited to see how Suzanne Weyn would use the Titanic as the main plot in her novel.

At first I found it quite difficult to get into the novel but after the first few chapters that was not a problem. I was shocked at how easily I could relate to Jane, the main character, and how her thoughts matched mine almost exactly. However, I took me a good chunk of the book to get used to Jane's name - even now I'm not sure that it's quite right for her.

I thought the language they used in the book was very accurate except for the odd word or two. The part where Jane and her older sister, Mimi, go to New York was perfect in almost every sense of the word (especially Thad *sigh*) but, well . . . something happened.

I'm not really sure what is even was, maybe is was the fact that I missed Thad and Mimi, but the story slowed down considerably and I just wasn't that involved in it. However, when Jane and her family go to England the story picked up it's pace again and it was quite enjoyable once again.

The way the author tied in spiritualism into the book was what I though quite clever and entertaining. I liked the way Suzanne got the characters abroad the Titanic and everything that went from there ESPECIALLY the twists she put into the end (Suzanne you are a genious!) but I thought the sinking of the Titanic could have been a bit more dramatized.

I think almost anyone can enjoy this remarkable tale which is why I am giving it an A-.