The Great Train Robbery Review

I liked the Great Train Robbery. This is the same type of Crichton book as Eaters of the Dead- as opposed to the high-tech, adrenaline-fueled adventures, it's more of a period piece. The plot itself isn't all that original or compelling, but the manner in which the story is told makes it extremely interesting.

Also like Eaters of the Dead (hereto referred as EotD because I'm tired of typing it), the story purports to be true. In this case the story is told through the transcripts of Edward Pierce's (our protagonist/thief) trial. This is explained at the very beginning of the book, so I'm not ruining anything for you by letting you know that he gets caught. We follow Edward through a year-long quest to determine how and when gold is transported, how many keys are needed, who has them, etc., leading up to the heist itself. While intriguing, it's not all that groundbreaking in this respect.

However, by the end of the book the reader feels like an expert on 1800's London and a member of the criminal underworld. We get to hear about all the different types of criminals (Screwsmen, Eel Skinners) and what their specialties are (Safe Crackers, Illegal Tool Crafters, respectively). I feel Crichton does a masterful job of immersing you in the Victorian society- he often explains things like locomotives and safes as the technological marvels they were then, which is a nice contrast to the nonchalant way we view them now.

The Great Train Robbery has made me appreciate Michael Crichton more, because this book reads like it was written in the 1850's, not the 1970's. I really respect all the research that went in to making the story feel authentic. This brings me to another point: if you're like me and you shy away from 30 year old books, don't worry. Like EotD, it takes place in the past anyway, so there's no dated technology references.

All in all, I'll give it an 8 on the Marc approval scale. I thought about going 8.5, but we'll stick to whole numbers. I realize that an 8 ties it with EotD, but on the whole it is a better book- I'm reserving my first 9 or 10 for something that really blows me away. A slight disclaimer though: Kate thought this book was "boring" and struggled to finish it. So, maybe it is better suited for us history buffs.