Dangerous Sea by David Roberts is a historical murder mystery set on the ocean liner Queen Mary on a voyage between Britain and the United States in the late 1930s. Unlike most crime novels written during the era, Dangerous Sea includes elements of the international tension which would lead to World War II, and a range of political views amongst its characters, from the Communist Verity Browne to the Fascist Major Cranton.
Storms Gathering over Europe – and the Atlantic
Against the background of Nazi power rising in Europe, and secret negotiations going on between the governments of Britain and the United States, Lord Edward Corinth is asked to accompany the economist Lord Benyon on a sea voyage, to protect him from attack by German agents. Also on the liner are Warren Fairley, a black singer and civil rights activist, the racist Senator Daly, and Edward’s not-quite-inamorata Verity Browne. Murders, storms, and love affairs soon begin to disturb the serenity of the voyage, and when he solves the crimes, Lord Edward is forced to pick his way between the demands of truth, justice and law.
Organizing Principles
David Roberts makes an interesting attempt to broaden the scope of the “golden age” murder mystery in Dangerous Sea. The original novels tended to be written and read within a fairly narrow set of political and social assumptions, and skirted round issues like war, political change and social upheaval. The classic whodunnit has often been read as a “conservative” form, expressing nostalgia for old certainties. Bringing in characters like the American labour organiser Sam Forrest alongside the more traditional types like the valet Fenton offers an interesting new dimension.
Unfortunately, Roberts doesn’t take advantage of this new dimension. His characters, when they discuss such matters, lack any depth or conviction, and he spells out their thoughts and feelings so programmatically that it is difficult to take them seriously, let alone sympathise with them. His style produces passages like this:
“I only read books which tell the truth”, Verity said, as though the truth was something finite and definable. “I don’t really read novels. They’re...made up.”
“Le recit est menteur est le sens est veritable. That’s La Fontaine – the story is a lie but the meaning is true.”
“I see...I think.”
“For the Marxist, the fundamental forces of today are those which are working to destroy capitalism and establish socialism.”
which don’t do justice to his potentially interesting characters. Dangerous Sea feels oddly patronising, both to its characters and audience – and to the genre it is based on.
It also lacks the kind of everyday details which make a historical novel convincing: it doesn’t have the specific flavour of its era which Andrew Martin’s “Jim Stringer” novels Robert Altman’s movie Gosford Park provide. Though an interesting puzzle, Dangerous Sea is a bit of a let-down.
