The Great Train Robbery by Michael Crichton

The Great Train Robbery by Michael Crichton

1979, Bantam

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Rating

Synopsis: Lavish wealth and appalling poverty live side by side in Victorian London—and Edward Pierce easily navigates both worlds. Rich, handsome, and ingenious, he charms the city's most prominent citizens even as he plots the crime of his century, the daring theft of a fortune in gold. But even Pierce could not predict the consequences of an extraordinary robbery that targets the pride of England's industrial era: the mighty steam locomotive.

The Good: Really, just nothing stood out as good here.

The Bad: Michael Crichton was a genius when it came to science fiction thrillers. Historically based thrillers, not so much. While he seems to have had a clear idea of how the robbery came about, it was completely lost on me. Trains, bandits, Victorian London, true crime, none of it worked for me. The book was fast paced, but felt glossier than it should have given the time period. It felt like I was reading a movie or something, but a poorly cast one.