6.5/10 ( )

Not quite as good as the "Murder most Unladylike" series but of a very similar ilk, although the main character Pepper is only 12 years old. Set a few years after the sinking of the Titanic, Pepper's father is the Captain of a cruise liner that sails between Sydney and New York, and so she sees him very rarely. Her mother has died and she is left in the care of a governess but what Pepper really wants to do is to sail on the cruise boat with her father and see what his life is like. So much so, that the opening of the book has her attempting to ditch school, catch a train and get on his boat but she is caught. Eventually he father relents and Pepper and the governess set sail. Whilst on board, they are treated to the showboating of many famous passengers including one movie start who flaunts a gigantic diamond she has just been given as an engagement present. Of course, the diamond goes missing and the Captain's reputation is on the line. Pepper and the three other young adults she has met on the cruise band together to try and work out who has stolen the gem before they reach the final port. Loads of fun and alludes to Agatha christie type popular novels and plots and lots of other roaring twenties fun. It will be interesting to see if Greenberg writes another. ( )