The story of the RMS Titanic has a magnetic appeal. Not only does it represent all that we find glamorous and romantic about an earlier era, but it also symbolizes foolish pride, needless tragedy, and death. Although the Titanic sank almost one hundred years ago, this ship remains a source of fascination for many people, myself included. Even though the Titanic has served as a backdrop for countless movies and novels, it remains a riveting topic, and this is what inspired me to pick up Phyllis A. Humphrey’s novel Cold April. But regardless of what attracted me to the book, what kept me reading, glued to the pages, was the quality of what I found inside.

Cold April brings together historical detail, sweet romance, and well-drawn and engaging characters into a reading experience that kept me captivated from beginning to end. From the moment that I opened the cover, I found myself drawn into the heart of the story, living the plot along with the characters, so involved that I was loathe to put the book down for even a moment. So I didn’t put it down. I read Cold April over the course of a Saturday morning, only taking breaks for life’s necessities, like procuring a refill of coffee or snagging a much-needed tissue or two.

Ms. Humphrey has a comfortable and polished writing style that makes the narrative flow effortlessly, bringing characters, settings and events to three-dimensional life. She draws her story with enough detail to imbue it with historical accuracy and realism, but not so much that it detracts from the story itself.

Cold April contains an element of suspense that begins the moment we realize that the ocean liner carrying the characters to America is the Titanic. Even as the romance between the two main characters plays out, we can’t help but anticipate what we know to be the fate of the ship and its passengers. And when the climax finally occurs, it is very affecting. Ms. Humphrey’s scene of the last moments of the Titanic plunges her readers into the middle of the chaos and the tragedy, taking our breath away. And that means that yes, it made me cry like the ninny I undoubtedly am.

Even if you have read scores of stories set in, on, or around the RMS Titanic, you’ll want to give Cold April a shot. Ms. Humphrey has done an excellent job breathing life into history with this romance, and I am very impressed with her storytelling. Her author bio indicates that she has a long-standing interested in the Titanic, and that interest shines clearly through the pages of this novel.

Professional Review by James A. Cox
Editor-in-Chief, Midwest Book Review

The tragedy of the Titanic is not just the loss of life, but the shambles of personal stories lost within it all.  "Cold April" tells the story of Elizabeth Shallcross, as she cares for the child of Richard Graham on a trans-Atlantic voyage.  During her journey, she has many offers of love, but her journey through life and across the oceans will be seriously threatened by the ocean tragedy history remembers most.  "Cold April" is a riveting read of Titanic drama, highly recommended.