When tourists go missing and drop dead in horrible ways, Reiker finds himself undercover aboard the Agrippina II on a luxury Rhine Cruise with Schneider, his obsessive-compulsive former assistant. The Death Cruise stops at Strasbourg, Speyer, Heidelberg and Worms, headed for the famous Loreley Gorge.
See also:
Hotel of Horror - Spa Life & Murder in 1890s Germany
Murder in the Cards - Victorian Crime - Murder in the Cards
A river cruise on the Rhine, Danube, Elbe or other scenic waterway is a popular vacation getaway in the late 19th century. As Reiker tries to solve a series of bizarre murders and not become a victim himself, Schneider thinks he's really on vacation and plays it up as a swinging bachelor with his cute new love interest.
Ship to shore we go as Reiker finds facts and odd connections. With help from a young woman running out of luck, he's hot on the trail of a homicidal maniac targeting tourists on the Agrippina II - if the food doesn't kill them first.
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In the late 19th century, vacations were serious business. With the increased mobility of the human race following the earlier industrial revolutions, along with new advances in health and medicine, cycles of environmentalism and return to nature movements, the world became faster, healthier and better informed.
People from all walks of life went to the seaside in Britain, and the mysterious, ancient rivers of Germany and Austria. Rhine river cruises highlighted gorgeous scenery, castles; legends and wine-tasting at the prolific hillside vineyards of the Loreley; towns and architecture dating back for centuries. A regular cruise could last an afternoon or a couple of weeks.
See also:
The Rhine starts at Basel, Switzerland and after some wild rapids flows to the North Sea in stately style. The entire river runs through Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France, the Netherlands and the Principality of Liechtenstein. It's a perfect kind of holiday, if you're not on the Death Cruise.
The Reiker For Hire series is a trilogy of short novels about 42,000 words each. Get them singly or as an anthology. I absolutely love the research and the writing process. If murder most foul and Victorian Europe are on your reading list, pop over to my author page for free samples, and enjoy!
Sylvia Rose Books on Smashwords
Sylvia Rose Art on Zazzle