Quite good!

3 stelle, anche se ci arriva un po' a fatica e soprattutto per merito dell'ultima parte: tutti i preparativi, infatti, sono alla lunga noiosi, gli inserti saggistici sulla società vittoriana sono più o meno interessanti ma non particolarmente originali, approfonditi o illuminanti, ma gli ultimi capitoli, quelli col racconto vero e proprio della rapina, sono in effetti avventurosi e avvincenti. Una lettura, insomma, di puro e semplice intrattenimento, rapida.

Il libro è in tutto e per tutto un romanzo e non va considerato una ricostruzione "storicamente ineccepibile" della rapina realmente avvenuta nel 1855 sul treno Londra-Folkenstone: sono tali e tanti i dettagli inventati o diversi dalla realtà (a cominciare dal fatto che l'ideatore del piano, dopo l'arresto e il processo, non riuscì affatto ad evadere dal carcere) che questa cosa, confesso, un po' mi ha fatto indispettire. Ma capisco che così modificata la storia era perfetta per farci un film.

I forgot Michael Crichton wrote this, it is different from the rest of his books but it's still pretty good

Based on factual accounts through excerpts of the trial, Crichton delivers a fast-paced Victorian crime story. I liked how Crichton set up the story from the inception, to the planning, to the mishaps, and eventually to the execution of The Great Train Robbery. Edward Pierce, the mastermind behind The Great Train Robbery of 1855, is a smart and calculating character. As a reader, I found myself rooting for the bad guy, so to say, as Crichton did a fantastic job telling the story through the eyes of the people behind the robbery. Crichton also interjects nuances and background knowledge on 19th century Victorian socitety throughout the book. By doing so, this allowed the reader to understand the thoughts behind the characters. Overall, a quick read that is just plain fun to read.

A great book to end the year with!!

“The institutions of any society are interrelated, even those which appear to have completely opposite goals. Gladstone himself observed: ‘There is often, in the course of this wayward and bewildered life, exterior opposition, and sincere and even violent condemnation, between persons and bodies who are nevertheless profoundly associated by ties and relations that they know not of.’”

Crime novel on a grand scale, I love how this book covers the plotting and scheming of the robbery. The best comparison I can think of is the ocean eleven, particularly with details like the slang for the jobs typical to this "profession" and the underground roles of people who set these attempts in motion. Its a different spin on the crime with the focus on the criminals and not on those solving the crime. A well written and intriguing suspense novel by a quality author, although this is probably not among the great books most people associate with him, I think definitely think it could be.

Dobrú knihu spoznáte tak, že si dookola opakujete „Už len jednu kapitolu a potom ju už vážne, ale naozaj vážne odložím!“, avšak k činu sa akosi nemáte. Nečakala som, že ma príbeh tak veľmi chytí. Jurský park síce neprekonal, no nemal k tomu ďaleko. Michael nás v podstate ihneď bez veľkého otáľania vrhne priamo do akcie, nešetrí napínavými scénami a vám tak 320 stránok zmizne pod rukami ani sa nenazdáte.

Ak hľadáte niečo, kvôli čomu na celé jedno poobedie zanedbáte štúdium, priateľov a sociálne siete, Veľká vlaková lúpež bude pre vás to pravé orechové.

It’s weird to think that a Crichton book can be 44 years old. This was fun. A true story, plus you get to learn some fascinating things about Victorian London, such as the various cons used by the criminal class, and the sometimes bizarre views on the differences between the sexes.

Do you like Jigsaw puzzles? Imagine you are solving one: we'll start with hundreds of tiny pieces and a picture of the finished puzzle as the reference. That means we know where the puzzle is leading us, but we are not sure how all these tiny pieces are going to come together to form the big picture!

The Great Train Robbery by Micheal Crichton is a similar affair. In the initial pages itself, Crichton reveals where we are going: The Train robbery of 1855 was a success (They stole 2.5 million pounds in today's value) and the culprits were apprehended in later years.

n  But how did they pull it off?n

Meet the Rogues: Robert Agar, the locks specialist, Barlow, the muscle, Clean Willy, the escape artist, Miriam, the actress and Edward Pierce, the master thief.

Without a doubt, Edward Pierce is the fascinating character in this story. He is a unique because of his spectacular planning skills and his ability to navigate both criminal class and upper class with absolute ease. In the introduction, Crichton wrote a line on criminals in general.

n  n    ❝ Criminals are not limited in intelligence, and it is probable that the reverse is true. ❞n  n

Undoubtedly, Crichton wrote those lines with Pierce in his mind.

While we are at it, let's talk about Michael Crichton's writing style. It's incredible! He paints a unique version of 19th century London with help of wonderful facts. He entwines the realities of living conditions, criminal landscape, popular laws and incidents of that era with the central plot to create a special narrative style. It actually reminded me of his first novel he wrote (As Crichton), The Andromeda Strain which uses similar style along with foreshadowing. (Incidentally, The Andromeda Strain is my personal favorite in Crichton novels.)

Remember Chaos theory? Even though no butterfly created tornadoes here, there were many spectacular points in the narrative where an incident happened in Australia or India indirectly affected the story tremendously. That's another reason to love Crichton here. He researched those incidents and made/fictionalized these connections to the story.

After finishing the novel, I took some time to read the actual story behind the Train robbery. I wanted to know how much of this historical fiction was history and how much was fiction. I was a bit disappointed and astonished with the result. I was disappointed because most of the story was fictionalized. At the same time, I was astonished by the fact that Crichton invented most of the planning in this tale by himself!

Nevertheless, the actual crime and the fictionalized version are the prime examples of a classical theft at its best. A theft where planning, patience and the sheer amount of balls are involved.

100 KG of lead balls (shots) to be exact.

Recommended.

Labai įdomiai susiskaitė vakare prieš miegą ☺️ Įdomus ne tik meistriškai įvykdytas traukinio apiplėšimas, kuris man priminė tokius seniai matytus filmus kaip Oušeno vienuoliktukas - vagystė atlikta pasitelkus ne šaunamąją jėgą, o išmonę ir rankų miklumą. Be dar įdomiau buvo tai, kad veiksmas vyksta Viktorijos laikų Britų imperijoje - žvilgsnis į praeitį.

Do you like a well written historical fiction ?

Do you like a brilliant edge of seat crime thriller where you encounter twists with the turn of each page ?

Do you cherish a book with an intelligent,vicious and meticulous yet manipulative , cunning and ruthless anti-hero whose plannings/layers are so brilliant and detailed that he can easily give Scotland yard a run for their money ?

Do you enjoy Victorian England as the setup of your story ? An England of two parallel civilization of obvious contradiction . A rich, colorful and cultured England ridding high on the success of industrial revolution but beneath it thriving a mass poverty stricken ,corrupt and morally ambiguous .

Does the detailed chronicle of study of a criminal mind(why ,how ,when of a crime committed ) appeals to your fantasy of playing Sherlock / Poirot ?

Do you like a book with a fine gripping story penned down by one of the finest bestselling author at the peak of his story telling ability ?

Trust me if 'yes' is your answer for at-least one of the above questions 'The Great Train Robbery' should be the book in your soon to be read list .

If yes is your answer to more than one question but not all ,then this book should be the next thing you read after finishing what ever you are reading now .

And if your answer is yes to all the questions above ,dear friend ,put a page marker on what ever you are reading currently and grab a copy of this book and start reading :D :D