Dillman & Masefield Books In Order

Publication Order of Dillman & Masefield / Ocean Liner Mysteries Books

Dillman & Masefield is a series of novels written by bestselling English mystery and thrillers novels, Conrad Allen- the pseudonym, used by Keith Miles.

Miles also writes under his own name and writes mystery and historical fiction under the pen name Edward Marston. Allen began the publication of Dillman & Masefield series in 1999 when Murder on the Lusitania the first book in the series was published. The series ran eight novels concluding in 2007 when Murder on the Celtic was released.

Murder on the Lusitania

“On the Lusitania” is the first book in Dillman & Masefield series by Conrad Allen. The novel introduces readers to the hero, George Porter Dillman and the puzzling and the sexy Genevieve Masefield and the series is set aboard cruise ships in the heyday of the great liners.

The story kicks off with George Porter Dillman sailing from Liverpool heading back to his native land United States. While travelling to Liverpool by train he meets a bunch of characters such as the Oxford educated Cyril Weeks and the Rhymer family and Mr., Mrs., and daughter Violet.

Dillman senses some tension in the Rhymer family and suspects that their daughter is not enjoying this trip. While aboard the ship he is introduced to some quirky characters such as Jeremiah Erskine, Henry Barcroft, and the enigmatic Genevieve Masefield. Dillman longs to get to know her better but unfortunately, she is always surrounded by two elderly ladies and Dillman cannot reveal that he is a secret agent sent to ferret out and prevent any criminal activities from happening.

With tensions rising between Germany and Britain, it becomes a vital factor for Germany to win this race. At first, Dillman thinks that his major problem will be keeping a card shark from fleecing innocent passengers. Then Violet Rhymer confides her greatest secret to Dillman and requests for him help while Genevieve wants him to play a got between to avoid the odious journalist.

When the ship’s blueprints vanish into thin air, Dillman is ordered to find them. His investigations lead him to some unexpected results. First, he finds Barcroft dead, and then he becomes the object of fellow American Ellen Tolley’s attention. Dillman has his hands full with the search for the missing blueprints and his love triangle.

The first book in the series is a good old-fashioned mystery that takes place on the maiden voyage of the famous Lusitania from Britain to New York in 1907. In the tradition of writing by golden age mystery writers such as Marsh and Christie, we have intriguing and distinct characters and suspects, mostly restricted to the first class passengers, who the author slowly introduces the readers to.

George Porter Dillman, the main character is hired by Cunard Line to work as an undercover agent but only finds more trouble than he had first expected when a nosey journalist, Henry Barcroft is found dead.

George Dillman is a man of an easy going manner; he is polite, brave and resourceful. His process of gaining other passengers confidence, doing an investigation, picking up clues and solving the murders and other related crimes was a great deal of fun. Genevieve is the heroine of this story. She is relatively cold to Dillman at the beginning but warms up halfway the story when they have had a chance to converse appropriately. She is an interesting character, and the growing attraction between her and George Dillman promises to be an exciting aspect of the later books in the series.

Additionally, the mystery in the story is well plotted, and just like other classic mysteries, you will discover most of the clues in the story at the same time as George does, and so be ready to “sleuth” along with him.

Murder on the Mauretania

Murder on the Mauretania is the second novel in George Porter Dillman & Genevieve Masefield series. The year is 1907, and once again we meet George and Genevieve Masefield sailing from Liverpool on their maiden journey of the Mauretania.

Disguised as passengers, both Dillman and Genevieve undergo their worst nightmares voyage during which severe weather batters their vessels mercilessly and keeps the sailors away from the decks.

Dillman plays an instrumental role in saving a crew member from being drowning, but he is also too late to rescue a first class passenger from being washed too. At first, this appears to be a case of death by misadventure, but soon Genevieve and Dillman come to discover that it was an act of well-calculated murder, related with the presence on board of a record shipment of gold bullion sent from the Bank of England.

The second series installment is a brilliant read; the murder mystery in this novel is brilliantly done. The series of murders, theft and the chaos onboard throughout the second and the first class and the plot to steal the gold bullion transported to New York are all brilliantly connected and enough to keep any seasoned mystery readers hooked to the last page. The characters, both our detective lead characters, and the passengers and suspects aboard the ship are well drawn and different and the majority of them likable.

Since the story alternatively follows Genevieve in the first class and George in the second class, we get to meet a very different set of people. Genevieve companions in the first class are a fascinating study of the human nature, but George plays a larger part in solving the mystery since he had more freedom and mobility compared to his partner, Genevieve. The mystery in this novel is quite intriguing than in the first book, the series of thefts aboard the ship starts right away on the first page and keeps the readers guessing.

There is also endless attempt to steal the gold which makes this story suspenseful enough. It is easier to keep track of the secondary characters since the story goes back and forth revolving between the main characters- George and Genevieve.

Dillman & Masefield series is an ideal read for those who enjoy reading mysteries in general, and also those who like mysteries novels set in a historical setting.