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The 1878 Paris murder of English Lord Littleby was particularly heinous, resulting in not only his death, but also the strange deaths of seven members of his household staff, and two children related to them. There was no sign of violence on the bodies of the staff members, and most of them were found sitting around a table in the kitchen, but Lord Littleby had been beaten around the head with a blunt instrument.

Although he possessed a large collection of valuable antiquities, only a single statue of Shiva was stolen, along with a silk scarf perhaps used to conceal it. But the statue was fished out of the Seine almost immediately, leaving Gustave Gauche, the Investigator for Especially Important Cases with few clues to follow.

Gauche is well named, and reminded me of Agatha Christie's description of her own character, Hercule Poirot as a "bombastic, tiresome, ego-centric little creep." Having found a whale shaped golden pin in Littleby's clenched fist, presumably ripped from the murderer's clothing, Gauche determined that is was used to identify the first class passengers and officers of the Leviathan's maiden voyage from Southampton to Bombay. Detecting the single passenger or senior officer lacking this golden bauble seemed an easy task to Gauche and so he boarded the ship at Southampton, sure he would have his criminal by the the time the ship reached LeHarve.

And so we begin our cruise on the largest ship of the day, offering first class accommodations so lavish and comfort so great that passengers would have no need to bring their own valets and/or maids. Nor would they be expected to take meals in a large dining hall, but in small salons of about ten people. It was in the Windsor salon that Gauche, with the assistance of the ship's Captain, was able to assemble his most likely suspects.

They included the Englishman, Sir Reginald Midford-Stokes, an erratic baronet, scion of a wealthy family, travelling to some "god forsaken Oceania," Mme. Renate Kleber, a young, pregnant wife of a Swiss banker traveling to join her husband in Calcutta, M. Gintaro Aono, a Japanese nobleman who claimed to be an officer in the Imperial Army of Japan, a Mlle. Clarissa Stamp, a "typical Englishwoman, no longer young, with dull colorless hair and rather sedate manners," a specialist in Indian archeology, Anthony F. Sweetchild and the ship's chief physician, the Italian M. Truffo and his English wife of two weeks. Also at the table was the first officer of the Leviathan, M. Charles Renier.

When the Leviathan reached Port Said, a Russian diplomat, with a shock of white hair and a slight stammer joined the party, eventually informing Gauche in response to his unsubtle questioning about the absence of his whale emblem, "I do not wear it because I do not wish to resemble a janitor with a name tag, not even a golden one."

Soon items turn up missing, and then passengers turn up dead. It is clear that the murderer is among our party in the Windsor salon. But who? And how many will die before the murderer is uncovered?

The story is told in the alternating voices of the passengers, through their diaries, letters and private thoughts as each chapter is written from a different point of view. None of them from the perspective of our intrepid Russian diplomat, Erast Fandorin; we only see him through the lenses of the other travelers. But he is essential to the solution of the mystery.

Clearly written in the style of Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle, Murder on the Leviathan is a cozy mystery reminiscent of Death on the Nile or Murder on the Orient Express. But it is ingeniously updated, as Akunin exposes the national and racial bigotry of that era and those writers and handily refutes it. It is the kind of book I had to occasionally put down, just to marvel at how well he was handling this genre and how much he was improving it all while poking gentle fun at its conventions.

The characters are beautifully drawn, the plotting is almost perfect and although it seems to slow a little in the middle, the mystery is resolved just when one can no longer stand the suspense. For we all know that there is another shoe to drop somewhere, we just aren't sure whose shoe it will be and how far it will fall.

If you enjoy an intelligently written, complex, cozy mystery, Murder on the Leviathan is one you should not miss. Whether you consider it a parody of the genre or a simple cozy, it is a pleasurable read.

It wasn't a bad story, but I felt the main character was the pompous French inspector instead of the far superior Russian one, based on the way it was written. Since he was a much more intelligent character, I wanted him to be the main character the minute I met him in the story. I feel frustrated when a story spends PAGES on a minor character at the beginning, confusing the reader as to who the main character is. The rest of the story was well-crafted, with tantalizing hints of the Agatha Christie-like ending. Skim the first 20 pages, and it's worth reading.

This Agathie Christie-like novel is most delightful, with its Victorian characters and its murders most foul. Akunin knows how to weave an irrestible tale, most of which takes place on a massive ocean liner headed for India -- a tale which forces the reader to say "this is the murderer" and then, "no, THAT'S the murderer" and so on into the night (and you WILL read well into the night). The author tells the story through the eyes of the main suspects, er, characters with each revealing a little pice of mystery which enriches the juicy denouement. Akunin also sprinkles subtle humor and irony through the book which will have you grinning more than once, if not chuckling out loud. All in all, a masterpiece. A nice change of pace from today's popular thrillers and police procedurals and a very entertaining read.

Having read _The Winter Queen_, I had to read the next Erast Fandorin mystery. I was not disappointed, and in fact, I believe _Murder on the Leviathan_ is the better of the two.

Written from the perspectives of the various suspects, Erast more or less takes a "back seat" as the reader is led through the murder mystery on a ship bound for Calcutta out of France. Each character provides their own perspective on the mystery, the suspects, and the clues - a very intriguing and clever device. The cast of characters, as an earlier reviewer pointed out, are straight out of an Agatha Christie novel, but with the unique and humorous twist I have come to expect from Akunin.

As the story plays out, we learn that each suspect has their own story to tell - more than a few of which are red herrings, but all are entertaining. A very clever book, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I look forward to more titles from the same author being translated.

Am mad about Boris Akunin, the author. I first read Winter Queen which starts with Fandorian's story. My friiend had the book in his library and I just casually picked up and could't stop reading. I read his second book when I returned to the U.S which is Murder on the Leviathan. I am on to his fourth book which is Special Assignments. Will be purchasing his next book as this guy is addictive. Didn't realize there was a Russian mystery writer like him. His knowledge of Japanese culture is amazing. Reminds me of Trvanian's Shibumi.

Finally I found a recent author that reminds me why I love mysteries with sleuths reminiscent of Sherlock and Poirot. Although the initial murders took place in Paris, the suspects, the French investigator, and Russian sleuth Erast Fandorin are gathered on the newest, biggest 1870s luxury liner The Leviathon. Try this book if you love Sherlock Holmes or Poirot on board the Orient Express. Author Akunin has a wry sense of humor - for example, naming the inept Paris Police Commissioner heading the on-board, on-voyage investigation "Commissioner Gauche." Character development is delightful.