Ghost Ship, Brian Hicks
Ghost Ship, Brian Hicks
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Ghost Ship
The Mysterious True Story of the Mary Celeste and Her Missing Crew

Author: Brian Hicks

Narrator: Paul Woodson

Unabridged: 9 hr 44 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 07/30/2024

Synopsis

On December 4th, 1872, a 100-foot brigantine was discovered drifting through the North Atlantic without a soul on board. Not a sign of struggle, not a shred of damage, no ransacked cargo—and not a trace of the captain, his wife and daughter, or the crew. What happened on board the ghost ship Mary Celeste has baffled and tantalized the world for 130 years. Brian Hicks plumbs the depths of this fabled nautical mystery and uncovers the truth.

The Mary Celeste was cursed as soon as she was launched on the Bay of Fundy in 1861. Her first captain died before completing the maiden voyage. In London she accidentally rammed and sank an English brig. Later she was abandoned after a storm drove her ashore at Cape Breton. But somehow the ship was recovered and refitted, and in 1872 she fell to the reluctant command of a seasoned mariner named Benjamin Spooner Briggs. It was Briggs who was at the helm when the Mary Celeste sailed into history.

The story of the Mary Celeste becomes the quintessential tale of men lost at sea. Hicks vividly recreates the events leading up to the crew's disappearance and then unfolds the complicated and bizarre aftermath. Brian Hicks reveals the truth is actually grounded in the combined tragedies of human error and bad luck.

About Brian Hicks

Brian Hicks, a senior writer with the Post and Courier in Charleston, South Carolina, is the coauthor of two previous books on maritime subjects: Raising the Hunley: The Remarkable History and Recovery of the Lost Confederate Submarine and Into the Wind: The Story of the World's Longest Race. The recipient of the South Carolina Press Association's award for Journalist of the Year, Hicks lives in Charleston with his wife and their son.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Brendan on July 03, 2009

The Mary Celeste sailed from New York in 1872 and was found floating derelict about a month later. The ship was in fine condition and the people who found the boat saw no sign of struggle or violence. In fact, there were also signs that the crew likely did not abandon ship, as they left their foul w......more

Goodreads review by Susan on February 05, 2022

I'm fascinated by maritime disasters and yet, somehow, I had never heard of the Mary Celeste. Lark (larkwrites.blogspot.com) recommended this book to me and I'm so glad she did. It's a fascinating book about an intriguing unsolved mystery. Hicks offers a compelling, well-researched account of the in......more

Goodreads review by Carol Ann on April 13, 2022

This was a good narrative about the history and mystery of the Mary Celeste and the missing crew. From the building of the ship to the legalities in attempting to salvage it to its final demise, it was fascinating. I especially appreciated the history of the many sailors and families whose lives wer......more

Goodreads review by Caffers on June 09, 2021

True and sad accounting of the seemingly cursed brigantine, Mary Celeste, in the 1800s. It seems that heartbreaking things just kept happened to the Briggs family, one after another. The book is the back story on the family and the ship, as well as the many wild stories people came up with of what h......more

Goodreads review by Luthien on February 20, 2017

While Hicks is admittedly not a historian by trade, his style is both engaging and readable, and his meticulous research shines through despite his lack of a degree. He makes a compelling case for what ultimately happened to the unfortunate cast of the Mary Celeste. He also keeps the book interestin......more

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