The Great Train Robbery

The Great Train Robbery by Michael Crichton, 329 pages

OK, let me preface this review by pointing out that I am a sucker for a heist story. When there's a difficult plan to steal something (the more valuable the target and the more complex the plot, the better), I am sold.

That said, The Great Train Robbery is a textbook example of a great heist story. Set in the 1850s, Edward Pierce is the mastermind of a plot to steal a shipment of gold bars traveling by rail from London to Crimea. Over the course of a couple years, Pierce gathers information (using everything from his considerable charm to a snarling leopard) to piece together the perfect plan to pull of this dangerous heist, facing new obstacles every day. While we know from the outset that the heist will happen (look at the title of the book!), watching Pierce and his cohorts pull it off is thrilling.

As with his other books, Crichton put a lot of research into this tale, filling it with enough historical accuracy that it feels like non-fiction. The characters don't get much depth, though it works well here, in that it creates an air of mystery around our thieves (and I believe that was intentional on Crichton's part). Originally published in 1975, this is one of Crichton's oldest books, and in my mind, one of his best. If you've only read Jurassic Park or, heaven forbid, The Andromeda Strain, do yourself a favor and pick this one up. You won't be disappointed.