The Franklin Conspiracy: An Astonishing Solution to the Lost Arctic Expediton [Paperback]

Jeffrey Blair Latta (Author), John Robert Colombo (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0888822340 | ISBN-13: 978-0888822345

The Franklin Conspiracy is an absorbing account of the single most enigmatic event in Canadian history. In 1845, two British Royal Navy ships, the Erebus and the Terror, commanded by Sir John Franklin, entered the Canadian Arctic in search of the Northwest Passage. Neither ship returned. A fifteen-year search uncovered evidence of unparalleled disaster, but to this day no one knows exactly how the 129 men of the Franklin Expedition met their deaths.

Although the expedition did not run out of food, there is clear evidence of cannibalism. The ships carried two hundred message cylinders with them, yet failed to leave records. Stranger still, an earlier explorer, Thomas Simpson, was reputedly murdered for the "secret of the Northwest Passage." What was this "secret"?

The Franklin Conspiracy is an exhaustively researched, compellingly reasoned answer to that question. The result is a shocking saga of conspiracy, cover-up, and unbelievable secrets.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jeffrey Blair Latta has contributed popular science columns to Canadian newspapers, been published in the prestigious science journal Nature, and written two one-act plays as well as several screen plays. Though originally majoring in Physics at Queen's University, he graduated in Film Studies.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Dundurn (June 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0888822340
• ISBN-13: 978-0888822345
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,456,632 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars pay no mind to the negative reviews, June 14, 2011

By 

Jeremiah J. Gordon - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Franklin Conspiracy: An Astonishing Solution to the Lost Arctic Expediton (Paperback)

My word people, what do you want? If your first introduction to the Franklin expedition is this book, then I would say, read some better accounts out there minus the conspiracy theory. However, if you like me, have read countless books on the Franklin expedition, then you will welcome this take on an otherwise repeated tale. If you enjoyed this, you will more than likely enjoy the fictional "Terror" by Dan Simmons. People need to be less negative and relax. I don't think it was the purpose of the author to rehash old news. The point is, we will likely never know what truly happened. It is nice to imagine there might be something out there which was and is being "covered up". If you are that distraught at the book, I question whether or not you really know what you like to read. I knew walking into this one ,because of the title, that what I was about to read was the author's opinion based on loose facts that are out there about this expedition. If I wanted to read a more "factual" account, I would have re-read for the hundredth time the other works I have on the subject. I recommend this book to those who know the story quite well already and don't mind a bit of mystery combined with some imagination.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You will Never look at the north quite the same again, November 25, 2003

By 

Black Flag "thecrossbone" (Alberta) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Franklin Conspiracy: An Astonishing Solution to the Lost Arctic Expediton (Paperback)

A facsinating and mysterious book that raises as many questions as it answers. The story covers more than just the expeditions of Franklin himself. It covers the tragic mistakes made that make it appear as though the Admiralty had no intention of finding him.

It is a love story as well - Lady Franklin refused to give up the search for her long lost husband. However, the Admiralty first refused to help. Rather than give up, she sent her own rescue party. What the Royal Navy did to make sure it would fail.

It also delves into the previous and subsequent voyages of the era that tried to find the elusive North West Passage.

Giants, mysterious cairns deep into the mainland, graves hundreds of miles apart. Ship wrecks where they have no business being. The apparent death of Franklin early in the voyage - how?

Lead poisoning? As with most simple answers to complex tragedies, this just doesnt come close to answering all the riddles of this desperate story.

What is the Royal Navy STILL trying to hide off King Williams Island?

Great Book.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I read many books on arctic and antarctic exploration, May 22, 2004

By 

Melvin Scott "MJS" (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Franklin Conspiracy: An Astonishing Solution to the Lost Arctic Expediton (Paperback)

and hands down, this book is the worst. To put it bluntly, it is a piece of garbage. To intermingle myth with history without a thread of fact, to question every piece of evidence on its own without fitting the pieces of the puzzle together, and to even suggest a conspiracy can survive and let alone be passed down from generation to generation, is nuts. Was there incompetence in the Franklin saga? Definitely. But to suggest a coverup to an event that could not possibly have anything at all to hide, was just a waste of my time. I kept waiting for the punchline, but the book was like a joke that just was not funny. My most painful experience with this book is that I picked it up to take overseas with me, and it was the only English languaged reading material that I had. Never take just one book with you on a trip.