When the Sea Was Still | Story Index
Find your way with this complete guide to every episode published to date of the serial novel When the Sea Was Still—with links to each episode.
When the Sea Was Still is a historical serial novel inspired by Titanic survivor Helen Ostby. While the heroine of the story, Nora Osterly, is entirely fictional, her journey draws on the incredible life of Helen Ostby. After surviving the Titanic disaster and losing her father, Helen went on to help run the family jewelry business, Ostby & Barton, which required her to face the sea again for business in Europe. Remarkably, she found herself in Germany on the eve of the First World War.
The serial novel starts two years after the sinking of the Titanic, when Nora Osterly is forced to cross the Atlantic again—this time aboard Titanic’s nearly identical sister ship, the Olympic. To save her father’s legacy, Nora must do the one thing she swore she never would: return to the sea that nearly killed her.
Act 1
1:1. The Ghost of Another Ship - Titanic survivor Nora Osterly boards the Olympic—sister ship to the one that killed her father—and finds herself forced to face the memories she left at sea two years ago.
1:2. A Father’s Gift - Anders Osterly gives his daughter a diamond pin, a Grand Tour of Europe, and her first real glimpse of the life—and the legacy—that will one day be hers.
1:3. The Sea Remembers - Aboard the Olympic, Nora finds the past impossible to forget. When the memories finally break through, she is back on the Titanic, seeing her father for the last time.
1:4. Maison Moreau - Anders and Nora sail on the Olympic’s maiden eastbound voyage. In Paris, Anders forges a partnership he believes will secure Nora’s future.
1:5. A Sorrow in the Air - Nora finally faces what has brought her across the Atlantic as well as the open promenade deck she has been avoiding. There she finds Bridie, another Titanic survivor who understands her sorrow.
1:6. Stormy Weather - As a storm gathers over the Atlantic, Nora begins to enjoy the glittering rituals of first-class life aboard the Olympic again at tea with Astrid, Mrs. Harroway, and Mrs. Cartwright.
1:7. Dinner in Nice - As Anders and Nora enjoy an evening in Nice with new friends, an invitation over dinner sets in motion a journey that will change their lives forever.
