![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
The Blurb On The Back:
It is September 1938. In a sweltering heat wave, the German people anxiously await the outcome of the Munich conference, wondering if the Fuhrer will plunge Europe into another war.
Private investigator Bernhard Gunther, formerly of Kripo – the Berlin criminal police – is hired by a rich widow to find out who is blackmailing her, an investigation in which he finds himself exploring the crankier side of modern German medicine and psychotherapy. Meanwhile, a brutal serial killer stalks the streets of Berlin, and Kripo, embarrassed at having been caught framing an innocent Jew for the murders, is not above using a little blackmail to obtain Gunther’s racially unbiased services to catch the real culprit. Boldly asking for the temporary rank of Kommissar, Gunther finds that a murder hunt for a perverted criminal soon escalates beyond all his predictions.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
The second in Philip Kerr’s BERNIE GUNTHER SERIES is another note perfect, twisting historical noir thriller that takes you to the heart of the rivalries permeating the Nazi regime and the lengths that the fervent anti-semites would go to further their own agenda. The historical research really shines through the story with Kerr throwing in details of the neighbourhoods and architecture together with enough slang to add atmosphere and authenticity. I particularly admired the way Kerr draws together the different plot strands in the story (including some links back to MARCH VIOLETS) and Gunther’s own character significantly develops – his guilt at the corruption in the Nazi regime and feeling of helplessness to do anything about it. I wished that the female characters had been as well developed but they’re largely on the periphery and while this is partly because that was what it was like at the time, it’s still a shame that neither Frau Lange or Hildegard Steininger (the mother of one of the victims) had more to do beyond the stereotypical mother/whore roles (particularly Steininger who’s little more than a sex object). That said, I did enjoy the book and I’ll definitely check out the next one in this series.
Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
It is September 1938. In a sweltering heat wave, the German people anxiously await the outcome of the Munich conference, wondering if the Fuhrer will plunge Europe into another war.
Private investigator Bernhard Gunther, formerly of Kripo – the Berlin criminal police – is hired by a rich widow to find out who is blackmailing her, an investigation in which he finds himself exploring the crankier side of modern German medicine and psychotherapy. Meanwhile, a brutal serial killer stalks the streets of Berlin, and Kripo, embarrassed at having been caught framing an innocent Jew for the murders, is not above using a little blackmail to obtain Gunther’s racially unbiased services to catch the real culprit. Boldly asking for the temporary rank of Kommissar, Gunther finds that a murder hunt for a perverted criminal soon escalates beyond all his predictions.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
The second in Philip Kerr’s BERNIE GUNTHER SERIES is another note perfect, twisting historical noir thriller that takes you to the heart of the rivalries permeating the Nazi regime and the lengths that the fervent anti-semites would go to further their own agenda. The historical research really shines through the story with Kerr throwing in details of the neighbourhoods and architecture together with enough slang to add atmosphere and authenticity. I particularly admired the way Kerr draws together the different plot strands in the story (including some links back to MARCH VIOLETS) and Gunther’s own character significantly develops – his guilt at the corruption in the Nazi regime and feeling of helplessness to do anything about it. I wished that the female characters had been as well developed but they’re largely on the periphery and while this is partly because that was what it was like at the time, it’s still a shame that neither Frau Lange or Hildegard Steininger (the mother of one of the victims) had more to do beyond the stereotypical mother/whore roles (particularly Steininger who’s little more than a sex object). That said, I did enjoy the book and I’ll definitely check out the next one in this series.
Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
