Blurb/synopsis..........
Breslau in the 1920s is haunt of marquises and merchants, gamblers and
gutter-rats. Eberhard Mock, the hardened Criminal Councillor, fits right in as
he sways from the basements of grubby casinos to his beautiful young wife in
their palatial mansion.
But his beautiful young wife is feeling neglected. A series of sinister
murders linked by the dates of past crimes has taken Mock out of the bedroom
and into the archives. While Mock ransacks the city for clues, driven mad by
the killer's tantalizing notes, his wife is seeking attention elsewhere.
Engaging in perverted games with her less-than-innocent girlfriends, Mock's
wife is being seduced by a mysterious sect which preaches the imminent end of
the world.
The old adage; decide in haste repent at leisure is
applicable to my taste in book acquisitions. Seduced once again by some intriguing
covers and the promise of gaining a little bit of an understanding of the
German psyche in between the two wars, just before the rise of fascism I took the plunge and bought up a few of
Krajewski’s Breslau novels.
I read the first Death In Breslau last year and
whilst it wasn’t the worst book I have ever read it was a bit of a chore to be
truthful.
Second book in the series, to be honest I loathed
it. This was by far the least enjoyable book I have read this year and the most
difficult to finish. Part of me wanted to throw the towel in and give up, but
hey I’m no quitter, so struggled on manfully, swimming through treacle, reading
about an investigator I didn’t care for trying to solve some murders I had no
emotional investment in.
Mock.....a vile alcoholic, wife beater and rapist,
may have the tenacity and intelligence to get his man in the end. He may
possess other admirable qualities; loyalty and a sense of duty but when I
balance the scales out, he’s just not someone I want to spend any time in the
company of.
Sad to say, I do have the 3rd book – Phantoms
In Breslau somewhere in the humungous pile of TBRs. Suffice to say though I won’t
be digging it out any time soon, though the part of me that retains Catholic
guilt syndrome will ensure I will have to read it at some point........maybe in
another 10 years or so, when I’ve long forgotten this one.
1 from 5
Bought sometime last year on the internet from some
forgotten bookseller.
Col - Sorry to hear this one was such a disappointment for you. Those covers...they'll get you every time. ;-)
ReplyDeleteMargot, not the first time I've been seduced by a cover, probably not the last either. The number of books I read there's an inevitability about hitting on a disappointing book now and then, though the book (and series) does have it's admirers judging by it's average rating on Amazon. Never mind, eh.
Delete