At this point Iâm just gauging interest. How would you feel about a Krimi (aka crime/mystery)-exclusive book club? I suppose the level would be something like intermediate/advanced, and native speakers would be highly encouraged to participate, and especially to nominate.
Would you be interested in a book club that only reads Kriminalromane?
Yes, count me in!
Maybe.
Theoretically yes, but Iâm not at that level yet.
No, not my genre.
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Weâre currently voting for our next pick. See the poll here.
Nominations template
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**Title**: Put the Natively link here.
**Book type**: (novel, children's book, etc)
**Available formats**: physical / ebook / audiobook (delete as appropriate)
[details="Summary - German"]
Copy and paste the German summary from whichever source you prefer.
[/details]
[details="Summary - English"]
There may be an English summary on the Natively page; if not, you can use a machine translator like DeepL or Google Translate.
[/details]
[details="Content Warnings"]
If you know whether the book contains adult content or potentially triggering topics, include the information here.
[/details]
**Reason(s) for nominating:** Share the reason you are nominating this book - it might persuade others to vote for it!
Okay, looks like thereâs several of us who are interested, or maybe interested.
I think we can casually start with some nominations, whenever they occur to us, and take it from there. No deadline yet or anything, unless weâre somehow flooded with nominations.
So, whenever you have a good idea for a nomination, just drop it here. This is the nomination template (copy the text, paste it into your post and edit accordingly):
Cover image (optional)
**Title**: Put the Natively link here.
**Book type**: (novel, children's book, etc)
**Available formats**: physical / ebook / audiobook (delete as appropriate)
[details="Summary - German"]
Copy and paste the German summary from whichever source you prefer.
[/details]
[details="Summary - English"]
There may be an English summary on the Natively page; if not, you can use a machine translator like DeepL or Google Translate.
[/details]
[details="Content Warnings"]
If you know whether the book contains adult content or potentially triggering topics, include the information here.
[/details]
**Reason(s) for nominating:** Share the reason you are nominating this book - it might persuade others to vote for it!
Nominate as many books as you like. I admit my knowledge of German-language crime literature is very limited, so all suggestions welcome!
I havenât actually read any of her books but, Ursula Poznanski writers young adult mysteries as far as I know. That might push it to more readable territory for people who might not feel up to reading a regular adult book.
Fitzek is probably the most well known contemporary krimi author? I read a few of his books, and wasnât crazy about any of them. But maybe I just had a bad selection.
I might try to look into what looks interesting from each and nominate when I have a bit time.
By the way, just to confirm: based on the title I imagine nominations should be straight up realistic mysteries. No sci-fi thrillers and the like. Iâm asking since I feel there is a bit of overlap in the categorization used in english for mysteries/thrillers. Krimi to me feels like straight up mystery novel
It feels like a straight up mystery novel to me too. Iâm not opposed to sci-fi mysteries, as long as the mystery element is more important than the sci-fi element. If itâs categorized as Krimi, it should be okay.
I googled around a bit yesterday and I learned that Charlotte Link seems to be the most productive German Krimi author?
And thereâs me not even knowing that she is German
(neither have I read any of her books afaik, but itâs true, her books are everywhere)
And yeah, Iâd also be up for a plain old Krimi. These days, an awful lot seem to be very thriller-y (i.e. huge suspense) but I donât necessarily need that
Do we only want originally written in German books? Because I have been meaning to read Kurkows Samson und Nadjeschda for ages now.
My local bookstore recommended Ingrid Nolls GruĂ aus der KĂŒche, but I havenât read anything from her yet. Apparently Noll is one of the most successful Krimi authors currently.
Kurkow has written a Krimi? First I hear of it, and Iâve read several of his books. Iâd say itâs totally fine to nominate it. I for one cannot read it in the original anyway.
Edit: Ah, looks like it probably hasnât been translated into English, which explains why I hadnât heard of it. Even more reason to nominate it then.
Browsing for books I found this site that presents and ranks many Krimis, and even lets you filter by era, subgenre, place, and more (unfortunately no original language, or at least I didnât see it). Thereâs even a Buch-Entdecker where you move some sliders to let the system find you books with specific characteristics: Buch-Entdecker - Krimi-Couch.de
This is a very cool idea in theory, but Iâll admit Iâve never actually managed to find books to my liking through such systems in the past. I suppose the database wasnât large enough, or the tags accurate enough? Still, fun to try.
Iâd rec Marc Elsbergâs Blackout. More of a Mystery Thriller type of thing, but that book caused a water cooler moment at my work. Which has never happened before or after. (And I think there is also a TV miniseries⊠maybe)
Ermittlungen inmitten des Wiener Faschings. Wien 1923. Mitten in der Ballsaison verunglĂŒckt Operettendiva Hermine Egger im Theater an der Wien tödlich. Die pensionierte Lehrerin Ernestine Kirsch glaubt nicht daran, dass die von ihr bewunderte SĂ€ngerin einem tragischen Unfall zum Opfer gefallen ist: Sie vermutet einen Mord. Gemeinsam mit ihrem Freund Anton Böck ermittelt sie zwischen OpernhĂ€usern und KaffeehĂ€usern â und begibt sich damit in tödliche Gefahr âŠ
Summary - English
Investigations in the midst of the Viennese carnival. Vienna 1923: In the middle of the ball season, operetta diva Hermine Egger dies in an accident at the Theater an der Wien. Retired teacher Ernestine Kirsch does not believe that the singer she admires has fallen victim to a tragic accident: she suspects murder. Together with her friend Anton Böck, she investigates between opera houses and coffee houses - and puts herself in mortal danger âŠ
Content Warnings
No idea.
Reason(s) for nominating: I looked around the current bestseller krimis here in Austria and one of hers was there. Apparently all of her books play in historical Vienna, which seems like a fun setting to me. Also maybe some German learners are interested in getting exposed to a bit of Viennese German (which I can of course help with as a Viennese German speaker). It also has an audiobook and an ebook and is not translated into English.
I chose this book because I saw on Goodreads a review of a German learner who seemed to enjoy the book from the perspective of a language learner:
I really enjoyed this book. The language was readable for me as long as I looked up several words per sentence. The only problem was when a character spoke in Viennese dialect, but there wasnât too much of that and I could get the gist.
I loved the Vienna references that sets the story a specific place and time. I learnt â âmit dem 71er fahrenâ means to âkick the bucketâ as the 71 tram serves the Zentralfriedhof (cemetery).
Oh my, I somehow missed that! But I just saw some people mentioning that they liked the 2nd book better than the first on Goodreads and I think they donât really build up on each other, so I think itâs fine to go with book 2, but maybe someone her has actually read something in the Series and can give their experience Otherwise I might change my nomination, the first book doesnât sound that much different anyway regarding setting and so on
I think so, too. They might reference each other in passing, like when they meet a police officer that they have met before and mentioning how they met, but usually crime series like this do not require you to have read any other within the series to understand what is going on.
I have seen these books in shops and have been curious, just never got around to reading one.
Hahaha the other day I was going through my favourite Krimis in my head, and it went like this: âOh, we could read some Sjöwall/Wahlöö, I guess they are pretty easy - oh no, they are Swedish! Henning Mankell, then? Oh, same problem⊠Dan Brown? ArghâŠâ and so on
âDer Richter und sein Henkerâ ist einer seiner berĂŒhmtesten Romane - die Geschichte eines Mordes. Mit den reiĂerischen Mitteln einer Detektivstory erzĂ€hlt er die AufklĂ€rung einer Gewalttat an einem Polizeileutnant, den letzten Fall des todkranken Komissars BĂ€rlach - die Geschichte einer hintergrĂŒndigen Pointe.
Summary - English
When a member of the Bern police force is shot dead on a Swiss country road, the enigmatic Inspector Barlach and his colleague Tschanz are intent on tracking down the killer. But the ailing Inspector doesnât have time to lose. Soon the pair discover that the victim was murdered on his way to a clandestine party at the home of a wealthy power broker - so why was a local policeman socialising with some of Switzerlandâs most influential men? Who was his shadowy host? And why has Barlachâs past returned to haunt him in his final hours?
The Judge and His Hangman is a thrilling tale of lifelong rivalry, and of two men chained together by a wager that would destroy them both.
Content Warnings
No idea.
Reason(s) for nominating: I was browsing the Goethe Institut library for possible nominations and when this caught my eye I got instantly nostalgic. I had read it back when I was still in school. I remember nothing about it other than I liked it a lot (as I did all DĂŒrrenmatt books I had read back then) and would be happy to reread it. Itâs considered a classic in German-language noir fiction, with themes that run much deeper than a mere mystery.
Oh wow we read this in school back then! I hated it, as I hated all books we read in school, because we would dissect and analyze and interpret and and and⊠and I tought that was horrible, back then. Maybe a reread would improve my impresssion here
So many people have hated books just because of school, I sometimes wonder if maybe schools shouldnât be making students read after all, at least not the way theyâve been doing it.
That said, I donât think Iâve ever hated a book just because I was forced to read it. I did dislike all the necessary analysis and interpretation and blah blah that came afterwards, but I remember enjoying some books on their own merits. Now if only I could remember what they were. I didnât even remember the name DĂŒrrenmatt until I saw it again, Iâm ashamed to say
Henry Hayden ist ein erfolgreicher Schriftsteller. Er ist elegant, groĂzĂŒgig und charmant. Und er ist gefĂ€hrlich. Denn Henry ist ein skrupelloser Hochstapler, der in Wahrheit keine einzige Zeile seiner Romane selbst geschrieben hat. WĂ€hrend er seinen Ruhm genieĂt, sorgt seine Frau dafĂŒr, dass er auch weiterhin andauert. Denn sie schreibt die BĂŒcher, fĂŒr die Henry berĂŒhmt geworden ist. Als Henrys Geliebte schwanger wird und verlangt, dass er seine Frau verlĂ€sst, steht mit einem Mal seine Existenz auf dem Spiel. WĂ€re es da nicht einfacher, die Geliebte aus dem Weg zu rĂ€umen? Doch dann passiert Henry ein nicht wieder gutzumachender FehlerâŠ
Summary - English
From the outside, Henry Hayden has a perfect life: heâs a famous novelist with more money than he can spend, a grand house in the country, a loyal, clever wife. But Henry has a dark side. If only the readers and critics who worship his every word knew that his success depends on a carefully maintained lie. A lie he will stop at nothing to protect.
He has been lucky, butone day his luck must surely run out, and he simply canât allow that to happen. In thrall to paranoia and self-interest, Henry makes a fatal error that could cause the whole dream to unravel and land him in the gutter, and despite his most machiavellian efforts, events swiftly spin out of control as lie is heaped upon lie, menace upon menace. And it turns out that those around him have their secrets too . . .
Content Warnings
I donât know.
Reason(s) for nominating: I liked the title, basically, and itâs about an author, so good for a book club full of avid readers I suppose. The reviews are generally good, and itâs supposed to be full of twists and make you not know what to believe. Sounds fun. Itâs also been translated into English.
(And I think there is also a TV miniseries⊠maybe)
