Noir author finally arrives in United States

Every Friday evening Criminal Counselor Eberhard Mock can be found at Madame le Goef's gentleman's club, engaging in a game of chess (and other pursuits) with two young ladies. However, his regular visit is cut short when he's informed of the ritualistic murder of three people, including a Baron's daughter. When he arrives at the scene of the crime, he notices scorpions writhing on young woman's body, and, on the wall, bloody writing in an ancient language.

It's a complicated case but what makes Marek Krajewski's “Death in Breslau” even more engaging is the fact that it's set in 1933, in Occupied Breslau (current day Wroclaw). The city is under the control of the Gestapo: Spies are everywhere, and Jewish merchants and Freemasons (Mock is one) must guard their secrets fiercely.

As Mock and his assistant Herbert Anwaldt, a struggling alcoholic, delve deeper into the case, they quickly realize that this murder has ties back to ancient times, as well as connections far more personal than they could imagine.

Mock is the classic noir detective: he loves women, loves control, loves a strong cup of coffee and a cigar. However, it's important to remember this is a noir novel, meaning the setting is bleak, the characters rather unemotional, and the women exist only as whores or frumps.

Additionally, there are a dizzying number of characters. Instead of trying to keep them all straight, readers should just hang tight to Mock and Anwaldt; when a secondary character reappears, Krajewski provides enough context for readers to keep moving forward.

If you can get past these points, you'll begin to understand why Krajewski's novels are hugely popular in Poland and Germany and why we are fortunate that they are now being made available here in the United States.