Karin Muller is a first lieutenant with the state police. The first woman to have achieved such an elevated position. She starred in David Young’s first novel, Stasi Child. Stasi is the East German secret police, the Ministry of State Security, a body who would have preferred to deal with the disappearance of twin babies in Halle-Neustadt in 1975 themselves but have Karin and her two deputies foisted upon them. There is both chauvinist and natural professional resentment. We have learned a lot about Karin in Young’s first book, facts he cleverly weaves in here so you can get a full understanding of her chequered background without having read the first. A lot more personal history develops here too so Young may have a hard time incorporating it all into book three! By then, hopefully, he will be popular enough for fans to read the earlier books. They are straight police procedural stuff with plenty of twists and human drama but what makes these stand out is their place in history. This is a fascinating period and a fascinating place, both beautifully realised. ~ Sarah Broadhurst
How do you solve a murder when you can't ask any questions? The gripping new thriller from the bestselling, award-winning author of Stasi Child.East Germany, 1975. Karin Muller, sidelined from the murder squad in Berlin, jumps at the chance to be sent south to Halle-Neustadt, where a pair of infant twins have gone missing.But Muller soon finds her problems have followed her. Halle-Neustadt is a new town - the pride of the communist state - and she and her team are forbidden by the Stasi from publicising the disappearances, lest they tarnish the town's flawless image.Meanwhile, in the eerily nameless streets and tower blocks, a child snatcher lurks, and the clock is ticking to rescue the twins alive . . .'This fast-paced thriller hooks the readers from the start' The Sun'A masterful evocation of the claustrophobic atmosphere of communist era East Germany . . . an intricate, absorbing page-turner' Daily Express'The perfect blend of action, suspense and excitement. This is top notch crime! I will be shouting about this book to everyone, everywhere. Northern Crime'One of the most fascinating and original detectives in contemporary crime fiction . . . a hugely accomplished novel' (For Winter Nights)'For me David Young has cemented his place on the bookshelf alongside my Cold War thrillers by John le Carre and Len Deighton' The Quiet Knitter
'I think this is a genuinely beautiful cover, which works well alongside the first in the series. The way the background becomes impossible to see in the distance is completely appropriate in a world where political machinations continually obscure the truth, and the icy coldness of the whole scene reminds me of the brutality at the heart of the East German regime.' Perfect Buried under Books
'A cracking little read...Young is a master at evoking a sense of place and time...He also captures something of the vague sense of menace that surrounded socialist Germany in the 1970s, when the book is set...His writing is fantastic and his story lines hook you in and keep you entertained.' Social Bookshelves
Author
About David Young
David Young was born near Hull and - after dropping out of a Bristol University science degree - studied Humanities at Bristol Polytechnic. Temporary jobs cleaning ferry toilets and driving a butcher's van were followed by a career in journalism with provincial newspapers, a London news agency, and international radio and TV newsrooms. He now writes in his garden shed and in his spare time supports Hull City AFC.
