Publisher: Headline (Trade Paperback – 11 March 2025)
Series: Berlin Wartime/Criminal Inspector Schenke Thriller – Book Three
Length: 385 pages
My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
One of the world’s leading historical fiction authors returns with another intriguing and captivating historical murder mystery with the outstanding read, A Death in Berlin.
I have made no bones about the fact that I am a major fan of historical fiction author Simon Scarrow, who has been diving into awesome scenarios from history for over 20 years. While I probably know him best from his outstanding Eagles of the Empire Roman historical fiction series (see my review for the latest entry, Revenge of Rome), Scarrow has also written some other amazing series, including his current ongoing Berlin Wartime Thriller novels. Set in Berlin towards the start of World War II, the series follows a studious and troubled police detective as he attempts to uphold justice in a city overrun with murderous Nazis. The first two books in this series, Blackout and Dead of Night, were both very impressive, and I have been eagerly awaiting this third novel in the series, A Death in Berlin, for some time.
Berlin, May 1940. As the German army prepares for its invasion of France and Western Europe, crime still roams the street of Berlin, and it falls to CI Horst Schenke and his investigative Kripo to keep order and maintain justice, a job made markedly harder by the dark policies of their Nazi overloads. Despite his own dislike of the Nazi regime, which grows increasingly suspicious of him, Schenke is determined to do his job, especially when it comes to the criminals controlling the streets.
Assigned to find the source of forged ration coupons that are disrupting the war effort, Schenke and his team find themselves investigating a growing gang war when a prominent black-market operator is gunned down in the dead of night. Convinced that the gangster’s murder is related to the forged coupons, Schenke leads the Kripo into investigating the criminal underworld that lies beneath Berlin.
However, this is no ordinary gang crime. A dark series of events have led to the death of their victim, and the Kripo investigators soon uncover a dangerous conspiracy to profit from the war. Worse, the gangster they are chasing are protected by powerful Nazi leaders, and Schenke must continue to walk a fine line in avoiding their attention. But when his enemies uncover his deepest secret, can Schenke survive with his honour intact, or will he need to make a dark deal to get what he wants?
A Death in Berlin was another excellent novel from Scarrow, who cleverly combines exciting crime fiction elements with a compelling historical setting. Clever, action-packed, and constantly moving, A Death in Berlin was an outstanding read, and I think this might be his best Berlin Wartime Thriller novel yet.
I really liked the cool story that Scarrow came up with for A Death in Berlin, especially as this latest novel features a complex narrative revolving around Berlin gangsters and crime wars. Starting off fast and getting into the heart of the case, readers soon become invested in finding out who was behind the killing of the gang leader and what impact it is having on the larger criminal underworld of Berlin in the leadup to the invasion of France. Thanks to an excellent early shootout, the stakes of the book become even higher, as the protagonist finds himself in the middle of a gang war, which he is forced to navigate to solve the main mystery of the book. Scarrow also continues to focus on the complex life of protagonist CI Horst Schenke, who constantly finds himself coming to the attention of his Nazi superiors, despite his dislike of the party and his secret romance with Ruth, a Jewish woman hiding out in Berlin.
Following this great initial setup, Scarrow takes the plot of A Death in Berlin in some outstanding directions, especially as there is quite a compelling mystery here, with multiple potential suspects and motivations for the murder, many of which lead to other alternate crimes investing the Nazi controlled city. Scarrow cleverly reveals the involved parties at key parts of the book, and while there aren’t too many surprises, it was very interesting to see how everything tied together. The final third of the book is probably the best, as the protagonist finds himself trapped by his own secrets and is forced to make compromises to keep those important to him safe. This leads to a massive and intense final confrontation, as the protagonist risks everything with some unlikely allies in a brilliant, action-packed set piece. The final revelations revealed during this climax brought the entire story together nicely, and I really appreciated how the tight and complex mystery was resolved. This was an overall fun and exciting narrative, and one that is quite easy to power through quickly, especially once you get caught up in the mystery.
Scarrow did an outstanding job pulling together A Death in Berlin, as the novel was a compelling and exciting read with a lot of awesome elements behind it. The author successfully blends an excellent murder mystery storyline around the intriguing historical elements of his series, showcasing the potential hurdles a police detective needed to face during the Nazi regime. At the same time, there is a fantastic emotional heart to A Death of Berlin, as the protagonist continues his ill-advised romance with Ruth, while also being forced to once again confront the dark side of the government he is wilfully working for. I felt that Scarrow perfectly balanced these elements throughout A Death in Berlin, and there is a little something for everyone here, including a ton of amazing action and firefights, as the protagonist attempts to bring down a dangerous collection of emboldened criminal gangs. As such, this is a very easy book to get into and follow, and while there are some references to the previous Berlin Wartime Thriller novels, for the most part A Death in Berlin acts as an accessible standalone novel, which allows for a wider audience.
For me, one of the more intriguing elements of A Death in Berlin was the author’s excellent examination of life in Berlin during the early days of World War II. Scarrow has always done an amazing job showcasing the uncertainty, fear and underlying issues of Berlin in the early days of the war in this series, and I enjoyed how he further outlined the tension involved with the pre-invasion of France. The overarching fear that certain members of the public have with the Nazi regime is still a key part of the plot, and while the protagonist isn’t as directly targeted by the Nazis as he was in previous books, he still has to play by their twisted rules, especially when invited to a party of the Nazi elite, where he meets some very high-level members. However, it was the focus on the criminal element infesting Berlin during these years that I found to be particularly fascinating, as Scarrow explores the potential scams, nightspots and other enterprises that would have been run in early wartime. While coupon forgeries have been mentioned in previous novels, it was fascinating to see the entire novel focussed on the control of this valuable wartime currency, and it resulted in some truly compelling scenes. Despite this being a more crime-fiction novel than a book examining hidden Nazi plots or killers, the influence of the Nazi government still plays a big role in the murder investigation elements of the book, especially as the protagonist and his colleagues must worry about high-level party members protecting the criminals. These elements proved to be an outstanding part of the book, and I really appreciated how well Scarrow worked it into the main plot of the book.
As with the rest of the series, Scarrow does some excellent character work in A Death in Berlin, bringing together a complex cast of characters to work the case, each of whom are dealing with their own issues associated with Nazi-controlled Germany. The most prominent of these is the protagonist and main point-of-view character, CI Horst Schenke, a former race car driver turned police investigator. While generally shown to be a studious and steadfast lawman, Schenke’s life has become even more complicated due to his growing dislike of the Nazis and his refusal to join the party, much to the displeasure of his superiors. It is fascinating to see the seemingly strait-laced Schenke walking the line between doing the right thing and surviving the Nazis, especially as he has fallen in love with the fiery Ruth, a Jewish woman who has managed to stay hidden in Berlin after the first purges. Many of Schenke’s more radical actions in this book are driven by his complicated relationship with Ruth, and you really grow attached to both characters, especially when their secret relationship causes great risk for them.
Other great characters A Death in Berlin include Schenke’s main police backup, Sergeant Hauser and former Gestapo agent Liebwitz. These two prove to be an excellent double act behind Schenke, as not only do the three form an effective crime fighting force, but they also showcase alternate viewpoints of Germany during this period. Hauser is a former World War I soldier and family man, who is the classic everyman figure who supports the Nazi regime. Despite this, he merely wants to support his country and has some doubts about the more extreme actions of Hitler. Liebwitz is a more unusual figure, who honestly steals the show in some ways. An exceedingly logical figure who has gravitated away from the Gestapo to be a police investigator, Liebwitz finds his life still bound by his Nazi training, despite the many flaws he sees in it, and he is well used as a compelling alternative point-of-view character. However, as with the previous book, the influence of Schenke and the investigation of crimes that show the true evils of the Nazis are slowly changing Liebwitz’s way of thinking, and it will be fascinating to see where Scarrow takes his character arc in the future. Throw in a series of entertaining and over-the-top Berlin criminals and the cast of A Death in Berlin is quite entertaining, and I really enjoyed how their complicated arcs impacted the overall narrative.
Simon Scarrow continues his outstanding Berlin Wartime Thriller series in a massive way with the captivating and impressive novel, A Death in Berlin. Combining a great crime fiction narrative with a clever historical background setting, A Death of Berlin proved quite addictive, and I had an incredible time getting through it.
The Unseen Library 