The Murderer in Ruins by Cay Rademacher.

“The Murderer in Ruins” by Cay Rademacher. It was originally written in German with a publishing date of 2011, and it was then translated in 2015. The story takes place in the winter of 1946-47 in Hamburg, Germany, a port city and an industrial center which was repeatedly the target of Allied bombing runs throughout WWII. The city was nearly totally destroyed and the surviving citizens were without fuel to warm themselves during the brutal winter, without adequate food, without adequate housing, and without other needed supplies. Meanwhile, the entire country was struggling to survive. The population had been disrupted, millions of people had been killed, and DP’s (displaced persons – and there were millions of those) were either trying to get home or get to some place where they could survive. However, no one could get out of Hamburg because the port was ice-bound, and passenger trains were not available.

 

This story provides an accurate portrayal of the miserable life in Hamburg. At the same time, four murders occurred, all in a similar manner – obviously victims of the same murderer. The protagonist, Frank Stave, was the Chief Inspector of the Hamburg police. Just like the rest of the country, the police force was a mess. Anyone who was identified as a Nazi was fired, and the police force was left as a mostly inefficient and inadequate group. Also, they were expected to collaborate with the English who had occupied the city. Stave had already lost his wife in one of the bombings when he was working on a matter across the city from the target of the air raid. His 17-year-old son, against Stave’s wishes, had volunteered for the Russian front in response to his dislike of his father. Stave had been able to find any record that suggested his son had survived. By the way, there really were such murders in Hamburg during the winter of 46-47, and this is the authors well-researched fictional account of those events. 

 

I’ve read about the deprivation of the surviving Germans after WWII, but this story brings that suffering to a clearer picture than I’ve had before. The mystery of the murders was well played out with very compelling characters and events. This book gets a 5/5. According to a review in The Independent, “Undoubtedly the most powerful work of crime fiction I have read this year.” Fortunately, I’ve read a number of good books this year, but this is certainly one of the best.

 

Thanks to my friend and Russian History professor for the copy of this novel.