Stasi Child: The award-winning Cold War crime thriller (The Oberleutnant Karin Müller series)

It's East Berlin 1975 and Karin Muller is called to investigate a teenage girl's body at the foot of the wall. When she arrives at the crime scene she is startled to find the Ministry for State Security (Stasi) there rather than the Border Police. This girl was trying to escape over the wall. But, strangely, from the West into the East. Muller is tasked to uncover the identity of the girl but only as part of a Missing Persons investigation, not as the murder which has obviously taken place. The Stasi discourage her questions and it soon becomes clear there is a deeper more sinister crime taking place behind the scenes, of which Muller is not to seek knowledge. Her colleague Tilsner wants them taken off the case, understanding the complications of working "alongside" the Stasi and how it will limit and compromise their investigation but Muller is principled, of a curious mind and proud to be the only female head of a Murder Squad in the whole country. She continues to investigate the crime despite the dangerous path it will set her on. Young wastes no time grabbing the reader and pulling them quickly into the complications of a dark, foreboding crime scene. The book opens with Muller waking with a hangover and a creeping realisation that she has spent the night away from her husband Gottfried and with her colleague Tilsner instead. Tilsner is insolent and disrespectful; Muller full of remorse and reprisal. The detailed description of her headaches, Tilsner's apartment and their actions is so grim and distasteful it fills the reader with a sense of foreboding tension from the outset. Having fought so hard to survive in a man's world and gain the impressive position as Head of Murder Squad, Muller is anxious that she could not have "people calling her a whore". Already the sense that Muller has a fight ahead of her is implied. The already dark and aggressive atmosphere only becomes more sinister and grim with their visit to the cemetery where the body of a murdered girl has been discovered. Young writes of "ever darkening clouds in the sky" and alongside the strained relationship between the colleagues, the unpleasant dialogue and behaviour of Tilsney towards Muller and the fierce, unapproachable, threatening and secretive nature of the Stasi, the stage is set for a thriller of the most bleak and riveting kind. The narrative then switches to 1974 and a Jugenwerkhof - a Youth Reformatory School. Here Young evokes the cruel brutality of the children's routine and daily life. There is no hiding from the relentless barrage of violence and abuse in this novel. It is graphic at times but simultaneously compelling, enthralling and engrossing. I had read almost a third of the book without even noticing and found it hard to break away from. The mystery continues to unfold at a rapid pace. Why are the Stasi so keen to hide the truth? Who has gone to so much trouble to "stage" the murder and interfere with the evidence? Who is this girl and why is it so difficult to identify her? The fascinating thing about this criminal investigation is how the lines of enquiry are controlled by the Stasi. Muller is frequently prevented from fully accessing information and she is repeatedly warned not to challenge the official version of the girl's death: "You have exceeded the terms of your inquiry" and Muller will be arrested if "you don't comply." She "shivers from the implied threats (from the Stasi) as much as the cold." But she remains prepared to "search every corner of the Republic to find the identity of the girl" and I loved the added suspense that this angle brought to the novel. The pressure and heightened hostility about not being able to fully investigate a crime and the anxiety of repercussions if you do, really enhance the gritty atmosphere of this engaging, page turning read. Muller's husband Gottfried then becomes a more central character. Fundamentally Karin conforms to the communist regime although her compassion and principled nature will begin to challenge this and adds a further complexity to her character. But Gottfried is already under suspicion from the authorities - this is a risk to Karin in her position, mixed up with the further issue that the couple are unhappy and unkind to each other. The dramatic events which surround Gottfried are so well captured that at times it is impossible to tear your eyes away from the pages even though the brutality, violence and torture are quite harrowing. I loved the way the prose became more bleak and was reduced to its most basic form in order to accentuate the harshness of the Stasi. "Night time: light on light off on off on off" and "Another night. Another day. Another night.....this hellish place." Young's historical detail is so vivid and well researched that the atmosphere, characters and situations are authentic and believable. His knowledge of the procedures in a Stasi prison is impressive and ensure that every aspect of this novel is convincing and credible. The reader is completely immersed in 1975 East Germany. Alongside all this, the story of Irma and her attempts to escape from the Jugendwerkhof continue. Also the narrative of nightmares. The three story lines weave themselves together as the plot thickens and charges towards a brilliant ending. It is a very gripping read. The most impressive thing about this novel is Young's ability to transport the reader back in time to a regime of repression, oppression, fear, mistrust and accusation. It's such an interesting era in which to set a crime as it is the perfect backdrop for stories of corruption and intimidation. Young's thorough research and attention to historical detail does not overburden or detract from the plot in any way - it actually enhances it. There is no need to have any prior knowledge or familiarity with the historical and social context, it's an accessible and fast paced read. It is a claustrophobic read; the setting and the characters are so vividly depicted that the atmosphere of paranoia oozes from every page. It really is a well observed and exciting crime novel that reads with such fluidity and expertise it's was a surprise to find out this was Young's debut novel. I was convinced it must have been part of an established series but now of course am in the fortunate position of being able to look forward to many more episodes in the Karin Muller series! With the current rise in "Nordic Noir" fiction and Television series and the equally engrossing and powerful programme "Deutschland 83", this book is a timely release and will appeal to all fans of this genre. For lovers of crime and detective fiction it will undoubtedly deliver you a 5 star read. Muller is a strong female character and I hope to follow her career in the Murder Squad for many more years! Currently this book is available on Kindle for £1.79 - this is ridiculously cheap and I urge you to download it! Amazon reviews have rated it 4.5/5 and on Goodreads it has an equally impressive 4/5 star rating. The book sits in the WHSmith top 20 and also in its "Hottest Books of the Week" section. So don't just take my word for it - grab yourself a copy and go back to an all too frighteningly recent period in European History for an "edge of your seat", "breathtaking" ride from which Young refuses to let you leave until you have turned the very last page! For more recommendations, reviews and bookish chat please follow me on Twitter @katherinesunde3 (bibliomaniacUK)

This book is set in the GDR (German Democratic Republic) or the Deutsche Demokratische Republik as the Germans would call it. The story is set in 1974 in East Berlin and begins when the body of a young girl is found at the bottom of the Berlin Wall (die Mauer) or as the East Germans called it the ‘Anti Fascist Protection Barrier’. Oberleutnant Karen Mueller (of the Volkspolizei or People’s Police) is called to investigate but when she arrives at the scene of the crime, she finds that the Stasi have become involved and over the course of the investigation it becomes clear to Mueller that all is not what it first appears to be. The investigation takes Mueller right to the heart of the GDR regime. Now before I start I just want to state that this book dealt with subjects which are very close to my heart & my interests. I have a degree in German, studied (& loved) modern German history and I love visiting Germany to experience the culture and people. I had high hopes for this book and I was not to be disappointed. I honestly & truly LOVED this book. It is very well written and very well structured. In fact I found it hard to believe that it was a debut novel, it really is that good. The language used & style of writing really does convey the grim conditions & atmosphere of the time. The GDR really was a secretive state which tried to control its people. Nobody knew who to trust and it was a regime which encouraged everybody to spy on each other & to inform the state of anything which could damage the regime. Quite often this meant that there was a sort of battle where man was pitted against wife, brother against sister, child against parents & friend against friend. This story really is a frightening insight into how such a state machine operated. The characters in ‘Stasi Child’ were well formed and convincing. I took to Karen right for the start and by the end of the book I really did feel rather sorry for her. Most of her superiors were shady characters who have something or somebody to hide. Subjects dealt with in this book include murder, violence, child abuse, corruption, betrayal and secrecy. The reader has to remember though that this book is set in the 1970s and attitudes of that time are different to attitudes of today. This book is full of red herrings, twists and turns. The author is convincing in the language he uses and he really knows how to ramp up the sense of drama as well as build a high level of tension. Reading this book became like an addiction to me in that you just had to read on. Just a page more, just a chapter more etc. In fact this book was responsible for more than one sleepless night as I couldn’t wait to get up in the morning and read on. The storyline and characters just kept whirring in my head. Whilst reading this book I often felt like I was back in Berlin and revisiting old haunts, as the descriptions of the city in the book were so vivid and convincing. This book makes me feel nostalgic and has reignited my desire to go back to Germany and learn more about its history post 1945. This is a brilliant first novel and I can’t wait to read more in the Karen Mueller series. It is my view that this series would be easily adaptable to and make an excellent television drama series.

I have just finished reading this thriller ‘Stasi Child’ and whilst it is still fresh in my mind I thought to write few lines about it! I I also have other two novels of this author which I still have to read and will review them seperately. I am a big fan of crime thriller novels dated back in DDR or Stalin era.. I loved ‘Child 44’ and was expecting this one at similar level but while it was a good read it sat below my expectation level. I wasn’t too excited with the ending and also didn’t like flashbacks to ths girl story as it gave away very early on as who is the murdered girl.. I think author could have made ending more thrilling/dramatic by bringing the killer which reader was not expecting! All in all good novel and a good historical read but Child 44 fans will end up disappointed!

This is a well written police procedural story rather unusually told from the eastern side of the Berlin Wall (known as the anti fascist protection rampart in the East) in the 70s. There's a good introduction explaining the hierarchy in the East German police which makes for a smooth start and easy understanding. It reads very well and seems authentic as well as recalling much from the era like Praktica cameras and Polaroids. It seemed very well researched and realistic, if somewhat uninvitingly set within such a bleak landscape. I found it a little difficult to warm to the chief protagonist Oberleutnant Karin Muller maybe partly because of the setting but I did however warm to the parallel story of Irma, set in the even harsher environment of a children's reform home. Although most of the book is quite absorbing despite the dismal surroundings I didn't think the latter part was totally in keeping with the rest of the book. The police procedural turned into more of a thriller but somehow I didn't quite feel as much thrill as I'd like. The ending wraps up rather speedily and a little too tidily apart from the one execution scene which I still don't know whether was an example of what can happen to anyone or was I meant to know who the the prisoner was? I don't want to sound too negative as this is still a very good book and feels quite unique in its concept. There is violence including abuse, corporal punishment and torture though it didn't seem over the top. I didn't notice much swearing. Whilst sex is mentioned it is not in intimate detail. There are occasions where German words are used without explanation, most of them I understood and when I got to the end of the kindle book I discovered a glossary! Overall an impressive debut.

This is an atmospheric and exciting thriller debut, featuring Oberleutnant Karin Muller and her deputy, Unterleutnant Werner Tilsner. The book is set in East Berlin, 1975, and begins when Muller and Tilsner are called to investigate the mutilated body of a young girl by the Berlin Wall – or, as it is named in East Germany, the ‘Anti-Fascist Protection Barrier.’ Both Muller and Tilsner are wary when they discover a Stasi officer, Klaus Jager, is already there and that they will be assisting him, at his request. This is no normal case of a youth attempting to jump the wall, as this girl seems to have been fleeing from the West and escaping into the East… I really found this an unusual and interesting novel, with great characters and an excellent setting. Karin Muller is an ambitious officer, who buys totally into the system that she works in, while her husband Gottfried is viewed by suspicion by the authorities. However, as Karin begins to investigate who the victim is, she begins to realise that not all is at it seems and that Jager has his own reasons for choosing her to look into this most sensitive enquiry. East Germany during the years before the Wall fell was very much a different world from the West and the author captures this period well. There is a great deal of mistrust and an atmosphere of informing on all levels – from being spied on by the authorities to nosy neighbours trying to pick up valuable snippets that they can use. The book alternates between Karin Muller’s investigation and the events which led a young girl to become a victim. Fast paced, unsettling and with a fabulous ending, I really hope that this will become a series and we get to meet Karin Muller again. Lastly, I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

This was a clearly written book with a fast-moving storyline. I'm old enough to remember the fear that the Stasi's reputation used instil, even though I had no connection with the countries behind the iron curtain; reading this book brought back some uncomfortable memories. I have no idea how much research went into the writing of this book but the story rang very true with one possible exception: the prevalence of rape by men in power and the resulting cover-up. To what extent did this sort of thing actually happen? I found the harshness of some other incidents (such as the unfair control over members of the population) a bit disturbing but again, this all ties in with what was reported in the British press at the time. In summary, then, I say it is a good read, a page-turner of a book and something that members of the youger generation would find useful in order to get an impression of what it was like to live in the old East Germany.

I loved this book, it's such a brilliant page turner I was awake until 1.30am finishing it. It's not my usual genre of choice but it was recommended to me by a friend and it had me gripped from the beginning. I particularly liked the way the book manages to evoke the era of cold war East Germany - while it's not really so far in the past it seems much more distant and I was shocked to be reminded of how truly nightmarish it was. Yes there are grim places in the world right now, but a country - so close to us - that was hellish enough to make children risk their lives to escape seems almost unbelievable. The attention to detail is truly impressive and makes the story - although shocking - very believable. The book also cleverly challenges our black and white view of goodies and baddies - the way we assume all sensible people must have detested the regime and seen it as flawed and evil. It's a brave move to have the lead character believe that East was good and West was bad and to be reminded that many people supported the regime not through fear but because they believed in it. I loved the period detail, the twists and the wonderful evocation of a dark and desperate society. I'm not sure I liked Karin but she's a fascinating character and I definitely want to hear from her again! I hope there's more to follow ...

This is a good read and different in many respects from others of similar genre. It is set in the mid 1970's in the DDR ( one of the most cruel, evil and corrupt countries in history). The central character is a civil police officer who has been promoted to murder investigation. Despite her position, she is always accountable to and fearful of, the Stasi who wield the real power. She is dynamic, reasonable, ambitious and not hostile to her country. The story unfolds in two different times that, inexorably, come together to make sense of the end game. I won't say more about that to avoid spoiling it for others. There are many, many German references and names, most with which I was not familiar. On the Kindle version, there is a glossary of the terms but it's at the end when it should be at the beginning. What does unfold is a murder that is far from clear cut. There is a suggestion that the victim was killed by border guards from the west as she, the victim sought to escape to the east. I rather doubt that ever happened. Chapter after chapter is well written and makes it hard to put down. The tension increases until the identity of the killer is revealed. The book is not sympathetic to the vile regime of Honecker and his henchmen. There is a dubious reference to a policy of which I had never heard and which I found hard to accept. Not a bad start from this new author. If you like murder mystery from the Cold War period, you will enjoy this. I look forward to the next book although I am aware there are another 14 years before sanity was restored to this part of Europe.

Many British authors situated spy stories and police procedurals in Berlin. Think of John Le Carré, Len Deighton and Philip Kerr, all fluent German speakers who knew the city intimately. David Young’s debut novel may rank him as another great chronicler of Berlin, concentrating on East Berlin in 1975 (and the island of Rügen in 1974). Is it as thrilling and brilliant as the book reviews say on its cover? Two storylines chug along nicely and slowly converge: an unknown girl is found murdered in a cemetery near the Berlin Wall. Karin Müller, the detective-in-charge of the People’s Police soon becomes embroiled with the Stasi, the snooping internal security ministry, whose staff first support, then frustrate her investigations. Her travails are alternated with earlier (1974) accounts of youths incarcerated in a Hitler-built holiday complex turned juvenile prison on the island of Rügen, producing IKEA-type furniture items. David Young used the Stasi practice of turning 173.000 DDR citizens into snooping on their neighbours, workmates, husband or wife, etc. to illustrate their use of children. Well paced, authentic, great finish, but who is the man getting the “Genickschuss” in the penultimate chapter? More East Germany in Jo McMillan’s “Motherland”, another 2015 debut. And David Young has produced a sequel to this volume called "Stasi Wolf".

it was a very good read.....i'm looking forward to reading the whole series

Ik kreeg interesse in dit boek na alle Arkady Remko boeken. Het bleke bestaan in het Oostblok komt niet helemaal uit de verf maar de overduidelijke aanwezigheid van de Stasi wel. Het plot ontwikkelt zich in een fatsoenlijk tempo en het einde is goed in elkaar gezet. Lekker voor tussendoor dit boek.

This book is set when Berlin was a divided city and two very different forms of government and life style existed.

This novel describes life behind the Iron Curtain and what some people will do just to survive. It also shows the lengths that a dictatorial goverment will go to to control their people and hide their crimes.