A news anchor announces her own murder live on TV.
A series of murders and a mysterious off-screen voice keep Vienna in suspense.
My book tip.
What kind of situation does it have to be when you announce your own assassination as a news anchor?
What happens to you at that moment?
Presenter Nadine Just read this message from the teleprompter in front of the camera.
She can't really classify it.
The live broadcast was canceled far too late.
When the presenter's body is found, the investigators are groping in the dark.
Ursula Poznanski "Silence bleeds": About the book
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Ursula Poznanski "Silence bleeds" - the start of the series
© Dromer
Ursula Poznanski "Silence bleeds": This is revealed in the blurb
A few words make the up-and-coming Viennese newsreader Nadine Just famous overnight: In front of the camera she announces her murder - two hours later she is dead!
The same applies to blogger Gunther Marzik after a very similar announcement.
While the Austrian media world is upside down, the hashtag #inKurzetot is trending, copycat posts and memes are flooding the internet.
How is the young investigator Fina Plank supposed to distinguish between a real lead, a bad joke or a simple fake in the five-man team of the Viennese »murder group«?
Eventually, Fina's investigations focus on Nadine's ex-boyfriend Tibor Glaser, a slick advertising man and womanizer who desperately protests his innocence.
Dromer
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Crime time in a friendly atmosphere: Ursula Poznanski reads from her thriller "Silence bleeds" in the Young Church.
© Marion Schwarzmann
At the beginning of the investigation, Nadine's ex-boyfriend Tibor Glaser gets caught in the crosshairs of the investigators.
He is considered a womanizer and a slick advertising and media man.
But during the first hesitant investigation attempts, another murder occurs.
Similarly announced.
Shortly thereafter, all hell broke loose on social media.
The Viennese team of investigators has their hands full sorting through and following up all possible clues.
The prelude reminded me a bit of "Mimik" by Sebastian Fitzek.
Here, a microresonance expert has to analyze a video for the police of a woman confessing to the murder of her family.
The woman in the video is herself. With Ursula Poznanski, the two investigators, Serafina Plank and Oliver Homberg, still have to get used to each other a little.
There is still a lot of crunching in the collegial relationship.
But this makes the start of the series all the more vivid.
Social media also take center stage here, as in “Poppy” by Kristine Getz and “Devil's Net” by Max Seeck.
Which postings are genuine, which belong to free riders?
Ursula Poznanski: Successful with thrillers and young adult novels
Ursula Poznanski is no stranger.
For years she has been one of the most sought-after authors in the German-speaking world for young adult books and crime fiction.
She writes some of the thrillers together with Arno Strobel.
In 2011 she received the German Youth Literature Prize for her young adult novel “Erebos” (advertising link).
Between the investigative work and the detailed figures, an off-screen voice appears again and again, addressing the reader directly.
What is the purpose of this voice?
She becomes more and more involved in the current investigations and events.
The voice refers to Georg Trakl's poem "To the Silenced", which is printed on the back cover of the book.
The intention behind it remains open.
Perhaps the other series parts will bring light into the darkness.
Ursula Poznanski "Silence bleeds": My conclusion
With "Silence bleeds" Ursula Poznanski makes a strong thriller start.
This is the right recommendation for anyone looking for an exciting and fast-paced book.
I'm really looking forward to the continuation of the series, which will be released in March with "Böses Licht".
Ursula Poznanski "Silence Bleeds"
2022, Droemer-Knaur ISBN-13 978-3-426-22689-6
Price: Paperback €16.99, e-book €12.99, 400 pages (varies in format)
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Ursula Poznanski
Ursula Poznanski lives with her family in Vienna.
The former medical journalist is one of the most successful authors in the German language.
List of rubrics: © Zielinski