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Die Henkerstochter #2
The Dark Monk
1660: Winter has settled thick over a sleepy village in the Bavarian Alps, ensuring every farmer and servant is indoors on the night a parish priest discovers he's been poisoned. As numbness creeps up his body, he summons the last of his strength to scratch a cryptic sign in the frost.
Following a trail of riddles, hangman Jakob Kuisl, his headstrong daughter, Magdalena, and the town physician’s son team up with the priest’s aristocratic sister to investigate. What they uncover will lead them back to the Crusades, unlocking a troubled history of internal church politics and sending them on a chase for a treasure of the Knights Templar.
But they’re not the only ones after the legendary fortune. A team of dangerous and mysterious monks is always close behind, tracking their every move, speaking Latin in the shadows, giving off a strange, intoxicating scent. And to throw the hangman off their trail, they have ensured he is tasked with capturing a band of thieves roving the countryside attacking solitary travellers and spreading panic.
Delivering on the promise of the international bestseller The Hangman’s Daughter, Oliver Pötzsch takes us on a whirlwind tour through the occult hiding places of Bavaria’s ancient monasteries. Once again based on prodigious historical research into Pötzsch’s family tree, The Dark Monk brings to life an unforgettable, compassionate hangman and his tenacious daughter, painting a robust tableau of a seventeenth-century Bavaria and quickening our pulses with a gripping, mesmerizing mystery
463 pages, Paperback
First published April 3, 2009
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About the author
Oliver Pötzsch
37 books2,180 followersOliver Pötzsch is a German writer and filmmaker. After high school he attended the German School of Journalism in Munich from 1992 to 1997. He then worked for Radio Bavaria. In addition to his professional activities in radio and television, Pötzsch researched his family history. He is a descendant of the Kuisle, from the 16th to the 19th Century a famous dynasty of executioners in Schongau.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,626 reviews
July 21, 2022
Die Abenteuer von Jakob Kuisl, dem Henker von Schongau, seiner Tochter Magdalena und dem Medicus Simon Fronwieser gehen weiter.
Hier geht es um einen vergifteten Pfarrer und die Suche nach dem verborgenen Schatz der Templer. Wir sind im Jahr 1660.
Mir hat dieses Buch sehr viel Spaß gemacht. Es hatte eine tolle Atmosphäre, war spannend, unterhaltsam und auch lehrreich.
Auch war es stellenweise durchaus humorvoll. Ich mochte die zum Teil bissigen Dialoge, denn sowohl der Henker als auch seine Tochter als auch der Medicus sind sehr eigenwillige Figuren.
Sehr interessant fand ich auch die medizinischen Aspekte in diesem Buch. Wie damals geheilt (oder eben nicht geheilt) wurde, an was die Menschen glaubten,...
Insgesamt ein überaus gelungener Historischer Roman, und ich freue mich nun auf den nächsten Band der Reihe!
Hier geht es um einen vergifteten Pfarrer und die Suche nach dem verborgenen Schatz der Templer. Wir sind im Jahr 1660.
Mir hat dieses Buch sehr viel Spaß gemacht. Es hatte eine tolle Atmosphäre, war spannend, unterhaltsam und auch lehrreich.
Auch war es stellenweise durchaus humorvoll. Ich mochte die zum Teil bissigen Dialoge, denn sowohl der Henker als auch seine Tochter als auch der Medicus sind sehr eigenwillige Figuren.
Sehr interessant fand ich auch die medizinischen Aspekte in diesem Buch. Wie damals geheilt (oder eben nicht geheilt) wurde, an was die Menschen glaubten,...
Insgesamt ein überaus gelungener Historischer Roman, und ich freue mich nun auf den nächsten Band der Reihe!
April 7, 2020
”Immobilized with terror, Magdalena felt Brother Jakobus throw his whole weight against her and smelled the fire that had turned his robe into gigantic torch. Desperately, she tried to push away his burning body, but his hands held her in a tight grip down on the ground. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see how long strings of a sticky, viscous substance were dripping down on her. Brother Jakobus must have taken pitch from the buckets in the corridor and rubbed it all over his body. The crackling heat from his tunic almost caused her to faint. The monk was looking directly into her face now. Fire had burned off his hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes, and all that was left were two deranged, glowing white eyes and a black hole that had once been his mouth from which a high-pitched, almost childlike cry emanated.
‘Come back, Magdalena...!’”
Magdalena has a whole host of issues. She has a crazed monk who kidnaps her because she reminds him of the whore named Mary Magdalen who infected him with syphilis.
He wants to save her from becoming a wanton hussy.
Her father, Jakob Kuisl, is the hangman which in 17th century Bavarian culture means that she is considered unclean by all the village people, and therefore unfit for marriage to anyone, but another hangman. Philipp Hartmann, a hangman from the nearby town of Augsberg, has recently lost his wife and is looking for a new wife to raise his daughter. An unwanted marriage proposal is on the table along with glittering piles of guilders. She is in love with the local physician’s son Simon Fronwieser, but of course they can not and must not marry.
The local priest has been murdered most foul. A man of most prodigious eating habits he can not resist a pot of warm donuts smothered in honey. He can’t eat just one or two or three. They have this funny taste om nom nom...so good...om nom nom... aaugh... taaka taaka...THUD. Enter Benedikta Koppmeyer the sister of the priest and soon to be the bane of Magdalena’s existence. She is fluent in several languages. She runs her own wine business. She is handy with a sword or pistol. She is...well...beautiful. Anybody else hear the crack of vertebrae as Simon swiftly turns his head to have a long look at this creature?
Jealousy spiced with anger sends Magdalena down to a local pub to drown her sorrows in a cup or two of beer. This quickly turns into a GIRL GONE WILD moment with the local riff raff cheering her on. After all she is young, lovely, and curvy and even though the local boys can’t marry her there isn’t a single one that wouldn’t mind some time in a hayloft with her. What fear they have of her bloodline and more importantly of her oversized father can not compete with the lustful attractions of a brimming bodice.
Meanwhile Simon and Benedikta have formed a working partnership to investigate the murder of her brother and find themselves chasing clues from church to church with the goal of finding a lost Knights Templer treasure. Oh yes, of course, shadowy figures are waiting to pounce if they get too close to finding Templer secrets. There is this great moment when things are dire, when aren’t they in this tale, when Simon finds an attic over a church filled with tumbling piles of dusty books. He can’t help but sit, read, and marvel. He has found his treasure... to heck with the Knights Templer.
The more screams, the more money the Hangman makes. Every bone of the convicted criminal must be broken before the final blow can be administered.
Jakob Kuisl is busy chasing down robbers, villains, and performing his duties as executioner. Part of his job as hangman is to make sure that say when he breaks a man on the wheel that he does so in the most entertaining way for the assembled crowds. The people treat an execution like a county fair and such an affair is quite profitable to local merchants quenching the thirsts and needs of the raucous multitudes. It has been known in the past when a hangman does not produce enough screams and pleading from some poor wretch that the crowd takes out their frustrated blood lust on the hangman himself. Not so different today from watching parents at a little league baseball game disagreeing vehemently, sometimes frothily, with an umpire’s call.
As a backdrop to all this running around looking for treasures and robbers and dodging crazy monks scads of people are becoming sick with a cough and dying. So many that the graves of plague victims from a few years ago are needed for new corpses. Simon and Jakob (the hangman typically provided herbs and remedies to make extra cash.) both provide what aid they can, but as happens with science and medicine sometimes a mix-up provides the solution.
Oliver Potzsch contemplating taking up the family business.
What adds a bit of juice to these books is the fact that Oliver Potzsch is descended from a hangman named Jakob Kuisl. In fact he has traced his lineage to fourteen different hangmen in his family.
He is bona fide.
Books play a big part in the lives of the characters. They are treated with reverence and certainly that adds a compelling reason for me to enjoy this series. I like the characters. The plots are fine. They certainly work well to move these characters around and let us experience life in 17th century Bavaria. I could certainly see myself reading these on a train, a plane, a boat, an alien spacecraft, on a beach, a sun kissed verandah or curled in my reading chair, and be perfectly entertained. Next up in the series is The Beggar King.
Not to be missed! My scintillating (I'm biased) review of the first book in the series Hangman's Daughter.
‘Come back, Magdalena...!’”
Magdalena has a whole host of issues. She has a crazed monk who kidnaps her because she reminds him of the whore named Mary Magdalen who infected him with syphilis.
He wants to save her from becoming a wanton hussy.
Her father, Jakob Kuisl, is the hangman which in 17th century Bavarian culture means that she is considered unclean by all the village people, and therefore unfit for marriage to anyone, but another hangman. Philipp Hartmann, a hangman from the nearby town of Augsberg, has recently lost his wife and is looking for a new wife to raise his daughter. An unwanted marriage proposal is on the table along with glittering piles of guilders. She is in love with the local physician’s son Simon Fronwieser, but of course they can not and must not marry.
The local priest has been murdered most foul. A man of most prodigious eating habits he can not resist a pot of warm donuts smothered in honey. He can’t eat just one or two or three. They have this funny taste om nom nom...so good...om nom nom... aaugh... taaka taaka...THUD. Enter Benedikta Koppmeyer the sister of the priest and soon to be the bane of Magdalena’s existence. She is fluent in several languages. She runs her own wine business. She is handy with a sword or pistol. She is...well...beautiful. Anybody else hear the crack of vertebrae as Simon swiftly turns his head to have a long look at this creature?
Jealousy spiced with anger sends Magdalena down to a local pub to drown her sorrows in a cup or two of beer. This quickly turns into a GIRL GONE WILD moment with the local riff raff cheering her on. After all she is young, lovely, and curvy and even though the local boys can’t marry her there isn’t a single one that wouldn’t mind some time in a hayloft with her. What fear they have of her bloodline and more importantly of her oversized father can not compete with the lustful attractions of a brimming bodice.
Meanwhile Simon and Benedikta have formed a working partnership to investigate the murder of her brother and find themselves chasing clues from church to church with the goal of finding a lost Knights Templer treasure. Oh yes, of course, shadowy figures are waiting to pounce if they get too close to finding Templer secrets. There is this great moment when things are dire, when aren’t they in this tale, when Simon finds an attic over a church filled with tumbling piles of dusty books. He can’t help but sit, read, and marvel. He has found his treasure... to heck with the Knights Templer.
The more screams, the more money the Hangman makes. Every bone of the convicted criminal must be broken before the final blow can be administered.
Jakob Kuisl is busy chasing down robbers, villains, and performing his duties as executioner. Part of his job as hangman is to make sure that say when he breaks a man on the wheel that he does so in the most entertaining way for the assembled crowds. The people treat an execution like a county fair and such an affair is quite profitable to local merchants quenching the thirsts and needs of the raucous multitudes. It has been known in the past when a hangman does not produce enough screams and pleading from some poor wretch that the crowd takes out their frustrated blood lust on the hangman himself. Not so different today from watching parents at a little league baseball game disagreeing vehemently, sometimes frothily, with an umpire’s call.
As a backdrop to all this running around looking for treasures and robbers and dodging crazy monks scads of people are becoming sick with a cough and dying. So many that the graves of plague victims from a few years ago are needed for new corpses. Simon and Jakob (the hangman typically provided herbs and remedies to make extra cash.) both provide what aid they can, but as happens with science and medicine sometimes a mix-up provides the solution.
Oliver Potzsch contemplating taking up the family business.
What adds a bit of juice to these books is the fact that Oliver Potzsch is descended from a hangman named Jakob Kuisl. In fact he has traced his lineage to fourteen different hangmen in his family.
He is bona fide.
Books play a big part in the lives of the characters. They are treated with reverence and certainly that adds a compelling reason for me to enjoy this series. I like the characters. The plots are fine. They certainly work well to move these characters around and let us experience life in 17th century Bavaria. I could certainly see myself reading these on a train, a plane, a boat, an alien spacecraft, on a beach, a sun kissed verandah or curled in my reading chair, and be perfectly entertained. Next up in the series is The Beggar King.
Not to be missed! My scintillating (I'm biased) review of the first book in the series Hangman's Daughter.
abandoned
January 6, 2022DNF at 25%
I liked the 1st installment in the series and I decided to give The Hangman and his crew another chance. This time I found the book not so well written, full of coincidences, unrealistic and with flat characters. Maybe I was in a bad mood but there are so many historical mysteries out there so I will not spend too much time with a book I do not enjoy.
I liked the 1st installment in the series and I decided to give The Hangman and his crew another chance. This time I found the book not so well written, full of coincidences, unrealistic and with flat characters. Maybe I was in a bad mood but there are so many historical mysteries out there so I will not spend too much time with a book I do not enjoy.
August 7, 2018
Translated into English as The Dark Monk
The priest of the St. Lorenz Church has been killed in a rather bizarre manner (I will NEVER eat a bowl of honeyed noodles again!), and the promising young doctor Simon Fronwieser is itching to get his hands on the mystery behind it. Beats having to listen to his father's constant disgruntled lectures, and watching the town folk slowly waste away of yet another mysterious fever.
So first things first, he calls on the Hangman for help, because Jakob Kuisl is a bear of a man! Which is an excellent attribute to have when you're unsure whether the murderer is still lurking around. In his usual tacit manner, the executioner gamely takes part in the proceedings, grumbling all the way about the idiocy of his (unlikely) future son-in-law's bumbling attempts to avoid getting killed.
St. Michael's Basilica from Altenstadt, as it looks today.
The hangman's daughter Magdalena, for her part, is also interested in the mysterious death. I mean, she's interested in Simon's investigations to be precise, because her wayward beau is often caught staring googly-eyed at the late priest's beautiful sister.
On their way to deciphering the clues left by the Templar Knights, our heroes get to explore the underground crypts of the St. Lorenz Church in Altenstadt, look around the cemetery of the St. Michael's Basilica in Altenstadt, journey to the up-and-coming Abbey in Steingaden... and the executioner also finds some time to explore the hidden caves behind the Shleier waterfalls. More by necessity, than having actual time to spare.
Schleier Waterfall
For the full list of places, check out the annexed travel guide at the end of the book. The author provides directions, along with ample descriptions of all the places mentioned. And let me tell you guys... am I tempted to go and see them for myself!
From a character development point of view, this book poked around in the executioner's past as a mercenary during the 30 year war, where the reader can find the root of his reluctance for his official job. Aside from all the public shunning, I mean.
Wessobrunn Abbey as it looks today.
Magdalena's path gave me a really disturbing view into medieval society's view on women. Not only were they dis-considered on principle, but Heaven Forbid you were born to an executioner. You'd best hope you're Wonder Woman on steroids, or you might as well resign yourself to an early death. I lost count how many times the word "whore" has been bandied about, ironically enough precisely due to Magdalena's reluctance to act like one.
Simon on the other hand, was just awful. Not only did he constantly strut around town akin to a peacock, preening in the local girls admiring looks, but he also frequently yearns for anything foreign and rich. Which of course leads him to overlook some of the most obvious hints that he is being duped. He definitely didn't deserve the ending he got! Talk about getting off scott free: UGH!
Tassilo lime tree,one of the hiding places for the clues.
Score: 3.3 /5 stars
Obviously there is only one DaVinci Code, and everything else is just second rate. Still, I cannot deny that I enjoyed following our heroes to various abbeys, churches and towns in search of clues. The well-written action scenes were also a nice addition. I wasn't too keen on the amount of religious jargon thrown my way, not that there was any alternative, given the subject matter.
==================
Review of book 1: The Hangman's Daughter
The priest of the St. Lorenz Church has been killed in a rather bizarre manner (I will NEVER eat a bowl of honeyed noodles again!), and the promising young doctor Simon Fronwieser is itching to get his hands on the mystery behind it. Beats having to listen to his father's constant disgruntled lectures, and watching the town folk slowly waste away of yet another mysterious fever.
So first things first, he calls on the Hangman for help, because Jakob Kuisl is a bear of a man! Which is an excellent attribute to have when you're unsure whether the murderer is still lurking around. In his usual tacit manner, the executioner gamely takes part in the proceedings, grumbling all the way about the idiocy of his (unlikely) future son-in-law's bumbling attempts to avoid getting killed.
St. Michael's Basilica from Altenstadt, as it looks today.
The hangman's daughter Magdalena, for her part, is also interested in the mysterious death. I mean, she's interested in Simon's investigations to be precise, because her wayward beau is often caught staring googly-eyed at the late priest's beautiful sister.
On their way to deciphering the clues left by the Templar Knights, our heroes get to explore the underground crypts of the St. Lorenz Church in Altenstadt, look around the cemetery of the St. Michael's Basilica in Altenstadt, journey to the up-and-coming Abbey in Steingaden... and the executioner also finds some time to explore the hidden caves behind the Shleier waterfalls. More by necessity, than having actual time to spare.
Schleier Waterfall
For the full list of places, check out the annexed travel guide at the end of the book. The author provides directions, along with ample descriptions of all the places mentioned. And let me tell you guys... am I tempted to go and see them for myself!
From a character development point of view, this book poked around in the executioner's past as a mercenary during the 30 year war, where the reader can find the root of his reluctance for his official job. Aside from all the public shunning, I mean.
Wessobrunn Abbey as it looks today.
Magdalena's path gave me a really disturbing view into medieval society's view on women. Not only were they dis-considered on principle, but Heaven Forbid you were born to an executioner. You'd best hope you're Wonder Woman on steroids, or you might as well resign yourself to an early death. I lost count how many times the word "whore" has been bandied about, ironically enough precisely due to Magdalena's reluctance to act like one.
Simon on the other hand, was just awful. Not only did he constantly strut around town akin to a peacock, preening in the local girls admiring looks, but he also frequently yearns for anything foreign and rich. Which of course leads him to overlook some of the most obvious hints that he is being duped. He definitely didn't deserve the ending he got! Talk about getting off scott free: UGH!
Tassilo lime tree,one of the hiding places for the clues.
Score: 3.3 /5 stars
Obviously there is only one DaVinci Code, and everything else is just second rate. Still, I cannot deny that I enjoyed following our heroes to various abbeys, churches and towns in search of clues. The well-written action scenes were also a nice addition. I wasn't too keen on the amount of religious jargon thrown my way, not that there was any alternative, given the subject matter.
==================
Review of book 1: The Hangman's Daughter
August 27, 2018
UPDATE 8/27/18 ... two weeks after putting it down, I went back to The Dark Monk and finished it. The story is, to me, still a mishmash of action scenes with too many characters and no coherence ... but something made me keep reading and, in truth, enjoying the ride more than I did for the first half of the book ... upped my rating to 3*** instead of 2
***
I have read past 50% and now put it down ... there is a continuing series of often unrelated action scenes ... very little character development or reflective historical context ... I feel like I'm on a roller coaster ride with no goal in sight, except more of the same ... so I'm getting off
I know I'm in the minority here on Goodreads, but that's my honest reaction.
***
I have read past 50% and now put it down ... there is a continuing series of often unrelated action scenes ... very little character development or reflective historical context ... I feel like I'm on a roller coaster ride with no goal in sight, except more of the same ... so I'm getting off
I know I'm in the minority here on Goodreads, but that's my honest reaction.
January 25, 2019
The second installment of the seven-part-series felt like a cross of a danbrownish riddle paired with indianajonesque treasure hunting and a good dash of Name of the Rose feeling and I quite liked it. Reading this helped me get my mind off things that bothered me during the day. There are not that many entertainment novels that can do that. One can skim the text without missing too much of the plot and be done with it in a day or two. Or you can read it thoroughly and be rewarded with some interesting details from the “Pfaffenwinkel” (the region in Southern Bavaria where the books are set) and its history in the 17th century, and it’s fun to google along and lookup characters, places and, especially this case, churches and monasteries. The atmosphere seems just right. The prose is unassuming, but quite readable. The author even added a little travel guide through the Pfaffenwinkel at the end of the book. I think I’m going to continue with the series.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
March 2, 2013
I really wanted to like this series. It has so much going for it. A Bavarian town in the 17th century in the aftermath of The Thirty Years War, a not-so-usual backdrop for historical fiction (mostly we get Tudor England served up this way over and over again). A central character who is the town's hangman, the latest in a dynasty of executioners, his father and grandfather having had the job before him. As the town's hangman, he is treated like a pariah, part of an untouchable caste that includes the tanners of the village. But although he is an executioner, he is not, as he tells a highwayman he is meting out justice to, a murderer. He is a complicated character, coarse, conflicted, but also intelligent, pragmatic, and humane. And he is a healer, concocting and administering traditional - and effective - remedies from nature's pharmacopeia. There are other equally interesting characters, or at least they have the potential to be, but here in this second book they all get pretty much flattened out, pressed under the weight of an overly complicated, overly scripted, and at times unnecessarily lurid plot line that often becomes tedious and all too predictable. Too bad. Maybe the third one is better??
August 26, 2019
''Potvrdilo mi je divljenje smrtnika da je najveće, to što zemlje nije bilo, niti neba gore, nijednog drveta, ni brijega nije bilo, ni sunce nije sjalo, ni mjeseca nije bilo, ni moćnoga mora.''
⚔
Crni redovnik drugi je roman iz serijala Krvnikova kći, koji je nastao nakon što je Oliver Pötzsch istražio svoje, kako se ispostavilo, bogato obiteljsko stablo unatrag nekoliko stoljeća. Istraživanje je autora dovelo do spoznaje da je potomak obitelji Kuisl, najglasovitije bavarske dinastije krvnika od 16. do 19. stoljeća. Od Jakoba Kuisla i Magdalene Kuisl, Jakobove kćeri, imena koje je pronašao u svom obiteljskom stablu, autor je stvorio serijal od 7 knjiga.
⚔
Crni redovnik, baš kao i Krvnikova kći, fantastičan je spoj povijesne fikcije i kriminalističkog romana. Dašak mračnog srednjeg vijeka, osebujni likovi (jer, glavni lik je krvnik!), neodoljiva misterija još jednom su me osvojili. Na kraju romana autor je priložio i svojevrsni turistički vodič, lokacije na kojima su se odvijale avanture i nevolje krvnika Jakoba, kćeri mu Magdalene i medikusa Simona. Topla preporuka od mene! 🤗
⚔
Crni redovnik drugi je roman iz serijala Krvnikova kći, koji je nastao nakon što je Oliver Pötzsch istražio svoje, kako se ispostavilo, bogato obiteljsko stablo unatrag nekoliko stoljeća. Istraživanje je autora dovelo do spoznaje da je potomak obitelji Kuisl, najglasovitije bavarske dinastije krvnika od 16. do 19. stoljeća. Od Jakoba Kuisla i Magdalene Kuisl, Jakobove kćeri, imena koje je pronašao u svom obiteljskom stablu, autor je stvorio serijal od 7 knjiga.
⚔
Crni redovnik, baš kao i Krvnikova kći, fantastičan je spoj povijesne fikcije i kriminalističkog romana. Dašak mračnog srednjeg vijeka, osebujni likovi (jer, glavni lik je krvnik!), neodoljiva misterija još jednom su me osvojili. Na kraju romana autor je priložio i svojevrsni turistički vodič, lokacije na kojima su se odvijale avanture i nevolje krvnika Jakoba, kćeri mu Magdalene i medikusa Simona. Topla preporuka od mene! 🤗
July 20, 2013
3 Stars
This is a really tough book for me to review. I really may have hyped up my feelings about the first book The Hangman's Daughter, as I really believed that it was a dark and dirty period piece with an awesome hero...The Hangman. It is really freaking cool that Oliver Potzsch has taken interest and explored so much about his families history. These books are fantastic pieces of historical fiction mysteries.
As I started to read The Dark Monk, I was confused and unclear with the audience that Potzsch was tailoring this novel for. Is this a young adult series? The writing is done in such a fashion that I couldn't help like feeling that I was reading a graphic novel. Jakob Kuisl would have fit right in among the legion of 300 if not for being so damned ugly. The writing is at times juvenile and filled with contradictions that I am not sure are done with humor in mind. Was Potzsch trying a pen "G-Rated" Joe Abercrombie novel?
Take for example a description of both sides of our hero....
He is a murderer, with a license to kill. He is Feared by all men. He is a giant of a man in every way. he is a loathed man. And a hated man. He is Strong as an ox and just as ugly. A grim looking giant who always smoked his pipe. He has a grisly face with misshaped oversized nose. He is a man of action without reservation. He has Tendons as thick as a mans fingers.
He also has a dog like snout for a nose(or horse like) that can sniff out just about anything.He is a healer equal to schooled doctors. He is a gentle family man more protective than a mother grisly bear. He is a pharmacist, a chemist, and an alchemist. He is an herb dr. who knows his plants and remedies. He is a tracker and knows the woods like no other. He is a respected man of the law. He fears no man or woman. He is an intelligent man of the mind that loves solving puzzles. He is as Precise as a Swiss watch.
He can just as easily inflict pain on you as he can take it away.
He is friends with caretakers, gravediggers, and disdained by all that are holy.
He is the HANGMAN! Jakob Kuisl
Other goofy points:
"I don't give a damn about Koppmeyer, but now they've gone too far. Nobody locks the hangman inside a coffin, no one, and certainly not bums and beggars like these!"
----haha "No one puts baby in a corner!"
"His years of hiking through the forest looking for herbs or hunting game had taught him how to blend in with his environment. If the wind was right, he could wait for deer to pass, then break its neck with one well-placed blow with the side his hand."
The protagonist is a scary dark, draped all in black. He has a hood to hide his face and his machinations. He carries a nasty, deadly, curved blade that is always wet with blood. He hides in the shadows and moves like a cat. Oh yeah did I mention that he smells like damn flowers. Our scary bad guy leaves a dainty smell of violets whenever he is near??
Although I enjoyed this novel enough to push through it. Was this supposed to comedic or cartoonish in nature. After all, there is a mystery and an adventure here in the vain of a Dan Brown novel that makes for a fun summer read. I was really expecting more. I hope that the later books can win me over again.
This is a really tough book for me to review. I really may have hyped up my feelings about the first book The Hangman's Daughter, as I really believed that it was a dark and dirty period piece with an awesome hero...The Hangman. It is really freaking cool that Oliver Potzsch has taken interest and explored so much about his families history. These books are fantastic pieces of historical fiction mysteries.
As I started to read The Dark Monk, I was confused and unclear with the audience that Potzsch was tailoring this novel for. Is this a young adult series? The writing is done in such a fashion that I couldn't help like feeling that I was reading a graphic novel. Jakob Kuisl would have fit right in among the legion of 300 if not for being so damned ugly. The writing is at times juvenile and filled with contradictions that I am not sure are done with humor in mind. Was Potzsch trying a pen "G-Rated" Joe Abercrombie novel?
Take for example a description of both sides of our hero....
He is a murderer, with a license to kill. He is Feared by all men. He is a giant of a man in every way. he is a loathed man. And a hated man. He is Strong as an ox and just as ugly. A grim looking giant who always smoked his pipe. He has a grisly face with misshaped oversized nose. He is a man of action without reservation. He has Tendons as thick as a mans fingers.
He also has a dog like snout for a nose(or horse like) that can sniff out just about anything.He is a healer equal to schooled doctors. He is a gentle family man more protective than a mother grisly bear. He is a pharmacist, a chemist, and an alchemist. He is an herb dr. who knows his plants and remedies. He is a tracker and knows the woods like no other. He is a respected man of the law. He fears no man or woman. He is an intelligent man of the mind that loves solving puzzles. He is as Precise as a Swiss watch.
He can just as easily inflict pain on you as he can take it away.
He is friends with caretakers, gravediggers, and disdained by all that are holy.
He is the HANGMAN! Jakob Kuisl
Other goofy points:
"I don't give a damn about Koppmeyer, but now they've gone too far. Nobody locks the hangman inside a coffin, no one, and certainly not bums and beggars like these!"
----haha "No one puts baby in a corner!"
"His years of hiking through the forest looking for herbs or hunting game had taught him how to blend in with his environment. If the wind was right, he could wait for deer to pass, then break its neck with one well-placed blow with the side his hand."
The protagonist is a scary dark, draped all in black. He has a hood to hide his face and his machinations. He carries a nasty, deadly, curved blade that is always wet with blood. He hides in the shadows and moves like a cat. Oh yeah did I mention that he smells like damn flowers. Our scary bad guy leaves a dainty smell of violets whenever he is near??
Although I enjoyed this novel enough to push through it. Was this supposed to comedic or cartoonish in nature. After all, there is a mystery and an adventure here in the vain of a Dan Brown novel that makes for a fun summer read. I was really expecting more. I hope that the later books can win me over again.
July 30, 2019
Volim povijesne romane, volim krimiće, a kad se to dvoje spoji u jedno, onda sam over the moon.. E taj je slučaj s romanima Olivera Potzscha koji, uz sve to, ima i vrlo originalne glavne likove- krvnika i njegov kći.
Činjenica da su mu to i preci samo je crvena mašnica na toj cijeloj, lijepo upakiranoj priči.
Jedva čekam nastavke!
Činjenica da su mu to i preci samo je crvena mašnica na toj cijeloj, lijepo upakiranoj priči.
Jedva čekam nastavke!
January 12, 2020
I really like this series. Apparently, the author actually is descended from a hangman.
This is the second in the series revolving around the hangman, his daughter, and her romantic interest, the town doctor's educated son.
In this story, we have a dead priest, bandits, a mystery involving the Templars, and a rival for Simon's affections. The conspiracy mystery is really nicely done and I loved all the flavor of the time.
Additionally, the travelogue after the book was nice too.
This is the second in the series revolving around the hangman, his daughter, and her romantic interest, the town doctor's educated son.
In this story, we have a dead priest, bandits, a mystery involving the Templars, and a rival for Simon's affections. The conspiracy mystery is really nicely done and I loved all the flavor of the time.
Additionally, the travelogue after the book was nice too.
April 29, 2014
I was very happy to spend more time with the complex Hangman of Schongau. I really love the Bavaria of the 17th Century the author re-creates . And, as with the first book in the series, I loved the "Author's Note" as much as the book. He is so tuned into his ancestry and the connection he feels to them through the stories his grandmother tells and those that he reads.
August 6, 2016
This is a reminder to myself not to read any more of this series. The story is too slow moving, the translation is full of anachronisms, and the characters have the emotional depth of teenagers. The book is about 200 pages too long - one long scavenger hunt.
September 7, 2019
Povijesni triler koji se ne ispušta iz ruku.
Fantastičan serijal i naravno da jedva čekam nastavke.
Fantastičan serijal i naravno da jedva čekam nastavke.
December 25, 2012
I would have rated this at a 4 if the author hadn't used so many modern terms in a medieval novel. Although set in 17th century what would become Germany, the book contains many modernisms. Each time I read one, I cringed. "There's nothing between me and Benedikta Koppmeyer." ".... she's off-limits." "You forget that Scheller has his big day tomorrow."
This is the second book in a series by a German author who has actually traced his ancestory back to a Jakob Kuisl, a hangman in the 17th century. The series, The Hangman's Daughter, revolves around Jakob Kuisl, a former mercenary in the war with the Swedish and a compassionate hangman, his daughter Magdalena and her "boyfriend" Simon, the son of the town's doctor. Boyfriend isn't exactly the correct term because in this era, the daughter of a hangman could only expect to marry a hangman or a butcher. No decent citizen would dream of marrying one.
The story starts out well - a fat, gluttonous priest falls dead on top of the slab covering a crypt, people think that he has simply overeaten. However, the hangman, also a talented "doctor" - oftentimes a secondary occupation of a hangman according to the book, although, of course, people would never admit to visiting him - determines that the priest has been poisoned. When he and Simon open the crypt and descend, they discover the tomb of a Knight Templar.
Eventually, they discover that they are being given clues to the location of something. That something appears to be the missing treasure of the Knights Templar which disappeared when they were persecuted and driven out of France. And so the journey starts.
I was not impressed by the last 1/4 of the book. It seemed that the author suddenly decided his book was turning out to be too long - it's 450 pages as it is - and decided to hurry.
But it is interesting. I won't read either of the other books currently in the series, but I'm not sorry I read this one.
This is the second book in a series by a German author who has actually traced his ancestory back to a Jakob Kuisl, a hangman in the 17th century. The series, The Hangman's Daughter, revolves around Jakob Kuisl, a former mercenary in the war with the Swedish and a compassionate hangman, his daughter Magdalena and her "boyfriend" Simon, the son of the town's doctor. Boyfriend isn't exactly the correct term because in this era, the daughter of a hangman could only expect to marry a hangman or a butcher. No decent citizen would dream of marrying one.
The story starts out well - a fat, gluttonous priest falls dead on top of the slab covering a crypt, people think that he has simply overeaten. However, the hangman, also a talented "doctor" - oftentimes a secondary occupation of a hangman according to the book, although, of course, people would never admit to visiting him - determines that the priest has been poisoned. When he and Simon open the crypt and descend, they discover the tomb of a Knight Templar.
Eventually, they discover that they are being given clues to the location of something. That something appears to be the missing treasure of the Knights Templar which disappeared when they were persecuted and driven out of France. And so the journey starts.
I was not impressed by the last 1/4 of the book. It seemed that the author suddenly decided his book was turning out to be too long - it's 450 pages as it is - and decided to hurry.
But it is interesting. I won't read either of the other books currently in the series, but I'm not sorry I read this one.
January 24, 2021
There is a tendency among historical mystery writers that seems almost impossible to break and which invariably makes a murder mystery series a different matter altogether from a standalone work. I speak of motivation. When you write your first novel it’s easy to explain why somebody would investigate the crime despite there being no such thing as a detective at that stage – it’s something personal. Someone you know, or possibly even yourself, is in danger and the only way to help is to find the real killer. It’s a good motive and one that’s hard to argue with. Society may not have had detectives or even private investigators, but people will do almost anything in desperation. And then you decide to write a sequel and there you are – motiveless. What could compel these characters to risk their lives to solve a crime? Do you repeat what you did before and place them in another oddly personal disaster? Or do you just wave your hands and just hope nobody asks why they’re involved? Neither is plausible, but what can you do?
Pötzsch has adopted the second option here, which meant that I spent the whole book questioning why things were happening. Simon and particularly Kuisl have no real reason beyond curiosity to get involved, and that’s a problem when curiosity gets people killed. There is at least a small degree of motivation later on – some sort of mysterious Templar treasure. But the trope of buried treasure was one of the elements I didn’t like in the last book and it makes rather less sense here. There’s a reason X never marks the spot and you don’t find this sort of treasure hunt outside fiction. Think about it: they uncovered this mystery right at the start of the trail. What if they’d found a later clue instead? If the trail of clues goes A-B-C-D-E what makes you think A’s going to be the first clue they notice? What if somebody discovered B first? Or D? Or what if you go through all that work covering your tracks and they just stumble across E? What is the purpose behind leaving clues in the first place?
Speaking of things returning from the last book, the perpetual stalking of our heroes is back with a vengeance and I’m reluctantly concluding that this is just an essential part of how these stories will go. It was an irritating quirk I noted about the first book, but it’s something that’s been doubled down on here. We spend the whole novel flipping over to people whose sole task is to watch what our leads are doing. It occurs to me that I know a number of mysteries set in Germany but of those only Babylon Berlin and M (admittedly one of the seminal classics of noir) were actually written by Germans. Is mystery a popular genre in Germany? At many times this feels more like a thriller than a mystery. An exploration of a moment in time filled with large amounts of action and deadly escapes and mob violence and conspiracies among those in power. Which sounds a lot like M now that I think about it, right down to the use of the killer’s POV. I guess there are worse things than to be compared to one of the greatest mystery/thrillers of all time, but it’s not an approach I personally enjoy and I find it stretches credulity here.
Now I should stress that I didn’t dislike the book. It’s still good and I really like the fact that Pötzsch is essentially inviting us into his family tree. It gives a level of passion to the project that I think works. We always connect best to those who we feel a tie to. On a sidenote there, this book encouraged me to check out one of my ancestors – a Scottish Covenanter called John Paton who fought with the Swedes at Lützen before going home to fight against Charles I. If Kuisl was fighting with Tilly he probably wasn’t at Lützen but I'm pretty sure Lützen stands in for Gustav’s whole campaign (a poem leaves little room for depth) so my ancestor was probably in Germany for at least the campaign season. Which means my great-great-whatever-grandfather may well have tried to kill his! It’s a cool feeling to spot that kind of chain linking you to the past and Pötzsch is able to share his own connection with his readers. I think that’s great.
The entertaining characters also remain from his last book as do the well-realized world and setting. The last book gave us a deeply unpleasant world where the more our heroes care the more ostracized they are. It is true that the hard gritty world is still intact, only now our protagonists are exempt from it. Since there are no consequences for their actions why not defile relics (a crime punishable by being broken on the wheel, which is even more painful than it sounds)? Or ignore assassins following you so you can solve a riddle? Or follow a pack of cultists into their secret hiding place? From a narrative standpoint I understand that these characters have to be immortal. It’s just that they’re starting to act like they know it. And that’s not fun.
If you liked the fist book in the series you’ll likely enjoy the second one as well. It’s a little clunkier and the feeling of being given a guided tour around the churches of Bavaria is more frustrating than enlightening… unless you really like churches of course. There’s less torture this time strangely – Kuisl’s main role is hunting bandits – but the book manages to keep the same moral ambiguity as before. I can’t say I completely understand what was going on with the odd cultists at the heart of the mystery. An order who’s the mortal enemy of the long-dead Knights Templar. What group is that a reference to? But aside from that the mystery seemed fairly obvious. The level of historical detail is as strong as ever and the personal tie keeps the book feeling intimate. I definitely didn’t find it to hold a candle to the first book, but it’s still worth reading and, even if it’s lost the sense of plausible motivation, the series is still good at maintaining an air of mystery.
Pötzsch has adopted the second option here, which meant that I spent the whole book questioning why things were happening. Simon and particularly Kuisl have no real reason beyond curiosity to get involved, and that’s a problem when curiosity gets people killed. There is at least a small degree of motivation later on – some sort of mysterious Templar treasure. But the trope of buried treasure was one of the elements I didn’t like in the last book and it makes rather less sense here. There’s a reason X never marks the spot and you don’t find this sort of treasure hunt outside fiction. Think about it: they uncovered this mystery right at the start of the trail. What if they’d found a later clue instead? If the trail of clues goes A-B-C-D-E what makes you think A’s going to be the first clue they notice? What if somebody discovered B first? Or D? Or what if you go through all that work covering your tracks and they just stumble across E? What is the purpose behind leaving clues in the first place?
Speaking of things returning from the last book, the perpetual stalking of our heroes is back with a vengeance and I’m reluctantly concluding that this is just an essential part of how these stories will go. It was an irritating quirk I noted about the first book, but it’s something that’s been doubled down on here. We spend the whole novel flipping over to people whose sole task is to watch what our leads are doing. It occurs to me that I know a number of mysteries set in Germany but of those only Babylon Berlin and M (admittedly one of the seminal classics of noir) were actually written by Germans. Is mystery a popular genre in Germany? At many times this feels more like a thriller than a mystery. An exploration of a moment in time filled with large amounts of action and deadly escapes and mob violence and conspiracies among those in power. Which sounds a lot like M now that I think about it, right down to the use of the killer’s POV. I guess there are worse things than to be compared to one of the greatest mystery/thrillers of all time, but it’s not an approach I personally enjoy and I find it stretches credulity here.
Now I should stress that I didn’t dislike the book. It’s still good and I really like the fact that Pötzsch is essentially inviting us into his family tree. It gives a level of passion to the project that I think works. We always connect best to those who we feel a tie to. On a sidenote there, this book encouraged me to check out one of my ancestors – a Scottish Covenanter called John Paton who fought with the Swedes at Lützen before going home to fight against Charles I. If Kuisl was fighting with Tilly he probably wasn’t at Lützen but I'm pretty sure Lützen stands in for Gustav’s whole campaign (a poem leaves little room for depth) so my ancestor was probably in Germany for at least the campaign season. Which means my great-great-whatever-grandfather may well have tried to kill his! It’s a cool feeling to spot that kind of chain linking you to the past and Pötzsch is able to share his own connection with his readers. I think that’s great.
The entertaining characters also remain from his last book as do the well-realized world and setting. The last book gave us a deeply unpleasant world where the more our heroes care the more ostracized they are. It is true that the hard gritty world is still intact, only now our protagonists are exempt from it. Since there are no consequences for their actions why not defile relics (a crime punishable by being broken on the wheel, which is even more painful than it sounds)? Or ignore assassins following you so you can solve a riddle? Or follow a pack of cultists into their secret hiding place? From a narrative standpoint I understand that these characters have to be immortal. It’s just that they’re starting to act like they know it. And that’s not fun.
If you liked the fist book in the series you’ll likely enjoy the second one as well. It’s a little clunkier and the feeling of being given a guided tour around the churches of Bavaria is more frustrating than enlightening… unless you really like churches of course. There’s less torture this time strangely – Kuisl’s main role is hunting bandits – but the book manages to keep the same moral ambiguity as before. I can’t say I completely understand what was going on with the odd cultists at the heart of the mystery. An order who’s the mortal enemy of the long-dead Knights Templar. What group is that a reference to? But aside from that the mystery seemed fairly obvious. The level of historical detail is as strong as ever and the personal tie keeps the book feeling intimate. I definitely didn’t find it to hold a candle to the first book, but it’s still worth reading and, even if it’s lost the sense of plausible motivation, the series is still good at maintaining an air of mystery.
March 25, 2017
By all accounts I should like this book.
The setting is interesting, the historical details are interesting, the mystery is interesting.
So why didn't I like it? It all comes down to the characters and their relationships with each other. The titular character, Magdalena, actually got a bit more plot in this book (which is nice) but the way she was treated by her father and the man who claims to love her just made me really angry. They're not abusive or anything but they are incredibly dismissive and condecending.
She goes missing and her father's reaction is to suggest she's just having some fun. When he finally meets her again, clearly having been in a fight, his only comment is that she missed her sweetheart too much. At one point he suggests she should just flirt with some workers since that's what she does all the time anyway. Maybe it's because I have a very affectionate father but that's no way to treat you child especially not when you claim to love her. And Simon is hardly better, he blames her for the trouble their relationship is in because he's been running around with another woman. When she runs away in tears, he just lets her leave and joins the other woman ... that's no way to treat a woman you supposedly love. And to make it all worse, he doesn't even decide for her out of his own free will, he does it because she's the only one left in the end. Which was lazy and disappointing. Magdalena should've just married the hangman from Augsburg. At least he seemed to be really interested in her and was helpful, not to mention rich.
Another minor detail that bugged me was Clara. She is a little girl Simon met in the first book. In this book he has suddenly fatherly feelings for her. Why? He hardly interacted with her in the last book. She was mostly unconscious. Why not Sofi? She actually had interactions with Simon and she was the more interesting character. Additionally she had the worse home life and could have used someone who has fatherly feelings for her. But she just disappeared and wasn't mentioned again.
I'm not gonna continue this series which is unfortunate because I was hoping it would become one of my new favorites.
The setting is interesting, the historical details are interesting, the mystery is interesting.
So why didn't I like it? It all comes down to the characters and their relationships with each other. The titular character, Magdalena, actually got a bit more plot in this book (which is nice) but the way she was treated by her father and the man who claims to love her just made me really angry. They're not abusive or anything but they are incredibly dismissive and condecending.
She goes missing and her father's reaction is to suggest she's just having some fun. When he finally meets her again, clearly having been in a fight, his only comment is that she missed her sweetheart too much. At one point he suggests she should just flirt with some workers since that's what she does all the time anyway. Maybe it's because I have a very affectionate father but that's no way to treat you child especially not when you claim to love her. And Simon is hardly better, he blames her for the trouble their relationship is in because he's been running around with another woman. When she runs away in tears, he just lets her leave and joins the other woman ... that's no way to treat a woman you supposedly love. And to make it all worse, he doesn't even decide for her out of his own free will, he does it because she's the only one left in the end. Which was lazy and disappointing. Magdalena should've just married the hangman from Augsburg. At least he seemed to be really interested in her and was helpful, not to mention rich.
Another minor detail that bugged me was Clara. She is a little girl Simon met in the first book. In this book he has suddenly fatherly feelings for her. Why? He hardly interacted with her in the last book. She was mostly unconscious. Why not Sofi? She actually had interactions with Simon and she was the more interesting character. Additionally she had the worse home life and could have used someone who has fatherly feelings for her. But she just disappeared and wasn't mentioned again.
I'm not gonna continue this series which is unfortunate because I was hoping it would become one of my new favorites.
April 22, 2016
I am officially in love with this series. First - I love big books. Many reviews say this book was too long, but I think good historical fiction needs some length to it in order to obtain the richness of description. The who-dun-it part is there, but at the same time I'm researching these areas of Germany, many of which I would love to visit. Once I hit the internet to learn more about Schongau, I know I'm hooked. The book moves along at a great pace, and while there are some aspects that were obvious (no spoilers), it was written with vibrancy and therefore for me was massively entertaining. I love the story of a hangman - someone who is on the fringe of society, including his family enveloped in the early European caste system being the hero of these tales. Simon, a semi-doctor in love with Magdalena, the hangman's daughter serves as the Robin to the hangman's Batman. Though he at times grates my nerves (he can be REALLY dumb for someone described all along as witty and intelligent). I find so much to love, including how someone who seems to be a down-to-earth nice guy can also torture and kill people - hey, it's just his job, right? I'm curious to see how that dynamic plays out in the future books. It's my favorite genre of the moment so I absolutely adore page after page. My only deduction of a star was merely due to the predictability. I could see what was coming. But I still enjoyed reading all of it.
January 25, 2024
The novel opens in the middle of a cold winter and a priest is found dead in his church. Rather than having died of natural causes it is believed he was murdered. What begins as a murder mystery turns out to be something more.
The time period is the middle of the 17th Century. Jakob Kuisl is the hangman of Shongau. As such he and his family should be avoided at all costs. But Jakob also knows more about what is known about medicine in this time. He has collected herbs from all over and is more than just a little acquainted with their properties and how and when is best to use them. That part is interesting but I freely admit I'm glad that isn't all there is too it.
There is the murder to be solved. There are robbers on the roads. Are these tied to the riddle of the secret of a treasure of the Knights Templar from a couple of centuries earlier?
I purchased this series a few years back when it was priced well and then have neglected it. At first, I thought neglecting it was the right thing. Then it got really good and I couldn't turn the pages quickly enough. I won't go out on a limb and say this is well written nor even that the characterizations are what I yearn for. Still and all I'm glad I have the others and hope it isn't several more years before I get to them. This is a very good 3-stars and maybe even a low 4-stars on a different day.
The time period is the middle of the 17th Century. Jakob Kuisl is the hangman of Shongau. As such he and his family should be avoided at all costs. But Jakob also knows more about what is known about medicine in this time. He has collected herbs from all over and is more than just a little acquainted with their properties and how and when is best to use them. That part is interesting but I freely admit I'm glad that isn't all there is too it.
There is the murder to be solved. There are robbers on the roads. Are these tied to the riddle of the secret of a treasure of the Knights Templar from a couple of centuries earlier?
I purchased this series a few years back when it was priced well and then have neglected it. At first, I thought neglecting it was the right thing. Then it got really good and I couldn't turn the pages quickly enough. I won't go out on a limb and say this is well written nor even that the characterizations are what I yearn for. Still and all I'm glad I have the others and hope it isn't several more years before I get to them. This is a very good 3-stars and maybe even a low 4-stars on a different day.
November 15, 2012
The Dark Monk was every bit as good as the Hangman's daughter.
This one hits the ground running right out of the gate when a local priest is found murdered. Simon is summoned to the scene in order to help the portly old man but by the time he gets there too late but the priest left a clue. Simon thinks there's a bigger mystery than the murder of the priest and ends up enlisting the help of Jakob the hangman. What follows is a whirlwind mystery rich in ancient societies, historical detail, misplaced intentions, murders, subplots, well drafted characters and great dialogue.
Magdalena takes a more prominent role in this second effort. While the first one was called The Hangman's Daughter it was mostly about her father, Jakob Kusil. While he's still featured prominently, many of the subplots and the main plot feature Jakob's daughter much more than the first book. Still, it seems that Simon is more the feature of this book than the Kusils but they're all intimately tied together.
One of the aspects I liked about this one especially were some of the insights we get into Jakob's past from when he was a mercenary, before he became the town hangman. With tantalizing little flashbacks, the author reveals a little bit more about what makes Jakob Kusil tick. In addition, both Magdalena and Simon are shown to be coming into their own. Magdalena remains a strong woman who's shunned in a man's world simply for who fathered her and Simon is ever at odds with his old fashioned and stubborn doctor father. The three get into tight spots both singularly and as a collective and they use their brains and natural talents to address the problems. This leads to some great character moments and some very well written action sequences.
Potzsch plants bread crumbs throughout and is very deft at revealing clues without calling showing his hand until he wants to. The plot and all the interwoven subplots are razor sharp and paced very well. There are no slow spots in this novel and each scene is all part of the bigger tale. Just about every character in this book, even the minor players, are integral to the overall picture.
It's difficult to summarize the plot any more without giving too much away so I won't ;) Just know that if you liked the first one you should like this one equally as much and for anybody that may happen upon this review who hasn't read either one yet, I can't recommend the series highly enough. A great historical mystery with characters that are anything BUT cookie cutter and are interesting and fun to read every time they show up on a page.
Great stuff. Also comes with a preview of his next novel, The Beggar King which is just enough to whet the appetite for the next in the series!
This one hits the ground running right out of the gate when a local priest is found murdered. Simon is summoned to the scene in order to help the portly old man but by the time he gets there too late but the priest left a clue. Simon thinks there's a bigger mystery than the murder of the priest and ends up enlisting the help of Jakob the hangman. What follows is a whirlwind mystery rich in ancient societies, historical detail, misplaced intentions, murders, subplots, well drafted characters and great dialogue.
Magdalena takes a more prominent role in this second effort. While the first one was called The Hangman's Daughter it was mostly about her father, Jakob Kusil. While he's still featured prominently, many of the subplots and the main plot feature Jakob's daughter much more than the first book. Still, it seems that Simon is more the feature of this book than the Kusils but they're all intimately tied together.
One of the aspects I liked about this one especially were some of the insights we get into Jakob's past from when he was a mercenary, before he became the town hangman. With tantalizing little flashbacks, the author reveals a little bit more about what makes Jakob Kusil tick. In addition, both Magdalena and Simon are shown to be coming into their own. Magdalena remains a strong woman who's shunned in a man's world simply for who fathered her and Simon is ever at odds with his old fashioned and stubborn doctor father. The three get into tight spots both singularly and as a collective and they use their brains and natural talents to address the problems. This leads to some great character moments and some very well written action sequences.
Potzsch plants bread crumbs throughout and is very deft at revealing clues without calling showing his hand until he wants to. The plot and all the interwoven subplots are razor sharp and paced very well. There are no slow spots in this novel and each scene is all part of the bigger tale. Just about every character in this book, even the minor players, are integral to the overall picture.
It's difficult to summarize the plot any more without giving too much away so I won't ;) Just know that if you liked the first one you should like this one equally as much and for anybody that may happen upon this review who hasn't read either one yet, I can't recommend the series highly enough. A great historical mystery with characters that are anything BUT cookie cutter and are interesting and fun to read every time they show up on a page.
Great stuff. Also comes with a preview of his next novel, The Beggar King which is just enough to whet the appetite for the next in the series!
May 1, 2019
Otrais romāns no sērijas par bendi Kuislu 17. gadsimta Dienvidvācijā. Šoreiz autoram sanācis kaut kas līdzīgs Dena Brauna romāniem, kur varoņiem tiek likts pildīt kvestu, t.i. meklēt noteiktu lietu, kurai turklāt dzen pēdas vairākas ieinteresētas personas. Pirmais romāns, kur tika risinātas ar cilvēkiem saistītas problēmas, man šķita interesantāks, jo laikam jau reliģisku relikviju vērtība manās acīs nav tik liela, lai to dēļ riskētu ar dzīvību, attiecīgi - arī pats stāsts zaudē daļu spriedzes.
Interesanti, vai izdevniecība turpinās tulkot sēriju, jo vispār Pečam par bendi ir septiņi romāni. Drīzāk jau nē, vismaz neceru uz to.
Interesanti, vai izdevniecība turpinās tulkot sēriju, jo vispār Pečam par bendi ir septiņi romāni. Drīzāk jau nē, vismaz neceru uz to.
February 1, 2016
I really enjoyed this second book in the Hangman's Daughter series. I think I found it more enjoyable since I feel like I knew the main characters now. This story involved the Templers and a hidden treasure! Loved this book and I'm so happy that I already have the next book loaded and ready to start!
June 29, 2018
Very engaging historical mystery set in 15-16th century Bavaria. Characters are defined well and the plot line is interestingly circuitous. Monk-Templars and others are in search of a hidden treasure. Murder, treachery, and moderate suspense pervade the work . Well worth the read for insight into the era in which the book is set.
October 12, 2015
Second in the Hangman's Daughter series, full of interesting characters, suspense, intrigue and authentic historical (1600s) details.
March 29, 2023
This is Potzsch's followup to THE HANGMAN'S DAUGHTER, which I read and enjoyed a few years ago. This was another very enjoyable and compelling novel set in 17th century Bavaria. The story starts out with the poisoning of a parish priest. This draws the attention of the local hangman-executioner, Jakob Kuisl and Simon Fronwieser, the town doctor's son who is also practicing medicine and healing. The priest had sealed something beneath a crypt in the church before he died and a clue he left leads Simon to discover an old tomb of what may have been a knight's templar. Legend had it that the templars amassed a large treasure that was never found after the templar's were banished by the Catholic Church. The tomb has a clue that leads Simon on a chase to other locations hoping that in the end the treasure will be found. The dead priest's sister, a wine merchant, comes to the small village after receiving a mysterious letter from her brother which motivates her to also seek the treasure. But there are also some others very interested in this including a group of mysterious monks who have been lurking in the village. So who killed the priest and is the templar's treasure real? And what exactly is the treasure. Jakob, Simon, and Magdalena, the hangman's daughter, all get involved in trying to solve the puzzle which leads them to several locations and a host of enemies along the way.
This was an intriguing and exciting historical mystery novel. It relates a lot of history of Germany in the 17th century including the superstitions, ignorance, and brutality of the time. The novel was originally written in German and is translated into modern English. Some of this was a little amusing with the characters saying things like "kiss my ass" which I'm sure would not have been a phrase from the 1600's. Also I noticed a few things that probably weren’t historically accurate like using matches to light fires. But overall I did really enjoy this and would recommend it. This is the second in Potzsch's Hangman series and I'll be looking forward to reading more of these.
This was an intriguing and exciting historical mystery novel. It relates a lot of history of Germany in the 17th century including the superstitions, ignorance, and brutality of the time. The novel was originally written in German and is translated into modern English. Some of this was a little amusing with the characters saying things like "kiss my ass" which I'm sure would not have been a phrase from the 1600's. Also I noticed a few things that probably weren’t historically accurate like using matches to light fires. But overall I did really enjoy this and would recommend it. This is the second in Potzsch's Hangman series and I'll be looking forward to reading more of these.
August 12, 2019
Rating: 3.5
Thoughts: It feels like I'm always in the middle with this series. I am really interested in the mystery and the plot as it's usually a good set up, though by the end it's ends a little meh as it's all smashed together to hurry up and finish.
The hangman and Simon are the most well rounded characters and keep me interested in their continued partnership. The hangman's daughter continues to annoy me with her whinnng.
Thoughts: It feels like I'm always in the middle with this series. I am really interested in the mystery and the plot as it's usually a good set up, though by the end it's ends a little meh as it's all smashed together to hurry up and finish.
The hangman and Simon are the most well rounded characters and keep me interested in their continued partnership. The hangman's daughter continues to annoy me with her whinnng.
August 6, 2013
I didn't like this book anywhere near as much as I liked The Hangman's Daughter. The setting is the same: Bavaria several years after the thirty years war. The hangman, his daughter, and the town medicus again play the prominent roles. And I like all three of these characters. But I don't think they developed much in this book. Nor did the book play to the strength of the first book by showing interesting aspects of life in a small German town in the 17th century.
Rather, the book decided to focus almost entirely on the mystery aspects of the first book. And for me, it was the worst sort of mystery. I've never much liked scavenger hunts, and I like reading about them even less. This book was kind of like The DaVinci Code meets The 39 Clues. Some Templar monk has created a series of indecipherable clues that will inevitably lead to the greatest treasure in Christendom. We get led from one clue to the next, and each one is a little more boring and impenetrable than the last.
In comparison to this, there is a side story about the hunt for some bandits who have been terrorizing the local merchants. Highway robbery was a very big deal in those days, and the human jetsam from the Thirty Years war increased the ruthlessness and desperation of lots of people, thus making the occupation more attractive. The way the hangman deals with the robber chief in this book is the part I liked the most. It was simple, dramatic, and moving. There wasn't much mystery to it, but it felt much stronger and more real to me. I think Potzsch has the talent to write really good stories with these characters, and I wish, in this book at least, that he didn't lean so heavily on a gimmicky mystery plot to drive things along.
Finally, there were a few moments in this where I was struck by seeming anachronisms. At one point, one of the characters is surprised that a woman could "curse like a longshoreman." This bothered me when I read it, and I looked up what I could find probably only because I was going to write this review. Why was I bothered? Bavaria is landlocked, so how likely is it that anyone would have experience with longshoremen? But, you may object, its just a commonplace expression. Was it, though? In 1660? In Germany? It turns out that the word longshoreman wasn't coined until 1811 or so. The older word, "stevedore," which is from Spanish or Portugese didn't find usage until the mid 1700s. That by itself is not so bad, because perhaps the ideas involved pre-date the words. But even here, it seems like the occupation of a longshoreman arose in the American Colonies by people who unloaded goods from ships that came from the Old World, and the occupation itself probably comes after the time setting of this book. That's one of the dangers of writing historical fiction.
Rather, the book decided to focus almost entirely on the mystery aspects of the first book. And for me, it was the worst sort of mystery. I've never much liked scavenger hunts, and I like reading about them even less. This book was kind of like The DaVinci Code meets The 39 Clues. Some Templar monk has created a series of indecipherable clues that will inevitably lead to the greatest treasure in Christendom. We get led from one clue to the next, and each one is a little more boring and impenetrable than the last.
In comparison to this, there is a side story about the hunt for some bandits who have been terrorizing the local merchants. Highway robbery was a very big deal in those days, and the human jetsam from the Thirty Years war increased the ruthlessness and desperation of lots of people, thus making the occupation more attractive. The way the hangman deals with the robber chief in this book is the part I liked the most. It was simple, dramatic, and moving. There wasn't much mystery to it, but it felt much stronger and more real to me. I think Potzsch has the talent to write really good stories with these characters, and I wish, in this book at least, that he didn't lean so heavily on a gimmicky mystery plot to drive things along.
Finally, there were a few moments in this where I was struck by seeming anachronisms. At one point, one of the characters is surprised that a woman could "curse like a longshoreman." This bothered me when I read it, and I looked up what I could find probably only because I was going to write this review. Why was I bothered? Bavaria is landlocked, so how likely is it that anyone would have experience with longshoremen? But, you may object, its just a commonplace expression. Was it, though? In 1660? In Germany? It turns out that the word longshoreman wasn't coined until 1811 or so. The older word, "stevedore," which is from Spanish or Portugese didn't find usage until the mid 1700s. That by itself is not so bad, because perhaps the ideas involved pre-date the words. But even here, it seems like the occupation of a longshoreman arose in the American Colonies by people who unloaded goods from ships that came from the Old World, and the occupation itself probably comes after the time setting of this book. That's one of the dangers of writing historical fiction.
September 24, 2012
First read The Hangman's Daughter by the same author. That is the first in the series and this one is the second. The author is a descendant of the legendary hangman, Jakob Kuisl and his books are translated into English. It's the 1600's in Bavaria. The three main characters appear in both novels. Jakob Kuisl is the hangman and his other duties in the town of Schongau is to torture the accused/guilty, remove dead animals, and do whatever the city council bids him to do. But he is a hangman with a heart and in the first novel wants to prove the innocence of the midwife accused of being a witch and murdering the children of the town. He is added by his headstrong, beautiful and smart daughter Madgelina who falls in love with the young town doctor Simon Fronwieser and he with her. Simon also helps solve the mystery partly because of his love for Madgelina, who he can never have because the society of the time deems the hangman's family as the lowest class, and because of his admiration of Jakob Kuisl and his knowledge of healing and library of books. The second novel begins with the death of a priest who has found something indicating a treasure left from one of the Knights Templar. He has notified his sister who arrives shortly after his death and the church. It seems there are at least three groups following the hangman, his daughter and the young doctor as they follow the clues to reach the treasure. It is riveting reading to figure out the clues and move to the next exciting part of the mystery. I really like this series for its excellent writing/translation, depth of characters, and absorbing mystery. I can't wait for the next one.
December 25, 2012
Second in this series, historical murder mystery suspense fiction set in 1660 Bavaria--in the winter.
I actually liked the first book more: given the dense detailing done there to establish context and setting, I found it both fun and informative. In this sequel, I fear that the great success of the first volume influenced decisions to dash off another more rapidly, and so the care and precision I saw in the first volume, with regard to establishing character and mood, is not as prevalent here. Sure, it offers a great topic, and this one goes in for a lot of Gothic Romance (in the 19th century sensibility of the term) components: we have a widespread secret cult conspiracy, underground catacombs hosting eerie rituals, visits to castle ruins, secret passageways, and a few new characters with intriguing accents. But I don't see much character development of any of the characters I came to appreciate in the first volume. Several times I felt the author was slowing down the flow of the pleasingly complicated plot by including dialogues where earlier exposition was repeated unnecessarily yet again.
This is a pleasant way to learn about some of the churches and monasteries in the Priest's Corner of Bavaria, though, and anyone interested in the Knights Templar should enjoy this book. At the end the author, who bases the hangman on research he has done on his own family history in Schongau, provides a charming personal tour guide set of hints and summary should one want to visit this beautiful area and visit in person all the sites mentioned in the novel.
I actually liked the first book more: given the dense detailing done there to establish context and setting, I found it both fun and informative. In this sequel, I fear that the great success of the first volume influenced decisions to dash off another more rapidly, and so the care and precision I saw in the first volume, with regard to establishing character and mood, is not as prevalent here. Sure, it offers a great topic, and this one goes in for a lot of Gothic Romance (in the 19th century sensibility of the term) components: we have a widespread secret cult conspiracy, underground catacombs hosting eerie rituals, visits to castle ruins, secret passageways, and a few new characters with intriguing accents. But I don't see much character development of any of the characters I came to appreciate in the first volume. Several times I felt the author was slowing down the flow of the pleasingly complicated plot by including dialogues where earlier exposition was repeated unnecessarily yet again.
This is a pleasant way to learn about some of the churches and monasteries in the Priest's Corner of Bavaria, though, and anyone interested in the Knights Templar should enjoy this book. At the end the author, who bases the hangman on research he has done on his own family history in Schongau, provides a charming personal tour guide set of hints and summary should one want to visit this beautiful area and visit in person all the sites mentioned in the novel.
August 23, 2013
This brief review does not contain a synopsis of the story or any spoilers.
Oliver Potzsch is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors. This historical mystery is an excellent sequel to his enormously successful first book, The Hangman's Daughter, and, as such, follows the life of the hangman, his daughter and a young man much attracted to her, in a small, Bavarian town during the 17th century. These characters, and their relationships, are not static but, rather, continue to develop seamlessly from the previous book.
Potzsch does a marvelous job of using historical fact as the context for a fictional story. In fact, I felt that I learned a good bit of the history of the area while enjoying a marvelous tale. Since Potzsch is an actual descendant of the hangman, he has more than usual motivation to keep his story historically accurate.
Above all, The Dark Monk is an excellent mystery story involving powerful forces in the town and the church. Potzsch keeps the reader guessing by providing an ample supply of logical and not-so-logical suspects as well as a few well constructed blind alleys and red herrings. One of the author's real talents is the creation of word pictures such that the reader has clear images in his mind of the characters and venues in which the story occurs. This adds far more than the normal richness to the story.
All in all, I found The Dark Monk to be a highly suspenseful, educational and thoroughly enjoyable read and very much look forward to Potzsch's next book which I have already purchased.
Oliver Potzsch is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors. This historical mystery is an excellent sequel to his enormously successful first book, The Hangman's Daughter, and, as such, follows the life of the hangman, his daughter and a young man much attracted to her, in a small, Bavarian town during the 17th century. These characters, and their relationships, are not static but, rather, continue to develop seamlessly from the previous book.
Potzsch does a marvelous job of using historical fact as the context for a fictional story. In fact, I felt that I learned a good bit of the history of the area while enjoying a marvelous tale. Since Potzsch is an actual descendant of the hangman, he has more than usual motivation to keep his story historically accurate.
Above all, The Dark Monk is an excellent mystery story involving powerful forces in the town and the church. Potzsch keeps the reader guessing by providing an ample supply of logical and not-so-logical suspects as well as a few well constructed blind alleys and red herrings. One of the author's real talents is the creation of word pictures such that the reader has clear images in his mind of the characters and venues in which the story occurs. This adds far more than the normal richness to the story.
All in all, I found The Dark Monk to be a highly suspenseful, educational and thoroughly enjoyable read and very much look forward to Potzsch's next book which I have already purchased.
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