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The Prussian Dispatch
With nothing in her purse, Sophie Rathenau can't refuse work, even from a down-at-heel pimp. But tracing the woman who's gone off with his document is a chancy business. A gang of Prussian maniacs are hunting for it too, as well as thugs from the shadowy Versailles Club, and a Polish countess desperate to preserve her country.
Caught up in an international conspiracy, Sophie's only weapons are her sardonic tongue and an old cavalry pistol. But it'll take more than those to find the dispatch, keep a vengeful Chancellor at bay, and deal with a past that threatens to engulf her.
"The Prussian Dispatch" is the first in a series of novels from the era of Mozart and Maria Theresia.
Caught up in an international conspiracy, Sophie's only weapons are her sardonic tongue and an old cavalry pistol. But it'll take more than those to find the dispatch, keep a vengeful Chancellor at bay, and deal with a past that threatens to engulf her.
"The Prussian Dispatch" is the first in a series of novels from the era of Mozart and Maria Theresia.
343 pages, Unknown Binding
Published December 1, 2015
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14 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 4, 2015
I was one of the lucky few who was able to read an advanced copy. Neilson has sketched Sophie with a pen that might have been Dashiell Hammett's own but, to see her in the flesh (so to speak), I think you have to look through and beyond the 18th century setting. She comes right off the page as a feisty character trying to scrape a precarious living in a man's world, full of exploitation, self-seeking and danger. She's a private eye in panniers - so, instead of greenbacks, we have Maria Theresa Thalers, instead of dodgy negatives, we have a document that must be retrieved at all costs to avoid political catastrophe. But there the similarities begin to fade away - this is no re-hashed film noir. Not even homage. Sophie might be as hard up as Philip Marlowe but she lives in a world where there is no DA to slap his desk and give her 48 hours. She faces steely death in an alleyway or simply vanishing into some Viennese Chateau D'If minus the troublesome interlude of a trial. And, of course, there's always leprosy or typhoid. Who should she trust ... who can she trust?
The Prussian Dispatch,in my mind, is up there with Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency for introducing its own rara avis - a twist of literary lemon peel to bring new zest to the well beloved genre.
Highly recommended, in my view.
The Prussian Dispatch,in my mind, is up there with Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency for introducing its own rara avis - a twist of literary lemon peel to bring new zest to the well beloved genre.
Highly recommended, in my view.
September 9, 2018
Sophie Rathenau, adrift in 18c Vienna, only has a few coins and her dead husband’s pistol. To pay the rent and keep starvation at bay, she advertises as a finder of lost things. Now she has no less than three people approaching her asking her to look for the same thing – a lost despatch of a sensitive nature. She is thrown into a web of lies, crime and intrigue. Or maybe she throws herself in?
Sophie is one of the most engaging characters I have encountered in a book for a long time. Feisty and brave, with a tongue that gets her into trouble, her brain works ten times as fast as mine in working out who is doing what – but she doesn’t always get it right, and she has a self-destructive streak, thanks to a deep unhappiness over her past. She has clearly had adventures before, and while part of me wishes the author had started the series at the outset of her career, it gives her extra depth and the story extra interest for us to be given snippets about her past.
Vienna in the eighteenth century, its sights and sounds and smells, its fine buildings and its rough poverty, is drawn vividly. The story tears along at great speed, and I found it hard to keep up with what was going on. To be fair, though, I am like that in crime dramas on television as well. Plus, I didn’t realise at first that there was a glossary of terms and names which made things clearer. There are scenes at the end where characters talk and more is explained about what really happened to the despatch. Besides, I was so interested in Sophie and her world that I wanted to keep reading.
In fact, when I’d finished The Prussian Despatch I did something that I never do normally, being a professional procrastinator. I went straight on to buy the next book in the series.
Sophie is one of the most engaging characters I have encountered in a book for a long time. Feisty and brave, with a tongue that gets her into trouble, her brain works ten times as fast as mine in working out who is doing what – but she doesn’t always get it right, and she has a self-destructive streak, thanks to a deep unhappiness over her past. She has clearly had adventures before, and while part of me wishes the author had started the series at the outset of her career, it gives her extra depth and the story extra interest for us to be given snippets about her past.
Vienna in the eighteenth century, its sights and sounds and smells, its fine buildings and its rough poverty, is drawn vividly. The story tears along at great speed, and I found it hard to keep up with what was going on. To be fair, though, I am like that in crime dramas on television as well. Plus, I didn’t realise at first that there was a glossary of terms and names which made things clearer. There are scenes at the end where characters talk and more is explained about what really happened to the despatch. Besides, I was so interested in Sophie and her world that I wanted to keep reading.
In fact, when I’d finished The Prussian Despatch I did something that I never do normally, being a professional procrastinator. I went straight on to buy the next book in the series.
March 8, 2021
Copy received from Voracious Readers Only in return for an honest review.
Well paced, well written 18th century detective novel with a unlikely heroine. Unlikely that such a woman would exist in that setting but the author has made it work. Fascinating insight into the Vienna of this era.
I personally found the cast of characters complicated to start with. I also would have like the glossary at the beginning as reading it at the end was enlightening but too late as I had already plowed through/glossed over/made my own conclusions by then.
Well paced, well written 18th century detective novel with a unlikely heroine. Unlikely that such a woman would exist in that setting but the author has made it work. Fascinating insight into the Vienna of this era.
I personally found the cast of characters complicated to start with. I also would have like the glossary at the beginning as reading it at the end was enlightening but too late as I had already plowed through/glossed over/made my own conclusions by then.
March 16, 2021
An offering from VRO, I found this one difficult to follow. The character of Sophie was well drawn, but the cast of murderous characters, historical references, politics, and explosions, torture and shootings were a bit too confusing for this reader.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 11, 2018
This book has received a Discovering Diamonds Review:
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
"A very enjoyable mystery story in the historically fascinating setting of Vienna in 1772. "
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
"A very enjoyable mystery story in the historically fascinating setting of Vienna in 1772. "
May 24, 2021
Enjoyable, but very confusing as it constantly makes references to other events despit this being first in a series. The main character has great potential for future adventures.
September 19, 2019
It's not often I come across books that combine a unique and original voice with a powerful plot and unforgettable characters. David Neilson is an author who can do these things without effort.
Sophie Rathenau is a character whose life I fell into immediately, captivated by her personality, the situation she finds herself in and the way she deals with everything that comes at her. She is alive in a way few enough characters are. The setting is Europe under the rule of the Hapsburg Empire, a period of political machinations and movement from France to the frontiers of the Middle East. Within the civilised countries, immense wealth, devastating poverty and human nature, good and bad, make an overflowing background of difficulty for Sophie to find her way through, using her intelligence and strength of will. Detail is immersive and the research impeccable, giving every moment superb mood and atmosphere. A wonderful read for the intelligent historical fiction fan!
Sophie Rathenau is a character whose life I fell into immediately, captivated by her personality, the situation she finds herself in and the way she deals with everything that comes at her. She is alive in a way few enough characters are. The setting is Europe under the rule of the Hapsburg Empire, a period of political machinations and movement from France to the frontiers of the Middle East. Within the civilised countries, immense wealth, devastating poverty and human nature, good and bad, make an overflowing background of difficulty for Sophie to find her way through, using her intelligence and strength of will. Detail is immersive and the research impeccable, giving every moment superb mood and atmosphere. A wonderful read for the intelligent historical fiction fan!
February 19, 2016
Strong Lead Character
This is a fast paced novel with a lead character, Sophie Rathenau, who is a witty, interesting and delightfully capable heroine dealing with the intrigues of the Austrian Empire. An excellent read. I would recommend to anyone with an interest in history-related fiction.
This is a fast paced novel with a lead character, Sophie Rathenau, who is a witty, interesting and delightfully capable heroine dealing with the intrigues of the Austrian Empire. An excellent read. I would recommend to anyone with an interest in history-related fiction.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews