Rabenschwestern

Franza Oberwieser #2

by Gabi Kreslehner

Kommissarin Franza Oberwieser ist eine lebenslustige und kompromisslose Frau. Sie steht zu ihren Leidenschaften wie dem Plätzchenbacken und ihrer neuen großen Liebe, dem jüngeren Schauspieler Port. Da fordert ein Fall ihre ganze Aufmerksamkeit. Gertrud Rabinsky, die beliebte Teeladen-Besitzerin, wurde brutal ermordet. Doch erst als Hanna Umlauf vermisst gemeldet wird, erfährt Franza, dass die bekannte Fotografin Gertruds Schwester war. Zwei Frauen, zwei Fälle, zwei Schicksale. Wo ist die Verbindung? Für Franza wird die Suche nach Hanna zu einer Ist die schöne Frau Opfer oder Täter?

Genres: Mystery, Crime

Paperback

First published February 10, 2014

About the author

Award-winning writer Gabi Kreslehner lives and works in her hometown of Ottensheim, Austria, located on the shores of the Danube. As a young girl, she became interested in writing and theater. Later she received a teaching degree. She now works as a teacher and is involved in student theater.

Reviews

[Namita · Rating 2 out of 5]

Raven Sisters follows the story of two foster sisters Hanna and Gertrud from their childhood till ends up in ones murder.An ok read hard to follow though as I felt it got lost while translating from the original German series

I would like to thank AmazonCrossing & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review.

[Cookie M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this novel, but I found it confusing from beginning to end, too many incidental characters, too many interconnected relationships.
I kept hoping things would be cleared up as I went further, but I would run across names of people and have to backtrack to see how they fit in.
Not worth my effort. If you can follow along, please enjoy.

[Amanda Alexandre · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a whodunit with enough observations about human nature for me to say that it has a tinge of literary fiction.

Sometimes that tinge of literary fiction comes very poetic, to the detriment of believability... or not.

"I'm an eagle", Hanna cried, laughing, running, flying. "Who is the wind's bride to carry me aloft?"
I will, Gertrud thought. I will, let me be the one...

Sometimes, it's not poetic at all, and you just think: Really, recently-found-antagonist? You're using "melt like butter" as a threat in this super tense scene?

But that doesn't mean the story is bad. In the beginning, it's all about the relationship between those two sisters: Hannah is beautiful, creative and all around social superstar. Gertrudes is none of these things, and spends her whole life as a shadow of her sister. (Female jealousy is a very interesting subject to me, and I wish it was exploited more.) When we discover one of them is dead and the other, missing, right after we are presented to a plot twist that subverts any chance that the sister-jealousy plot would go on an entirely predictable path. That plot twist took the novel to a whole new level, and was the start of abackstory that is different than a lot of mistery novels we read out there.

Add that to characters who are developed enough for: a) at a certain point, you think there is no clear antagonist; and b) everyone is kind of a victim of the situation.

For instance, Franza, the cop that investigates the murdering case, is a middle-aged divorceé with a body that is actually compatible with her age. So are her levels of confidence and insecurities. She was very believable, and one of the best written 40-something women I read about in the last years.

But why only three stars?

The writing is good, and will teach you something about human nature... and you'll get a murder mistery in the mix. I'm just not sure if it's very entertaining in the first half. It took me 11 days to finish these book. And some creative choices take away a little from the surprises (I won't be able to talk about them without spoilering).

Not to mention the intense POV-switch. Changing POVs all the time can be fast-pacing, but also dangerous. Sometimes the POV changed inside the chapters. Every once in a while there was a very short chapter (from a misterious POV) that served as nothing but a tense builder, which is a good thing in murder misteries... if well executed. Since the number of characters was big (and sometimes so was the list of suspects), the whole thing just became confusing.

I really wished all these issues should be trimmed down in order to give a more clean, concise narrative. The result would be way more entertaining. It felt all over the place. But if you don't mind the cluttering, I guess you could try to read this.

[Eva Müller · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ich habe nur knapp die Hälfte geschafft bevor ich kapituliert habe. Das Buch ist einfach furchtbar. Da haben wir Franza, eine Kommissarin, Mitte 40 und mit ein paar Pfunden über dem Durchschnitt. Glücklicherweise hat sie absolut kein Problem damit und ist glücklich mit ihrem Aussehen. Sie sogar so glücklich damit, dass sie im Stillen über jede einzelne Frau herzieht die jünger und/oder dünner als sie selbst ist. Damit der Leser weiß wie wenig ihr das alles ausmacht.

Dazu kommt dass die Autorin sich wohl nicht für eine Erzählperspektive entscheiden kann. Da gibt es ein paar Kapitel die in der Ich-Perspektive geschrieben sind (und möglicherweise von lang vergangenen Ereignissen erzählen...oder auch nicht. Kapitelüberschriften mit Datumsangaben hätten dem geneigten Leser so einiges an Verwirrung erspart) aber der größte Teil ist aus der Sicht eines personellen Erzählers geschrieben (abwechselnd Franza und einige der in den Fall verwickelten)...außer den Absätzen in denen wir dann Mitten im Kapitel zu den Gedanken und Gefühlen von anderen Personen wechseln...die da absolut nichts zu suchen haben.

Dazu kommt eine Sprache die wahrscheinlich düster und mysteriös wirken soll, die meiste Zeit aber nur lächerlich und überzogen klingt.

Als dann ein Mann im laufe seiner Liebeserklärung todernst die Worte „Du bis so flaumig wie ein frisches Biskuit“ an seine Geliebte richtet wurde mir klar, dass das Buch wirklich nichts für mich ist. Vielleicht kann ja jemand der bei eben diesem Satz keinen Lachanfall bekommt mehr damit anfangen.



Abbruch auf Seite 163 von 409



Rezensionsexemplar von Vorablesen im Tausch für eine ehrliche Review.

[Jule · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Actual rating: fair and square 2,5/5 stars

I am telling you: reading the English translation of a German book when you are German yourself is really weird... That did not influence this review, though. Although I have to say that I did wonder whether the nice picturesque language came from the original or from the translator... "Raven Sisters" is a basic crime novel - and almost devoid of cliches - about a murdered woman, her missing sister, revenge and family drama. I liked the ambiguous and complicated, round characters, because their actions and decisions influenced and shaped the plot and created the suspense. If not for the characters, there would not have been much suspense, since the usual threat of the crime genre is missing. I also liked the LGBT angel to the story, because I think that is pretty unusual for a crime novel.

Other innovative things worked out less well. The slow start (the crime happened not before page 30 or so) was weird at best. But then the first quarter or third of the novel dragged on quite a bit, which was boring. The super short and split-up chapters did not help the suspense, either. On the contrary: while the past story of the characters was interesting, the many narrative povs and timelines were confusing. In the end, the lack of a clear conclusive summary made me decide on a 2,5/5 rating. A good, solid novel, but nothing to sweep you off your feet.

[Vicii · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read. mixed audio and physical reading

[Fictionophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another title from my lengthy NetGalley backlist. Perhaps I had an intuition that this would not be a stellar read for me, hence waiting SO long to read it.

Perhaps it was because this is the second book in the series and I have not read the first one? Perhaps it lost some essential integrity in the translation from German to English? Whatever the reason, this police procedural was quite a chore to read. Overly long, and slow in pace, it was a book that I wanted to like, but it fell flat for me... 

Policewoman Franza Oberwieser was a character that I quite liked. She was in her mid forties and a dedicated officer. Perhaps too dedicated as the job negatively impacted her personal life. Yes, I did like Franza, but the plethora of other characters detracted from the story. I felt it was just a struggle too far, as the plot was dragged out.

If I had to pinpoint a theme for this murder mystery, it would probably be betrayal - of friends, of family members, and of siblings.

The ending was not stereotypical, and not totally satisfying. I'd love to hear from other readers who enjoyed this book and/or this series. Perhaps it just wasn't the right time for me to delve into it.

2.5 stars rounded up

[Susann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Convoluted, irritating at times but still good

The teensy, ethereal hints at times drove me bonkers. I kept thinking, where is this going and why the little teases? The characters of Hanna and Gertrude was elusive for way too long as was the older Tonio. I still love the interplay between the detectives and their personal life challenges. There is such a warmth there! Anyway, the author got there in the end and explained it all. A bit of a soap opera/crime novel. The writing was excellent especially atmospheric scenes. Sometimes the plot dragged and went back and forth a few too many times. Mixed feelings about this one.

[Terry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weird!

I really liked "Rain Girl" but this novel is a mess! Half the time the reader is clueless about which "he" or "she" was doing the talking! I'm not sure if it was the translation or the writing but this book needs a real going-over! Too many dropped clues that turned out to mean NOTHING! Boo! Hissss! Not any good at all!

[Kamilah Tisdale · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think some things were lost in the translation of this book - some of the phrasing or word choice was a bit choppy- but it was a minor distraction.
I found some of the retellings by the different narrators repetitive and it was hard to keep track of the many characters and narrators at times. Also, because some of the reveals were so drawn out, I found myself guessing them before the characters finally said them.

[T &T Dieschbourg · Rating 3 out of 5]

A hard read

I rarely leave reviews however I felt the need.
This book was hard to get through but I was determined to finish it and hoped it got better as I powered through.
The story was hard to follow because there were too many characters. I struggled to remember who was who in the story line.

[Astrid Falkenberg · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit of a mess.... I usually don’t mind when authors jump around, but this was too much and way too confusing. And somehow the whole story didn’t seem to hold well together. Also, who was alien in the bar? Was it Max? Did I miss it or, were we supposed to figure it out ourselves, or ?

[Arlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

only one question

who was at the bar... who scared her? These books are so full of depth and twists and turns it seems like we never really know what's happening till it's over and the amount of pain is left..

[Anna Christine Asztalos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting

Such a tangled web we weave. This bounced around a bit, but the end was a little surprising. I was so into the story that closer to the end I stopped because I wasn't ready to know who did it. Once again the author kept me on the edge. A good read.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first book of this series but no this book. It was a little confusing with all the sisters and half sisters and brothers. I would like more background about Germany. I could hardly tell where the book was taking place.

[Debbie Stark · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Sally-W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Secrets and lies and lots of twists. The switches in first person narrative were a bit confusing at times.

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love these books

Good book enjoy the description s of scenery and esp like that I can't figure out the who done it v before the author wants me to.

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not like the first on the series, slow and drawn out. It may be the translation want the best. Still happy I read it!

[Rachelle]

Thanks Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not sure what to think. This was confusing to me and hard to follow. I kept drifting and I'm not sure if it was me or the book. I guess this is the second in a series so maybe I needed to read the first one.

[Themistokeles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Franza Oberweiser ist mal eine Kommissarin, die sich von vielen, die man so kennt ein wenig abhebt, da sie zum einen zwar Probleme hat, aber diese total alltäglich sind, wie unter anderem leichte Figurprobleme, aber sie liebt das Backen nun einfach zu sehr und zudem hat sie in vielen anderen Punkten eine doch eher etwas männlichere Einstellung, die sie einfach besonders machen. Um manche Ding zu ihr wirklich vollständig nachvollziehen zu können, sollte man aber, denke ich, den Vorgängerband »Regenmädchen« gelesen haben, da mir, die ich dieses Buch leider noch nicht kenne, doch aufgefallen ist, dass die Charaktere manchmal doch noch Hintergründe haben, die angeschnitten werden, aber sicherlich klarer würden, wenn man den ersten Band um Franza Oberwieser schon gekannt hätte. Trotzdem ist sie auch hier schon merkbar ein sehr lebensnaher Charakter, der manchmal sehr direkt sein kann, aber eindeutig einfach lebt.

Davon abgesehen, ist der Roman aber auch ohne Vorkenntnis des ersten Bandes gut zu verstehen, da er, wie bei vielen anderen Krimireihen auch, einen eigenständigen Fall behandelt, der, ebenso wie die Ermittlerin in diesem, ein wenig anders ist, als man es sonst oft gewohnt ist.

Hingegen vieler moderner Krimis kommt »Rabenschwestern« nämlich ohne viel Blut aus, lebt eher von einer Reihe an Geheimnissen, erinnert vielleicht auch eher an mancher Stelle noch ein bisschen mehr an eine Familiensaga, als an einen typischen Krimi. Aber gerade das macht das Buch auch sehr spannend, da man immer wieder neue Geheimnisse und Intrigen in dieser Familie entdeckt, die ein ganz neues Licht auf den Kriminalfall werfen und einen auch immer mal wieder dazu bringen umdenken zu müssen, damit man noch auf dem Laufenden bleibt und dem Fall gut folgen kann.
Dabei wird die Spannung auch immer sehr hoch gehalten und ich war durchweg neugierig was noch passieren wird, auch schon zu Beginn des Romans, in welchem die Geschichte eher noch etwas ruhiger anläuft und man sich daher aber auch sehr gut einfach an die Charaktere und Gegebenheiten gewöhnen kann. Und auch, wenn im späteren Verlauf, dem Leser vielleicht die ein oder andere Sache etwas vorweggenommen wird, die Franza und den anderen Ermittlern noch nicht klar ist

Ein Krimi, der ein wenig anders ist, aber dadurch definitiv nicht schlecht, sondern einem einfach eine angenehme Abwechslung bietet. Von daher, kann ich ich allen, die auch gern mal einen ruhigeren, aber spannenden Krimi lesen, dieses Buch nur empfehlen.

[Angi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die Geschichte:
Gertrud Rabinsky, die Inhaberin eines kleinen Töpferladens, wird zu Hause brutal erstochen aufgefunden. Sie stammt aus einer wohlhabenden Familie und hinterlässt eine erwachsene Tochter, einen kleinen Sohn und ihren Mann.
Kommissarin Franza Oberwieser soll mit ihrem Team den Fall untersuchen und das erweist sich als sehr schwierig. Zunächst ist kein Motiv erkennbar, allerdings wurden Spuren am Tatort gesichert, die aber keinem Verdächtigen zugeordnet werden können. Durch viele Befragungen von Bekannten und Angehörigen stellt sich schließlich heraus, dass die Ursache des Verbrechens weit in der Vergangenheit liegen könnte. Es gibt Geheimnisse in der Familie, die sehr brisant sind.
Außerdem wird die bekannte Fotografin Hanna Umlauf vermisst, die – wie sich bald herausstellt – mit Gertrud aufgewachsen ist wie eine Schwester. Was hat sie mit dem Mord zu tun – oder ist sie sogar ein weiteres Opfer?

Meine Meinung:
Ohne Vorkenntnis des ersten Bandes habe ich mich an “Rabenschwestern” gewagt, aber man kommt auch gut zurecht, ohne die Vergangenheit zu kennen.

Mit dem Schreibstil habe ich mich allerdings leider etwas schwer getan. Der ist schwer zu beschreiben, irgendwie so gewollt lebendig-dynamisch mit Sätzen, wie “Damalsdamalsdamals … die Jahre flossen … zurück …”. Manchmal war mir das einfach zu viel und zu unruhig. Hat mir nicht wirklich gut gefallen.

Die Charaktere werden sehr gut beschrieben, wir erhalten bei vielen Figuren einen ausführlichen Einblick in ihr Privatleben und in ihre Gefühlswelt. Stellenweise schon fast zu ausführlich, so dass es etwas vom Kriminalfall ablenkt.
Franza ist mir nicht unsympathisch, aber so richtig ins Herz geschlossen habe ich sie jetzt auch nicht. Es gab auch sonst niemanden in der Story, den ich extrem mochte.

Der Kriminalfall ist verzwickt, wird teilweise mit Rückblicken in die Vergangenheit verknüpft und am Ende zwar aufgelöst, aber für mich war es oft zu realitätsfern. Außerdem geht es an zu vielen Stellen um irgendwelche Beziehungsprobleme (den Fall und auch das Privatleben der Ermittlerin betreffend) und das war mir alles zu viel und zu ausführlich. So richtige Spannung wollte deshalb auch nicht aufkommen.

Fazit:
Für einen Krimi war es mir nicht spannend genug und die vielen Beziehungsproblemchen waren mir einfach “too much”!

[Kathi Wason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Raven Sisters

This was a mystery full twists and turns and I actually had to go back twice to check who the murderer was. It was fascinating reading and kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end.

[Elaine Tomasso · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to thank Netgalley and AmazonCrossing for an advance copy of Raven Sisters, a police procedural set in Southern Germany. Essentially it tells of the investigation into the murder of Gertrud Rabinsky at her home but as her family has had many secrets over the years it also unveils most of them.
I loved Rain Girl, the preceding novel in the series, but I found this to be a bit of a slog as it seems all over the place and the uncovered secrets highly improbable (one or two maybe but a whole slew pushes even my credulity). The novel starts slowly as there is a fair amount of scene setting. Gertrud is being stalked as Tonio Jr. (no last name supplied) believes that she can tell him about the dead father, Tonio Sr., he never knew and won't take no for an answer. This stirs up the past in ways the reader will only discover as the novel progresses. Then Gertrude is stabbed to death and her estranged sister, Hanna, is missing. Enter detectives Franza Oberwieser and Felix Herz.
The actual investigation parts of the novel are good and the plot is twisty with plenty of suspects and motives but it is continually interrupted by chapters on Tonio Jr's exploits, Franza's love life, first person reminiscences by Hanna and first person reactions from Gertrud's daughter, Lilli. For me, all four destroy the narrative flow and the first person narratives are confusing until you work out who is speaking. It is a personal preference but I'd rather read a straightforward, linear investigation without the asides so this probably colours my review slightly.
I like the whodunnit and investigative aspects of the novel and I like the camaraderie between the detectives who are all decent, hardworking individuals with pleasant, "normal" personalities so, all-in-all, Raven Sisters is not a bad read.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A murder mystery yes but the characters in this book, esp Franza, are interesting and believable and I actually didn't want it to end. Well translated from the original German as well. Great twists.

[T.R. Horne · Rating 1 out of 5]

*Received this book for free for honest review from NetGalley

I hate to give one star reviews but more importantly, I dislike reading one star novels. This novel, Raven Sisters by Gabi Kreslehner, was a struggle to get through. It was enough struggle that I had to DNF it about 20% in. The story made absolutely no sense! I couldn't get a grasp on who the main character was and who was speaking or thinking. It was all over the place. Mind you, this is a translation...so someone's job should be on the line. The cover of this novel is what pulled me in. It looks awesome! Unfortunately, the story inside is a jumble of people, thoughts and places that make absolutely no sense. I hope we can blame this on the translator and the original was in much better shape (especially since it was from a highly regarded international author).

Raging Book Reviews NOT Recommended

[Elizabeth Grieve · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm afraid this was not for me. I am happy to read books which have been translated from other languages, but often, sadly, as in this one, there is a somewhat stilted quality to the writing. Combined with the point of view changes, I found this hard going, and although I tried going back to it twice, finally gave up. I have so many other books to read!

A preview copy was provided in exchange for a review.

[laura hely · Rating 5 out of 5]

A generational tale.

Franza Oberweiser is a fascinating woman/homicide cop with a lover who is a stage actor 12 years than she. Her first book was captivating. This book goes beyond. It is the story of generations of women damaged in different ways by life and the men with whom they are/were involved. Of course there is a murder, but I will not be a spoiler and mention anything about it. Gabi Kreslehner weaves a tale of such twists and turns, to say anything more would decrease the enjoyment of other readers. The only thing else I will say is that I can't wait to read the next Franza book.

[Njoy2016 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting

Although the beginning was intriguing, it seemed to get a bit confusing toward the end. The chapters toward the end were translated to make it difficult to determine the point of view. A few of the chapters were unnecessarily wordy. It's not one of my favorite books.

[Patricia Zashkoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It's about 2 girls who become sisters for life even though they are not related. It follow them from childhood to adulthood and through trials, tribulations and murder. There were several times when I was taken by surprise by the events that occurred. I like that! Certainly not a predictable story which adds to the mystery. I would recommend this book to all.