Meister Frantz and the Devil's Nightshade

by Edith Parzefall

Free imperial city of Nuremberg 1581: Meister Frantz never meant to get involved in an ongoing investigation again. But who’d be better qualified to tell whether Anna Presiglin really hanged herself than the hangman of Nuremberg? Just in time before the corpse is burned, town guard Max Leinfelder gets the executioner’s take on her a blow to the neck. Who killed her before stringing her the husband, the lover or the robbers roaming the area? Only one thing is Meister Frantz will be busy. Then the victim’s body disappears, horses get stolen and husbands find themselves on errant paths. Max hardly knows who he should chase first. Solving this complicated case even requires his wife Kathi to join in the hunt as a secret scout of the city council, a position both well-paid and dangerous.

221 pages, Paperback

Published January 28, 2017

About the author

Edith Parzefall studied literature and linguistics in Germany and the United States. She worked as a technical writer, documentation manager and engineer tamer. Now a full-time writer, she strives to combine her two passions: writing and travelling.

Reviews

[bex · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been a big fan of Parzefall's work for a while and when she started writing about the Hangman of Nuremberg, she got into a genre I really devour (historical mysteries)--and she delivers. As expected, this second volume of the Hangman series is another 5 star read. I got totally lost in historic Nuremberg. As odd as it sounds, I wouldn't mind meeting the Hangman himself, as long as it was without the risk of ending in his chapel.

The book has everything I require of a historical mystery--an intriguing mystery, a believable historical setting, and complicated, realistic characters.

Although I've read and highly recommend the first one, I believe readers would have no issue diving in here.

[Judy Stambaugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book!

This is the second book in this series of the hangman of Nuremburg. Again the hangman must solve a murder. Set in the 1500's , the book tells of the trials of a murderer, and how he tries to cover his crime. Will the hangman solve the mystery and find the killer and how does he go about it ?