Auf zerbrochenem Glas

Nik Pohl #1

by Alexander Hartung

One murdered, one missing. Both are almost identical.

Detective Nik Pohl has seen every shade of darkness in his career. Not used to playing by the rules, he finds himself frozen out by his superiors. What’s worse, now he’s being blackmailed by a shadowy businessman into investigating a seemingly crimeless disappearance.

A young woman, Viola, left her home months ago, leaving a letter to her parents saying she wouldn’t be coming back. With a little digging Nik discovers the case of an almost identical-looking woman, who went missing in similar circumstances. There’s one important difference: that woman is dead. Viola may still be alive… but perhaps not for much longer.

When Nik is viciously attacked, it becomes clear that whoever is behind Viola’s disappearance has some high-level connections, and they will stop at nothing to shut him down. But he’s in too deep and the clock is ticking. He has to find Viola, and her captors, before it’s too late.

From million-copy bestselling German author Alexander Hartung

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Germany, Ebooks

284 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2018

About the author

Alexander Hartung lives in his hometown of Mannheim, Germany, with his wife and young son. He discovered his love of thrillers while studying economics. Until the Debt is Paid follows hard-partying detective Jan Tommen through Berlin, a city the author previously called home.

Reviews

[Sonja Rosa Lisa ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 Sterne
Ich lese sehr gerne spannende Thriller. Dieses Buch war in Ordnung. Ich habe mich nicht gelangweilt, aber einen richtigen Zugang habe ich auch nicht gefunden. Die Charaktere haben mich noch nicht wirklich überzeugt, obwohl die Handlung an sich interessant war. Ich bin etwas zwiegespalten. Da sich dieser erste Band der Reihe aber gut und flüssig hat lesen lassen, werde ich den zweiten Band noch lesen und dann entscheiden, ob ich die Reihe weiterführen möchte.

[Rebecca (life's chaotic catching up) · Rating 1 out of 5]

“Female police officer from the other team had hair exactly the same color and length as the strands currently sticking to his coat. She was the kind of woman who’d be bold enough to start a relationship with a superior thirty years her senior”

Miss me with this absolute misogynistic bullsh$t!!!! There is so much wrong with this I don’t even know where to start.
She is bold and has the audacity to have blond hair so let’s slap a scarlet letter on her?!!
DNF on page 15.
Nope we aren’t putting up this crap in 2023. NEXT!

[Katie B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the better mystery thrillers I have read recently and certainly a good choice by me to pick this one up as my Amazon First Reads selection this month. It features an intriguing main character and the story kept me on my toes as it was one thing after another. Action packed for sure.

Detective Nik Pohl does his own thing which doesn't always go over well with his colleagues and bosses on the police force. And of course he has done some not so good things which make him a target for blackmail. A man named Jon knows Nik's weak spots and uses it against him so Nik will look into the cold case of a missing woman named Viola. As Nik investigates what happened to Viola it appears there might be a link between her case and the death of another young woman. The more he digs for the truth, the more it becomes obvious someone powerful wants Nik off the case. He better watch his back as his life is now at stake.

I love that Nik was a flawed character instead of a completely straight laced detective. That's what made him interesting as he was a bit of a wildcard in that I never completely knew what lines he would be willing to cross. I'm excited that this is the first book in a series because I think there is a lot more for the author to explore in regards to Nik.

It seems like such a cliche to say but there were things in this story I didn't see coming which made it a fun read. I read so many books in this genre that it's not very often I'm caught off guard at a plot twist. Very early on in the story I was hooked as the author certainly doesn't wait until the ending to drop some surprises.

My only small criticism is there was one thing in regards to the story that had me side-eyeing it a bit. By no means did it ruin the book but it was more of a case of questioning whether something was likely to happen in that manner. Maybe for some readers there are other parts of the story that don't seem super realistic, but for me it was really only one tiny aspect of the plot.

I think the author really set the stage for a promising new series. Will definitely have to check out future books as this was definitely an enjoyable read.

[Don Gerstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nik Pohl is a detective who has reached such a high level of job burnout that he carries a cyanide capsule to use when he feels it is time to end his life. This doesn’t stop him from descending into the bowels of the city, doing his best to make things right, and using his own violent methods whenever possible. While he originally didn’t wish to become involved in the murder of one woman and the disappearance of another, Nik soon finds himself tangled in an “off the books” investigation. Unfortunately, there are people who don’t want the truth uncovered, and Nik finds he must put his life on the line to solve the case.

Author Alexander Hartung has added a touch of noir to his mystery story, adding a darkness that helps the overall mood. The tale proceeds logically and carries a sense of realism. Translations from another language can sometimes be an issue, though Fiona Beaton’s work made it appear as if the story had originally been written in English.

Overall, a good effort. While most of the characters are one-dimensional, the story teller is Nik, and we are given a running commentary of everything through his eyes. The hardboiled detective fits this novel well, and it was an enjoyable read. Four stars.

[Michael Slavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The cover caught my interest and 1,000 reviews on Amazon. The book is a translation from German, so maybe that was the problem. But I could just not stay interested.

Good things:
It took place in Munich which was interesting.
It takes place in the winter which was interesting.
There were a few plot twists.
The hero is a flawed CID inspector of the Munich police, Nik Poh. And he was interesting.
It did feel a little different.
Not sure it was all at night,m but it felt like it to me, also a plus adding a different element.

Bad things:
It just seemed to drag.

You might try it, see what you think.

Review by Mike Slavin author of award-winning Kill Crime (action-packed thriller on Amazon to buy or KU)

[Taryn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn’t realize this was a translation when I bought it. I thought this book was mundane and had no depth, and I hope that can be attributed to not reading it in its original language. The storyline was interesting, but it read like a low-budget film. The characters were one-dimensional and fitted perfectly into stereotypical molds. I didn’t feel any emotional connection to the main character. He clearly has a past, and I would like to have known more about it to understand him better. I was disappointed with this book from chapter one, and it was a struggle to finish it.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has been on my kindle for a while so I finally got into it. I think I chose it as one of the Amazon first reads. What you get is a Munich CID truly ramped up to max speed who pursues the perpetrator behind a growing list of missing women. No one talks or they will be dealt with. Will he win this battle over evil? Extreme measures takes him to his goal. Will I read another? Maybe.

[Christi M · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gritty police procedural thriller I picked as my October Amazon First Reads selection. Originally published in German, it has now been translated to English by Fiona Beaton.

Thoughts:
Over the last several years I’ve noticed how more and more detective stories involve protagonists that have a dark side they are fighting against. They are jaded, wounded, and restless. Perhaps it is from a childhood trauma or incident or perhaps it is from too many years on the job that have made them a bit weathered in how they think, react, and deal (or don’t deal) with emotional pain. In Broken Glass, Nik Pohl is no exception. He is literally on his last chance as a Munich CID detective. He’s got an unkempt appearance that almost screams how little he cares about life at the moment and how little control he feels he has. In fact, he carries a cyanide pill with him for that moment when it all becomes a bit too much for him. But even though he is completely burned-out and probably in need of a very long vacation the one thing he does have truly going for him is his tenaciousness in investigating mysteries and crimes. So when Nik is blackmailed into investigating the disappearance of Viola Rohe, he does the only thing he knows how to do – he digs in.

I found the story to be a good first start to a new series. Nik clearly has issues, but as I read the book I sensed how the author was very slowly trying to shape and navigate Nik into the world of the living – to where he cares about life again. There is quite a bit of growth and potential in Nik and in the series. I’m still working through my own thoughts on the supporting characters. I’m not sure how plausible I found some of them and their circumstances, but I didn’t dislike them. My favorite support character has to be Balthasar von den Auenfelden. He’s what I would call a scene-stealer in the book – I found him half crazy, half funny, and enjoyed every scene more when he was in the picture.

Overall, if you’re like me and trying to decide which book to select in the Amazon First Reads, I’d give this one a chance. It does have some gritty/dark moments so if you’re looking for a light and fluffy mystery/thriller it’s probably not your best option. However, I also have read other books that are far grittier and darker than this one. Books that were too dark for me to read and I had to put down. This is not that type of book, so I guess you can say it is on the lighter side of dark.

Rating: 4 stars

[Mindo'ermatter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book Has Two Speeds: Too Fast and Too Slow

Story with plots, subplots, and perhaps mini plots too! Some sections were total distractions, while others were interesting and engaging. Nik Pohl is a renegade CID inspector I wanted to like but found too unbelievable in a story where he should have died multiple times amid a growing body count and violent sections that never ended. Then the quiet slow progress of the storyline, filled with too many details would plod along until the next unrealistic violent episode.

The complex story of a rough and tumble lead character almost seemed more a dark comedy with the all powerful overlords controlling everything but somehow being too incompetent too deal effectively with the out-of-control hero.

Some parts of the story were written well, while other parts seemed duct taped together in a disorganized mess. Distracting too was the mix of German and British slang of the generally good translation, where I felt the underlying meaning and context of the author got lost along the way.

The book's start was dark, convoluted, and confusing, which made me almost stop. However, about halfway through the book things became clearer, but unfortunately also got too predictable. The end was generally okay and a fair start for a series I will not follow.

Possibly, a good escape read if you like violence and the uncertainties of the dark world of collusion crime. It's not too long, which is a good thing because it seemed longer than it was.

Didn't wait for the Audible narration to become available, so it's possible it might have helped.

Perhaps the German version was excellent, but...?

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve had Alexander Hartung’s “Broken Glass” on my TBR shelf for a couple of years now. Not sure what prompted me to put it on there in the first place, possibly the snowy setting on the front cover and the fact that it was some translated crime fiction series from Europe. I do get a bit obsessed by that genre for some reason.

Anyway, Alexander Hartung is a German author, hailing from the city of Mannheim. Broken Glass centres around Detective Nik Pohl, set in Munich. This is very much a thriller crime novel and is fairly ‘high octane’, ricocheting from action to action and Nik Pohl is very much the aloof, unlikeable, couldn’t care less about anybody or anything kind of protagonist. Think Harry Hole but not loveable like Harry is, or think about Sebastian Bergman from the Swedish series but not as spiteful and you start to get the picture.

Broken Glass is definitely a page turner and the first half of the book had me hooked as Nik found himself thrust into an investigation with seeming cover ups at the highest of levels. The second half kind of lost it for me and I found that it was more of a thriller for thriller sake.

Overall not a bad read but probably not more than 3 stars.

[Kirsty · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty decent mystery thriller. It was October's first reads book choice on Amazon and I'm pleased I picked it. There was enough mystery to keep me guessing and wanting to read more. It was a good enjoyable read and one I would recommend to anyone wanting to chill out with a good book.

[*•MJ•* · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another GREAT read by an author I absolutely adore!

Justice served and a bittersweet ending. I really was not expecting the Epilogue to be jaw dropping💘

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had mixed feelings about this book, a detective thriller featuring Munich police detective Nik Pohl. The fast-moving and action-packed plot was quite intricate, and it kept me guessing until the end. But I didn’t feel that the story hung together as well as it should have, and I didn’t feel much of a connection with Nik. In some ways Nik reminded me of Jo Nesbø’s hero Harry Hole, but I didn’t find myself rooting for Nik despite his flaws quite as much I do with Harry.

The premise of the story is that a wealthy computer genius named Jon extorts Nik to investigate the closed case of a young woman’s disappearance, by threatening harm to someone close to Nik if he doesn’t cooperate. Meanwhile, Nik is suspended from his police job, so he has time on his hands but has to operate off the books.

Once Nik starts investigating, it becomes clear that powerful forces don’t want him to succeed. Naturally, this makes him more determined to solve the case, as well as other cases that seem to be related.

I’m willing to suspend disbelief up to a point, but in this case I had a few problems doing so. For example: I don’t think it was ever made clear why Jon wanted to find out what happened to the missing woman. I didn’t understand the motivations of several other characters who ended up helping Nik. And I don’t think enough groundwork was laid to prepare the reader for the resolution of the investigation.

I don’t want to give an unduly negative impression. I did enjoy the book, and I’d read more by the author. But I wouldn’t list it among my favorites.

[Adrian Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book wastes no time on drawn out openings. The prologue had all the intrigue needed to get my interest and then I just couldn't read the rest quickly enough. The beginning reminded me of a film noir detective movie with it's dark and ominous feel, added to by the setting and Pohl's no-nonsense and independent approach to police work. Although you could describe him as a little obnoxious, I liked his character. He's troubled and seemed disillusioned with life but he's an honest and likable rogue. By the middle of the book the mood lightened somewhat but remained just as hard hitting and gritty. Quite a few more characters and suspects started appearing and I was left a little bewildered with what the connections were, they seemed tenuous but perhaps I missed something. It didn't spoil the enjoyment and book 2 is a must.

[Deborah Whipp · Rating 2 out of 5]

I selected this as a free Kindle First Reads book. I enjoy thrillers, mysteries, and detective stories, but this was a little grittier than I normally like. If featured more than a few scenes with graphic violence/torture. Main character Nik Pohl is a disheveled, undisciplined mess of a police officer in Munich. At times his emotions seemed lacking, though it's hard to tell if that was literally lost in the translation of this book. Quite a few plot elements seemed highly improbable too and some of the secondary characters were a bit cliche. Since so much of Nik's motivation in pursuing the case was to protect a mother and son he knows, it was odd that their characters basically disappear from the book after their initial introduction. Overall, just too abrasive and over the top for my tastes.

[miss.mesmerized mesmerized · Rating 4 out of 5]

Die Idee, dass aus Nik Pohl noch ein erfolgreicher konventioneller Kriminalkommissar werden könnte, haben inzwischen alle aufgegeben. Auch wenn seine Ergebnisse stimmen, ist der Weg dorthin doch zu weit außerhalb des Gesetzes als dass es tolerabel wäre. Als ihn eines Abends ein Mann anspricht und prompt den Finger in seine wunde Stelle legt, hat Nik nichts entgegenzusetzen. Das spurlose Verschwinden einer jungen Frau wühlt den Fremden auf, er findet die Polizei habe den Fall zu schnell beiseitegelegt und Nik soll nun für ihn ermitteln. Widerwillig muss dieser sich beugen, es kommt ihm zunächst zwar auch etwas seltsam, aber noch nicht wirklich beunruhigend vor. Doch schnell pflastern Leichen seinen Spurenweg und er muss einsehen, dass er es mit mächtigen Gegnern zu tun hat, die nicht nur bestens in der Münchner Oberschicht vernetzt sind und an den entscheidenden Stellen ihre Leute sitzen haben, sondern auch keinen Gedanken an ein ausgelöschtes Menschenleben verschwenden.

Alexander Hartung ist mir als Krimiautor seiner Mannheimer Reihe um Kommissar Jan Tommen bereits bekannt, jetzt also eine neue Thriller-Reihe um Ermittler Nik Pohl in München. Der Auftakt hat durchaus Potenzial für eine überzeugende Reihe mit interessanten Figuren, wobei ich einräumen muss, dass für mich der Protagonist nicht unbedingt zu denjenigen gehören, die mich am meisten begeistern konnten. Im Gegenteil, hier sehe ich die größte Schwäche des Romans. Zwar ist die Anlage der Figur für den Verlauf der Handlung in dieser Form passend und auch logisch, aber mir werden hier doch ein paar Klischees zu viel bedient, die man in 90% aller Krimis und Thriller um Kommissare findet: der Haudrauf, der kein Gesetz kennt, der Hang zu maßlosem Alkoholkonsum, seine Verachtung für alle, die sich innerhalb der vorgegebenen Grenzen bewegen. Die Nebenfiguren Jon, der zunächst unbekannte Fremde, und dessen Helfer Balthasar wiederum fand ich recht innovativ und auch unterhaltsam und hoffe, dass diese in den Folgebänden auch noch mehr Raum bekommen.

Der Fall selbst erscheint zunächst recht unspektakulär mit der Suche nach einer spurlos Verschwundenen. Die Ermittlung schleppt sich dahin und weist schon zu Beginn ein recht hohes Maß an roher Gewalt auf, was doch sehr verwundert. Dies klärt sich jedoch im Laufe der Handlung und wird dadurch auch wiederum plausibel. Mit jedem Schritt wird das Ausmaß des Falles größer und verworrener und bringt immer wieder völlig neue und unerwartete Aspekte dazu. Mir fehlte jedoch ein wenig der Thrill, diese kaum aufzuhaltende Anspannung vor Sorge, dass irgendeine Figur es doch nicht überlebt und alles böse endet. Auch scheint mir in der Gesamtschau der Fall ein wenig zu viel von allem zu sein, um authentisch und glaubwürdig zu sein.

Nichtsdestotrotz fand ich den Roman so spannend, dass ich ihn kaum weglegen wollte und die nächste Katastrophe gespannt erwartete. Daher überzeugend als Krimi und vor allem in der Ausgestaltung der Geschichte.

[Crimefictioncritic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Munich Detective Inspector Nik Pohl, an unbecoming mixture of outward indifference and inward cynicism, is only looking to be left alone to drink his beer. What he gets is a partnership with a secretive computer expert named Jon who blackmails Pohl into re-opening an investigation into a missing woman, a case Nik’s colleagues closed after determining the woman had disappeared voluntarily. Jon insists Pohl investigate further until he feels satisfied no foul play was involved.

Reluctantly, Pohl gets the case files on the woman from a highly placed police colleague and works the case off the books. After the same colleague abducts Pohl and tries to kill him, after committing another murder in Nik’s presence, Pohl realizes Jon’s suspicions are well founded. After escaping his risky predicament by killing his colleague, Pohl digs deeper in the young woman’s disappearance, aided by Jon, who hacks the police computer system. The detective soon discovers another young woman who disappeared under almost identical circumstances, but she turned up dead. But what is the connection? After an illegal, late night exhumation of the woman’s corpse, whose death authorities had ruled accidental, Jon and Nik arrange a second autopsy by an eccentric pathologist who discovers the cause of death was murder by blunt force trauma.

As Pohl continues chasing up leads, he attracts the attention of some powerful and dangerous people who are intent on shutting down his informal investigation, preferably by killing him. The deeper Pohl digs, the more convinced he becomes he is up against a conspiracy that includes corruption at the highest levels. The question becomes, can he find out the truth and solve the cases before his powerful enemies eliminate him first?

Nik Pohl is an intriguing character, almost a latter day German version of the iconic Chandler character, Philip Marlowe. Once a highly regarded, decorated policeman, after the trauma of a past unsolved case that still haunts him, Pohl turned into a shadow of his former self and had only gone through the motions at work until he met Jon. Despite the blackmail, Jon forces Nik to recapture his enthusiasm for investigations and he doggedly perseveres, even when his own life hangs in the balance.

Hartung spins a clever, slow burning suspense yarn with plenty of twists to keep us guessing as he raises the tension throughout. Besides Pohl, there is a host of other colorful and intriguing characters. One of those is Nik’s sister Mira, who appears several times throughout the book, and provides the last twist in the story that I never saw coming. Broken Glass is suitable for fans of crime thrillers and mysteries, especially those who enjoy international crime tales.

[That Library Girl Moved To Storygraph · Rating 1 out of 5]

The brash, vulgar language of the main character, Nik Pohl, really turned me off from this book. His attitude towards everything was also annoying. Sure, he's a detective, but the way he goes about things irritated me. Overall, it really made me not even care to finish this book. But I finally did. I will probably not continue on with the series.

[Hung Nguyen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trinh thám điều tra phá án điển hình, với tiết tấu nhanh, dồn dập, đúng nghĩa là một page-turner. Mình thì sẽ thích truyện đi sâu vào điều tra phá án hơn nữa, chứ thấy anh Nik hơi siêu nhân, điều tra đâu là trúng phóc chỗ đó. 4⭐️

[Tanya · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. This is terrible. Nik Pohl is an awful character - a cliched rogue cop, but also antisocial and grubby, to the point that he is quite repulsive. He never seems to actually do any of his real job, and hates people for no reason. Some of his actions are both shocking and unbelievable. Unlike other fictional jaded cops or ex cops, he does not act like an ex-investigator; certainly not one who was supposedly good in the past. There is a lot more good crime out there than this.

[Kathleen VanVranken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast Read

Somewhat interesting police thriller. Tough, independent cop vs bad guys. The author does a good job of making the reader feel the streets of Munich and its surroundings. It would make a good summer beach read.

[BestBooksy Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Broken Glass is another intricately woven mystery thriller from the German literary maestro Alexander Hartung.
The main character, detective Nik Pohl has vigilante-style methods and his playbook, so he finds himself frozen out by his superiors and law enforcement. Due to his shadowy actions on his part, he is blackmailed into investigating an innocuous disappearance of a woman called Viola. The further he digs, he realizes that this disappearance is linked to the murder of another woman. To make matters worse, some influential people want him off the case even at the cost of his life. This sets up a crescendo of sweat-inducing suspense and mystery that had us chewing on fingernails deep into the night.

We loved that Nik was a flawed character and not a straight-arrow detective. He provides just the right amount of badass appeal that had us intrigued as too how far he would stretch the boundaries. This is a fantastic book to kick off the new series, and we are counting the days for the next one!

[AngryGreyCat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Broken Glass was a fascinating mystery that didn’t always read smoothly. There are plots and subplots and mini plots all running throughout the book with some parts better written (or perhaps translated?) than others. Overall, it was a book I didn’t want to put down, I just had to know the resolution. Nik is a cop with a litany of issues, on par with Jack Taylor, who finds himself blackmailed into investigating a case, which no one wants disturbed. The deeper he goes, the more secrets, lies, and murders pile up. I would definitely read another in this series.

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed feelings on this read.
The central character along with some of the minor characters and some of the scenes were totally unbelievable and this pulled me out of the story on occasion. Also, the jump to the ending felt abrupt. However, it was an intriguing story and well-written and translated.
I would say, if you're happy to suspend belief for an imaginative story then this book will appeal.

[Jean A. Lacayo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Electrifying! Intense with just the rift of humor

[Linda Morey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mystery -Nik was down on his luck CID and as he was looking into a disappearance, he found similar cases and realized there had been cover ups . Lots of getting out of jams with good old fashioned ingenuity. Others helped with more modern methods like hacking . The setting wasn’t for me so probably won’t read more as it seems to be a series

[Sherri-anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow start

After a slow and shaky start which almost put me off the book it eventually developed into an interesting mystery which actually managed to captivate interest towards the second half. It will be interesting to see how this series progresses in future books

[Debra Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent suspenseful action packed. I hope they translate all of this authors books. I’m a fan from page 1.

[Anika Franke · Rating 4 out of 5]

#Rezension #Rezensionsexemplar #NetgalleyDE #EditionM #NetgalleyDEChallenge

Alexander Hartung - auf zerbrochenem Glas

Klappentext

Nach einem anfänglich steilen Aufstieg bei der Kripo liest sich die Personalakte von Nik Pohl aktuell wie der Albtraum eines jeden Vorgesetzten: Ungehorsam, Verstoß gegen interne Sicherheitsrichtlinien und sogar körperliche Gewalt gegenüber anderen Staatsbeamten. Ausgerechnet er wird von einem Fremden erpresst, sich des Falls einer verschwundenen Frau anzunehmen, der eigentlich schon abgeschlossen bei den Akten liegt.
Zunächst entdeckt Nik keine Ungereimtheiten. Doch als er bei seinen privaten Ermittlungen tiefer einsteigt, wird er in eine brutale Falle gelockt, aus der er sich erst im letzten Moment befreien kann. Kaum genesen, wird Nik vom Dienst suspendiert. Es verdichten sich die Anzeichen, dass die Wiederaufnahme des Falls mit allen Mitteln verhindert werden soll. Nik ermittelt weiter, doch mit jeder Spur begibt er sich in größere Gefahr, denn die gesuchte Frau ist nicht die einzige Vermisste …
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Mein Fazit

Vielen lieben Dank an NetGalley Deutschland und Edition M für das Leseexemplar.

Für mich war es das erste Buch aus der Feder von Alexander Hartung.
Es handelt sich hier um den 1. Teil aus seiner Thriller Reihe um Nik Pohl.
Das Cover finde ich sehr gut gestaltet und auch der Klappentext weckt das Interesse des Lesers.
Der Schreibstil ist sehr angenehm und liest sich gut

Nik ist wahrlich nicht mein Lieblingsprotagonist. Er ist mir nicht sympatisch geworden. Ich finde ihn aber dennoch sehr interessant. Am Anfang bekommt man einen Einblick in sein Leben und merkt schnell dieser Typ ist kein Bilderbuchpolizist/Bilderbuchkripobeamte. Er ist dem Alkohol nicht abgeneigt und widersetzt sich gern Vorschriften und Richtlinien. Einen Kollegen den man glaub ich nicht gern haben möchte bei der Kripo. Dennoch beugt er sich als er erpresst wird und rollt eine Akte von einer verschwundenen Frau wieder auf.
Man merkt schnell, dass dieser Mann absolut nicht auf den Kopf gefallen ist. Dennoch sass ich hier und wurde das Gefühl nicht los ob er nicht geradewegs in eine fiese Falle tappt. Was wird er alles herausfinden und erleben?

Ein Thriller der sehr angenehm zu lesen ist und ein Ende was einen Lust macht weiter zu lesen. Ein solider Auftakt einer Thriller-Reihe, die mich aber leider nicht ganz so gefesselt hat wie ich es mir erhofft hatte. Dies ist aber nur keine persönliche Meinung.

4 von 5 Sterne
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#AlexanderHartung #AufZerbrochenemGlas #Büchereule #bücherliebe #leseverrückt #liebsteshobby #leseratte #leseliebe #lesewahnsinn #buchblog #buchbloggerin #buchliebhaberin #lesenistliebe #derrealitätentfliehen #bücherjunkie #büchernerd #bücherwurm #ohnebücherohnemich #lesewurm #meineleidenschaft #lesesucht #lesesüchtig #büchersüchtig #bookblogger

[Meg · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a free book from Amazon so I didn't expect too much and while it started off ok, it really went off the rails at the end.
Nik is a CID officer who doesn't follow the rules and has little regard for his wellbeing. Jon blackmails him into looking into a closed missing persons case. Viola went missing a month ago and there was very little police work done to try to find her, especially after her parents received a letter from her saying that she was fine and traveling. But Jon doesn't believe it. ,Jon's relationship to Viola and his reason for blackmailing Nik into looking into the case are both very thin, bordering on nonexistent. No sooner does Nik start poking around than his friend from Major Crimes attacks him and Nik has to kill him. So he now knows that there was a big police cover up in this case, but why? He finds 2 other missing persons cases where the women were found dead that match the MO in this case, a prostitute named Olga and a former drug addict named Kathleen. He eventually finds that the link between them was that they all were associated with a rehab clinic. But the people trying to do the cover up are not done with Nik just yet and they stage a scene where Nik is filmed punching a seemingly innocent bystander. The video is released to the press and Nik is suspended. So Jon, a computer wiz/hacker, and his doctor buddy get Nik admitted to the rehab clinic to sniff around. There he learns that they are experimenting on the rehab patients by giving them a drug known to be poisonous if mixed with alcohol. They are trying different strengths and dosages to see if they can turn it into a wonder drug to cure alcoholism. So this must be the reason for the deaths, right, since Kathleen was found with this drug in her system? Nope, it turns out that some random rich dude who has some unexplained connection to the clinic has been picking up women, trying to force them to love him, and then killing them when they don't. And his actions are being protected by his rich mommy and her cronies because it isn't his fault, it is an evil, sick madness that runs in the males of the family and they just cannot help themselves. HUH?!?!?!? Well that came out of left field! So dumb! Needless to say, I will not be continuing with this series.