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The Devil's Progeny
When Professor Holda Weisel receives an unexpected visit from her student, Lars Koch, she is shocked to learn that his father, the infamous TV talk show host, died two days earlier under unexplained circumstances. His death appears to be linked to old diaries written by his grandmother and great-grandmother, which he was reading at the time. Lars, a usually withdrawn and unlikeable loner with disturbing alt-right leanings, resolves to investigate the mystery.
With the aid of Holda and her husband Rupert, the town’s archivist, Lars begins to dig deeper into his murky family history, uncovering unsettling secrets at every turn. The reader is drawn into a world of prejudice, prostitution and malicious folklore set during the occupation of the Rhineland and up to World War II. As he explores further, Lars realises how these events link him inexorably to the far-right, anarchistic Reichsbürger movement – revealing he is directly in harm’s way. Yet this is only the beginning of his nightmare…
With the aid of Holda and her husband Rupert, the town’s archivist, Lars begins to dig deeper into his murky family history, uncovering unsettling secrets at every turn. The reader is drawn into a world of prejudice, prostitution and malicious folklore set during the occupation of the Rhineland and up to World War II. As he explores further, Lars realises how these events link him inexorably to the far-right, anarchistic Reichsbürger movement – revealing he is directly in harm’s way. Yet this is only the beginning of his nightmare…
230 pages, Paperback
Published November 25, 2019
About the author
Cathy Dobson
371 books30 followersCathy Dobson was born in 1963 in Marple, Cheshire, the town after which Agatha Christie named her famous female sleuth, Miss Marple. She studied modern and medieval languages at Cambridge University between 1982–1986. In 1991 she moved to Germany and in 1995 settled in Meerbusch in the Rhineland with her husband, three children and a fluctuating number of cats. Her first novel, Planet Germany, was published in 2007, to wide acclaim in the German and British press. The Devil’s Missal is her second novel.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 20, 2024
This is the follow-up novella to The Devil's Missal (a story I absolutely LOVE!). My favorite part about this author's style is their ability to move the plot forward through past events stored in diaries, letters, etc. However, this story took a big step back from horror. I didn't feel scared once while reading it (despite the history sections on Nazi occultism, which is always dreadful). Funny enough, I just finished reading Silver Nitrate which also touched on Nazi occultism- I didn't plan this, and it is incredibly serendipitous.
Despite the lack of horror, I enjoy spending time with Holda and Rupert in this story. They have grown on me since I first met them in The Devil's Missal. I would have liked for them to reminisce (a little) about what they had gone through during the events in the first book. They saw Satan rape a priest, for God's sake (no pun intended). A word about that should have been mentioned. I expect that to be more traumatizing and occasionally thought of in their internal monologues or outright in conversation, mainly when they wrestled with the reality of whether or not the voodoo dolls in this story really held magical powers. They knew magic existed after book one!
One of my complaints during the first book was Rupert's and Holda's lack of chemistry. However, the author does an excellent job addressing that issue in The Devil's Progeny, and they included a few other spicy scenes between other characters. In fact, there was a very spicy section involving one of the female characters and five men. You read that right... FIVE men. And it was written excellently to the point where I wanted MORE! It wasn't raunchy at all, but it was erotic and delicious to read! This story paints female sexuality in a very positive light, even introducing female characters who are not afraid to own their sexuality. That was my favorite theme of the book.
What I didn't like was the lack of horror. There were a few scenes of dread involving Nazi extremists hunting down ancestors of Jewish opposers and even a few instances of wax voodoo dolls, but none of it was scary. In fact, I struggled to understand the title of this book until the very end, when it all came together. The ending shocked me, and I honestly didn't see it coming- I was a bit sad about it, to tell you the truth.
Overall, while this novella didn't deliver on the horror front, it excelled in character development and themes of female sexuality. It also had a decent message about discovering who you are instead of listening to extreme propaganda groups and racist thinkers. I'll be reading more from this author, hoping for a return to the chilling elements that initially drew me in.
Despite the lack of horror, I enjoy spending time with Holda and Rupert in this story. They have grown on me since I first met them in The Devil's Missal. I would have liked for them to reminisce (a little) about what they had gone through during the events in the first book. They saw Satan rape a priest, for God's sake (no pun intended). A word about that should have been mentioned. I expect that to be more traumatizing and occasionally thought of in their internal monologues or outright in conversation, mainly when they wrestled with the reality of whether or not the voodoo dolls in this story really held magical powers. They knew magic existed after book one!
One of my complaints during the first book was Rupert's and Holda's lack of chemistry. However, the author does an excellent job addressing that issue in The Devil's Progeny, and they included a few other spicy scenes between other characters. In fact, there was a very spicy section involving one of the female characters and five men. You read that right... FIVE men. And it was written excellently to the point where I wanted MORE! It wasn't raunchy at all, but it was erotic and delicious to read! This story paints female sexuality in a very positive light, even introducing female characters who are not afraid to own their sexuality. That was my favorite theme of the book.
What I didn't like was the lack of horror. There were a few scenes of dread involving Nazi extremists hunting down ancestors of Jewish opposers and even a few instances of wax voodoo dolls, but none of it was scary. In fact, I struggled to understand the title of this book until the very end, when it all came together. The ending shocked me, and I honestly didn't see it coming- I was a bit sad about it, to tell you the truth.
Overall, while this novella didn't deliver on the horror front, it excelled in character development and themes of female sexuality. It also had a decent message about discovering who you are instead of listening to extreme propaganda groups and racist thinkers. I'll be reading more from this author, hoping for a return to the chilling elements that initially drew me in.
February 20, 2020
Dr Holda Weisel, lecturer in Medieval Literature at Düsseldorf University, has a dilemma. One of her students, Lars Koch, has turned to her for support after the sudden death of his father. The problem is, Lars presents as a very anti-social alt-right loner, and his father was a reviled controversial shock-TV presenter. Despite her reservations, Holda does the decent thing and gives him a safe space to grieve in her home shared with her Archivist husband Rupert.
It appears that the death of his father might have been caused by a major shock after reading something contained in an old suitcase full of diaries and letters from the '30s and '40s written by Lar's grandmother and great-grandmother. As curious as ever to solve a puzzle, Holda sets out to untangle a dark web of family secrets, assisted by Rupert for whom local social history is right up his Straße.
What emerges is a horrific and tragic tale interwoven with suggestions of black witchcraft, that has terrible consequences in the present day.
A superbly researched novel that takes the reader on a thrilling journey into the black heart of Nazi Germany and the desperate things people would do just to survive.
It appears that the death of his father might have been caused by a major shock after reading something contained in an old suitcase full of diaries and letters from the '30s and '40s written by Lar's grandmother and great-grandmother. As curious as ever to solve a puzzle, Holda sets out to untangle a dark web of family secrets, assisted by Rupert for whom local social history is right up his Straße.
What emerges is a horrific and tragic tale interwoven with suggestions of black witchcraft, that has terrible consequences in the present day.
A superbly researched novel that takes the reader on a thrilling journey into the black heart of Nazi Germany and the desperate things people would do just to survive.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews