What do you think?
Rate this book
Karin Müller #5
Stasi Winter
IN 1978 EAST GERMANY, NOTHING IS AS IT SEEMS.
The state's power is absolute, history is re-written, and the 'truth' is whatever the Stasi say it is.
So when the murder of a woman is officially labelled an 'accidental death', Major Karin Müller of the People's Police is faced with a dilemma.
To solve the crime, she must defy the official version of events. But defying the Stasi means putting her own life - and the lives of her young family - in danger.
As the worst winter in history holds Germany in its freeze, Müller must untangle a web of state secrets and make a choice: between the truth and a lie, justice and injustice, and, ultimately, life and death.
The state's power is absolute, history is re-written, and the 'truth' is whatever the Stasi say it is.
So when the murder of a woman is officially labelled an 'accidental death', Major Karin Müller of the People's Police is faced with a dilemma.
To solve the crime, she must defy the official version of events. But defying the Stasi means putting her own life - and the lives of her young family - in danger.
As the worst winter in history holds Germany in its freeze, Müller must untangle a web of state secrets and make a choice: between the truth and a lie, justice and injustice, and, ultimately, life and death.
368 pages, Paperback
First published January 9, 2020
119 people are currently reading
314 people want to read
About the author
David Young
16 books215 followersDavid Young was born near Hull and – after dropping out of a Bristol University science degree - studied Humanities at Bristol Polytechnic specialising in Modern History. Temporary jobs cleaning ferry toilets and driving a butcher's van were followed by a career in journalism with provincial newspapers, a London news agency, and the BBC’s international newsrooms where he led news teams for the World Service radio and World TV.
David was a student on the inaugural Crime Thriller MA at City University – winning the course prize in 2014 for his debut novel Stasi Child – and now writes full-time in his garden shed. In his spare time, he’s a keen supporter of Hull City AFC.
Stasi Child is the first of three books in the Oberleutnant Karin Müller series – set in 1970s communist East Germany – bought by the UK arm of Swedish publisher Bonnier by former Quercus CEO Mark Smith. It reached the top 5 bestsellers on Amazon Kindle, was number one bestseller in Amazon’s Historical Fiction chart, and has been optioned for TV by Euston Films (Minder, The Sweeney etc). Translation rights have so far been sold to France.
David was a student on the inaugural Crime Thriller MA at City University – winning the course prize in 2014 for his debut novel Stasi Child – and now writes full-time in his garden shed. In his spare time, he’s a keen supporter of Hull City AFC.
Stasi Child is the first of three books in the Oberleutnant Karin Müller series – set in 1970s communist East Germany – bought by the UK arm of Swedish publisher Bonnier by former Quercus CEO Mark Smith. It reached the top 5 bestsellers on Amazon Kindle, was number one bestseller in Amazon’s Historical Fiction chart, and has been optioned for TV by Euston Films (Minder, The Sweeney etc). Translation rights have so far been sold to France.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
November 30, 2022
A middle aged woman is found dead up north near Binz on the island of Ruben. Monika Richter no less, the diabolically evil woman from previous times. Frozen in the ice. Muller and Tilsner are sent to investigate. What starts out as an unsuspecting tragedy burgeons into full blown murder, and a group escape to the West. Karin as always is being done over in some way or other by the Stasi. Red headed Irma Behrendt, now a Stasi informant is part of the puzzling mix. Very exciting! Let’s just say things end up with a demotion for Karin! Now what’s going to happen to her three bedroom apartment that had room for the twins and her grandmother Helga?
January 7, 2020
This series just gets better and better.
This is episode 5 of this fascinating police and political procedural.
What sets it apart from others is the unusual location, combined with the ideology, bureaucracy and secrecy that Oberleutnant Karin Müller and her team have to deal with
In this story Müller has been called back to her duties with another unusual case this time set on the Baltic coast during one of the coldest winters of the GDR. Again the looming influence of the Stasi shadows Müller's enquiries and influences the investigation.
With great attention to period detail David Young takes you right back to a country that no longer exists but continues to fascinate so many. As a result, his books portrays a fascinating landscape where David Young’s research captures well the feel (and the smell!) of late 1970’s East Germany.
However, this is also a great crime novel with a richly detailed and complex female lead. There's a great twist at the end setting Müller up nicely for Young's sixth book of the series. I can't wait and I’m very much looking forward to the further adventures of Karin Müller.
If you like police procedurals, strong female characters, along with an Orwellian landscape then I highly recommend this.
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review
This is episode 5 of this fascinating police and political procedural.
What sets it apart from others is the unusual location, combined with the ideology, bureaucracy and secrecy that Oberleutnant Karin Müller and her team have to deal with
In this story Müller has been called back to her duties with another unusual case this time set on the Baltic coast during one of the coldest winters of the GDR. Again the looming influence of the Stasi shadows Müller's enquiries and influences the investigation.
With great attention to period detail David Young takes you right back to a country that no longer exists but continues to fascinate so many. As a result, his books portrays a fascinating landscape where David Young’s research captures well the feel (and the smell!) of late 1970’s East Germany.
However, this is also a great crime novel with a richly detailed and complex female lead. There's a great twist at the end setting Müller up nicely for Young's sixth book of the series. I can't wait and I’m very much looking forward to the further adventures of Karin Müller.
If you like police procedurals, strong female characters, along with an Orwellian landscape then I highly recommend this.
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review
February 20, 2020
I seem to make a habit of coming to series part way through. Such is the case with this series by David Young set in pre-unification Germany. However, although Stasi Winter is the fifth book in the series, I’m happy to say it works perfectly well as a standalone read. Having said that, there are references throughout to events in earlier books which would amount to spoilers. It certainly makes me wish I’d discovered the series earlier so that I could have read all the other books – Stasi Child, Stasi Wolf, Stasi State and Stasi 77 – first .
With events taking place over a few weeks in the ‘catastrophic’ winter of 1978/79, the author cleverly weaves the adverse weather and its impact into the plot. And the grim realities of everyday life for the population of East Germany are vividly depicted. Living in an oppressive state where people are in constant fear of informers and the secret police (the infamous Stasi), it’s no wonder individuals dream of escaping beyond the Anti-Fascist Protection Barrier (what we know as the Berlin Wall) and will go to almost any lengths to reach the West. However, it’s a high-risk venture with long-lasting repercussions for those who are caught – and their families – as will become evident.
I really liked the interesting dynamics the author creates between Müller and her investigation team. There’s clearly history between some of them and the reader may, like Müller herself, wonder just who can trusted at certain points. As well as the return of old sparring partner Jager, a Stasi Colonel who seems to have a finger in every pie, one particular individual from a previous case provides the reader with an unique insight on events.
The author keeps the chapters short and the pace intense as the story moves towards its explosive conclusion. And the end of the book includes a teaser for where the story might go next. A sign, I hope, now that I’ve discovered the series, that there will be another case for Karin Müller before very long.
Stasi Winter is a skilfully constructed and gripping crime thriller with a real sense of period atmosphere.
With events taking place over a few weeks in the ‘catastrophic’ winter of 1978/79, the author cleverly weaves the adverse weather and its impact into the plot. And the grim realities of everyday life for the population of East Germany are vividly depicted. Living in an oppressive state where people are in constant fear of informers and the secret police (the infamous Stasi), it’s no wonder individuals dream of escaping beyond the Anti-Fascist Protection Barrier (what we know as the Berlin Wall) and will go to almost any lengths to reach the West. However, it’s a high-risk venture with long-lasting repercussions for those who are caught – and their families – as will become evident.
I really liked the interesting dynamics the author creates between Müller and her investigation team. There’s clearly history between some of them and the reader may, like Müller herself, wonder just who can trusted at certain points. As well as the return of old sparring partner Jager, a Stasi Colonel who seems to have a finger in every pie, one particular individual from a previous case provides the reader with an unique insight on events.
The author keeps the chapters short and the pace intense as the story moves towards its explosive conclusion. And the end of the book includes a teaser for where the story might go next. A sign, I hope, now that I’ve discovered the series, that there will be another case for Karin Müller before very long.
Stasi Winter is a skilfully constructed and gripping crime thriller with a real sense of period atmosphere.
July 19, 2024
Some book series feel like familiar clothes that may not appear fashionable to everyone but to you leave you feeling comfortable and the bees knees.
Stasi Winter is the 5th book in this series by David Young and without doubt, the best of an excellent group of books that uniquely focus on the DDR prior to the fall of the Wall and the re-unification of Germany.
It is a fascinating backdrop to set a novel against, and the author has honed his skills over these crime thrillers that centre on a female police officer, Karin Müller.
In Stasi Winter the thrust of the story centres around a freak event where the waters around East Germany make it possible for potential defectors to walk to freedom. However, this plot line is secondary to the mysterious death of an old women assumed to have collapsed and died of exposure.
Karin having previously resigned from her job, finds the Stasi will not allow her to leave the force. Indeed they commission her team to investigate this potential murder and ask her to risk all by going undercover.
A real page turner in the old fashioned sense of action and adventure. With thrills and suspense throughout and such duplicity by Karin’s arch enemy in the Stasi, who has plans beyond his authority to silence Müller for all time.
Terrorism and a nuclear incident are also woven into the story that makes this the best yet.
It is also fitting that with this particular book the author has come full circle with this project and returned to the issue of division between the two Germanys as symbolised by the Wall. Karin has always been a faithful advocate of the state’s politics but here we have further revelations and a softening of her position.
Can be read as a stand-alone.
Fans of these novels will be delighted and new readers to this author will be compelled to return to the start and discover this journey at first hand.
Stasi Winter is the 5th book in this series by David Young and without doubt, the best of an excellent group of books that uniquely focus on the DDR prior to the fall of the Wall and the re-unification of Germany.
It is a fascinating backdrop to set a novel against, and the author has honed his skills over these crime thrillers that centre on a female police officer, Karin Müller.
In Stasi Winter the thrust of the story centres around a freak event where the waters around East Germany make it possible for potential defectors to walk to freedom. However, this plot line is secondary to the mysterious death of an old women assumed to have collapsed and died of exposure.
Karin having previously resigned from her job, finds the Stasi will not allow her to leave the force. Indeed they commission her team to investigate this potential murder and ask her to risk all by going undercover.
A real page turner in the old fashioned sense of action and adventure. With thrills and suspense throughout and such duplicity by Karin’s arch enemy in the Stasi, who has plans beyond his authority to silence Müller for all time.
Terrorism and a nuclear incident are also woven into the story that makes this the best yet.
It is also fitting that with this particular book the author has come full circle with this project and returned to the issue of division between the two Germanys as symbolised by the Wall. Karin has always been a faithful advocate of the state’s politics but here we have further revelations and a softening of her position.
Can be read as a stand-alone.
Fans of these novels will be delighted and new readers to this author will be compelled to return to the start and discover this journey at first hand.
November 24, 2020
“Stasi Winter” is the fifth novel by David Young to feature the investigations of Karin Müller, a detective in the East German People’s Police during the 1970s. Although it can be read as a stand alone, it deals with some characters from previous books (specially Stasi Child) so I suggest you read them in order to get more from them.
After her resignation from the police, Major Müller is force back into service to investigate what appears as an accidental death during a winter storm but is soon revealed to be a murder. The story begins as the usual murder investigation but halfway through turns into a thriller/adventures story that made me devour the pages. It’s the perfect mix of historical fiction and a police procedural.
“Stasi Winter” is a deeply atmospheric and haunting read. In this case not only the oppression of the state permeates the whole novel, but also the oppression of the weather, specially in the second half, keeping up the tension the whole time they’re on the ice. I could definitely feel the cold they were experiencing.
I find this a fascinating time and the author evokes perfectly the time, place and ideology, bringing to the front the despair some people endured during this years.
After that last revelation I can’t wait to go back to the DDR in the sixth book of the series.
Thanks to Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffre for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
After her resignation from the police, Major Müller is force back into service to investigate what appears as an accidental death during a winter storm but is soon revealed to be a murder. The story begins as the usual murder investigation but halfway through turns into a thriller/adventures story that made me devour the pages. It’s the perfect mix of historical fiction and a police procedural.
“Stasi Winter” is a deeply atmospheric and haunting read. In this case not only the oppression of the state permeates the whole novel, but also the oppression of the weather, specially in the second half, keeping up the tension the whole time they’re on the ice. I could definitely feel the cold they were experiencing.
I find this a fascinating time and the author evokes perfectly the time, place and ideology, bringing to the front the despair some people endured during this years.
After that last revelation I can’t wait to go back to the DDR in the sixth book of the series.
Thanks to Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffre for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
July 13, 2022
I love this series and have read Child and Wolf and both have been fantastic five star reads. This read does not disappoint either. Historical fiction par excellence. A police detective in the DDR and set in the winter of 78/ 79. The Baltic is almost frozen over and citizens are using it as an escape route. Muller is the detective who is sent to investigate a murder, but like the rest of the citizens she is trapped on an island surrounded by ice. I love the atmosphere this author creates. The detail of how the people were treated and no one and I mean no one is safe. You cannot work for the Stasi and have your own thoughts. The amount of research this author has done for this book and the series is astounding. Highly recommended and another addition to this eye opening and gripping series.
October 5, 2020
A continuing series with Karin Mueller and her murder squad. It's a harsh winter in the 1970's (a true account) and in order to escape the tyranny of East Berlin, people would run across the ice of the Baltic in order to get to the West (another true account). Mueller and her deputy, Tilsner, were sent to the Baltic to try and stop and arrest those who are fleeing. But, is the ice safe enough for Mueller and her team? An excellent cold weather suspense novel. I love the cold weather ones! I'm looking forward to the next novel. David Young gives a great description of what life was like under the secret government Stasi police.
January 16, 2020
4.5 stars
Stasi Winter is another superb addition to the Karin Miller series that was a very gripping read.
I always enjoy books set in the Cold War a I think it was a very interesting period in history. This story provides an interesting insight into the DDR when they were at the height of their powers. The author paints a frightening picture of a very uncertain time where residents were under constant surveillance and there were awful penalties when the rules were broken, even though these rules were unclear at times. I didn’t know much about the DDR so found these descriptions utterly fascinating.
The story is told from the point of view of two women Irma and Karin which gradually merge together in an intriguing way. Both women are strong characters but had flaws which made them seem realistic. I enjoyed following their story through the book and found that both stories were well developed.
This was a fast paced book which manages to be a murder enquiry and an adventure on the frozen North Sea. It’s a very exciting read which is incredibly atmospheric so that the reader can almost feel the cold and fear of the characters. Despite the era it’s set in, this isn’t a sad story as it also has an element of hope to the story which I thought was clever. I’m very excited to see where the series goes next.
Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Zaffre for my copy of this book via Netgalley.
Stasi Winter is another superb addition to the Karin Miller series that was a very gripping read.
I always enjoy books set in the Cold War a I think it was a very interesting period in history. This story provides an interesting insight into the DDR when they were at the height of their powers. The author paints a frightening picture of a very uncertain time where residents were under constant surveillance and there were awful penalties when the rules were broken, even though these rules were unclear at times. I didn’t know much about the DDR so found these descriptions utterly fascinating.
The story is told from the point of view of two women Irma and Karin which gradually merge together in an intriguing way. Both women are strong characters but had flaws which made them seem realistic. I enjoyed following their story through the book and found that both stories were well developed.
This was a fast paced book which manages to be a murder enquiry and an adventure on the frozen North Sea. It’s a very exciting read which is incredibly atmospheric so that the reader can almost feel the cold and fear of the characters. Despite the era it’s set in, this isn’t a sad story as it also has an element of hope to the story which I thought was clever. I’m very excited to see where the series goes next.
Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Zaffre for my copy of this book via Netgalley.
October 27, 2020
I have been such an avid reviewer of the Karin Muller series since discovering Stasi Child back in April this year. I've done my best to catch up on the series since then in the build up to what may be the finale in Stasi Game in December 2020.
Major Karin Müller of the People's Police is back on the job, and she is faced with a dilemma when a woman's death is labelled as 'accidental death' after being found in the bleak weather with what looks to be shopping bags. Karin is suspicious from the get go on this case.
Along with Tilsner & her fellow colleague Schmidt she is tasked with looking into the suspicious death.
I felt myself gliding along with the story and wasnt gripped as much as the previous books. I did enjoy the fact Irma was back in the story after featuring in Stasi Child but felt the actual investigation didnt pack the same punch as the previous stories. However, the book did seem to recover towards the end and race towards a strong finish to set me up for Stasi Game.
Major Karin Müller of the People's Police is back on the job, and she is faced with a dilemma when a woman's death is labelled as 'accidental death' after being found in the bleak weather with what looks to be shopping bags. Karin is suspicious from the get go on this case.
Along with Tilsner & her fellow colleague Schmidt she is tasked with looking into the suspicious death.
I felt myself gliding along with the story and wasnt gripped as much as the previous books. I did enjoy the fact Irma was back in the story after featuring in Stasi Child but felt the actual investigation didnt pack the same punch as the previous stories. However, the book did seem to recover towards the end and race towards a strong finish to set me up for Stasi Game.
January 6, 2020
Stasi Winter, like it’s predecessors, is a tense, haunting and atmospheric read, David Young as ever bringing an evocative sense of time and place to proceedings and embedding the reader deep within the psyche of his characters.
As if the difficulties facing them at that point in history weren’t enough, the author throws a weather front into the mix, creating a chilly and unnerving layer to a murder mystery that turns into so much more….
I’m a close follower of this series, have been since the start and it was a pure delight for me to reenter Karin’s world. The ending promised so much and the read itself was addictively excellent, not that I expect any less from this author now. No pressure or anything.
Genuinely fantastic historical crime fiction. The whole series comes highly recommended from me.
As if the difficulties facing them at that point in history weren’t enough, the author throws a weather front into the mix, creating a chilly and unnerving layer to a murder mystery that turns into so much more….
I’m a close follower of this series, have been since the start and it was a pure delight for me to reenter Karin’s world. The ending promised so much and the read itself was addictively excellent, not that I expect any less from this author now. No pressure or anything.
Genuinely fantastic historical crime fiction. The whole series comes highly recommended from me.
January 9, 2020
This is a fantastic series. David Young brings life behind the Iron Curtain to life. This book, the fifth, reminds us of Stasi Child, the first, continuing the story of the young woman Irma. It's a great story, set in the far north of Eastern Germany during the coldest winter for many years. You can feel the chill. Review to follow shortly on For Winter Nights.
April 7, 2020
Give it 3.5. I’ve enjoyed the other books in this series, but this wasn’t as good as the others. Story line not as strong and all felt a little far fetched.
March 22, 2023
Another good read, though the verdict on the setting was 'Brrrr!', the winter of '78-'79?..in communist 'stronghold' East Germany...famous for its gold-medal-winning, transgender athletes & swimmers!...but not for its Stasi or its skeletons in the cupboard...
Karin Muller continues to wrestle with her conscience as she is obliged to return to her police service, after a short interval of a version of freedom, following her recent ordeal in the 4th episode of a very entertaining series, when her family committments out-weigh her 'nationalism' (she watches TV programmes from the West!), & her life is disappearing down a rabbit-hole of compromises & painful experiences, literally & psychologically...
She comes through this snow-whipped, brutal, winter-time experience practically intact, even finding herself enjoying, once again, her treacherously-inclined colleague, Werner's attentions that save her life on the icy coastline of Germany...& show her she still has an appeal to the awful men around her!
Read this wearing a thick, woollen sweater & a balaclava: it is chillingly thrilling with its constant scenes of betrayal & distrust. But this is East Germany & its sinister, all-pervasive Stasi...only a decade before the wall came 'tumbling' down & the truth emerged about the sainted German Democratic Republic.
As if we hadn't guessed that it was a hell on earth...
Karin Muller continues to wrestle with her conscience as she is obliged to return to her police service, after a short interval of a version of freedom, following her recent ordeal in the 4th episode of a very entertaining series, when her family committments out-weigh her 'nationalism' (she watches TV programmes from the West!), & her life is disappearing down a rabbit-hole of compromises & painful experiences, literally & psychologically...
She comes through this snow-whipped, brutal, winter-time experience practically intact, even finding herself enjoying, once again, her treacherously-inclined colleague, Werner's attentions that save her life on the icy coastline of Germany...& show her she still has an appeal to the awful men around her!
Read this wearing a thick, woollen sweater & a balaclava: it is chillingly thrilling with its constant scenes of betrayal & distrust. But this is East Germany & its sinister, all-pervasive Stasi...only a decade before the wall came 'tumbling' down & the truth emerged about the sainted German Democratic Republic.
As if we hadn't guessed that it was a hell on earth...
November 13, 2020
During one of the worst winters the GDR endured, Karin and her colleagues are sent back to Rügen to look into the death of a woman who ostensibly died of exposure but soon turns out to have been murdered. A number of familiar faces from the first book make a reappearance, including Irma Behrendt, who is now secretly plotting a second attempt at escaping to the West along with a few conscripts.
I wasn't super thrilled with the set-up for this book. After Karin quit her job with the People's Police in a dramatic gesture at the end of the previous installment, Young now promptly backtracked and she's right back in her old job, with her old colleagues and problems thanks to her after all not former boss. Some of the plot was a little over the top, but nevertheless engaging. Catching up with some of the characters from the first book several years later was interesting, and I found myself rooting for Irma a lot more than anyone else involved - Karin included. Excellent ending though, and looks like the next one will be quite intriguing.
I wasn't super thrilled with the set-up for this book. After Karin quit her job with the People's Police in a dramatic gesture at the end of the previous installment, Young now promptly backtracked and she's right back in her old job, with her old colleagues and problems thanks to her after all not former boss. Some of the plot was a little over the top, but nevertheless engaging. Catching up with some of the characters from the first book several years later was interesting, and I found myself rooting for Irma a lot more than anyone else involved - Karin included. Excellent ending though, and looks like the next one will be quite intriguing.
January 7, 2020
https://orlando-books.blog/2020/01/07...
This is #5 in the series featuring Karin Müller, it can be read as a stand-alone but I feel you will be missing out on an amazing series.
Set in East Germany in 1979 and Karin Müller had retired but is brought back to work when a woman’s body is found. The state want this recorded as an accidental death, but Karin is determined to find the truth.
This is historical fiction at its best, a murder mystery, police procedural and politics. Full of adventure this is an immensely gripping read, so atmospheric you’ll feel the chill of winter.
Great characters and so much tension in a clever and engrossing plot to rival Robert Ludlum et al.
Thank you to Tracy at Compulsive Readers for the opportunity to take part in this blog tour, for the promotional material and a free ecopy of the book. This is my honest and unbiased review.
January 13, 2020
4.5
There are so many different elements in this book that it’s hard to put down! I always forget that this series is technically historical as it is set back in 1978 during the time of the wall with Germany split in half. We are given a shocking insight into life for those in the East and the risks that some take to try and escape to the West.
I really loved the premise, Karin is pulled out of retirement into a case which looks like it was due to the weather, which we know must just be a cover story by the Stasi officials. The added feel of the ‘catastrophe winter’ definitely upped the stakes and added to the difficulty of trying to solve the case. Bringing back a character from one of the previous books was a really nice touch, especially making her a real focal point.
Read my full review here: https://feedthecrime.wordpress.com/20...
There are so many different elements in this book that it’s hard to put down! I always forget that this series is technically historical as it is set back in 1978 during the time of the wall with Germany split in half. We are given a shocking insight into life for those in the East and the risks that some take to try and escape to the West.
I really loved the premise, Karin is pulled out of retirement into a case which looks like it was due to the weather, which we know must just be a cover story by the Stasi officials. The added feel of the ‘catastrophe winter’ definitely upped the stakes and added to the difficulty of trying to solve the case. Bringing back a character from one of the previous books was a really nice touch, especially making her a real focal point.
Read my full review here: https://feedthecrime.wordpress.com/20...
December 12, 2023
The setting, plot and pace of this late '70s East German adventure story make for a thrilling read for fans of cold war drama. It's probably enhanced by reading it in winter, when you can really imagine the chill of the Baltic-Sea-freezing surrounds. Thankfully I have never lived in or visited the DDR, but this book makes it seem about as grim as I imagine it to have been.
March 25, 2020
One of the best series around.
August 13, 2024
prima🤷♀️
February 2, 2020
The coldness and inhospitality of the German Democratic Republic is brilliantly realised in David Young's latest thriller featuring the Berlin detective Karin Müller. Set during the extreme winter of 1978/9, this newest novel in the series, the fifth, finds our heroine investigating a suspicious death on the Baltic coast.
There's the familiar supporting cast of nasties as well as one or two characters with whom the reader feels some empathy and one we're not sure about. The plot is slightly less dense than before but, nevertheless, interesting, and entirely credible. Weather descriptions are completely convincing and, a few pages into the book. I was reaching for my thermals.
My only (very) small misgiving is that the chase across the frozen Ostsee (Baltic) is a little too prolonged. At one stage I thought that the narrative might end on the ice but, in an entirely unexpected twist, the author wraps the tale up beautifully and leaves we readers desperate for more.
David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen, Two Families at War and The Summer of '39, all published by Sacristy Press.
There's the familiar supporting cast of nasties as well as one or two characters with whom the reader feels some empathy and one we're not sure about. The plot is slightly less dense than before but, nevertheless, interesting, and entirely credible. Weather descriptions are completely convincing and, a few pages into the book. I was reaching for my thermals.
My only (very) small misgiving is that the chase across the frozen Ostsee (Baltic) is a little too prolonged. At one stage I thought that the narrative might end on the ice but, in an entirely unexpected twist, the author wraps the tale up beautifully and leaves we readers desperate for more.
David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen, Two Families at War and The Summer of '39, all published by Sacristy Press.
December 4, 2019
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffre for an advance copy of Stasi Winter, the fifth novel to feature DDR police major Karin Müller, set in 1979.
Having resigned from the police force Karin is coerced back into service to investigate the death of an unidentified woman on the island of Rügen on the North Sea, a place she has investigated before. It soon becomes apparent that the woman’s death is not the accident the State is claiming and, moreover, Karin recognises the victim.
I thoroughly enjoyed Stasi Winter which starts as a murder enquiry but soon develops into more of an adventure yarn on the frozen North Sea. The novel opens with Karin threatening to shoot a figure from her past, Irma Behrendt, and then backtracks to how they got to that situation. Told in the third person from Karin’s point of view and Irma’s first person account the novel paints a fascinating picture of the DDR at the height of its powers. The constant surveillance, the penalties for wrongdoing (although the definition of wrongdoing is very transactional) and the general sense of relentless fear pervade the novel, making it anything but cosy. And yet, it is not a depressing novel but rather full of hope and personal touches that defy the oppression.
Some parts of the novel, mostly the adventure elements, do require a certain amount of hard swallowing to accept but they are exciting and extremely atmospheric- the sense of fear on the ice is almost palpable, as is the power of nature. I liked the way the two women’s backstories gradually merge until the showdown brings them together. I really like that they are strong characters who aren’t perfect, have the ability to question their respective situations and take decisions based on emotion as much as fact. Of course, the State has its role to play in how they act and decide and it is a character on its own with its morally questionable decisions and decision makers. The last few pages really sum up the horror of life in the DDR and finish the novel in excellent style.
Stasi Winter is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
Having resigned from the police force Karin is coerced back into service to investigate the death of an unidentified woman on the island of Rügen on the North Sea, a place she has investigated before. It soon becomes apparent that the woman’s death is not the accident the State is claiming and, moreover, Karin recognises the victim.
I thoroughly enjoyed Stasi Winter which starts as a murder enquiry but soon develops into more of an adventure yarn on the frozen North Sea. The novel opens with Karin threatening to shoot a figure from her past, Irma Behrendt, and then backtracks to how they got to that situation. Told in the third person from Karin’s point of view and Irma’s first person account the novel paints a fascinating picture of the DDR at the height of its powers. The constant surveillance, the penalties for wrongdoing (although the definition of wrongdoing is very transactional) and the general sense of relentless fear pervade the novel, making it anything but cosy. And yet, it is not a depressing novel but rather full of hope and personal touches that defy the oppression.
Some parts of the novel, mostly the adventure elements, do require a certain amount of hard swallowing to accept but they are exciting and extremely atmospheric- the sense of fear on the ice is almost palpable, as is the power of nature. I liked the way the two women’s backstories gradually merge until the showdown brings them together. I really like that they are strong characters who aren’t perfect, have the ability to question their respective situations and take decisions based on emotion as much as fact. Of course, the State has its role to play in how they act and decide and it is a character on its own with its morally questionable decisions and decision makers. The last few pages really sum up the horror of life in the DDR and finish the novel in excellent style.
Stasi Winter is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
January 7, 2020
This is #5 in the series featuring Karin Müller, it can be read as a stand-alone but I feel you will be missing out on an amazing series.
Set in East Germany in 1979 and Karin Müller had retired but is brought back to work when a woman’s body is found. The state want this recorded as an accidental death, but Karin is determined to find the truth.
This is historical fiction at its best, a murder mystery, police procedural and politics. Full of adventure this is an immensely gripping read, so atmospheric you’ll feel the chill of winter.
Great characters and so much tension in a clever and engrossing plot to rival Robert Ludlum et al.
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for a free ecopy of the book. This is my honest and unbiased review.
Set in East Germany in 1979 and Karin Müller had retired but is brought back to work when a woman’s body is found. The state want this recorded as an accidental death, but Karin is determined to find the truth.
This is historical fiction at its best, a murder mystery, police procedural and politics. Full of adventure this is an immensely gripping read, so atmospheric you’ll feel the chill of winter.
Great characters and so much tension in a clever and engrossing plot to rival Robert Ludlum et al.
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for a free ecopy of the book. This is my honest and unbiased review.
April 14, 2021
OK I will give it two and a half at a push ...but I am finding this Stasi series more and more unbelievable. The main characters lack integrity and the political web at the centre of the story is no longer the page turner it was in the first novel `Stasi Child`. It is too full of coincidences and rather trite. The most interesting part of the novel was the description of the Baltic winter of 1978. To call the novel "masterful" is really pushing the boundaries of literary criticism.
November 25, 2020
If the cold doesn't kill you, the truth will.
As ever, the latest story in David Young's Stasi series demands your attention with a chilling strapline, an intriguing cover and a tale of an impossible task. Karin Muller wants to know the truth about the murders she investigates, but in 1970s East Germany, the truth is irrelevant. Fear and mistrust are endemic in a world where anyone - your neighbour, your friend, your daughter - could be a Stasi informant. Prepare to be chilled to the bone.
-- What's it about? --
When Major Karin Muller and her team, Kriminaltechniker Jonas Schmidt and Hauptmann Werner Tilsner, are sent to investigate an apparent accidental death on the island of Rugen, they know that there must be more to the case than the local authorities are willing to divulge. Besides which, who would leave their house to go shopping, dressed in light indoor clothes, during East Germany's bitterly cold 'catastrophe Winter'? When Muller recognises the corpse she knows it was murder: the real question may be whether there was anyone who didn't want to kill them.
As always, the Stasi (more formally known as East Germany's 'Ministry of Security' - the secret police) are determined to hush up any scandal, so Muller's team are forced to operate covertly. That's par for the course by now, (although Muller wonders that they've been allowed to investigate at all,) but operating at all in the midst of a snow storm that has caused at least one death, a power cut and snowdrifts as high as some of the island's houses is posing some new problems. Young's winter is fierce, relentless and threatens to destroy anyone foolish enough to stand in its way. Much like the Stasi, in fact, who dislike Muller so much I am forced to wonder how she has survived so far, never mind how she will survive when forced to venture out onto the frozen Ostsee...
-- What's it like? --
Thrilling. Chilling. Breath-taking. Young's narrative unearths a constantly shifting mixture of hope and cruelty; a community in which honorifics are traded freely but deep mistrust and fear thrives underneath the surface at all times.
I love the shocks in this series because they always ring horrifyingly true. After admitting to behaviour that could be considered horribly cold hearted and opportunistic, Irma Behrendt, a main voice in 'Stasi Winter' and 'Stasi Child', exhorts readers to consider, 'Would you really have done anything different?' It is a particular strength of Young's characterisation and story telling that we are not easily able to reject this uncomfortable question.
How would any of us have fared in this brutal Republic, where having a loving family makes you vulnerable to persistent manipulation from the almost omnipotent Stasi? Would we bend? Would we break? What makes someone decide to conform or flee? This has always been a concern of Young's Stasi novels, but here it is the central interest of this enthralling Spy thriller.
-- Final thoughts --
Over the course of this series, Muller has begun to appreciate that the communist Republic she believes in does not always believe in her or in its own citizens, but she has maintained a certain naivety that allowed her to conclude the previous book with a real sense of personal agency. Now, Young uses the return to Rugen (originally featured in 'Stasi Child', Young's excellent debut novel) to disillusion his earnest detective with what may prove to be a knockout punch.
You could read this as a standalone book; Young explains all the necessary background at the relevant points. However, these do amount to spoilers of the previous books and, as they are all engrossing reads, I would strongly advise reading them in order if you like the sound of this.
As ever, the latest story in David Young's Stasi series demands your attention with a chilling strapline, an intriguing cover and a tale of an impossible task. Karin Muller wants to know the truth about the murders she investigates, but in 1970s East Germany, the truth is irrelevant. Fear and mistrust are endemic in a world where anyone - your neighbour, your friend, your daughter - could be a Stasi informant. Prepare to be chilled to the bone.
-- What's it about? --
When Major Karin Muller and her team, Kriminaltechniker Jonas Schmidt and Hauptmann Werner Tilsner, are sent to investigate an apparent accidental death on the island of Rugen, they know that there must be more to the case than the local authorities are willing to divulge. Besides which, who would leave their house to go shopping, dressed in light indoor clothes, during East Germany's bitterly cold 'catastrophe Winter'? When Muller recognises the corpse she knows it was murder: the real question may be whether there was anyone who didn't want to kill them.
As always, the Stasi (more formally known as East Germany's 'Ministry of Security' - the secret police) are determined to hush up any scandal, so Muller's team are forced to operate covertly. That's par for the course by now, (although Muller wonders that they've been allowed to investigate at all,) but operating at all in the midst of a snow storm that has caused at least one death, a power cut and snowdrifts as high as some of the island's houses is posing some new problems. Young's winter is fierce, relentless and threatens to destroy anyone foolish enough to stand in its way. Much like the Stasi, in fact, who dislike Muller so much I am forced to wonder how she has survived so far, never mind how she will survive when forced to venture out onto the frozen Ostsee...
-- What's it like? --
Thrilling. Chilling. Breath-taking. Young's narrative unearths a constantly shifting mixture of hope and cruelty; a community in which honorifics are traded freely but deep mistrust and fear thrives underneath the surface at all times.
I love the shocks in this series because they always ring horrifyingly true. After admitting to behaviour that could be considered horribly cold hearted and opportunistic, Irma Behrendt, a main voice in 'Stasi Winter' and 'Stasi Child', exhorts readers to consider, 'Would you really have done anything different?' It is a particular strength of Young's characterisation and story telling that we are not easily able to reject this uncomfortable question.
How would any of us have fared in this brutal Republic, where having a loving family makes you vulnerable to persistent manipulation from the almost omnipotent Stasi? Would we bend? Would we break? What makes someone decide to conform or flee? This has always been a concern of Young's Stasi novels, but here it is the central interest of this enthralling Spy thriller.
-- Final thoughts --
Over the course of this series, Muller has begun to appreciate that the communist Republic she believes in does not always believe in her or in its own citizens, but she has maintained a certain naivety that allowed her to conclude the previous book with a real sense of personal agency. Now, Young uses the return to Rugen (originally featured in 'Stasi Child', Young's excellent debut novel) to disillusion his earnest detective with what may prove to be a knockout punch.
You could read this as a standalone book; Young explains all the necessary background at the relevant points. However, these do amount to spoilers of the previous books and, as they are all engrossing reads, I would strongly advise reading them in order if you like the sound of this.
April 22, 2025
It's the winter of 1978-79, one of the coldest in memory in East Germany. The island of Rugen is nearly paralyzed by snow and ice. Howling winds keep everyone indoors. People are running low on food and fuel.
And now there's a body. A woman is found in the snow. The local authorities seem way too eager to declare it an accidental death. Sent out from East Berlin to investigate, Major Karin Muller sees there's more to it.
Muller didn't want this, or any case. She left her police job after the events of the last book, in which she learned both her deputy and her key Stasi contact have Nazi pasts she can't live with. She's hoping to get a job teaching at a police college.
But her boss, wanting to put her on this case—in which, as usual, there is Stasi interference—threatens to take away the nice apartment that comes with being a major. If sent to a smaller one, she won't be able to house her grandmother, who looks after her twins. So she must go back for at least one more case.
Young has a good series arc going. The stories can stand alone while the background ties it all together: Muller's marriage and divorce, the lover who fathers her children, what leads to both breakups, the Stasi's meddling in all of it, her discovery of her adoptive roots, and then her real grandmother.
The series arc is put to work here. A key figure soon develops: Irma Behrendt, a former reform school inmate who figured in an earlier story—and is now, unwillingly, a Stasi snitch.
And the murder victim turns out to have a link to the reform school. And was someone everyone hated.
You can feel the chill as Young writes. And we suddenly get a glimpse of the series culmination. Muller, something of a socialist goody two-shoes who always sticks up for East Germany against the West, finally starts to lose faith in her own corrupt society.
And now there's a body. A woman is found in the snow. The local authorities seem way too eager to declare it an accidental death. Sent out from East Berlin to investigate, Major Karin Muller sees there's more to it.
Muller didn't want this, or any case. She left her police job after the events of the last book, in which she learned both her deputy and her key Stasi contact have Nazi pasts she can't live with. She's hoping to get a job teaching at a police college.
But her boss, wanting to put her on this case—in which, as usual, there is Stasi interference—threatens to take away the nice apartment that comes with being a major. If sent to a smaller one, she won't be able to house her grandmother, who looks after her twins. So she must go back for at least one more case.
Young has a good series arc going. The stories can stand alone while the background ties it all together: Muller's marriage and divorce, the lover who fathers her children, what leads to both breakups, the Stasi's meddling in all of it, her discovery of her adoptive roots, and then her real grandmother.
The series arc is put to work here. A key figure soon develops: Irma Behrendt, a former reform school inmate who figured in an earlier story—and is now, unwillingly, a Stasi snitch.
And the murder victim turns out to have a link to the reform school. And was someone everyone hated.
You can feel the chill as Young writes. And we suddenly get a glimpse of the series culmination. Muller, something of a socialist goody two-shoes who always sticks up for East Germany against the West, finally starts to lose faith in her own corrupt society.
Read
November 4, 2020I absolutely loved it! A few years ago, I read the first book of the Stasi series and I loved that one so it really good to see that Young has written a sequel to his underrated series! The winter imagery in the Prologue, OMG THAT MADE ME SQUEAL AT HOW DETAILED IT WAS! 'A killer winter', that sentence finished me off at how amazingly written it was! After that sentence, I knew that I was going to love it!
What I also liked was that he goes back in time and says where the protagonist is, not a lot of authors do that and it's amazing that Young does that! I so want to find out more about the character of Irma Behrendt! I am intrigued by her character and how I don't know much about her so that makes me want to read on to see who she really is and why she has a gun being pointed at her! Three words, I loved it! A B S O L U T E L Y A M A Z I N G !!! I recommend it to people who live history and these kind of books!! :)
What I also liked was that he goes back in time and says where the protagonist is, not a lot of authors do that and it's amazing that Young does that! I so want to find out more about the character of Irma Behrendt! I am intrigued by her character and how I don't know much about her so that makes me want to read on to see who she really is and why she has a gun being pointed at her! Three words, I loved it! A B S O L U T E L Y A M A Z I N G !!! I recommend it to people who live history and these kind of books!! :)
September 17, 2020
Why do I not read book in a series in order! This is the second book I have read in the series after stasi wolf. There are references to the other books which I obviously was unaware of as I have not read them..which can be a little off putting for the standalone reader...I never learn!
I do like Karin Muller and am fascinated by the old east Germany the books are set in. A body is found in the worst winter on record and Karin is ‘encouraged’ to come out of her resignation from the police to find the killer or killers. She is teamed again with Tilsner who she has history with from her last case. Again the ominous presence of the Stasi are ever present in the form of Jäger.
The book drags a little in the middle, then picks up again at the end.
I will go back and read the other novels and look forward to the next book.
I do like Karin Muller and am fascinated by the old east Germany the books are set in. A body is found in the worst winter on record and Karin is ‘encouraged’ to come out of her resignation from the police to find the killer or killers. She is teamed again with Tilsner who she has history with from her last case. Again the ominous presence of the Stasi are ever present in the form of Jäger.
The book drags a little in the middle, then picks up again at the end.
I will go back and read the other novels and look forward to the next book.
May 17, 2025
I am new to the author a saw this in a discount bundle of 5, 6 in the series. It’s an easy read, but with little impact. A split narrative with one in the first person that also jumps back in time. Unless the author is cheating you know this character is going to survive the madness that ensues. Then the other primary character Karin Müller must survive as well as it is her series. So not much drama there. The death/murder is soon figured out and so about half-way through it turns from a slight police procedural into a hostage thriller without much in the way thrill. It all feels like plot by numbers and spelling out every detail. And then some of the resolution is ludicrous. There is clearly a lot of references to previous books and plots, but I don’t think I was missing much. So, an easy read, not sure I will read #6 in the series, but maybe.
July 8, 2020
I’ve never written a review here before but I feel like I owe to this book.
I didn’t use to read before, I was rather the movie watcher kind and thought of books as boring objects but one day I found the first part of this book(Stasi Child) in the Poundland and liked the story as I was studying German as a foreign language at school. I decided to buy it and I fell in love with reading.
Now I’ve finished the fifth part and I’m not disappointed at all, I actually gave 5 stars for this one. I only hope that Karin Müllers’ story will go on and I’ll be able to read more of her adventures because while reading them. They always remind me of as the reason that made me like reading!
Many thanks to David Young!
I didn’t use to read before, I was rather the movie watcher kind and thought of books as boring objects but one day I found the first part of this book(Stasi Child) in the Poundland and liked the story as I was studying German as a foreign language at school. I decided to buy it and I fell in love with reading.
Now I’ve finished the fifth part and I’m not disappointed at all, I actually gave 5 stars for this one. I only hope that Karin Müllers’ story will go on and I’ll be able to read more of her adventures because while reading them. They always remind me of as the reason that made me like reading!
Many thanks to David Young!
December 13, 2020
Excellent crime novel
I’ve read all of the Stasi novels by David Young and I have enjoyed this one the most. Without giving any spoilers away, the first half of the book is very much scene setting, building the frozen wastes of the winter and the events that have already unfolded that cause the detectives to be sent up there.
Then the story explodes into a real fast paced page turner as several different plot lines converge and new twists come out of nowhere.
I really recommend the reading the series in order, starting with (if memory serves me correctly)stasi wolf, and let yourself be transported back into a shadowy world of communism, policing, murder and a struggle to survive.
I’ve read all of the Stasi novels by David Young and I have enjoyed this one the most. Without giving any spoilers away, the first half of the book is very much scene setting, building the frozen wastes of the winter and the events that have already unfolded that cause the detectives to be sent up there.
Then the story explodes into a real fast paced page turner as several different plot lines converge and new twists come out of nowhere.
I really recommend the reading the series in order, starting with (if memory serves me correctly)stasi wolf, and let yourself be transported back into a shadowy world of communism, policing, murder and a struggle to survive.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews