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Accidental Detective Mystery #1
Only the Lonely
Tamara von Werthern is a British-German writer, primarily for stage and screen. In her debut novel, originally published in German in 2017, she places her eccentric real-life father in the middle of a spoof crime novel and creates a lovable hapless detective figure with a canine sidekick, Maschka.
Detective Philipp drives a number of battered old cars, chases the woman of his dreams and gets embroiled in dangerous tight spots in his first adventure. The novel is set in the author's hometown, where her father still lives. It is as much an autobiographical depiction of a father-daughter relationship as a humorous crime novel suitable for young and old fans of gripping detective stories in the mold of Agatha Christie, Richard Osman and M.C. Beaton.
'Full of suspense and humour. Philipp is simply great!' Piers Torday
Detective Philipp drives a number of battered old cars, chases the woman of his dreams and gets embroiled in dangerous tight spots in his first adventure. The novel is set in the author's hometown, where her father still lives. It is as much an autobiographical depiction of a father-daughter relationship as a humorous crime novel suitable for young and old fans of gripping detective stories in the mold of Agatha Christie, Richard Osman and M.C. Beaton.
'Full of suspense and humour. Philipp is simply great!' Piers Torday
100 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 10, 2022
3 people are currently reading
36 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 11, 2025
In a Nutshell: I had fun with this indie novella. A quirky lead character, an adorable dog, humour and crime mixed up in a cosy village setting. The perfect light read for crime mystery lovers, though the crime is quite subtle here.
Story Synopsis:
I am not a crime or mystery genre fan. I don’t like it when characters focus only on the looks of other characters or when attractions are based on physical appearance. I hate it when animals are injured in any way in a book. I can’t connect with wide age-gap relationships. (I’m okay with them in real life; I just don’t like reading them.) In other words, I had a multitude of reasons to hate this novella. And yet here I am, a satisfied reader with no major complaints. Go figure!
Where the book worked for me:
😍 Phillipp, whom I should have despised, ended up being a whimsical yet fun character. He is kind of a buffoon, laidback in every way possible and yet running a successful business and having a close relationship with his grown-up children. His reasons for helping out Annelie are unbelievably shallow. Yet he carried this story on his shoulders superbly. (The author’s note and the blurb here on Goodreads reveal that Phillipp was based on her own ‘eccentric real-life’ father; that endeared Phillipp even more to me.)
😍 While it is easy to figure out the “criminal’ of the story (plenty of clues in the title, prologue and the story itself), it isn’t easy to deduce the reason for their actions. So that part took me by surprise.
😍 What I hate most in cozy mysteries is the extended infodumping at the end that reveals every single bit of the criminal’s action and the rationale behind it. The explanation for the criminal’s motivation here is done within a couple of pages without over-elaboration. (Actually, this also makes the ending seem a bit rushed. But it is a novella and one can’t really expect extended details.)
😍 It is always nice to see humour fitted into a genre where you least expect it. There are plenty of funny scenes, most of them because of Phillip’s attitude towards work and life.
😍 As this is just a little more than a hundred pages long, the novella goes by quickly. Yet, the writing doesn’t compromise on scene descriptions, giving us a nice glimpse of the village of Hofheim where the story is set.
😍 This was originally published in German in 2017, but nowhere could I figure out that this is a translated version. In the couple of places where the dialogues would have made better sense in German, there is an apt insert about the usage of the word without breaking the flow of the plot or the characters. Loved this approach.
😍 Maschka the dog. Who wouldn’t love such a dog!
Where the book could have worked better for me:
😐 The first person prologue is almost like a spoiler to avid thriller readers. While it gives a nice introduction to the story, it leaks out a crucial point from later in the book.
😐 The epilogue also took things much ahead of what I had wanted. It felt like a forced HEA. I think this point stems from my personal preference about the events in the epilogue than the writing itself.
😐 While every book in the village mystery category has at least one nosy neighbour, the zany old lady in this story didn’t get enough page time. I would have loved to see more of her.
It's very rare that I enjoy a book with a character who is so clearly not my type. Yet I find myself charmed by this odd ‘accidental detective’ named Phillipp. Perhaps because he wasn't pretentious about hiding his true self. He was what he was, and he showed it without guilt or glory. I certainly want to read his subsequent adventures.
While the book straddles several genres—it is part crime, part thriller, part cozy mystery, part humour, the best way to describe it is the phrase used in the blurb itself – a ‘spoof crime novel.’ The book doesn’t take itself seriously, and neither should you.
As I was telling one of my Goodreads friends (Hi Thibault!👋) just a couple of days back, Bollywood movies are best watched with your brains kept aside. This indie novella falls in the same category; it will offer you much entertainment if you don’t overanalyse it. So just go with the flow and enjoy the ride.
Definitely recommended. This is the first time ever I read a comic crime thriller, and I want more of this combo!
4 stars.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author and these are my honest thoughts about it. Thank you very much for this opportunity to read and review your work, Tamara. 😊
Trigger warning: Animal abuse.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
Story Synopsis:
Philipp von Werthern is almost sixty but still lives life somewhat on the edge with his numerous cars, his insurance business, and his dog Maschka. When a beautiful stranger named Annelie Janssen approaches him through a friend’s recommendation with a “crime case”, he is stumped because he is not a professional detective. But how can one refuse a beautiful woman, even if she is young enough to be his daughter? (Or is she?) Thus begins an adventurous and humorous ‘accidental detective’ story.
The story is written in a limited third person perspective mostly from Phillipp’s point of view.
I am not a crime or mystery genre fan. I don’t like it when characters focus only on the looks of other characters or when attractions are based on physical appearance. I hate it when animals are injured in any way in a book. I can’t connect with wide age-gap relationships. (I’m okay with them in real life; I just don’t like reading them.) In other words, I had a multitude of reasons to hate this novella. And yet here I am, a satisfied reader with no major complaints. Go figure!
Where the book worked for me:
😍 Phillipp, whom I should have despised, ended up being a whimsical yet fun character. He is kind of a buffoon, laidback in every way possible and yet running a successful business and having a close relationship with his grown-up children. His reasons for helping out Annelie are unbelievably shallow. Yet he carried this story on his shoulders superbly. (The author’s note and the blurb here on Goodreads reveal that Phillipp was based on her own ‘eccentric real-life’ father; that endeared Phillipp even more to me.)
😍 While it is easy to figure out the “criminal’ of the story (plenty of clues in the title, prologue and the story itself), it isn’t easy to deduce the reason for their actions. So that part took me by surprise.
😍 What I hate most in cozy mysteries is the extended infodumping at the end that reveals every single bit of the criminal’s action and the rationale behind it. The explanation for the criminal’s motivation here is done within a couple of pages without over-elaboration. (Actually, this also makes the ending seem a bit rushed. But it is a novella and one can’t really expect extended details.)
😍 It is always nice to see humour fitted into a genre where you least expect it. There are plenty of funny scenes, most of them because of Phillip’s attitude towards work and life.
😍 As this is just a little more than a hundred pages long, the novella goes by quickly. Yet, the writing doesn’t compromise on scene descriptions, giving us a nice glimpse of the village of Hofheim where the story is set.
😍 This was originally published in German in 2017, but nowhere could I figure out that this is a translated version. In the couple of places where the dialogues would have made better sense in German, there is an apt insert about the usage of the word without breaking the flow of the plot or the characters. Loved this approach.
😍 Maschka the dog. Who wouldn’t love such a dog!
Where the book could have worked better for me:
😐 The first person prologue is almost like a spoiler to avid thriller readers. While it gives a nice introduction to the story, it leaks out a crucial point from later in the book.
😐 The epilogue also took things much ahead of what I had wanted. It felt like a forced HEA. I think this point stems from my personal preference about the events in the epilogue than the writing itself.
😐 While every book in the village mystery category has at least one nosy neighbour, the zany old lady in this story didn’t get enough page time. I would have loved to see more of her.
It's very rare that I enjoy a book with a character who is so clearly not my type. Yet I find myself charmed by this odd ‘accidental detective’ named Phillipp. Perhaps because he wasn't pretentious about hiding his true self. He was what he was, and he showed it without guilt or glory. I certainly want to read his subsequent adventures.
While the book straddles several genres—it is part crime, part thriller, part cozy mystery, part humour, the best way to describe it is the phrase used in the blurb itself – a ‘spoof crime novel.’ The book doesn’t take itself seriously, and neither should you.
As I was telling one of my Goodreads friends (Hi Thibault!👋) just a couple of days back, Bollywood movies are best watched with your brains kept aside. This indie novella falls in the same category; it will offer you much entertainment if you don’t overanalyse it. So just go with the flow and enjoy the ride.
Definitely recommended. This is the first time ever I read a comic crime thriller, and I want more of this combo!
4 stars.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author and these are my honest thoughts about it. Thank you very much for this opportunity to read and review your work, Tamara. 😊
Trigger warning: Animal abuse.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
November 12, 2022
Some may say Only the Lonely by Tamara von Werthern doesn’t fit the crime fiction mold. That’s okay, since it’s sort of the point. The publisher’s description bills the book as “a spoof crime novel” but I think it fits the criteria of a cozy mystery just as well. So, take your pick. What I know for sure after reading this book is Tamara von Werthern has to be one of the most underrated and hilarious crime writers around. Only the Lonely is a wickedly funny, wildly imaginative thriller that is also as gripping as it is entertaining. And I’m not saying nice things about her or the book only because she followed me back on Twitter. You know how when a friend tells you they just read a book that’s absolutely dazzling and divine, and you simply must read it? Then you do, but it doesn’t live up to the hype. Well, this isn’t that book. Tamara von Werthern shakes up all the PI clichés and tropes with sharp wit and plenty of pathos while spinning a pretty good mystery that has moments of heart-pounding suspense. This is one of the most entertaining books I’ve read in recent memory, and I can’t hype it enough.
The book opens with a gloomy and cryptic prologue where an unidentified narrator bemoans their unimportance and how they’re waiting their turn to seize the happiness that comes so easily to others. Then we meet our protagonist, Philipp von Werthern, a private investigator. Well, strictly speaking, Philipp is no private eye. He owns a moving company and sells insurance on the side. But he once helped a friend named Laura recover a piece of stolen jewelry. Laura, prone to exaggeration, refers her friend, Annelie Janssen, who needs a private investigator’s service, to Philipp, giving him rave reviews. Janssen, a blonde bombshell who looks Scandinavian to Philipp, arrives at his home with her tale of woe. Philipp, immediately smitten, decides not to tell her he isn’t actually a private investigator and asks her the nature of her problem. Janssen reveals someone with obvious skill has surgically amputated one of her cat’s paws, but the local police not only refused to investigate but laughed at her when she went to them for help. Hoping to spark a romance with Janssen, Philipp agrees to take the case. He accompanies her to her home and inspects the cat’s amputated paw, and agrees someone severed it with great skill. And during the visit, he grows even more enamored with Janssen and believes she feels the same about him. Bereft of any investigative skills beyond what he has picked up from reading detective novels, Philipp bumbles through interviews with a neighbor and Janssen’s housekeeper, but makes no progress in solving the mystery of the severed cat paw. Then, a genuine mystery with real stakes confronts Philipp when Annelie disappears without a trace. A panicked Philipp desperately searches for her with no one to help but his trusty sidekick, Maschka, his golden retriever.
The quick wit and humor Tamara von Werthern weaves into her entertaining tale grabbed me from the start and had me not only in stitches but turning the pages to learn what happened next. You might think comedy and crime thrillers don’t mix, but you’ll think differently after reading just a few pages of this book.
The book opens with a gloomy and cryptic prologue where an unidentified narrator bemoans their unimportance and how they’re waiting their turn to seize the happiness that comes so easily to others. Then we meet our protagonist, Philipp von Werthern, a private investigator. Well, strictly speaking, Philipp is no private eye. He owns a moving company and sells insurance on the side. But he once helped a friend named Laura recover a piece of stolen jewelry. Laura, prone to exaggeration, refers her friend, Annelie Janssen, who needs a private investigator’s service, to Philipp, giving him rave reviews. Janssen, a blonde bombshell who looks Scandinavian to Philipp, arrives at his home with her tale of woe. Philipp, immediately smitten, decides not to tell her he isn’t actually a private investigator and asks her the nature of her problem. Janssen reveals someone with obvious skill has surgically amputated one of her cat’s paws, but the local police not only refused to investigate but laughed at her when she went to them for help. Hoping to spark a romance with Janssen, Philipp agrees to take the case. He accompanies her to her home and inspects the cat’s amputated paw, and agrees someone severed it with great skill. And during the visit, he grows even more enamored with Janssen and believes she feels the same about him. Bereft of any investigative skills beyond what he has picked up from reading detective novels, Philipp bumbles through interviews with a neighbor and Janssen’s housekeeper, but makes no progress in solving the mystery of the severed cat paw. Then, a genuine mystery with real stakes confronts Philipp when Annelie disappears without a trace. A panicked Philipp desperately searches for her with no one to help but his trusty sidekick, Maschka, his golden retriever.
The quick wit and humor Tamara von Werthern weaves into her entertaining tale grabbed me from the start and had me not only in stitches but turning the pages to learn what happened next. You might think comedy and crime thrillers don’t mix, but you’ll think differently after reading just a few pages of this book.
November 12, 2022
Tamara von Werthern shows quick wit and humor in this wickedly funny, wildly imaginative thriller that is as gripping as it is entertaining.
February 11, 2024
A short cosy read for a chilled weekend day with a cup of tea.
This book was nothing like what I expected it to be!
I am guilty of judging this book by the cover. I thought it would be a cosy mystery, hopefully involving a cat sidekick. Needless to say I was shocked that the cat was not the sidekick but the victim!
Apart from that triggering realisation this was a quirky and cosy mystery. The vibe was reminiscent of a Richard Osman mystery with a faster pacing.
I am guilty of working out mysteries before they unfold. Although I did work out this one early on, I couldn't figure out the motivation for it until the author spelled it out.
This book was nothing like what I expected it to be!
I am guilty of judging this book by the cover. I thought it would be a cosy mystery, hopefully involving a cat sidekick. Needless to say I was shocked that the cat was not the sidekick but the victim!
Apart from that triggering realisation this was a quirky and cosy mystery. The vibe was reminiscent of a Richard Osman mystery with a faster pacing.
I am guilty of working out mysteries before they unfold. Although I did work out this one early on, I couldn't figure out the motivation for it until the author spelled it out.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 23, 2022
This is absolutely delicious!
An intriguing read with a quirky protagonist that definitely had me wanting to know more. A gripping and unusual storyline that captured my attention from the off and held it throughout.
Interested to see where the author might take this next, particularly with that epilogue!
Superb.
An intriguing read with a quirky protagonist that definitely had me wanting to know more. A gripping and unusual storyline that captured my attention from the off and held it throughout.
Interested to see where the author might take this next, particularly with that epilogue!
Superb.
November 29, 2022
A charming crime novella with an immensely likeable central character, an unusual setting, and a loveable dog! I look forward to reading more of the Accidental Detective.
March 31, 2023
Although I wasn’t aware when I read this, the author has used her father as the idea behind the main character in this, the first in the An Accidental Detective Mystery series. It’s a quick read set in a small town called Hofheim in Germany where the author was brought up. This spoof crime novel features a late middle aged man called Philipp von Werthern who falls into detecting when a beautiful woman, Annelie Janssen, approaches him mistakingly believing him to be a detective. Attracted to Annelie he goes along with it. Told largely from the POV of Philipp this was a lighthearted slightly comedic read.
Briefly, Annelie is concerned and wants to know why her beloved cat has had her paw removed (anyone who knows me knows this is probably my only trigger - animal abuse - and at this point I nearly stopped reading but convinced myself I wouldn’t need to see this again. It is however mentioned a few times so be aware). Philipp along with his canine partner, Maschka starts asking investigating, asking questions of Annelie’s neighbours and her cleaner, but is getting nowhere until Maschka identifies a car that has Annelie’s scent.
I enjoyed this read, quick and easy, with a lead character I couldn’t help liking even thought he was a bit self-centred and bumbling. It was well written within the confines of the novella. A good entertaining read, cat aside!
Briefly, Annelie is concerned and wants to know why her beloved cat has had her paw removed (anyone who knows me knows this is probably my only trigger - animal abuse - and at this point I nearly stopped reading but convinced myself I wouldn’t need to see this again. It is however mentioned a few times so be aware). Philipp along with his canine partner, Maschka starts asking investigating, asking questions of Annelie’s neighbours and her cleaner, but is getting nowhere until Maschka identifies a car that has Annelie’s scent.
I enjoyed this read, quick and easy, with a lead character I couldn’t help liking even thought he was a bit self-centred and bumbling. It was well written within the confines of the novella. A good entertaining read, cat aside!
November 26, 2024
I read this novella in preparation for reading the new full length novel by Tamara von Werthern, Silent Night. I was provided with a copy of this book by the author and was hoping I would enjoy it. I loved it. The hero of this story, Philipp, is based on the author’s own father. He’s an accidental PI, who also runs a small removals business and sells a bit of insurance on the side. He was a very young father, who has a good relationship with his adult children, and he lives a nice life in the German town of Hofheim, with his lovely dog and collection of slightly dodgy old cars. He’s also a massive fan of Niederegger marzipan, which we have in common!
Having previously solved a mystery involving a friend’s missing jewellery, Philipp is recommended to Annelie to help discover what has happened to her cat, who has lost a paw, which seems to have been neatly amputated. Philipp sets about helping, whilst also falling for Annelie. When the stakes are raised by Annelie disappearing, Philipp must use all his skills to work out motivation and solve the mystery.
This slight book packs a lot into its pages. It’s a warm and often very funny story, and Philipp is a great protagonist. The crime itself is an interesting one. I’m very much looking forward to the next book in the series.
Having previously solved a mystery involving a friend’s missing jewellery, Philipp is recommended to Annelie to help discover what has happened to her cat, who has lost a paw, which seems to have been neatly amputated. Philipp sets about helping, whilst also falling for Annelie. When the stakes are raised by Annelie disappearing, Philipp must use all his skills to work out motivation and solve the mystery.
This slight book packs a lot into its pages. It’s a warm and often very funny story, and Philipp is a great protagonist. The crime itself is an interesting one. I’m very much looking forward to the next book in the series.
May 11, 2023
Philipp Von Werthern is a local investigator/insurance agent/removals/classic car salesman. He’s also the keeper of a horse in his garden and an ardent admirer of a pretty face.
He doesnt take life too seriously and "arranged everything in his life to avoid being plagued by regular employment" - I love it!
I genuinely dont think I’ve read a character like him before. He is based on the author's father and I am so curious how much of the character is true to life and how much is artistic licence.
In any case this is a great wee story. In a small town in Germany, Philipp is engaged by a beautiful woman to find out who has maimed her cat. He moves along in his charming and eccentric way with his faithful canine sidekick at his side.
This is such a fun read with a character to fall in love with. The world would be a better place if we were all a little more Philipp
He doesnt take life too seriously and "arranged everything in his life to avoid being plagued by regular employment" - I love it!
I genuinely dont think I’ve read a character like him before. He is based on the author's father and I am so curious how much of the character is true to life and how much is artistic licence.
In any case this is a great wee story. In a small town in Germany, Philipp is engaged by a beautiful woman to find out who has maimed her cat. He moves along in his charming and eccentric way with his faithful canine sidekick at his side.
This is such a fun read with a character to fall in love with. The world would be a better place if we were all a little more Philipp
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews