Zen and the Art of Murder: A Black Forest Investigation

by Oliver Bottini, Jamie Bulloch (Translator)

Overview

Winner of the German Crime Fiction Award

Louise Boni drinks too much. The maverick inspector in Germany's Black Forest police squad is haunted by the mistakes she's made and the people she's lost. While she's dreading the approach of another lonely winter weekend, a call from her supervisor draws her into the most bizarre case of her career. A badly beaten Japanese monk is roaming the snowy Freiburg region with little more than sandals and a begging bowl, and the frightened holy man appears to be fleeing an unseen danger. Now Boni must battle both skeptical police authorities and her personal demons as her investigation reveals a hidden crime ring as well as a spiritual opportunity to transform her life. The first book in the Black Forest Investigation series, Zen and the Art of Murder is "a surprising and genuinely shocking case." — The Sunday Times (U.K.)

"An exciting new voice in crime fiction emerges with Zen and the Art of Murder, the first novel in Oliver Bottini's Black Forest Investigation series. Both baffling and affecting in turn, and always entertaining. It's an excellent beginning to a thrilling new series." — Foreword Review

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780486839189
Publisher:	Dover Publications
Publication date:	11/13/2019
Pages:	400
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Berlin-based novelist Oliver Bottini is a four-time recipient of the Deutscher Krimipreis, Germany's most prestigious award for crime writing. Two of the award-winning books are from his Black Forest Investigations series: Zen and the Art of Murder and A Summer of Murder. Bottini's novels have also been awarded the Stuttgarter Krimipreis and the Berliner Krimipreis.

Editorial Reviews

09/23/2019

German author Bottini’s uneven first in his Black Forest series introduces German police detective Louise Boni, who’s been traumatized by an earlier case and otherwise has a host of personal problems, including alcoholism. When an Asian monk appears outside Freiburg, bruised, battered, and terrified, the xenophobic police decide to monitor him at first, until they realize somebody is chasing him. After one of Boni’s colleagues is shot dead and another wounded, she’s placed on leave, though she continues to pursue the case, uncovering a connection to a Buddhist monastery just across the French border. Links emerge to a horrifying adoption and child trafficking operation, and Boni becomes a target for the culprits. Even as she grapples with the investigation, her wary colleagues, and her own demons, something is awakened in Boni that provides a surprisingly meditative, spiritual component to her quests. The epilogue offers a measure of hope. Though the choppy style makes for slow going, the action picks up as the pieces of the puzzle start fitting together. American readers will find little that’s new. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

2019-09-02
An unconventional German police inspector tackles the baffling case of the Japanese monk who's been wandering the Black Forest beaten and disoriented.

Policeman Johann Hollerer finds the seriously wounded monk collapsed on the steps of the Catholic church in Liebau. The scene is even more puzzling because it's the middle of winter, and the ground's covered in snow. Hollerer's call to Inspector Bermann of the Serious Crime Squad leads to the dispatch of Louise Bonì, a brilliant detective who's fighting personal demons and a dark past. A brief, awkward conversation between Bonì and the monk confirms that he's Japanese. The language barrier slows progress on the case to a crawl, and Bottini uses this interregnum to develop the relationship between Louise and Bermann, her bullying boss; Louise's struggles with alcohol; and her camaraderie with both Hollerer and unworldly junior detective Niksch. They trade theories and search for a monastery in the area, but the case takes a darker turn with the discovery of a corpse in the forest and a second wounded victim. Fueled by an obsession to solve this crime, Louise uncovers a bizarre international crime ring involving children. But the investigation also takes a brutal personal toll, nearly destroying her. By the end, you may think you've seen it all, but you haven't: A bonus short story follows, further illuminating Louise's past.

The first of Bottini's six Black Forest procedurals offers a compelling modern heroine and a labyrinthine plot packed with shady characters.

Kirkus Reviews