Customer Reviews

A Death in Vienna: A Novel (Mortalis)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This murder mystery is as charming as Vienna itself. Like the city's famed waltz, Frank Tallis moves his book, "A Death in Vienna," along at the perfect tempo. The year is 1902, and Vienna is at its height of social and scientific development. Tallis uses all the history and social background of the city to infuse his story and characters with a historical interest that at times makes the central murder almost secondary to the setting. Almost...for the twists and turns and inscrutable details of the murder are never too far from our minds, whether we are sitting with the characters in a Viennese cafe enjoying its famous coffees and pastries or sitting in a darkened room for a seance with the dead medium.

Ultimately, the story rests on not only this fantastic setting, but also all of the strong characters that Tallis has created here: the dead medium, Fraulein Lowenstein; the detective, Oskar Rheinhardt; the psychologist, Max Liebermann, follower of none other than Sigmund Freud, who makes his appearance here too, albeit briefly. This story captures the tug of war between criminology and psychology, between the paranormal and the scientific, between the old and the forces of change that have engulfed the city during this time frame. They are all played out through the mysterious circumstances of Lowenstein's death and the subsequent investigation by Rheinhardt, aided by his good friend Herr Doctor Liebermann.

The beautiful Lowenstein's prime suspects are her seance circle, an unusual group of people who reflect a wide range of personalities and quirks. Through Tallis's story, we see a complete society of Vienna, the triumphs of the new century and the social problems yet to be resolved. This is a period setting rich in appeal, and where other stories may be dragged down by historical detail, this one thrives because of it. Tallis uses every bit of Viennese familiarity to draw us in, and then uses the mystery to keep us going. We become engaged with the charming Rheinhardt-Liebermann duo as they follow the leads, using every "modern" method to discern the truth about the murder. In the end, the answers to the murder mystery come from a most unlikely source.

Unlike many of the thrillers of today, this book relies on character development and setting to build a strong story, showing just how unnecessary the technology of the day is to creating and solving a good mystery. The book is easy to follow, interesting, and well told. That we come away smarter than we began is just an added bonus.

In general, I greatly enjoyed this book, both as a character study and as a portrait of a fascinating time and place. The author knows turn-of-the-(20th)-century Vienna well, both the social and political issues that people were dealing with and the nitty-gritty details of daily life, but he uses his knowledge to create a believable setting for the story rather than becoming pedantic. His understanding of the cross-currents in the nascent psychoanalytic movement gives the story depth. Dr. Max Liebermann is an intriguing character because he embodies many of the contradictions of that time and place: he's a rebel in his profession, and his artistic tastes run to the avant-garde; but he's also a member of a prosperous Jewish family and community to whom he's strongly loyal. The detective Rheinhardt is less complicated, but his friendship with Dr. Liebermann is based on a shared love of music as well as their fascination with the human mind, so it rang true to me. I felt that the mystery itself wasn't all that strong: any reader who's familiar with the genre could figure out the disappearing bullet and the locked room rather easily, although the author did a good job of dropping hints and red herrings to keep you guessing who done it. I quibbled with some of the psychoanalytic material, e.g., multiple personalities usually develop from a long history of abuse, not ... well, the way it happens here. And I concur with other readers that the author's use of short chapters became confusing -- I disagree that there are "too many characters," but the choppy narrative made it hard to remember what X was doing the last time we met him. All in all, however, it's a good story, well written, and I'm hooked enough now to read the next novel in the series.

A book that started well, but was ultimately disappointing.

The year is 1902 and Vienna is at the height of its glory, sporting many unique shops, entertainment venues, fine museums and was home to the rich and famous of the day. The novel features a mysterious locked room murder, that results in inspector Oskar Rheinhardt and psychologist-physician Dr. Max Liebermann becoming involved to try to solve the crime.

The descriptive writing had a pleasant ambiance to it, detailing an early 20th century Vienna and its surrounding area. We also meet with some interesting characters within the frame work of the investigation, some of which are, of course, the suspects. And there are several subplots referred to on a regular interval that, although not directly involved with the murder, have a tangible effect on the story has a whole.

So what was wrong with the tale of this mysterious murder...end-novel unbelievability!

The book went along quite well for the first 4/5...an intriguing tale but with a lot of apparent dead ends; I was beginning to wonder if the culprits would ever be apprehended, and then...

*PARTIAL SPOILER*

Out of the blue, one of the side characters suggest two theories as to
1.) how the murderer left the room (it was locked from the inside) and
2.) how the murder itself was committed.
Although the two theories suggested regarding these murder solving details were not entirely outside the realm of possibility, given the information available and characters involved, but they were a definite stretch...extremely remote to say the least; especially considering the time-frame and era involved. I had the feeling of having receiving last gasp information not previous presented to the reader, solely for the purpose of solving this crime because we'd reached the end of the book.

*END SPOILER*

Conclusion:
A generally well written, murder mystery but with a highly unlikely ending, taking the entire novel down several notches. Too bad really, the story had a definite appealing feel to it...however, as it is 2 ½ to 3 Stars.

Ray Nicholson

This is a well-written and interesting mystery, but be aware that "Mortal Mischief" and "A Death in Vienna" are the same book! One is the British title, the other the title used in the States. Don't buy both.

A Death in Vienna is the first in a three part series by Frank Tallis set in earlier 20th century Vienna. This is the reader's first introduction to the protagonist pair of Inspector Oskar Reinhardt and Professor Maxim Liebermann, the latter being a disciple of Sigmund Freud. This first novel centers on the investigation of the mysterious death of a spiritual medium Frauline Lowenstein. The circumstances of the murder are such that many believe that the killing was supernatural at the hands of the ancient Egyptian god Seth. However the mortal suspects include the unusual circle of people who met regularly with Lowenstein.

This story is a little longer than your typical 300 pager so both the plot and characters are developed to a greater degree. The novel is very well paced, and Tallis uses a teaser approach at the end of some chapters such that the characters know more than the reader does. Sometimes I found that this made me want to continue reading (which I did), but it was also somewhat frustrating if I was at the end of my allotted reading time for a particular sitting. I guess that is the true mark of a good book! I was not able to figure out who perpetrated the crime or who until the characters did. However, I didn't find the resolution to be contrived either so Tallis did a great job of striking the balance between being obtuse and transparent.

Tallis also weaves in what seem to be unrelated threads throughout the novel yet they join together nicely. He also does a good job of bringing in historical bits to give the work a feeling of authenticity. In addition to Freud who makes a few actual appearances, Tallis mentions the master detective Hans Gross and the artist Gustov Klimt. Liebermann takes both his fiancé and younger sister to see the controversially ceiling murals at The Beethoven Frieze.

Amazon recommended A Death in Vienna to me after I posted my review of The Empty Mirror by J. Sydney Jones which as also a period mystery set in Vienna about 10 years prior. If you enjoyed The Empty Mirror or are a mystery fan in general, I highly recommend A Death in Vienna. I can't wait to read the second and third installments Vienna Blood and Fatal Lies.

Overall: A

I picked up this book after reading a short review in the Economist and enjoyed every second of it. The mystery is well done. It has the mark of the English mysteries where the suspects are a small group of people, each of whom is interesting. The crime was ingenious and the detective work is fascinating.

The real strength of the book, however, is the setting in Vienna in 1902. We see the City and the culture. Max Lieberman the main character is fascinating. We see the development of psychology in its early stages. There is also a good deal by the occult. If one reads Larson's book about Marconi that we set at the same time one can understand that the developments in science were so amazing that people would not really know what was truth.

I have recommended this to friends. It was a treat and was pleased to see there is a sequel that I will read next

"A Death in Vienna" is as much a tour around the Ringstrasse of Vienna circa 1900 as it is a mystery. The story---told by author Frank Tallis in short episodes--has its characters and plot revolve around the city's landmarks like the Prater, Graben and Cafe Central while discussing the social and cultural events of the moment. The book's protagonist is a young pyschiatrist/psychoalnalyst, Max Liebermann, who is called upon by a police inspector friend to help solve the "locked room" murder of a beautiful clairvoyant, which seems to involve the occult.The plot is intricate with not a few red herrings strewn in the protagonist's (and the reader's) path.
This a particularly enjoyable book for anyone with an interest in the cultural life Vienna of the early 20th Century, psychiatry, the cultural/social dynamic between Austrian Jews and Gentiles, the Secessionist Movement, pastries, or just a well-told mystery.

Lots of reviews already; lots of synopses, so I won't bother with such standard elements.

What's good about it, in one reader's quite eccentric opinion:
* The central character, Max Lieberman, is well developed, original, someone you can get interested in.
* The 'relationship' of Rheinhardt the detective and Lieberman the psychologist is a good gambit, though it was better done in the Aubrey/Maturin nautical adventure tales.
* The evocation of place (Vienna) and epoch (fin de siecle) is quite rich and convincing, but it will appeal only to readers with some historical sensibilities.
* It's fun to find Sigmund Freud playing a walk-on role and telling ethnic jokes.

What's not so good about it:
- The writing style is blunt and clunky; every chapter follows the same pattern of set-up > revelation.
- Lieberman's "elementary-my-dear-Watson" deductions are far fetched and formulaic.
- Some readers may disagree, but I found it too easy to 'spot' the real killer, early in the book, despite all the blatant misleading clues.

Within the genre of murder mysteries, I suppose I'd call this one "first class" reading, but don't expect memorable literature.

Tallis tells us that criminology and psychoanalysis started at the same time in the same place, Vienna around the turn of the 19th to the 20th century. Furthermore, says he, detectives and analysts do similar work. Hence there is logic behind his concept: team up one from each school for the solution of crimes. (One might however stretch the comparison and say that archeologists, paleontologists, and many other scientists work similarly too.)
Volume 1 of the series which teams up Maxim Liebermann and Oskar Reinhardt gives us a classical Sherlock Holmes - like case: a medium is shot inside her locked living room; neither gun nor bullet is found. There was a mysterious and incomplete note, which could have been a suicide note... In other words, a first class mystery is set up. Initial suspects include a locksmith and a magician. Tallis is not above some cliffhanger tricks, which usually turn me off. I forgive him for them.

What recommends Tallis most, in my taste, is his writing. He gives us plenty of credible background on the time and place. Social circumstances of both partners are made clear. Max is from a wealthy Jewish family; he fights against his loving father's wishes for him to join the family business. He wants to continue in his less than promising career as a Freud follower. Oskar is some years older; he has a wife and two teen daughters. He tries to be a modern cop in a stiff conservative political scenario.
The two men are friends and partners as amateur musicians: Oskar sings, while Max plays the piano and others. We also learn some about Freud's circumstances at the time.

My main take- away from the book, and it is a real find: festina lente! Haste is slow! Says the pathologist, who does the post-mortem, to the impatient cop. A sentence that I can use myself every day, either to remind myself or to remind my surroundings.

It might be that I'm not that interested in turn of the century Austria or that I thought I was picking up Dan Silva's book of the same title, but I found this book disjointed and lifeless. Tallis spends too much time describing pastries and music and nowhere near enough time developing the plot or the characters. Too many 50 cent words combined in grammatical "terrible twos", typified in the epic sentence, "Brugel smiled: an enigmatic half smile--opaque and saline." I nearly choked on my cremeschnitte. Tallis' other deadly sin is that each chapter is a vignette that doesn't relate to the previous chapter. Because none of the characters were very compelling, I had to remind myself who they were and why I cared at every chapter - quite "irritating and abstruse".

The locked room mystery with the supernatural "how" is trite. The parallel plots of multiple personalities, women's rights and anti-Semitism seem like empty impulse buys at the pastry buffet line. I'm off to find that elusive Silva book.