Snow White Must Die by Nele Neuhaus

Crime novels are my guilty pleasure and it is really refreshing reading novels that for once don't cover American crime procedures. It is also quite nice to have a novel set somewhere I have never read about. This one is set in a small town outside Frankfurt.

The story starts with Tobias Sartorius being released from prison. Eleven years ago he was found guilty of the murdered two girls. The conviction was based purely on circumstantial evidence and the bodies were never found. At the same time, a construction crew unearth a skeleton. Later that day, a woman falls from a bridge onto a motorway. A witness claims that she was pushed. If that is the opening chapter, imagine what all has happened by the half way mark! Needless to say, though, Pia Kirchhoff and Oliver von Bodenstein have their hands full trying to figure it all out.

Nele Nauhaus is quite talented at weaving a tangled story. She reveals yet conceals at the same time. It keeps one guessing through to the end. I enjoyed just how tangled her story line was. She really is very good at building suspense and keeping it going. If you enjoy trying to solve the puzzle in who-dun-its, then this one might be a good choice.

I have a feeling that something is lost in translation when it comes to the writing. But then, there really is no need for mass market crime thrillers to be works of literary art. It does what it needs to do, and it does not detract from the experience.

This is the second book I have read by Neuhaus and I have a strong suspicion that it will not be the last. I gave it 4 stars on Good reads. It is the 15th book completed for the 2015 TBR Pile Reading challenge.