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Philip Kerr

March Violets Paperback – 18 April 2016

by Philip Kerr (Author)

670 ratings

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'For Christmas, I would like all of Philip Kerr's Berlin Noir novels.' Sam Mendes, Guardian
Controversial, powerful and iconic, March Violets is the first in the Bernie Gunther series by the thriller master Philip Kerr, and a must-read for any discerning crime thriller fan.

'Wonderfully sharp and satirical' Times

'An impressive debut' Guardian

'Fast-paced, laconic, unpredictable, and witty' Evening Standard

Bernhard Gunther is a private eye, specializing in missing persons. And in Hitler's Berlin, he's never short of work...
Winter 1936. A man and his wife shot dead in their bed. The woman's father, a millionaire industrialist, wants justice - and the priceless diamonds that disappeared along with his daughter's life.
As Bernie follows the trail into the very heart of Nazi Germany, he's forced to confront a horrifying conspiracy. A trail that ends in the hell that is Dachau...
Stylishly written and powerfully evocative, Kerr's crime classic transports readers to the rotten heart of Nazi Berlin, and introduces a private eye in the great tradition of Hammett and Chandler.
%%%Bernhard Gunther is a private eye, specializing in missing persons. And in Hitler's Berlin, he's never short of work . . .
Winter 1936. A man and his wife have been shot dead in their bed. The woman's father, a millionaire industrialist, wants justice - and the priceless diamonds that disappeared along with her life.
As Bernie follows the trail into the cesspit that is Nazi Germany, he's forced to confront a horrifying conspiracy. One that takes him to the very heart of the administration, and, finally, to Dachau . . .
Stylishly written and powerfully evocative, March Violets transports readers to the rotten heart of Nazi Berlin, and introduces a private eye in the great tradition of Hammett and Chandler.

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Product details

Publisher : Penguin (General UK); 1st edition (18 April 2016)
Language : English
Paperback : 272 pages
ISBN-10 : 0241976014
ISBN-13 : 978-0241976012
Reading age : 18 years and up
Dimensions : 13.34 x 1.78 x 19.69 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 68,782 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 2,513 in Espionage Thrillers (Books)
- 2,717 in Historical Mystery
- 2,718 in Historical Thrillers (Books)

Customer Reviews:
670 ratings

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Review

'Wonderfully sharp and satirical' ― Times

'Fast-paced, laconic, unpredictable, and witty' ― Evening Standard

'An impressive debut' ― Guardian

Book Description

The first in the iconic Berlin Noir series, March Violets takes readers to the rotten heart of Nazi Berlin, and introduces a private eye in the great tradition of Hammett and Chandler.

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5 star		47%
4 star		29%
3 star		13%
2 star		5%
1 star		5%

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Denise Hughes

A good, but far from easy read

Reviewed in Australia on 24 March 2020

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March Violets, set in 1936 Germany under the thrall of the 3rd Reich, is like Dashiell Hammett at his best, think Nightmare Town. Whilst the actual crimr is straight forward, the trail from A to Z is complex, bitter and bloody. I'm looking forward to reading more of Bernie Gunther's .... "adventures" is hardly the word and exploits would imply that he's winning, so "survival " it is.

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tom meszaros

“A Return To The First”

Reviewed in Australia on 13 April 2020

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Having promised myself, many times, to re-read all the Bernie Gunther novels, I have finally started! March Violets really does aspire to and reach the heights of those 40’s classics.

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Jonathan Griffiths

A brilliant read

Reviewed in Australia on 27 January 2019

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This book has it all. Set amidst the cruel, dysfunctional bureaucracy of Nazi Berlin, we've got murders, intrigue, wonderful character observations and our hero, Bernie Gunther, who always solves the crime but usually loses a few innocent bystanders along the way.

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Peter Doyle

Not for shrinking ones

Reviewed in Australia on 2 November 2017

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Great characters, believable storyline. Gives a real insight into pre war Berlin under Hitler. The ending is harrowing but essential reading. I would have given 5 stars however I found some of the conversations sounding like they were from an American gangster movie. Highly recommended just the same.

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bordo beggles

Excellent

Reviewed in Australia on 19 August 2018

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This is the first Philip Kerr Bernie Gunther book that I have read, it is very good and lives up to the reputation. Brilliantly evoke the Nazi era.

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Mary T. Melcherts

Thriller and history

Reviewed in Australia on 7 June 2017

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Prewar germany with Hitler in power. Busy work for a PI with disappearances every 5mins. Smart funny and dark writing

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... the right amount of history thrown in with a great thriller. Look forward to reading more from this

Reviewed in Australia on 14 January 2018

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Fabulous storyline with just the right amount of history thrown in with a great thriller. Look forward to reading more from this author

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Frank Reynolds

New fan

Reviewed in Australia on 1 July 2018

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First timer, enjoyed the character and pre war Germany settings. Also the German view which sometimes gets overlooked. Will definitely read more of this series

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marksamuel

More metaphors than fleas on a cat

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 April 2018

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The use of metaphors by this author is like a tidal wave There are more metaphors in this book than there are fleas on a cat on a summer's day that is hotter than hell's inferno. In some paragraphs there were as many as four metaphors. I found it more irksome than a buzzing fly. It distracted me from the narrative flow liked an elephant in the room so I thought I would mention it. It is a good story and an easy read and I suspect that I will buy the second in the series to see if the use of metaphor diminishes but, if there is no change, I think I will have had enough. I enjoyed the Nazi setting and, predictably, the hero is ant-Nazi. There were some nice touches of authenticity such the appearance of Goerring with a pet lion cub and a weird taste in clothes and the plot was good and a pleasure to see unravel. It was worth the discounted price but I am not yet convinced that I will read the whole series.

12 people found this helpful

Alan Harbinson

A very enoyable read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 August 2017

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Recommended by a friend this was my second outing with Phillip Kerr. The previous time was with a stand alone historical fiction novel (a first for me with this genre). I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. This time around it was with the first book in a Trilogy set in Berlin in the mid 30's, following the adventures of a P.I. called Bernie Gunther. What can I say, Gunther is my kind of guy. Direct, with a dry humour and a more than casual disrespect for authority, especially when it's Nazi authority. I'm really looking forward to reading the rest of the (Berlin Noir) Trilogy and more in the Bernie Gunther series of stories. My only disappointment was that I felt the ending was a little "flat" leaving, for me, some unanswered questions, hence only three stars. I can only recommend that you give this series and other works by Philip Kerr a go. Who knows you may end up, like me, looking for more

11 people found this helpful

Paul S

An atmospheric, complex & totally engrossing crime thriller set around the time of the 1936 Olympics

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 31 May 2019

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'March Violets' is a terrific introduction to the writing of Philip Kerr. In terms of atmosphere, one can easily imagine what it must be like to live in Berlin in 1936 and one gets a sense how much the city is changing following the Nazis rise to power in Germany. In this respect, I think it helps if one has some knowledge of Germany in the 1930s to fully appreciate just how good is this novel in its description of the social and political forces at work at this time.
The plot initially appears deceptively simple; the home of a wealthy industrialist's daughter and son-in-law has been 'torched' following a robbery of some very expensive jewellery, and two bodies have been found in the ashes. Bernie Gunther, a private investigator has been hired to find the missing jewellery. However, it soon becomes apparent that nothing is as it appears in Nazi Germany and wise-cracking Bernie very quickly finds himself embroiled in far more sinister matters. As the story unfolds we are introduced to a large cast of characters, many of whom are really unsavoury individuals! Some of the violent acts that occur are quite unsettling to read and while not gratuitous, if you are of a more sensitive nature then you may well find yourself wincing or even skipping a few paragraphs.
While this is a totally engrossing story, I found the ending left me feeling a little downbeat. I put this down to the author's skill in vividly portraying just how potentially dangerous and sinister it must have been for many people living in Germany during this period. However, as an introduction to the writing of Philip Kerr, 'March Violets' has certainly whetted my appetite to read more of his novels that feature P.I. Bernie Gunther.

2 people found this helpful

Graham of Watton

Exciting and entertaining

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 December 2018

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'March Violets' is the first in a series of books featuring German private investigator Bernie Gunther. It's an exciting and entertaining read but fails to live up to the blurb's hyperbole ('one of the greatest anti-heroes ever written'). Set in Berlin in 1936, author Philip Kerr provides us with some interesting insights to daily life in Nazi Germany. At the outset of the story, Gunther is hired by a wealthy industrialist to trace the people responsible for killing his daughter and her husband whilst robbing them of her valuable jewellery. However, he is soon caught up in a fast-paced trail which includes watching Jesse Owens winning a race at the Berlin Olympics, meeting with Hermann Goering, and spending time in Dachau concentration camp.
Although this seems rather far-fetched, it's also great fun. However, the one thing which spoils it for me is that the author has decided that it somehow adds authenticity to Gunther's character by having him repeatedly make wise-cracks. That style may suit fictional American private detectives of the period but seems somewhat misplaced here.

3 people found this helpful

John Powell

Enjoyed

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 September 2017

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I really enjoyed this, the first of the Bernie Gunther series of books and he got the series going with a great read. For some unknown reason I had not read this book before, even though I had read most of his books, up to the last published book I visit ed Berlin this year and quite coincidentally chose to stay near 'his' Police Station at Alexanderplatz. I have therefore decided to read the series again and I find that as Bernie is walking around Berlin, I can now see in my minds eye many of the streets he describes as he strolls around Berlin. Atmospheric.

5 people found this helpful

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