Death in Sils Maria by Ulrich Knellwolf

Swiss Priest Ulrich Knellwolf has been writing crime stories for decades and his “dark tales” have won him many fans and admirers. Perfect publishers have collected 17 stories that are amusing and captivating in the hope that his fame will spread to the U.K. The charming mountain village of Sils Maria in the Engadin with its castle-like luxury hotel in the forest hides many horrible secrets.

I had a big grin on my face whilst reading about characters that Knellwolf invented. There’s a wealthy gentleman over 70 with a “velvety whisper voice” called Mr Huber who looks after women in the hotel. He’s known as “The ladies’ friend” and we learn about him cheering up lonely widows by holding their hands at tea time and then taking their dachshunds to the vet.

Another character I was intrigued by is Old Vontobel whose biggest fear is that people assume he’s suffering from some form of dementia. One day Old Vontobel is persuaded to borrow binoculars so he can see a herd of wild goats and ends up discovering something else entirely.

In another story, Burkard Lehmann, a 68 year old retired secondary school teacher picks up an angelic and enchanting young hitch hiker called Lilith who breathes new life into him.

Death in Sils Maria is the perfect book to take on holiday with you and dip into when you want distractions. It’s like binge watching a boxset of Tales of the Unexpected whilst slightly drunk. Reading this book will bring you happiness and it has a great cover designed by Duncan Bamford. This is the first English translation of the book and was translated by Cambridge resident Iris Hunter.

Death in Sils Maria is a great collection of ruthlessly gripping crime stories well worth the RRP: £9.99

https://www.deathinsilsmaria.co.uk/
https://www.perfectpublishers.co.uk/2019/09/17/death-in-sils-maria/