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dylanp's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
twinotter's review
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Another excellent book and a shame the author passed away at the time of its release, would of been good to see the series back in Munich and a shame they didnt carry on under ghost writers in the same way the clancy books have continued.
belanna2's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
ericfheiman's review against another edition
3.0
After blowing through a lot of sci-fi / fantasy / horror / detective fiction as an adolescent, I gave up so-called “genre” fiction in college after a few life-changing humanities courses that expanded my literature tastes. Even in my 20s, life just felt too short to expend any more time on the likes of King, Gibson, Anthony, Asimov, and others of their ilk. With one exception: Philip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther series.
Kerr died suddenly in 2018 and I’m sad that these are the last Bernie stories we’ll get. (I’m not counting the upcoming Metropolis since it was unfinished at the time of Kerr’s death.) The initial excitement of discovering the first three novels that made up the Berlin Noir anthology has never been met by its 8 or so sequels, but most of them weave gumshoe intrigue with a terrifying Nazi Germany backdrop well enough that they’ve at least been worth the effort. These last two entries benefit from Bernie’s postwar world-weariness against a fascinating true-to-life historical backdrop that more than makes up for some occasional predictable plotting.
I’ll miss this series. I thought it would go on forever...
Kerr died suddenly in 2018 and I’m sad that these are the last Bernie stories we’ll get. (I’m not counting the upcoming Metropolis since it was unfinished at the time of Kerr’s death.) The initial excitement of discovering the first three novels that made up the Berlin Noir anthology has never been met by its 8 or so sequels, but most of them weave gumshoe intrigue with a terrifying Nazi Germany backdrop well enough that they’ve at least been worth the effort. These last two entries benefit from Bernie’s postwar world-weariness against a fascinating true-to-life historical backdrop that more than makes up for some occasional predictable plotting.
I’ll miss this series. I thought it would go on forever...
jakewritesbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Although Kerr is coming out with another Bernie Gunther book posthumously (this apparently set in Weimar Berlin), this seems to be the end of the road for Bernie. And frankly, I’m okay with that. Because while Kerr left the ending open for potential future tales, he seems to be running out of decent ideas. I thought a self-contained Gunther novel with no flashbacks would be more fun, but it’s basically a romp around Greece with Bernie chasing Nazi ghosts in a plot I lost interest in halfway through. While I appreciated the nifty end, it would have been nice to have seen the idea a few books earlier. Alas. It’s still a Gunther novel so it’s good; Kerr knew what he was doing. But as far as they go, this one ranks in the bottom third.
annieb123's review against another edition
5.0
Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Greeks Bearing Gifts is the 13th, sadly penultimate, Bernie Gunther novel from Philip Kerr. Released 3rd April 2018 by Marion Wood books/Putnam, it's a substantial 522 pages and available in all formats (hardback, paperback, audio, ebook, audioCD, etc). Mr. Kerr had a career that spanned decades. He was a truly gifted artist and writer of thrillers which were written around some historical events and people. The stories are so skillfully written around the actual events that it's difficult to separate the fact from fiction.
This book is full of amazing imagery and so deftly drawn that I found myself re-reading passages after I had finished, just to savor the expertise and craftsmanship of Kerr's writing. This is an amazingly well crafted book.
I really enjoy Bernie Gunther's honesty and intelligence when the world around him and so many of the people he has to deal with are dishonest and cruel. He's just trying to get by as a morgue attendant in Munich after the war when he's recognized from his former life and forced to be complicit in a planned robbery. The ways he manages to extricate himself are as varied as they are impressive.
Wonderfully written, top shelf cold-war thriller. Truly a classic series and this is a worthy entry. I'm just sad that there aren't going to be more of them after the last one (Metropolis) later this year.
Five stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes
Greeks Bearing Gifts is the 13th, sadly penultimate, Bernie Gunther novel from Philip Kerr. Released 3rd April 2018 by Marion Wood books/Putnam, it's a substantial 522 pages and available in all formats (hardback, paperback, audio, ebook, audioCD, etc). Mr. Kerr had a career that spanned decades. He was a truly gifted artist and writer of thrillers which were written around some historical events and people. The stories are so skillfully written around the actual events that it's difficult to separate the fact from fiction.
This book is full of amazing imagery and so deftly drawn that I found myself re-reading passages after I had finished, just to savor the expertise and craftsmanship of Kerr's writing. This is an amazingly well crafted book.
I really enjoy Bernie Gunther's honesty and intelligence when the world around him and so many of the people he has to deal with are dishonest and cruel. He's just trying to get by as a morgue attendant in Munich after the war when he's recognized from his former life and forced to be complicit in a planned robbery. The ways he manages to extricate himself are as varied as they are impressive.
Wonderfully written, top shelf cold-war thriller. Truly a classic series and this is a worthy entry. I'm just sad that there aren't going to be more of them after the last one (Metropolis) later this year.
Five stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes
modeste's review against another edition
4.0
4,00 flat. Wijlen Kerr doet het iedere keer opnieuw. Geschiedenis vermengen met historische figuren (excuseer nazi’s) en onderwijl Bernie als een geil drankorgel neerzetten, rondzoekend naar de oplossing van dat ene mysterie waarvoor puppetmasters boven hem, hem steeds opnieuw vinden. En ja de mayo pakt. Ook nu weer een boeiende thriller van formaat. Naoorlogse geschiedenis opfrissen was nooit zo plezant als met Gunther.
didactylos's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Becoming very formulaic
beccaalvey's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this book. Really loved the main character. Very sad to hear the author died and that this was one of the last books he wrote. Very talented.
tsenteme's review against another edition
4.0
Όπως πάντα καλός ο Μπέρνι Γκούντερ. Με ελληνικό ενδιαφέρον λόγω της γνωστής ιστορίας Μέρτεν. Θεωρώ πως ο Κερ αγαπούσε την Ελλάδα, άλλωστε λίγο πριν τον απρόσμενό του θάνατο είχε επισκεφτεί τη Θεσσαλονίκη και φαίνεται στο βιβλίο, ακόμα κι αν δημιουργούνται εντυπώσεις για το αντίθετο.