City of Shadows

by Ariana Franklin

A cultured city scarred by war. . . . An eastern émigré with scars and secrets of her own. . . . A young woman claiming to be a Russian grand duchess. . . . A brazen killer, as vicious as he is clever. . . . A detective driven by decency and the desire for justice.

. . . A nightmare political movement steadily gaining power. . . .

This is 1922 Berlin.

One of the troubled city's growing number of refugees, Esther Solomonova survives by working as secretary to the charming, unscrupulous cabaret owner "Prince" Nick, and she's being drawn against her will into his scheme to pass a young asylum patient off as Anastasia, the last surviving heir to the murdered czar of all Russia. But their found "princess," Anna Anderson, fears that she's being hunted—and this may turn out to be more than paranoia when innocent people all around her begin to die.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Fiction, Historical, Historical Mystery, Germany, Thriller

422 pages, Paperback

First published May 9, 2006

About the author

Ariana Franklin was the pen name of British writer Diana Norman. A former journalist, Norman had written several critically acclaimed biographies and historical novels. She lived in Hertfordshire, England, with her husband, the film critic Barry Norman.

Note:
The Death Maze (UK) is published as The Serpent's Tale in the US.
Relics of the Dead (UK) is published as Grave Goods in the US.
The Assassin's Prayer (UK) is published as A Murderous Procession in the US.

Reviews

[Will Byrnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a wonderful gripping read. Set in the hyperinflationary, chaotic Berlin of the 1920s, and filled with characters that would be at home in any Eric Ambler, City of Shadows offers a picture of Berlin in the worst throes of economic collapse. Nick is a night club owner, favorite of those in power, those who fill their various needs at his various clubs. But ever on the look out for new sources of income, he hears of a mysterious woman locked away in an asylum. Could she be the true Anastasia? Whether yes or no he would like a chance at making some money from the possibility. Esther has a dramatic scar across her face, and more where that one came from. Yet she also possesses an education and a facility with language that secures her work with Nick. Together they work to sell this Anastasia. There is one small problem however. The large man who threw “Anastasia” into a freezing river keeps coming back. People keep getting dead, the deaths seeming to follow the woman who Nick names Anna Anderson. Detective Schmidt enters the case, and the book truly picks up from there.


Ariana Franklin - image from OrderofBooks.com

Is Anna Anderson the real Anastasia? Who is the mysterious killer? What lies in Esther’s secret past? All takes place against a palette of the Nazi rise to power. We see some of how that transformation looked to those on the scene. It took me a while to truly get into the book, a hundred pages or so. But once in, it was a total page turner. I hated having to interrupt reading for the mundanities (is that a word?) of travel, sleep, work. Although I would not characterize this as classically great literature, it is nonetheless a gripping read that thrills while opening a window to a dark period and place in history.

Ariana Franklin is the pen name for British historical novelist Diane Norman. She passed away in 2011.

[Heather Reads Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

AUGH. This book.

For its majority, I was thoroughly enjoying it. I bought it on a whim several years ago at the height of my Romanov obsession, and finally got around to choosing it as my most recent "book for the plane ride." I found the characters vivid, the political setting quite interesting, and I love a good murder mystery. The addition of Anna Anderson and the Anastasia mystery were an interesting layer, and I liked how it was all woven together. I was planning to give this a solid four stars. I felt it missed the mark a bit with the diction, but it's a challenge to write a novel in English while setting it in a country where everyone is speaking several other languages. Usage of distinct British slang would pull me out of the story a bit, but it was forgivable.

But the ending. THE ENDING. That knocks it down an entire star.

I loved Esther as a character on her own. Throwing in the OH BY THE WAY I'M ANASTASIA twist in the last four pages felt like such a cheap trick I was outraged. The parallels between Esther's struggle and what Anna might or might not have gone through as possibly being Anastasia were compelling and far more interesting on their own. Leaving the sense of mystery as to whether Anna was or wasn't would have been perfectly fine by me – at least to the characters who knew her. With the magic of hindsight, it has of course been proven that Anna Anderson was not Anastasia and that the grand duchess herself had never gotten out of Ekaterinburg alive. Also, the revelation makes all of Esther's previous POV rather questionable. Yeah, I know she had flashbacks and whatnot, but so many times she too internally seemed to be struggling with whether Anna was the real deal – which obviously shouldn't have happened, knowing who she was from the start. And for all the talk as to whether Anna and even Natalya looked like Anastasia, no one bothered to mention that Esther could have looked like her too? Scars can be disfiguring, sure, but hers didn't even cover her whole face. And then all the resulting coincidences that would have had to happen just to make that possible push me into the realm of being unable to suspend my disbelief. Like what are the odds that Esther gets a job with Nick who just happens to hear of Anna in Dalldorf and decides to pass her off as the grand duchess and just... Blech. Not a needed or well-executed twist, in my opinion. It cheapens the entire story.

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh, it's so sad when a book starts out as a five-star book only to gradually creep down to a two. For a while there, Ariana really had me. I was into the plot, I was into the characters, I was even into the setting and the time period. But then, somehow, it suddenly felt way too long, way too draggy, plus there was this abrupt shift where the book suddenly jumped ahead nine years but somehow we were back where we left off, only we weren't.

Esther, our snappy protagonist, is a young Russian Jewish woman who has escaped to depressed 1920s Berlin after the Russian revolution. Scarred physically and emotionally, Esther manages to survive by serving as secretary and part-time mistress to "Prince" Nick, a sleazy yet somehow likeable nightclub owner and confidence man. "Prince" Nick induces an unwilling Esther to cooperate with his latest scheme -- Nick has discovered a woman called Anna Anderson, living in an insane asylum, who claims to be the late czar's daughter Anastasia. Smelling money, Nick gets Anna out of the asylum so he can groom her as Anastasia (with Esther's assistance) and help her claim her inheritance, reaping his own commission in the bargain.

Unfortunately, a series of murders ensues targeting victims who all appear to be connected to Nick's scheme and apparently intended to wipe out Anna/Anastasia herself. Berlin Police Inspector Schmidt, determined to find the killer, ends up collaborating with Esther and eventually forming a relationship with her. Meanwhile, the depressed morale in Berlin is clearly paving the way for Hitler's ascent to power and the murders become increasingly interconnected with pre-Nazi and Nazi movements.

This was all fine with me until the book suddenly jumped ahead nine years. Schmidt and Esther, reunited after a long separation, are both still available and still carrying the torch for each other; Anna/Anastasia, gone to America, suddenly resurfaces; the murderer, dormant for the past nine years, is newly active. And yet, because nine years were skipped, the narrative felt disjointed despite its elements of continuity. At this point I started to feel like this had gone on long enough and things were starting to get repetitive and to lose my interest. I continued plodding through, hoping it would get better. It didn't.

I do give Ariana credit for making pre-WWII Berlin come alive for me. I don't know anyone from that era and can't verify her accuracy, but the book was highly atmospheric and I felt like I understood the context for Hitler's rise for power in a much deeper way than I had previously.

Having said that, I found Schmidt's anti-Hitler, pro-Jewish sentiments highly anachronistic and unbelievable. The fact that he had a Jewish war buddy and eventually, a Jewish lover wasn't sufficient to convince me. Ariana did a great job of evoking the ubiquitous anti-semitism of 1920s and 1930s Berlin -- why, in that context, was Schmidt such a fan of Jews and a critic of Hitler? Had he been simply apathetic or neutral, I would have found his position far more believable.

I couldn't give this book less than three stars, because I really enjoyed the first half. I couldn't give it more, though, because of the way it went south for me afterward.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Ariana Franklin! I've been reading her historical thrillers--Mistress of the Art of Death--(and I see there's a new one out...) but this book is set in Germany between the two World Wars. It is mysterious, romantic, thought-provoking and full of amazing female characters, both good and 'bad'. I find especially that Franklin has a deep respect and empathy for her characters. She can create a character that is deeply flawed, yet she sets those flaws in the light of human tragedies that we all understand.

And her evocation of the seamier Berlin is vivid and memorable.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel held my attention with three very interesting subplots: the life and travails of a Russian Jewish refugee who escaped the pogroms of the early 1900s, a misanthropic woman who claimed to be the long lost Anastasia Nikolaevna, and the struggles of an honest German detective against the increasingly political police force fashioned by Hitler's socialist party. They all revolve around a series of murders which threaten to destroy all of them as Germany hurdles toward its Holocaust and the beginning of World War II.

[C.W. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Atmospheric, creepy, and clever, Ariana Franklin dips her practiced pen into the well-mined Romanov conspiracy pool and comes up with a dark and riveting take on the Anna Anderson fraud, set in 1920s and 1930s Berlin before and during the Nazis’ clambering to power.

Franklin frames her tale through the eyes of Esther Solomonova, a scarred Jewish survivor of a Russian pogrom now eking out a living serving as a girl-of-all-trades for Prince Nick, the charming conman owner of several risqué cabarets in Berlin who's always on the look-out for his next high-stakes swindle. Esther's pragmatic approach to life stands in vivid contrast to Nick's latest project— an insane asylum refugee named Anna, whom he's convinced might be Grand Duchess Anastasia, sole surviving daughter of the murdered royal Romanovs. As Berlin sinks into a desperate quagmire of soaring inflation, crime, and political chaos, Esther finds herself acting as caretaker to the arrogant and unkempt Anna, as well as the deadly secret Anna harbors. For Anna is being stalked by someone intent on her destruction, and as those close to Esther start to die, she turns for help to Inspector Schmidt, a boiled-in-sauerkraut detective whose compassion is being tested by the downfall of the liberal Germanic ideals he so fervently believes in.

As always, Franklin's characters are multifaceted; from Esther's pitiless acceptance of her past to Schmidt's dogged determination to see justice served and Anna Anderson’s flagrant indifference to her own uneasy fame. Franklin peppers her tale with a host of lesser and equally vivid characters, as well, including aspiring Nazi sympathizers, flamboyant transvestites, and Russian émigré strippers, each personifying the glittering and ultimately tragic hedonism and corruption that characterized this tumultuous era in Germany. Framed against the dark shadow of Hitler’s inexorable rise, CITY OF SHADOWS is a thinking person’s thriller, its suspense and mystery aspects offering a perfect foil to the bigger questions of man’s inhumanity against man, and the things we all do to survive.

[Book Concierge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in Berlin from 1922 to 1933, this suspense novel explores a turbulent time for the people of Germany, who are struggling with hyper-inflation, a depressed economy and a government unable to get the nation back on its feet following defeat in WWI. Esther Solomonova is a refugee from that era; a Russian Jew who bears the scars of the pogrom which killed her family, she works as a secretary to fellow Russian “Prince” Nick who runs several cabarets. But when Nick discovers a woman in an insane asylum who claims to be a Romanov, Esther is pressed to help him pass her off as the Grand Duchess Anastasia. Whoever Anna Anderson really is, it’s clear that there is someone out to kill her.

This was a very atmospheric novel, with the city and time frame central to the plot. However, it moved rather slowly for me. Not sure if this was a side effect of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, but I could never really lose myself in the story and it took me a long time to read.

That being said, Franklin crafts an intricate plot and gives us wonderful characters which she slowly reveals throughout the novel. I came to really care about Esther, Anna, and Inspector Schmidt. While I thought that the actual killer and the reveal / resolution of that plot line was a little over the top, I give Franklin credit for building suspense. Already familiar with the historical events during this time frame, I grew increasingly nervous about how they would endure the coming political changes.

In a brief Author’s Note at the end of the novel, Franklin explains how she took inspiration from the real story of Anna Anderson, who called herself the Grand Duchess Anastasia.

[CLM · Rating 5 out of 5]

I dropped a hint that I wanted this for Christmas 2007. It is Diana Norman writing under a pseudonym. The book is set in Germany between the wars and involves the story of the alleged Grand Duchess Anastasia.

Warning: it is very very dark. It reminded me a little of Cabaret.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ariana Franklin has once again developed a strong female character, Esther, and placed her in a backdrop of a deteriorating Germany during the early part of the 20th Century. Incorporating German history, the bustle of the city of Berlin, the Anatasia mystery, and a Nazi serial killer into one concise story, Franklin pulls off creating a story that keeps the reader involved from the first page to the last. Two other characters, a determined police detective and a woman who has lost her past, interact with Esther as they all try to vindicate the deaths of friends and keep from falling afoul of the burgeoning Nazi movement in a Germany devastated by the after-effects of WWI.

Franklin uses the historical context of this time to illustrate how real people lived and struggled during this difficult time. She weaves history into her characters' lives so effortlessly that they become a whole tapestry. This book is one of those that can't be put down until the last word.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Make that 4.5 stars! Nazis, Anastasia, transvestites, this fascinating book set during Hitler's rise to power in Germany has it all. Ms. Franklin is a wonderful writer and when the end surprised me I realized that she had artfully dropped clues.

[Ram Kaushik · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dark, brooding tale of murder in 1920s Germany amidst the creeping menace of the Nazis. I enjoyed Ariana Franklin's other Mistress of Death series but her narrative command of a totally different era was impressive.

Germany's period of hyperinflation, the rise of Hitler and his cohorts, and the influx of Russian emigres into Berlin after the fall of the Romanovs in Russia were all important parts of this book. The German policeman and the Jewish survivor of the Russian pogroms were worthy protagonists in this engrossing tale. The novel hurtles towards a shattering climax, so well worth a slow burning read.

I can totally see this as a brilliant BBC production or a Netflix special (Foyle's War style)!

[Rosina Lippi · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first picked this novel up, I noted that this was only the author's second novel, something that struck me as almost improbable: it reads as though she's been writing for years. And in fact she has. Ariana Franklin is the pen name of Diana Norman -- whose work I adore.

I really have to admire this novel, for its interesting, frustrating, engaging, horrific and wonderful characters and for the complex series of plots and subplots woven together like challah.

Franklin begins with the well known story of Anna Anderson, a woman who appeared in Berlin in 1922 and claimed to be Anastasia, the youngest daughter of Czar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra. Franklin builds her fictional story around the real controversy that arose at the time: was is possible that one of the grand duchesses had really escaped the murder of the royal family? Was the young woman who claimed to be Anastasia telling the truth, or was she trying to scam her way into an inheritance that wasn't hers?

I won't recount the details of the controversy -- which still rage on, despite the fact that DNA testing was conducted, and many are satisfied with the conclusions drawn from those tests. What is far more interesting is what Franklin does telling a story about those who interacted with Anderson. She does this by means of a series of murders that come close to Anderson, and she does it very well.

By the end of the novel the question of who Anderson really was is moot, because a far more interesting storyline -- two of them, in fact, have taken over. The connection between Esther, who is one of Anderson's caretakers, a scarred Russian refugee, a woman of great intelligence and compassion, and Schmidt, a detective, is developed slowly and subtly, but with great effect.

And finally, Franklin does a masterful job of capturing what it was like to live in Berlin in the time of the worst inflation, and then the ever tightening stranglehold of National Socialism under Hitler.

This is not a short book, and it is not rushed. There were times when I wished she would move forward more quickly, but I couldn't make myself skip -- which is really high praise from me.

[KayKay · Rating 4 out of 5]

The rich historical background of the pre-WW2 Germany as backdrop sounded intriguing and that was how I was lured into reading it. A long-ish historical mystery of excellent writing and with a wonderful storyline. "City of Shadows" was a fine read. Took a star off because at time I felt the plot wasn't moving fast enough.

Learned something I didn't know before.
1- Finally I realized the SA and SS weren't the same thing
2- The mentioning of Rohm prompted me to lookup the Night of the Long Knives
3- Never cared to find out what the "brownshirt" was until I read this book
4- some other random facts

[Brook Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This book's plot was so involved, I'm convince that Franklin is some sort of author/genius to have compiled it. It's got EVERYTHING: the Romanov tragedy, Anna Anderson (Anastasia), anti-Semitism, the beginnings of the Nazi Party and the SS, as well as a hearty murder mystery. I was enraptured with every page, and Franklin managed a delicious plot twist in the final pages, too.

The characters are just as appetizing. A Jewess with a tragic past that came from a violent pogram--whose mind is as scarred as her face. Anna Anderson--the woman claiming to be Anastasia, Czar Nicolas's daughter who is crazy as a loon, yet loveable. Schmidt the Berlin police inspector who tends to take his job and his love-life too seriously, sometimes. And the supporting characters are each remarkable.

This book had been a gift from my cousin, and I had no clue what I was picking up to read, so it was a total treat and I looked forward to picking it up again during the week in which I read it. I highly recommend this novel and I'll be watching for more from Ariana Franklin! What a READ!

[Susie · Rating 5 out of 5]

can I give it 6 stars? Pre-WWII Berlin, mystery, history, kick-ass surprise (no spoiling here)

It was a Bong book. . .

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Almost every Ariana Franklin book might appear to be boring at the beginning, but later you can be sure you won't be able to put it aside. This piece wasn't an exception, after reading first few pages I thought I'd quit, but something kept me going on. I'm glad I didn't give it up, its gripping story made me swallow the book whole only in five days. The good thing about Franklin's books is that you cannot ever guess the ending and City of Shadows had the most unexpected solution I've ever encountered. I'm giving it only three stars, because compared to her other books, this one was quite weaker. But please, don't let it discourage you from giving it a try!

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best Anastasia Survives book I've ever read, and I've read shelves of them, even though that's not what it's about, though that IS what it's about, in the end. Oh, just read it. (I guessed the Big Twist at--I checked--twelve percent, but it didn't spoil the book even a little.)

[Roshni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Germany after WWI, hyper-inflation, the aftermath of the Bolshevik revolution, the rise of the Nazis, oh, and a few murders to solve. The setting of this really captures your attention, and I learned a lot about that time. Schmidt, a police officer with surprisingly modern morals and politics, is on the case, but the case is overshadowed by the political and economic situation in Germany.

[Libraryscat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Great play on history!

[Leah · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Having read other books by this author I expected more. Was so good in parts then would drag on before it was briefly engaging again.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical Fiction thriller takes place in Berlin between 1920 to 1932, when Hitler becomes Chancellor. I appreciated learning about Germany in the years before Hitler came to power and was disturbed by the similarities to the US 100 years later.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't write too much right now (plus the book was a while ago...But LOVED it). Ariana Franklin/Diana Norman (she writes under two names - no idea why) helms this historical fiction about 1930s Germany, a dreary, appallingly soul-crushing time for the German national psyche, sizzling with the embers of unrest that allowed Hitlerian philosophy to ignite it into flames. "No!" you want to yell out to the good, poor, struggling, weary, battered, German men and women you are reading about. "NO!" there has got to be something you can do, right? But, alas, this is fiction bound by true history, and we know that a deceptively charming, neatly mustached monster is lurking in the wings, waiting for his time to come.

Amongst that foreshadowing is a woman named Ester, scarred, literally and figuratively, by her Russian past. Initially, she never goes further than to utter the word "pogrom," for the other characters and reader to know, but there is an obviously painful background that haunts and tortures her. She works for a likable criminal and ends up meeting a German officer after witnessing/being part of/ a crime (I think...) On the outskirts, there is a woman, living in a mental institution, who claims to be Grand duchess Anastasia Romanov. Ester is sent to "recruit" this woman for the potential fame and fortune he could obtain from being her "manager."

To go further would both complicate my explanation and give away key plot points that take a little trudging along to get to. Take the above characters, put them in a snow globe, whirl around like a tornedo, spit them back out, and POOF! you have some idea about where things end up in the second major "act of the story.

This is a book that is well written, with believable, likable (and unlikable) characters. The plots are very complicated and balance upon the precarious thread that is its 1930s German setting. Like the opening scene in Wizard of Oz, where dorothy is frightened of all the faces flying past her, characters and plot hurl along, some you are highly concious of, others are spine-tingly foreshadowing in the background. But the main foregrounders, Ester, the policeman and the Anastastia doppleganger, are enough to take on their own. It's a meaty book. I wouldn't put it in the major literary/ greatest stories of my life column, but it was damn near close.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Germany between the world wars was a volatile place: extreme inflation, food shortages and unemployment in the 1920s led to political upheaval, violence and the rise of Hitler's Nazis in the 1930s. Added to the chaos was an influx of refugees from Bolshevik Russia. One of these emigres was Anna Anderson who claimed to be Anastasia, the youngest of the czar's daughters and the only surviver of the massacre of the royal family. Ariana Franklin uses the real-life Anna Anderson as a central character in her suspense novel. The action is exciting and fast-paced. A killer is stalking Anna who is being protected (and groomed for her role as Anastasia) by a slick Russian nightclub owner and his secretary, Esther, a young Russian Jew with scars both outside and in. Is the killer an agent of the Bolshevik government out to kill the last surviving Romanov? Or is he after Anna for another reason related to her real identity? Inspector Schmidt of the Berlin police department is determined to find out. He is an honest man, dedicated to law and justice - qualities that put him at odds with the rising tide of Fascism around him. Eventually he and Esther are drawn to each other and work together to solve the mystery of Anna's past and discover the motive and identity of the man who wants to kill her. The action comes to a climax in 1932 on a night when Berlin is celebrating Hitler's appointment as chancellor. The killer is exposed and eliminated, a secret is revealed (one I did not see coming), and Schmidt and Esther escape Germany together. (Thank goodness! A happy ending!)

[Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before the event of DNA testing there was a woman who everyone had heard of. Whether you believed in her or not, people found her fascinating, this woman claimed to Anastasia the last living heir to the Russian throne, the daughter of the murdered Czar Nicholas II
In this fictional story is a young Jewess, a refugee in 1922 Berlin, this is Germany before Hitler. Because of the scar on her face Esther survives by being a secretary to Prince Nick as he is called who owns several cabarets in the city. Esther takes pity on a young woman she finds in the asylum who claims to be Anastasia and thus blooms a scheme to make money off of her. Though she says that there is someone after her, who wants her dead, they pass it off as ravings and delusions of a mental patient. Thus Anna Anderson moves from the asylum to an apartment shared with Esther and Natalya. Then the killings start, first a woman from the asylum is tortured and killed next ia mysterious letter delivered and addressed to Anastasia with an offer to authenticate her claim, Natalya waylays it which costs her life. That this trail of bodies leads to Anna Anderson (Anastasia) This is a really good book, of course, I have read Franklin's Mistress of the Dead series but I found this book hard to put down. Would love to read a follow up with Esther and her cop Schmidt after they left Berlin. The ending was a nice touch. LOL, I won't spoil for you, you'll just have to read it for yourself.

[Abriggs · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an exhilarating ride full of twists and turns! Now that my heart has stopped racing all I feel is sadness........sadness that I have no more Ariana Franklin novels to devour. She is one of my all time favorite authors and I have loved all of her novels written under this pseudonym.

She has painted a vivid picture of Berlin during this turbulent time in its history. We see the seedier side that flourished in the years following WWI while most of the city was living in starvation and squalor. She also captured the desperation that people had to endure in order to survive. We later see Berlin under the influence of the rising National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nazi Party).

One of the things I enjoyed most about this story was the rich detail embedded throughout. I found myself looking up numerous things on the internet such as "brownshirts", pogrom and different notorious serial killers from that time. This helped draw me even further into the story.

I also felt drawn to the different characters depicted throughout the story. The strength that Esther shows is almost palpable. Her relationship with the infamous "Prince Nick" is another quality that endeared me to her.

Don't miss the chance to get lost in this gripping and harrowing tale.

[Shelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book by this author! It was interesting right from the start and I enjoyed the entire book. A mystery thriller, but also historical fiction. I learned quite a bit from this book, as I had to google a bunch of things to refresh my memory of the actual events. Set in Berlin in post WW1...when Hitler is just beginning to gain popularity. Another look at what happened to the German citizens and leading up to the inevitable horror of the Halocaust. Strong characters and a great storyline involving Anastasia...the last surviving heir to the murdered czar of Russia. The story is exciting and stays that way right up to the last page! I found this to be very different but just as good as Mistress of the Art of Death...I highly recommend both books. Interesting note: this book was published in 2006 and in 2007 and beyond, DNA testing confirmed the real story of what happened to Anastasia and her family!

[Hilari Bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book because I love the Mistress of the Art of Death series so much—and even though City of Shadows, set in 1920s and 1930s Berlin, has no connection to Franklin’s other books it’s excellent too. Regardless of the period, Franklin writes great, appealing characters with depth and humor. The mystery plot, which centers around Anna Anderson, who passed herself off as Anastasia, is a fine one—but this book also reminded me that the best books usually do more than one thing. The backdrop of this story is the conditions in Germany after WWI, and how they gave rise to WWII. And while I’d heard of the horrific hyperinflation and the economic problems then, this book brought them alive for me a way that let me really understand how and why the Nazi’s came to power—and this lent a very good mystery a whole other level of interest. Not least of which was because there are some parallels with our own times. A really good book, both for fans of Franklin’s medievals, and for those who haven’t read her at all.

[Carmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young woman is killed. But she ends up being just the first in a string of murders. This is set in Berlin during the 1920's and 30's. A time when normalcy is thrown out the window as money spirals downwards and people are literally starving. To save the day Hitler comes in on a white horse. Or so it seems to many but not to all. Esther is a fascinating, multi-dimensional character who has a secret. Schmidt is a loyal moral man who does not cope well with what is happening in his city. Anna is Anastacia Romanov, the daughter who was not killed by the rebels in Russia. Or is she?
I loved the way the author painted the scenes and developed the characters. But what really wowed me was the use of the words schadenfreude and kerfuffle. I loved seeing those obscure words that are barely used.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars because it was a little long for my taste. Otherwise a first class compilation. Set in pre WWII Berlin the author exposes the methodical rise to power of Adolf Hitler. I came to see how the struggles of the German people against out of control inflation, created the desperation which made them turn to anyone who promised to lift them out of the poverty and hunger that prevailed. Murder, conspiracy, romance, anti-semitism, integrity and redemption are all here. Quite a line up. Heartbreaking and frightening to witness decades old friendships torn to ruin as the ensuing madness takes hold. Splendid characters. The intellect of Inspector Siegfried Schmidt is evident. Paired with the quick thinking Esther and the intriguing Anna are what carry the story to a remarkable conclusion. Turned out to be a good choice.

[Diana Sandberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, not great. I liked the second half better than the first, which dragged a bit. I had some trouble with Franklin's choice of voices. This is always difficult when attempting to indicate class/education with language when the language spoken is not the one being read. Slangy English does not really convey slangy, lower class German, at least not without a conscious adjustment on the part of the reader. I did like Inspector Schmidt and I did like the nice little twist at the end, although I had already suspected it. Above average.