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Francis Bacon #4
Nights in Berlin
A young Irishman finds love and danger in the shadows of Weimar Berlin
Francis Bacon has never cared much for country living, so he is overjoyed when his father sends him to Berlin as punishment for his not-so-innocent flirtations with the other boys at school. With afternoons at the cinema, dinner at the Hotel Adlon, and nights at the most outrageous cabarets in Germany and in his uncle Lastings s bed he ll fit right in.
The Great War having ended over a decade ago, and its resulting economic turmoil in the past, Germany is enjoying the Golden Twenties a time of healthy fiscal growth, and creative and sexual resurgence, centered in Berlin. Yet dark clouds are gathering as Hitler consolidates power within the Nazi Party and brownshirts march through the streets.
As tensions rise, Francis finds his uncle Lastings busy welcoming countless men into his hotel room some invited for pleasure, others to be recruited for the fight against Bolshevism. But when the Nazis send Lastings fleeing for his life, Francis is left alone, penniless, and hunted, with only his keen sense of hedonism to distract him from a city that gets more menacing every night.
Nights in Berlin is the 4th book in the Francis Bacon Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order."
Francis Bacon has never cared much for country living, so he is overjoyed when his father sends him to Berlin as punishment for his not-so-innocent flirtations with the other boys at school. With afternoons at the cinema, dinner at the Hotel Adlon, and nights at the most outrageous cabarets in Germany and in his uncle Lastings s bed he ll fit right in.
The Great War having ended over a decade ago, and its resulting economic turmoil in the past, Germany is enjoying the Golden Twenties a time of healthy fiscal growth, and creative and sexual resurgence, centered in Berlin. Yet dark clouds are gathering as Hitler consolidates power within the Nazi Party and brownshirts march through the streets.
As tensions rise, Francis finds his uncle Lastings busy welcoming countless men into his hotel room some invited for pleasure, others to be recruited for the fight against Bolshevism. But when the Nazis send Lastings fleeing for his life, Francis is left alone, penniless, and hunted, with only his keen sense of hedonism to distract him from a city that gets more menacing every night.
Nights in Berlin is the 4th book in the Francis Bacon Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order."
228 pages, Paperback
First published April 5, 2016
13 people are currently reading
57 people want to read
About the author
Janice Law
92 books29 followersJanice Law (b. 1941) is an acclaimed author of mystery fiction. The Watergate scandal inspired her to write her first novel, The Big Payoff (1977), which introduced Anna Peters, a street-smart young woman who blackmails her boss, a corrupt oil executive. The novel was a success, winning an Edgar nomination, and Law went on to write eight more in the series, including Death Under Par (1980) and Cross-Check (1997).
After Death Under Par, Law set aside the character for several years to write historical mysteries The Countess (1989) and All the King’s Ladies (1986). After concluding the Peters series, she wrote three stand-alone suspense novels: The Night Bus (2000), The Lost Diaries of Iris Weed (2002), and Voices (2003). Since then, Law has focused on writing short stories, many of which appear in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. Fires of London (2012) is her most recent novel. She lives and writes in Connecticut.
After Death Under Par, Law set aside the character for several years to write historical mysteries The Countess (1989) and All the King’s Ladies (1986). After concluding the Peters series, she wrote three stand-alone suspense novels: The Night Bus (2000), The Lost Diaries of Iris Weed (2002), and Voices (2003). Since then, Law has focused on writing short stories, many of which appear in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. Fires of London (2012) is her most recent novel. She lives and writes in Connecticut.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 31, 2015
I’ve never been a fan of mysteries. As a matter of fact, the only one I’ve ever read was a rather tepid Inspector LeStrade novel. So I began Nights in Berlin as a complete novice to the genre and my low expectations were rewarded with a well researched, fast-paced and thoroughly entertaining read.
I chose this book because I’ve always had an interest in Berlin under the Weimar Republic and the artistic freedom and social decadence characteristic of the period. You know - Marlene Dietrich, Cabaret, Fritz Lang, DADA...all that. Plus, I was intrigued by the idea that the protagonist is based on an actual [and well-known] late 20th Century Irish artist known mostly for his grotesque portraiture. I can’t help but wonder what inspired the author to choose him as the lead in a series of mysteries. Other than his work, I know nothing about Francis Bacon so it was interesting and fun to imagine his early years as depicted by Law. This particular book is the first in a trilogy that follows his adventures as a young gay man seeking adventure and love in Berlin, Paris and London.
The story, not quite a classic mystery, finds Bacon inadvertently abetting his con-man/libertine/spy uncle in a political shooting, after which he is forced into hiding as a hat-check “girl” in a Berlin drag bar under the auspices of the British embassy. To be completely honest, I’m notoriously ignorant of the finer points of modern European history so all the various factions and intrigues were kind of lost on me. It did help me with an answer on the Christmas Eve episode of Jeopardy (“Who were the Brownshirts?”) which kind of amazed my husband’s family.
All in all, I really liked this book, despite the fact that I had a difficult time with the politics of the period. Bacon makes for a spunky and charming protagonist. This is a fun and breezy book – perfect for curling up with on a cold winter’s eve. There’s intrigue, peril, politics, history, humor, even a little [LGBT] romance. I look forward to enjoying the Paris and London installments.
I chose this book because I’ve always had an interest in Berlin under the Weimar Republic and the artistic freedom and social decadence characteristic of the period. You know - Marlene Dietrich, Cabaret, Fritz Lang, DADA...all that. Plus, I was intrigued by the idea that the protagonist is based on an actual [and well-known] late 20th Century Irish artist known mostly for his grotesque portraiture. I can’t help but wonder what inspired the author to choose him as the lead in a series of mysteries. Other than his work, I know nothing about Francis Bacon so it was interesting and fun to imagine his early years as depicted by Law. This particular book is the first in a trilogy that follows his adventures as a young gay man seeking adventure and love in Berlin, Paris and London.
The story, not quite a classic mystery, finds Bacon inadvertently abetting his con-man/libertine/spy uncle in a political shooting, after which he is forced into hiding as a hat-check “girl” in a Berlin drag bar under the auspices of the British embassy. To be completely honest, I’m notoriously ignorant of the finer points of modern European history so all the various factions and intrigues were kind of lost on me. It did help me with an answer on the Christmas Eve episode of Jeopardy (“Who were the Brownshirts?”) which kind of amazed my husband’s family.
All in all, I really liked this book, despite the fact that I had a difficult time with the politics of the period. Bacon makes for a spunky and charming protagonist. This is a fun and breezy book – perfect for curling up with on a cold winter’s eve. There’s intrigue, peril, politics, history, humor, even a little [LGBT] romance. I look forward to enjoying the Paris and London installments.
May 21, 2017
A chance read
Not knowing what I was about to read, a surprising Ber!in tale of
Prewar Germany. Funny and interesting. Now I will ha ve to go back and start from the beginning g.
Not knowing what I was about to read, a surprising Ber!in tale of
Prewar Germany. Funny and interesting. Now I will ha ve to go back and start from the beginning g.
January 4, 2019
Francis Bacon is sent to 1930s Germany and get involved in espionage.
April 7, 2016
This is a prequel to Janice Law's trilogy of Francis Bacon mysteries: Fires of London, The Prisoner of the Riviera, Moon Over Tangier, about the mid-20th Century artist and his fictional mystery/thriller/noir misadventures. Here, Francis Bacon is 17, thrown out of school and sent to live with his uncle in Berlin -- Weimar-era Berlin, 1920s, which for a repressed, gay English boy would be a wonderland, a happy hunting ground. However, his uncle is not what he seems, and seems now to be mixed up in either spying or some criminal intrigue with right-wing thugs. Francis begins a series of dangerous, sordid encounters in a seedy and dangerous Berlin, working in a gay nightclub, dodging his uncle's creditors and enemies, finding help from a series of unexpected and iffy friends.
It's an enjoyable read, as Francis is a plucky and resourceful character, and in this book his stumbles into danger are plausible -- he is a 17-year-old boy, after all, and in a strange country. The setting in "Cabaret"-era Berlin is believable, the dangers seem real and the intrigue is, well, intriguing. The sexual content isn't really explicit, but leaves little to imagination, and certainly livens up the story. A wild ride, in all. Five stars for liveliness and plausibility.
It's an enjoyable read, as Francis is a plucky and resourceful character, and in this book his stumbles into danger are plausible -- he is a 17-year-old boy, after all, and in a strange country. The setting in "Cabaret"-era Berlin is believable, the dangers seem real and the intrigue is, well, intriguing. The sexual content isn't really explicit, but leaves little to imagination, and certainly livens up the story. A wild ride, in all. Five stars for liveliness and plausibility.
May 25, 2016
"Nights In Berlin" is a quick-paced, light, bouncy read that is also light on the mystery to be solved. Sort of a Gay Nancy Drew mystery. And while Bacon is a flamboyantly sexually active, gay man there is no explicit sex. Perhaps the author is trying to tap into a YA audience.
Based on British artist Francis Bacon, author Janice Law—like many current authors—has recreated a real person into a fictional amateur sleuth with her Francis Bacon Mysteries. “Nights In Berlin” is the fourth in the series, yet is a prequel to the others as it deals with the 17-year-old Bacon’s adventures in gay Berlin.
The other Francis Bacon mysteries are "Fires of London", "The Prisoner of the Riviera" and "Moon over Tangier".
The real Francis Bacon—Irish-born British artist (1909-1992)—while still a teen, was thrown out of his home when he was found admiring himself while wearing his mother’s underwear. Bacon claimed that his father sent him to a friend renowned for his “manliness” to take him “in-hand” and “make a man of him.” This so-called “uncle” took him to bed instead and, in 1927, took him to lively and decadent Berlin. In later life, the artist became quite famous and in November 2013, his oil-on-canvas triptych, “Three Studies of Lucian Freud” (1969), sold for $142.4 million.
Based on British artist Francis Bacon, author Janice Law—like many current authors—has recreated a real person into a fictional amateur sleuth with her Francis Bacon Mysteries. “Nights In Berlin” is the fourth in the series, yet is a prequel to the others as it deals with the 17-year-old Bacon’s adventures in gay Berlin.
The other Francis Bacon mysteries are "Fires of London", "The Prisoner of the Riviera" and "Moon over Tangier".
The real Francis Bacon—Irish-born British artist (1909-1992)—while still a teen, was thrown out of his home when he was found admiring himself while wearing his mother’s underwear. Bacon claimed that his father sent him to a friend renowned for his “manliness” to take him “in-hand” and “make a man of him.” This so-called “uncle” took him to bed instead and, in 1927, took him to lively and decadent Berlin. In later life, the artist became quite famous and in November 2013, his oil-on-canvas triptych, “Three Studies of Lucian Freud” (1969), sold for $142.4 million.
May 1, 2017
I wish I understood why Janice Law chose the painter, Francis Bacon, as her protagonist. I found it distracting to be reading along and then be reminded of who this young man is supposed to be, visions of the real FB and his work, and of Derek Jacobi as FB in "Love is the Devil" intruding on the story. If there'd been some art-related reason, it might make more sense, but art plays almost no part in this story.
Rather, this is young Francis, sent to Berlin, to his military uncle, as a presumed remedy for his troublesome (read gay) nature. But Uncle Lastings is not only gleefully bisexual himself, but a con artist, and absolutely not the sort of man to whom an upright Irish father might entrust the moral upbringing of his child. Francis lives the high life in Berlin until Lastings gets him involved in a shootout in a Berlin dive bar and then disappears, leaving Francis virtually penniless in a strange city.
And that's when things get really weird.
The story moves along at a reasonable pace, and the characters are interesting if not highly developed. Francis is the most so, but I came away from the novel with not much more understanding of him than I began with. He's not what I'd call an engaging character, but he manages to stay on his feet as the events propel him through the story. In all, I'd say that it's a fun read, but nothing profound, or even particularly exciting. It's a good book for summer, or for a rainy afternoon.
Rather, this is young Francis, sent to Berlin, to his military uncle, as a presumed remedy for his troublesome (read gay) nature. But Uncle Lastings is not only gleefully bisexual himself, but a con artist, and absolutely not the sort of man to whom an upright Irish father might entrust the moral upbringing of his child. Francis lives the high life in Berlin until Lastings gets him involved in a shootout in a Berlin dive bar and then disappears, leaving Francis virtually penniless in a strange city.
And that's when things get really weird.
The story moves along at a reasonable pace, and the characters are interesting if not highly developed. Francis is the most so, but I came away from the novel with not much more understanding of him than I began with. He's not what I'd call an engaging character, but he manages to stay on his feet as the events propel him through the story. In all, I'd say that it's a fun read, but nothing profound, or even particularly exciting. It's a good book for summer, or for a rainy afternoon.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews