DEATH AND THE DEVIL

First published in Germany in 1995, this historical novel from Schatzing (The Swarm, 2005, etc.) concerns a 13th-century petty thief who witnesses the murder of a renowned cathedral architect.

While he is pilfering apples from the Cologne archbishop’s orchard, Jacob “the Fox” watches a dark figure with streaming blond hair shove Gerhard Morart to his death from high scaffolding. The famous architect is not the only victim. Within the next few days the mysterious killer, known as Urquhart, casually murders a whore, a vagrant and several others, usually with his trademark weapon, a tiny crossbow. Jacob becomes acquainted with potential love-interest Richmodis, along with her father and uncle, and the three of them inexplicably team up with Jacob. Whether it is to catch the killer, or to keep themselves safe, or to warn the citizens of Cologne, the lack of insight provided about the characters’ thoughts and feelings results in confusion as to what motivates the foursome and what they hope to accomplish. Similarly, although the killer’s patrons repeatedly allude to a secret alliance between aristocratic families, the failure in character development results in many questions about what drives their decisions. Only toward the end, for example, is the blind old matriarch Blithildis Overstolze’s role in the ill-defined alliance revealed in a few cursory summary paragraphs. History and fiction are awkwardly interwoven throughout the book. While the murderous Urquhart is on the loose, Richmodis’s uncle Jaspar issues dull monologues about Cologne history, the Crusades and the tension between guild and patrician classes. The tale also jumps disjointedly from person to person, from scene to scene, and fails to establish much of a voice. Justice prevails at last, and a dry historical epilogue concludes the book.

Lackluster characters populate a choppy narrative.