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Ostland

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Ostland

By: David Thomas
Narrated by: Richard Burnip
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About this listen

February 1941, wartime Berlin. Brilliant, idealistic young detective Georg Heuser joins the Murder Squad in the midst of the biggest manhunt the city has ever seen. A serial killer is slaughtering women on S-Bahn trains and leaving their battered bodies by the tracks. Heuser must confront evil eye-to-eye as he helps track down the murderer.

July 1959, peacetime West Germany: a pioneering young lawyer, Paula Siebert, is in a federal unit investigating men who have committed crimes of unimaginable magnitude and horror. Their leader has just been arrested. His name is Georg Heuser. Siebert is sure of his guilt. But how could a once decent man have become a sadistic monster?

©2013 David Thomas (P)2013 Oakhill Publishing Crime Murder Suspense Thriller & Suspense Law Fiction Thriller Mystery

Critic reviews

"An intriguing mix of detection, thriller, courtroom drama, fact and fiction." (The Times)
"With subtlety and intelligence, Thomas joins the historical dots to produce a novel with plenty to say - eloquently - about the brutalising effects of the Holocaust." (Guardian)
"Very rarely do books reach into your psyche and take root. Ostland came along and kicked my door down. A wonderfully thought-provoking novel. Educational, entertaining and emotive throughout ... a first class read by an author at the top of their game." (Crimesquad)
"This nightmare-inducing new novel stretches crime fiction to its limits ... a compelling read." (Mail on Sunday)
All stars
Most relevant

Would you consider the audio edition of Ostland to be better than the print version?

I have not read the printed version but I found the audio version easy to follow and well read.

What did you like best about this story?

the characters

Have you listened to any of Richard Burnip’s other performances? How does this one compare?

this is the first Richard Burnip narrated story i have listened too

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It makes you think how you would react in similar circumstances. Im not sure how I would answer that question

Intriguing story of how evil can overtake good

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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

The novel is an extraordinary achievement in that it enables the reader to at least understand (although not sympathise) the journey that some human beings made as they progressed to becoming mass-murderers. This should possibly be read in tandem with Christopher R Brownings' 'Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 11 and the Final Solution in Poland' and Daniel Goldhagen's 'Hitler's Willing Executioners: Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust'.

Would you be willing to try another one of Richard Burnip’s performances?

No, or at least, with great reluctance. When I listen to an audiobook, it's because I want to enjoy the text, not because I want to hear a performance. Richard Burnip is an actor, and so he 'acts' the book. The range of accents is frankly bizarre, including some that are camp, or pantomime or even, just 'wrong'. The accents detract from the text, constantly pulling the listener concentration away from the story. It was bad enough to make me consider actually buying the book to finish, and dumping the audiobook. A shame - the book deserves better.

Extraordinary book, marred by dreadful narration

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This is not for the fainthearted but I found the book held my interest throughout. Based on a true story in war time and post war Germany,it is a truly fascinating tale. I recommend this book as a very thought provoking listen.

Gripping and horrifying

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What did you like most about Ostland?

The storyline that draws you into Heuser's decline from idealistic detective to cynical murderer

What other book might you compare Ostland to, and why?

Philip Kerr's Bernie Gunther novels

Which character – as performed by Richard Burnip – was your favourite?

Heuser himself I think.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, especially as the events in Ostland itself unfolded.

Any additional comments?

I think the two-era narration is an unnecessary device which could be removed from the novel without unduly affecting it. There are a number of predictable tropes such as Bine's move to Hamburg being followed by her death in a firestorm.

enthralling - eventually!!

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For me I love autobiographies but a friend recommended this as he knows I am interested in the holocaust I found it very slow to start but as it went on it shows the horrors that went on in those years Told from the perspective of those "poor" Nazi officers that had to carry out the atrocities!! Listen and you will understand my comments

Hard going but shocking

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