I’ve heard a lot about Marek Krajewski and I knew he must be great writer as his book were translated into english. Literature isn’t common export in Poland, so if polish book is translated into english, it means it must be good. I got “Death in Breaslau” as a gift so it was great opportunity to finally dig into Krajewski’s work.

“Death in Breslau” starts with really good prologue. It’s plants interest in you and makes you automatically go to first chapter for more. Personally, for me it was even more attention chaining as prologue is set in asylum and I’m fascinated by madness and mental diseases.

Whole history takes place just before II World War in german city Breslau (today it’s polish Wrocław). Plot is built over two main characters - Eberhard Mock and Herbert Anwaldt. They’re both policemans with dark pasts which is often dragged up to show what made them people they are now. Though we get to know almost all their sins and dim motives, you find yourself actually liking them and keeping their side whatever they do. Relationship between Mock and Anwaldt is interesting itself; they become somehow like father and son which is for them weird and alleviating at the same time; Mock always wanted to have kids but never had whilst Anwaldt is and orphan which dreamt about having at least one true parent all his life.

The main thread is a ritual murder of Marietta von der Malten - a daugther of aristocrat - which becomes a burden for Mock and Anwaldt. But the real solution turns out to be even more troublesome…

Book is full of sexuality, naturalism and psychological deliberations. Sex becames a factor which you cannot ingore while reading the book and some readers maybe disgust more than once and not only because of it. What I found the most irritating were the descriptions of city. Too many german names of streets made me skip half-a-page too many times. Even though I found Krajewski’s style strange (I cannot find any other word) I enjoyed reading his book and got myself involved in it.