Translated period thriller, written by a German about Vienna (which is in Austria, for the victims of US public school systems who may be reading this.) If you like historical fiction and thrillers, I'd recommend giving it a read. It's about as dark as I expected, and the research seems to be solid, I just wish I cared slightly more about the main character.

I was excited to read this book because of its setting, but it l flat. The book could have used some good editing, to many details that bored down the mystery and narrator who was kind of just okay. Not sure if I'll continue following this series.

Oliver Pötzsch does it again! His work is so brilliant and engaging and this new-to-the-US series is no different!

The research he does in bringing history to life is so appreciated! This particular book is a lively mish-mash of genres too; historical fiction, mystery, and even maybe some supernatural.

I'm so glad it's a series and can't wait to read book two. Get it translated as already! I listened to the audiobook and your reader is fantastic so I hope you keep him for the future books too.

Thanks to the publisher's for getting me a NetGalley ARC.

I had really high hopes for this one due to the setting and early forensics, and it unfortunately fell flat for me for a few reasons. First off, the characters weren't well developed and believable. Second, the book becomes a chore at times because there are just too many details. I did really enjoy the early forensics part. That was a lot of fun to me. I also felt like the narrator did a decent job of bringing the characters to life. If you enjoy mysteries where you'll figure out whodunnit fairly early and want to watch the characters solve it, then this is right up your alley!

My thanks to HarperAudio Adult and NetGalley for gifting me a digital listening copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

On paper, this is a great mystery with a little bit of everything. Some Jack the Ripper, class warfare, lead up to the World Wars, early forensics. I had hopes for some campy fun. It just didn't work as well for me as I anticipated.

Some reasons why:

The mystery is only for the characters in the book. If you read mysteries to figure it out or even for plot twists, then this isn't for you. It heavily relies on clues that were novel to the characters, but completely mundane to the reader, so you know everyone's roles by the end of the first scene.

The characters are flat . There's an understanding that they're rebellious for their time. But it's tiresome, like that straight laced kid had a beer once and has to tell you all about how wild and transgressive they were. Repeatedly. I kept wanting to like the characters, but kept feeling nothing but meh.

If you have strong interest in turn of the century, young forensics, Vienna, or serial killers, then this could be a fun one. If you have a passing interest, then pass this one too.

eBook - 3 Stars
Audiobook - 1 Star

<spoiler>*The story is good and intriguing. I had not yet read a mystery set in Vienna and it made for an interesting setting. Much of what was going on politically [there was an increasing distrust and hate of the Jews] I was, however, familiar with because of an excellent PBS show I have been watching called "Vienna Blood" [I HIGHLY recommend this show], and that made the political parts of this book easier for me to understand.

*All that said, this book would have benefited from either better editing and/or a culling of between 50-100 pages. There were moments where it just got so bogged down by EVERYTHING that had NOTHING to do with the case and/or the story; I could have [and maybe I should have - I might have enjoyed it more] skipped 10 chapters and still been in the thick of the story and would not have really missed a thing.

*I knew who the killer was very early on, and the longer the book went on, the more obvious it became. While the overall story, mystery, and side-mystery were good to very good [and VERY, VERY, gruesome and extremely *AHEM* descriptive and that was unexpected for sure], being able to figure out the killer so easily *AND* so early was very disappointing.

*Overall, this wasn't bad, but it wasn't good enough for me to not have moments of real disappointment and I almost quit several times.

**Rupert Bush is a new-to-me narrator, and unfortunately, he absolutely did not work for me. Everyone sounded exactly the same [even the women], and his extreme staccato way of speaking was very off-putting and to be honest, if I was looking at book 2 and found that he was the narrator, I would absolutely skip the book because of that. It made a book I was already struggling with even more difficult to get through. </spoiler>

Thank you to NetGalley, Oliver Potzsch, Lisa Reinhardt - Translator, Rupert Bush - Narrator, HarperVia, and HarperAudio Adult/HarperAudio for providing the eBook and audiobook ARC's in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Oliver Pötzsch
Narrator: Rupert Bush

The narrator is perfect for this story.
A novel is always made better by a good narrator. He did all the different accents so well he brought each character to life for me. Thank you!

This historical mystery is perfect for fans of all kinds. I had to listen to it in parts, but otherwise I barely put it down. It is also my first novel by this author. Now I’m hooked. I’m sure this will be a series and I cannot wait to get the next in line.

There were many twists throughout, which left me wondering what could possibly happen next. I liked the small bit of romance as It fit so well into the atmosphere.

I’m not really into crime mystery stories. Once I listened to this one tho I’ve changed my mind about this genre. Amazed by how much fun I had listening to this novel.

There was so much detail to absorb and ponder, It’s hard to give many specifics because I don’t want to give anything away.
Every character had so much more to them, which I enjoyed.

Inspector Herzfeldt, (Leo) is an experienced Inspector who moves to a new city to join their police force.
This new job and city are very different and have many unfamiliar customs. He clashes with most of his co-workers and even his boss about his investigative style.

The crime scene investigations are detailed and interesting. Herzfeldt knows what clues to look for.
When he shows the other Inspectors all the different types of evidence at each new crime scene, his co-workers and the Inspector General believe he is making up how the crimes are done in order to gain more attention for himself.

He does have some support from others such as a lady police phone operator who believes in him, but cannot be too involved as she would lose her job. There’s also The Gravedigger (Augustine Rothmeyer) who has valuable information and insights into the crimes. His character pivotal to this mystery.

The saying, “The Devil Is In The Details”, is absolutely Perfect for the story.


Many thanks to #HarperAudio and #NetGalley for the free copy of this audiobook to review. All opinions are my own

An engaging historical mystery with a strong cast of characters. If you like the "early days of forensics" parts of Murdoch Mysteries, this might be up your alley. It's well-researched and provides an interesting insight into crime before modern methods became common. The mystery contains a lot of twists, some more predictable than others or following common mystery tropes, but even in parts where it was easier to guess *what* would happen, the *how* was still interesting.

The English translation was well-done and the audiobook narrator was engaging. Content warning for readers: this book contains themes about sexual assault, child abuse, and sexual assault of minors. While the author handles these topics fairly carefully, readers sensitive to these topics should read with care.

The Gravedigger's Almanac is the first book in a new historical mystery series set in late 19th century Vienna. This novel has a very good balance of both an atmospheric and a fast-paced plot with an interesting mystery. This novel is also enhanced by a likeable cast of characters. I loved the setting of Vienna just before the turn of the century. The only real criticism I have is with the mystery itself. I predicted the ending twist a lot earlier then the characters did. It wasn't a bad twist I just saw it coming. Ultimately, it is a really solid start to a historical mystery series, and I would recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio for an ARC audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I've read a couple other books by this author and enjoyed them all.
This book seemlessly combines history, real and imagined characters, emerging science and mystery! It's perfect.

I only removed one star because of the audiobook narrator. I would not listen to a book by this narrator again. He has an odd way of pausing midsentence that is very distracting and in a couple of cases made it confusing who was speaking. Oddly, he didn't do this during the acknowledgments, so it seems like an effect put on just for narrating. It wasn't enough to make me stop listening, but was just an irritant.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the ALC.

ARC from NetGalley
Thank you to the author and publisher.
Publish Date: May 27, 2025

Rating: 3.5/5

Initial thoughts:
A cop, a gravedigger and dancer walk into a bar....

Plot:
Leo is a cop and Augustin is a gravedigger. Then we have Leo's, hope to be soon, girlfriend.. This is Julia, a dispatcher at the police station, who moonlights as a dancer.

The three combine their knowledge and experience to investigate a mystery. There is a sick killer on the loose and it may have to do with the horrid, secret balls.

Praise:
- Good writing
- Loved how audio felt like old time radio shows
- Couldn't predict everything
- Plot
- Character development (developed connections)
- Narrator
- Multiple facets
- No lulls

Critiques:
- Trigger warning
- Very straightforward

Fav Quote:
None that jumped out.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for this advanced listening copy of The Gravedigger’s Almanac by Oliver Pötzsch. This was a fun (albeit sometimes upsetting and gruesome) Sherlock Holmes meets Silas Marner tale with a 'who-dunnit' mystery throughout with a touch of the occult to boot.

I'll admit I didn't clock this as historical fiction outright, despite the locations, cultural touchstones, and some names were familiar. I enjoyed tagging along on an investigation well before much of the modern 'CSI' techniques in use today. How do you validate the identity of a body before the widespread use of DNA testing / fingerprinting? How do you find someone who doesn't want to be found? Even with the early adoption of the telephone, how do you gather witness statements and corroborate stories before the trail goes cold?

My fascination was undercut by two of the threats investigated, both heavily referencing SA, including against minors. There of course was an apologist plugged into speak to the 'virtues' of the practice that was just gross.

Overall, it still held my interest with humor and intrigue but didn't earn more stars, due to the abuse featured.

I’ve finally found a new author that I can glom onto! I listened to the audiobook of The Gravedigger's Almanac by Oliver Potzsch and it was fantastic! I really enjoy listening to historical thrillers, and this one kept me on the edge of my seat well into the wee hours of the morning! The story is quick paced and compelling (even if the subject matter is disturbing) and the characters are richly drawn and nuanced.

The story begins in 1893 Vienna, with the newly arrived detective Leopold von Herzfeldt, a young ambitious transfer from Graz. He is almost immediately drawn into the circle of Augustin Rothmayer, the gravedigger at the city’s famous Central Cemetery. Augustin is from a long line of gravediggers, and despite being unorthodox, he is highly educated and a musician. Together, the two men help solve a series of serial killings, as well as a mystery involving someone being buried alive.

I am very excited that there are several books in the series, as well another series by the same author, The Hangman's Daughter. I’m fairly certain additional audiobooks will be made of Gravedigger’s novels, and I can’t wait! Highly recommended!

This was a fabulous story! I loved the Gravedigger's Daughter series and this one had the same type of semi-magical (even though it's really not) feel as those stories did. I always love the blend of history and fictional narrative that Potzsch brings to his novels, and fin de siecle Vienna certainly provides a magical backdrop in that regard. The characters were marvelous, and fully realized. The narration was excellent and really worked well for the story. I would definitely be interested in more in this series!

I was really looking forward to this one, but unfortunately, I did not enjoy it. The story dragged, and I found many of the details disturbing. I usually enjoy a good murder mystery, and don’t typically mind gritty subject matter, but I found this audiobook hard to listen to as it was often plopped into the story nonchalantly. I imagine some of this is caused by the translation from German to English.

Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC.

First of all thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book. Since I began reviewing, this is the first time I have DNF’d a book I was sent by the publisher and NetGalley, but I am sorry, I can only hear a weird description of scriptures being inserted in parts of the female body before I need to just put a book down. There are likely people going to say that there is a cultural difference between the sensitivities here in the US and in Germany, but being married to a German, I can’t say enough that there is a distinction between being more comfortable with nudity, and the gratuitous description of violence against women written by a man for a clearly male gaze.

4 solid stars for the story. Oliver Potzsch always writes an intriguing mystery/thriller. I've enjoyed his other books and was excited to see a new series. Oliver develops the characters and story so well it keeps you on the edge of your seat. I also enjoyed the facts about classical musicians intertwined with the story.

However, I listened to the audiobook and if I could rate the narrator, it would be 1 star. The narrator was very choppy, it was very hard to listen to the audiobook. I would not recommend the narrator.

I think this would be better as a digital or physical read over the audiobook. I would have enjoyed the experience a lot more. I have all of Oliver's other books, so I will likely do a re-read in a different format.

This story was very interesting. I live a good mystery. However the audio was lackluster and hard to listen to. After every sentence when in character voice the narrator seemed to pause and that ruined the effect of the book thank you net galley for the arc read.

Set against the richly atmospheric backdrop of 1893 Vienna, The Gravedigger’s Almanac is a gripping work of historical crime fiction that skillfully blends the dawn of modern criminology with a chilling series of femicides reminiscent of Jack the Ripper. Pötzsch crafts a compelling trio of sleuths—an investigative judge, a switchboard operator with a secret life as a tango dancer, and a surprisingly insightful gravedigger—each vividly drawn and instantly lovable.
The writing is wonderfully evocative, immersing the reader in a city steeped in contradictions: scientific progress and cultural flourishing shadowed by the grim realities of violence and inequality. Pötzsch excels in building suspense while capturing the spirit of a transformative era. With its atmospheric setting, endearing characters, and razor-sharp pacing, The Gravedigger’s Almanac is a must-read for fans of historical mysteries.
Now, about the audiobook. Not a fan of the narrator. I don’t like his phrasing and his pauses in the sentences. It feels a little off. Great voice but I didn’t feel he actually connected with the story.

This was so much grittier and more disturbing than I anticipated. The antisemitism was really upsetting, but the pedophilia was abhorrent. I cringed and recoiled through the entire book. That said, I was completely invested in getting to the end, with some semblance of justice. The book had a hold of me.

If you're drawn to disturbing historical mysteries full of all the stuff modern society likes to think we've left behind (but have we really?), the patriarchical abuses and misogyny, then this book is for you. When I finished, I couldn't help but marvel at how different and yet the same we still are.