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Babylon Berlin
- Gereon Rath, Book 1
- Narrated by: Mark Meadows
- Length: 18 hrs and 2 mins
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Publisher's Summary
Berlin, 1929. Detective Inspector Rath was a successful career officer in the Cologne Homicide Division before a shooting incident in which he inadvertently killed a man. He has been transferred to the vice squad in Berlin, a job he detests even though he finds a new friend in his boss, Chief Inspector Wolter.
There is seething unrest in the city, and the Commissioner of Police has ordered the vice squad to ruthlessly enforce the ban on May Day demonstrations. The result is catastrophic, with many dead and injured, and a state of emergency is declared in the Communist strongholds of the city.
When a car is hauled out of Berlin's Landwehr Canal with a mutilated corpse inside, the Commissioner decides to use this mystery to divert the attention of press and public from the casualties of the demonstrations. The biggest problem is that the corpse cannot be identified.
Volker Kutscher was born in 1962 in Lindlar, West Germany. He is the author of the enormously successful Gereon Rath crime series which, in addition to compelling narrative, is notable for its scrupulous accuracy about Germany in the years between its beginning in 1927 and the approach to the Second World War.
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What listeners say about Babylon Berlin
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Jillian Fischer
- 04-06-18
Tough book to listen to.
I adored Babylon Berlin on Netflix & was sad to get to the end of the final episode; so the story is definitely there. I just couldn't get in to the Audible book. Maybe the story is just too complicated for me to listen to; I certainly think the material itself is BRILLIANT but I'd find my mind wandering to things I need to do, people I need to talk to, etc., & then realize I was out of the book & totally lost. This happened over & over again. Ultimately couldn't get through it but because I love the story & characters so much, I'll likely try it again someday.
11 people found this helpful
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- Brian English
- 01-28-18
It's no Bernie Gunther Mystery ...
As a fan of Kerr's Bernie Gunther books, I was excited to read Kutscher series set in the waning days of the Weimar Republic. But what a disappointment.
Sadly, I think a lot of the problems stem from the fact that this book is translated. But I found the language clunky and and the story difficult to follow. There are a lot of characters, few with any real personality.
I fought my way through BABYLON BERLIN, and then even gave SILENT DEATH a shot because I so wanted to give the series a chance. But about four hours in to SILENT DEATH, I realized what the problem in both of these books really is: both books are almost utterly devoid of atmosphere. There's a smattering of history in BABYLON, but in DEATH there's very little to let you know that you are reading a book set in 1930s Germany; instead, it's just a boring police procedural.
I write this review mere days away from the Netflix premier of the BABYLON BERLIN TV series, which has been widely acclaimed. I have a feeling that this may be one of those rare cases when the TV show is actually better than the book.
#UnlikelyHero #Gritty #Dark #WeimarGermany #tagsgiving #sweepstakes
22 people found this helpful
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- Leonard
- 04-13-18
Hope More Titles Come to Audible
When I read the previous reviews for this novel, I was hesitant to download the book. I am a big Bernie Gunther fan, so that is a high bar for inter-war Berlin mysteries to clear.
However, I am happy I did choose to listen. The plot was good, although a bit slow at times. I also enjoyed Mark Meadows' narration. Overall, the novel probably could be a bit shorter, however, I chalk that up to character development.
I have already loaded the second Gereon Rath novel to my wish list. It will have to wait, there is a new Bernie novel to enjoy
3 people found this helpful
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- Allison Hegerfeld
- 01-09-19
Great story and narration!
I watched the TV series and it was excellent. But I love the books! It’s hard to find good old fashioned detective stories; the Gereon Rath series fits the bill! I highly recommend these books by Volker Kutscher.
2 people found this helpful
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- John F Doherty
- 08-27-18
if you are a fan of German detective novels?...
Loved the narrator! Loved the setting and story! on par with Phillip Kerr Bernie Gunther series!
2 people found this helpful
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- August Dolan-henderson
- 07-21-18
Great story
loved it. Berlin, Crooked cops, Decadence, proto-Nazis. Noir. Schwarze. Negro. Liked the characters, plot, excema!
2 people found this helpful
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- James Reed McGhee II
- 04-19-18
One case in which a film is better than the book
Having watched the serialized version of this book on Netflix, I will say this is one case in which the film is better than the book. Although the book is good, the film changes elements of the story, adding tension and more layers to the backstory and character of the protagonist, Gareon Rath, As well as the stenographer with dreams of being a detective, Charlotte Ritter. I don’t want to give any spoilers for the film version on Netflix but I highly recommend it. The Countess Sorokina plays a more major role in the film, and are some fantastic musical numbers and dance numbers in the film as well. Additionally, the Weimar era political situation and the liberalized mores of the time, encompassing drug use, homosexuality, and other elements, are woven into the fabric of the film masterfully. However the book was good on its own, and for viewers of the film, it provides an interesting counterpoint. The performance of the narrator is very strong. I have purchased the second book in the series by the same author and I’m looking forward to listening to it as well.
4 people found this helpful
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- Fred Mudgett
- 05-12-19
As Usual the Book is Better than the TV Series
However they were both equally great! I loved the history portion of the book, and the relationship aspect of the TV series. The history made more sense in the book.
1 person found this helpful
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- Camilla Hoiby
- 05-02-18
Suspense, historie, well told.
Really love Volker Kutchers books. Alway a great story. Places described historiecally accurate. Humorous and intelligent. Warmly recommend.
1 person found this helpful
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- mark
- 07-27-21
great period mystery Weimer Germany
Grerion is a antihero detective new to Berlin police in 1930. communists nazis and criminals, decadent nightclubs.
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- Caroline
- 11-14-18
quite good
Quite good, was looking for something like the Bernie Gunther books. it's not in the same league, but it's ok
3 people found this helpful
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- TonySh
- 01-20-17
Detailed and well constructed narrative
An interesting first novel with an engaging if flawed central character. The translation from the German original version is good and the reader's voice was clear and easy to listen to.
Looking forward to the next audiobooks in the series.
3 people found this helpful
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- Babar555
- 04-22-21
Berlin based
Berlin based story so why has narrator opted for his chosen accents , makes the storyline very hard to get into and doesn't help create the atmoshpere of the late 1920s Berlin. Better sticking to the DVDs at least you get to hear it in German, making the characters a lot more believable.
2 people found this helpful
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- J. Wexler
- 01-15-20
Excellent book
Much more streamlined than the TV production. Well written with good detail and character development.
The reader is clear and well modulated, but NEEDS NEW ACCENTS, or to use no accent at all. Why germans would sound like cockneys, eludes me. Better no accent than one utterly alien. Why not sound Italian or Chinese?
Definitely a good read.
2 people found this helpful
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- Frankieboy
- 09-01-18
excellent crime caper
love this book brilliant story line great story teller. will be listening again to this story. simply brilliant hooked on the story
2 people found this helpful
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- John Franks
- 06-17-18
Confusing delivery of a good story.
I bought this book having seen the exceptionally good German TV production of the same name. Their attention to detail and historical accuracy was way up there with the very best albeit the story differed from the book slightly. My confusion really is with the ability of the books author to capture the environment of 1920's Berlin, or not as it happens. The story is a good one, most of the characters are well crafted and the period is fascinating particularly from a German perspective however its written in an American style modern procedural detective style complete with forensic departments and paramedics none of which existed at that time, indeed the entire narrative was littered with this type of misnomer.
All in all lazy research spoilt what should have been a particularly good book.
2 people found this helpful
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- Harrow
- 01-03-18
Atmospheric, yet predictable, police procedural
I found this book to be very enjoyable but not genuinely gripping.
The atmosphere of 1920's Berlin comes through strongly which is just as well because the plot and characters are not particularly memorable.
The characters are the usual police procedural line up: lonely male with troubled past; senior officer showing him how to bend the rules; politically minded police chiefs; independent and very gorgeous young woman ; pseudo-sophisticated crime lord . . . I felt it was only the historical context which lifted the book. The Nazis, the communists and the ravers prowling the city were the most enjoyable parts of the book.
Narration is excellent and I will probably go on to explore the series.
1 person found this helpful
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- Amanda
- 06-16-22
totally binge worthy
loved it, thoroughly entertaining & I like the narrator. Will listen to the rest of the series immediately!
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- Er Jwee Chiek 余瑞傑
- 09-18-21
Top notched entertainment. Breathtaking.
Mark Meadows was flawless and amazing in his audio performance to this brilliant hard-boiled German crime fiction by Kutscher. Set in the gangster era of the 1920s in Berlin, the story fascinated me with German police tackling elements of right wing nazis, communists reds, Stalin loyalists jostling for power & influence and their hands on the wealth of Russian aristocrats who have fled mother Russia.
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- michael v keogh
- 08-11-21
long winded
too many pointless location addresses given, no point to the location unless you're interested in 1929 Berlin