"Forty Hours" by Kathrin Lange is a riveting crime thriller that unfolds against the vibrant backdrop of twenty-first century Berlin. The story introduces us to Faris Iskander, a German detective with Egyptian roots, who finds himself thrust into a race against time to prevent a series of religiously motivated attacks that could result in mass casualties.

The plot kicks off with a gripping premise – a man being crucified in Berlin, setting the stage for a high-stakes investigation. Lange expertly crafts a narrative that keeps readers on the edge of their seats as Faris, despite being on enforced leave, must unravel the complexities of a case with far-reaching consequences. The ticking clock adds a layer of urgency, enhancing the suspense and ensuring a fast-paced reading experience.

What sets "Forty Hours" apart is its exploration of themes such as guilt, redemption, identity, and belonging. Faris Iskander, already grappling with personal demons, faces a moral dilemma that adds depth to his character. The story goes beyond the typical crime thriller, delving into the complexities of human nature and the consequences of one's actions.

The cultural tumult of Berlin serves as a compelling backdrop, providing readers with a fascinating glimpse into the realities of life and policing in the German capital. Lange's writing, translated seamlessly into English, captures the essence of the city and its unique atmosphere, enriching the reading experience.

The novel successfully combines elements of a police procedural with a thought-provoking exploration of the human psyche. Faris's personal involvement in the case adds an emotional layer to the narrative, creating a multi-dimensional protagonist that readers can empathize with. As the story unfolds, it skillfully weaves together the threads of the investigation, keeping readers guessing until the very end.

"Forty Hours" is a high-quality crime thriller that caters to fans of the genre, offering a compelling mix of suspense, cultural insight, and character depth. Kathrin Lange's storytelling prowess shines through, making this novel a worthy addition to the realm of police procedurals. It earns a solid four stars for its intelligent plot, well-developed characters, and the captivating exploration of themes that go beyond the conventions of the genre.

The characters are well described and I felt immersed in the story, the writing style is simple and straightforward. The thought that Faris Iskander the main character in the story was being closely watched by the suspect was truly spooky. I am still sat thinking about this book even though I finished it a few days ago.

In a nutshell Faris Iskander, of Egyptian origins gets drawn into a horrifying ‘game’. Faris is part of the Special Unit for Religious Violence (SURV) but is currently on suspension when he witnesses a bombing at a Berlin railway station and he gets a call from the bomber with some voice altering device. He tells Faris a man had been crucified and he, Faris, has 40 hours to find him or thousands will die. Oh, and here’s the video!

It does sound gruesome but it really wasn’t as bad as I expected. The focus was much more on identifying the bomber and finding any bombs he had stashed around the city. Forty hours away was also a very significant time as the Pope was in Berlin and an Ecumenical was to be held at that time in a Berlin stadium holding thousands of people. As Faris was a witness to the train station bombing he was taken to the SURV office and debriefed. He had to leave his phone behind. Well, the bomber did ring back and was so angry that Faris wasn’t available that he blew up some homeless guy.

So the police have no choice but to reinstate Faris. It then becomes a tense cat and mouse game with the bomber taunting Faris and giving him the scantest scraps of clues. It was hopeless! This book was very tautly plotted and it was nail bitingly tense. There were some very damaged people in this story. Faris himself was still getting over a massive bomb blast from 10 months ago that he felt he should been able to prevent in some sort survivor’s guilt. And so the whole scenario with a new bomber was one gigantic trigger for him. His anguish was palpable. There was a wonderful female Anglican priest who helped Faris put some of his pain into perspective. And the bomber’s stooge was a very broken young man who had suffered greatly due his father’s religious zealotry.

The book also illustrated the racial tensions present in Germany and some of the challenges that this presents to police forces. Despite the fast pace of the action, I did feel that we got to know some of the characters quite well. I continue to be impressed by the German authors I have read so far. The characters portrayed are generally not gorgeous or glamorous but are very down to earth and the stories can be quite dark. I really enjoyed this book. Many thanks to Netgalley and Lume Books for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

I loved this book, it's fast paced, its danger, its sadness, it's madness, its love stories- it had it all, AMAZING, couldn't put it down!

This book is a translation from German to English. I know this because I had trouble finding the edition I read. But having found it I find that it's the first instalment. Thank you book Gods for getting me there at the start.

This book is set with the back drop of Berlin. A beautiful city.

This is about extreme religious crimes. A man is being crucified somewhere in Berlin and a suspended detective has 40 hours to find and save him. If not thousands will die in a bombing.
It starts quite slowly but soon begins to speed up. You can actually feel the tension building. The plot was exciting.

I've never read this author before but she is a good writer with the edge on suspense. I would definitely read book two if I get the opportunity.

Enjoy!

Translated from the German, Forty Hours by Kathrin Lange is a dark crime-based thriller set in current day Germany. The protagonist of this police procedural is Faris Iskander an Egyptian born detective on leave, who is sent a video of a man being crucified. Faris is also the victim of a previous religious bombing and is now lead to an underground platform to witness a train explosion. So, the hunt is on for the bomber and what connection is there to the detonation that Faris still has flashbacks. The forty-hour countdown to another catastrophe begins, with the Berlin Church Conference targeted. As the Special Unit for Religious Violence investigates, Faris is called repeatedly by the bomber and more detonations occur as a cat and mouse game ensues. A slow burn of an intelligent thriller, albeit with religious overtones but a four-star rating. With thanks to Lume Books and the author for an uncorrected proof copy for review purposes.

Forty Hours is the first instalment in the Faris Iskander series, set against the backdrop of metropolitan Berlin, Germany. Four years ago, Alexandrian-born Muslim Faris Iskander emigrated to Germany with his family and adopted German citizenship. With his expert knowledge of Islam and wider religion, he became the most successful detective and investigator at SERV, a special unit that investigates religiously motivated violent crimes and a department of the State Office of Criminal Investigations in the capital city. He receives a call to his mobile phone one morning while still on enforced suspension from work and the unknown caller's words - "As-Samu Alaikum, Faris": death is with you in Arabic, puts the fear of God into him as the last time he heard those very words was ten months ago right before being seriously injured in a racially motivated bombing that killed 75 hostages in a bank. He was later suspended from work for a separate incident in which he sought vengeance for the attack which maimed him and many others. He recognises the anonymous caller as the hostage-taker who tells Faris that he has sent him an email containing a file: a movie. When Faris opens it he is instantly shell shocked and his blood runs (ice) cold. The video shows a man being brutally crucified - he is nailed to a cross - and Faris realises that his nightmare is only just beginning. He is then requested by the caller to go immediately to U-Station Bismarckstraße.

When he arrives the caller shows him what is to come if he and his team fail to find the kidnapped and crucified victim with the specified 40 hours - a bomb inside the subway train explodes murdering 27 people and lightly injuring Faris himself. There are more preorganised and coordinated attacks set up across the city in the event that they fail their mission. And so a cat and mouse game ensues amidst a summertime Berlin bustling with both natives and tourists and emitting an exuberant atmosphere. These threats couldn't have happened at a worse time as tens of thousands of unsuspecting people gather in the city for an international congress known as Ecumenical Kirchentag. This is a riveting and compulsive terrorist thriller with high stakes, tonnes of action and never a dull moment throughout, and I could feel my heart thumping for much of the story. It is a thriller with a blistering opening scene and featuring a breathtaking, unpredictable madman chock full of excitement, twists, turns and last-minute reprieves. The hours rapidly turn into seconds, and the realism and ripped from the headlines nature of the described events gives genuine shivers down the spine. Lange's writing style really pulled me under its spell and captivated me, and she managed to keep everything exhilarating right up to the last pages; it wasn't until the end that I figured out who the perpetrator could be. An engrossing, thoroughly entertaining and well-written thriller that gets under your skin. Highly recommended.

Suspenseful and edge of your seat book, Forty Hours is a must-read!

Synopsis: Somewhere in Berlin, a man is being crucified. One detective has 40 hours to find him, or thousands will die… Faris Iskander, an Egyptian-born German national, is a detective on enforced leave when he receives a video of a man being crucified. The first in a series of religiously fuelled attacks, Faris must act quickly to save the man and stop his aggressors. If he fails, thousands of people in Berlin will die in pre-coordinated explosions.

Forty Hours was another book that the description really grabbed me initially but didn’t fully live up to what I thought it would be. Parts I found difficult to read and the religious aspects were interesting but I found they weren’t explained enough to fully grasp the context or implications. I did enjoy the Berlin setting and the character development but overall this wasn’t my favourite read.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Lume Books for an advance copy of Forty Hours, the first novel to feature Detective Farsis Iksander of Berlin Police’s Special Unit for Religious Violence.

Farsis is on suspension when he receives a video of a man being crucified and a phone call telling him he has forty hours to save the man and avert mass casualties in a bombing.

I enjoyed Forty Hours, which is an engrossing thriller with multiple twists and turns. It is not, however, without its faults and isn’t quite as good as it could have been.

The plotting is good and, while slow in the first half, builds up to a suitably thrilling crescendo in the second half and the twists add to the thrills with most of them taking me by surprise. The slowness in the first half is due to the scene setting, and, in my opinion, the use of multiple voices, which gives the novel a choppy feel as the reader tries to fit in the characters and scenes to the narrative with little time between switches of perspective. There is one character who appears throughout the novel and I still have no idea why. I get the idea that she is there to show what a potential bombing victim would lose, but it’s just a distraction from the main event and clutters the novel.

I think that, at times, the author is trying to make the novel something more than a straightforward thriller with her musings on religion and making her protagonist an outsider. Farsis is an immigrant with a Muslim background and all that entails in Germany. He is also a bit unstable after surviving a previous bombing. It doesn’t really work as something more but Farsis is a great protagonist, dogged and pushed beyond his limit.

Forty Hours is a good read that I can recommend.

What an enthralling read, right from the beginning the story captivated my attention and kept me hooked by the exciting plot.

The characters are well described and I felt immersed in the story, the writing style is simple and straightforward. The thought that Faris Iskander the main character in the story was being closely watched by the suspect was truly spooky.

Looking forward to reading more books by this author.

Highly recommended.

I would like to thank NetGalley for this opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.




Rating: 4/5

Forty Hours, by Kathrin Lange, is an action filled police mystery. The first half of the book was fairly slow, probably due to introducing the reader to all the characters and setting up the story. The second half was much more fast paced. Faris Iskander is is a detective in Germany. While on enforced leave he gets video of a man who's been hung on a cross. A bombing on a busy Berlin subway train is the first of the attacks, He must work fast to rescue the victim and stop the assailant. Otherwise, thousands of people will die in pre-coordinated bombings.
The case is especially fraught for Faris. He was put on leave after avenging a racially motivated explosion. Facing his own demons could help him uncover the facts in time to save lives and prevent disaster unless Faris's involvement ruins the operation.

This book got me hooked from the beginning, the plot is very well put together, the characters are believable and the circumstances around the story are as well. People often judge others by their looks and nothing could be more deceiving in this story (and in real life). It was interesting to read about Berlin and its historical places and a change of scenery as most books I've recently read are located in the US. Hopefully, mankind will attain a level that will not allow wars, threats, deaths, because of religion, cultural differences, skin color. Fast-paced and full of action, this is the first book that I read by Katrin Lange and I really enjoyed her writing style and will be looking forward to reading other books by this author.

40 Hours by Kathrin Lange

There is almost a very good book here. Ms. Lange can write and the bones of the story are quite a compelling good read. But… here is what I found disappointing. (1) the story takes place in Berlin but Berlin is not a character and is merely street names and subways stations. A book about Berlin should have Berliners who stand apart from even other Germans. I say this as an American but have spent enough time in Germany and specifically Berlin to know Berliners are a different lot and proud of it. (2) There is a sub-story of religion. The key detective is Muslin, there is a protestant female minister, a token appearance of a Catholic priest lover, a crucifixion and the stoning of woman which turns out important to the story but somehow, I did not feel anyone of this tied well to the story. (3) the story felt to me like the whiteboard used by the police to show suspects, victims and strings connecting them. Ms. Lange knew the characters she wanted in the story and forced connections between them. I know this can be a way to throw one off the motive and the killer but in some cases the characters were just not needed.
In spite of this, the book held my attention and the ending was satisfying. Perhaps the story just needed a better editor and some re-write.

Faris Iskander is a detective who never seems to catch a break. On enforced leave because of an incident that happened, he receives a phone call...and once again luck is not on his side.

This book was amazing! Fast paced, full of action and filled with points of view from many characters throughout. I really enjoyed being able to follow the story through different perspectives.

I really appreciated how there wasnt much deviation from the storyline itself. Pretty much the majority of the book was about the solving of the mystery, and it never got boring.

The twisty turn at the end of the story was great!! I honestly wasn't expecting it at all and I dont think you will either!

Even with a little crazy plot, this is an entertaining story to read. It has great characters and are well written. There are a couple of things I don't like, and the worst is the side story and descriptions that don't bring the story any further. Another problem is a main character who makes several stupid mistakes; shouldn't a main character be a little better than average?

Full of suspense and mystery. Felt like being myself in the story. Loved it and enjoyed every scene and dialogue.

Brilliantly written , I was hooked from the beginning.
A detective with a difficult past just about holding it together but supported by a team of colleagues bar one.
This book has it all a great plot central to this is a religious fanatic, a crucifixion, mental abuse and murder.
Lost love and potential love, tragedy . Friendship , humanity, faith .
Will be looking out for this authors books.