This was my first Karen Robards book and it will not be my last. I really enjoyed this book even though it was about a serial killer in the middle of WW2. The author did an excellent job of portraying the tense atmosphere of the time period and the constant eminent peril of Dr Elin Lund and her team. Elin is known as Dr Murder for solving other cases including another serial. She is brought from Denmark (currently occupied by the Nazis) to Berlin to help solve a case to the consternation of Kurt Schneider who's currently in charge of the investigation. Both Elin and Kurt seem to dislike each other until slowly trust starts to build and their secrets are peeled back which adds even more depth to the story. This book will pull you in and won't let you go until you finish it. Excellent!

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing | MIRA for providing an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

It has been a long time since I’ve read a Karen Robards book - too long. I love historical fiction, and adding in a mystery with the best parts of a thriller, and you have an amazing story. This book is excellent.

The world is at war, and it is September of 1943. There is a serial killer on the loose in Berlin.

Dr. Elin Lund is a psychiatrist and profiler nicknamed Dr. Murder. She is renowned for helping to solve murders. Elin is brought in to help solve the murders of multiple women by a serial murderer. Elin also has secrets she is protecting.

Dr. Lund is sent to Berlin from Copenhagen to work with Homicide Detective Kurt Schneider. Detective Schneider is also keeping secrets of his own. Their tenuous relationship is the heart of this story.

I absolutely loved this book. The history was incredibly well-written and full of suspense. Elin and Kurt are fully realized characters that the reader really gets an opportunity to know. I flew through the pages. This is one of the best books I’ve read this year.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Mira Books for the opportunity to read this phenomenal book! I will be going back to check out this author’s other historical fiction books. This one is out now - pick it up!

4.5 stars! I am a huge Criminal Minds/Bones fan so this book was right up my alley. A whipsmart protagonist working to solve a mystery and race against the clock before the killer strikes again, set against the backdrop of WWII Germany, all while working to protect the secrets of those around her plus her family back home - I loved it! I was immediately drawn into the storyline and the urgency of the request to assist with "some murders in Berlin" (I love when the title is worked into the book!) and found myself rooting for our team almost immediately.

I also enjoyed the brief romance between her and the detective - while I agree with some other reviewers that it didn't seem to fit with the rest of the storyline (i.e., do you really have time/desire for romantic entanglements when you are actively being stalked by a killer??), it really didn't detract from the story. My ONLY gripe with this book is that the secondary characters were not really fleshed out - we were told snippets about her life as it intersected with each of them, but not given enough time on the page to really understanding the struggles or empathize with dangers they faced. I think this could have been fixed with a little more up-front detail as to relationship connections with the secondary characters, and/or use of small flashback scenes to solidify those relationships for the reader.

Otherwise though, really really enjoyed this and will be recommending!

There's quite a bit to like about Robards' latest book set in 1943 Berlin. Elin Lund is on call from Denmark to help solve murders that seem to be the work of a serial killer. Elin is a famous forensic scientist know as Dr. Murder due to her track record of solving crimes. Upon arriving in Berlin, she is put under the charge of Homicide Detective Kurt Schneider. What becomes evident is that the Nazi regime is anxious to solve the case but they must be cautious as everyone is being watched. Elin has a special reason to close the case quickly and return to her young son. Schneider is sort of mysterious and obviously hides his own secrets. Elin and Kurt form an uneasy partnership and enter questionable locations that cover Berlin's illegal underground society while hunting the killer. The story moves at a quick pace and the murder mystery is fairly well done with lots of red herring tangents. Rather than a hard-boiled mystery, this novel is more of a romantic thriller as Elin and Schneider find time away from the case to canoodle. A fine summer read.

This is my first historical fiction mystery and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I'm a big fan of Crime shows(especially Criminal Minds) so I really enjoyed the murder investigation and serial k!ller profiling. Elin, or Doctor Murder, is an incredible character: educated, witty, and intuitive. The small romance storyline was a little weird for me at first but after a few chapters, I really liked them together. And, something I love: a relatively happy ending.

Another hit for Karen Robards! She's such a good mystery writer. This one is a bit of historical fiction as well set during World Ward II.

Description:
September 1943: Berlin is the heart of darkness—and the last place Dr. Elin Lund wishes to be. An expert in psychological profiling, she’s been summoned from Copenhagen to investigate the gruesome murders of eight young women. Even in the midst of unspeakable evil, these killings stand apart. And with her homeland now under Nazi occupation and a young son to protect, Elin can’t refuse such a request.

Homicide Detective Kurt Schneider, head of the criminal police unit, is grudging in his welcome. The orders to find the killer come from the top, and to fail means death. The stakes are too high to risk any mistakes—or to trust a stranger. Yet the pair, trapped in an uneasy partnership, each has expertise the other needs. And Schneider, like Elin, is clearly guarding secrets of his own.

Racing to complete the investigation and return to her son, Elin feels the net tightening. Every sliver of evidence reveals a killer infinitely more dangerous, and more powerful, than anyone suspected. And in drawing closer to the terrifying truth, Elin has unwittingly made herself his new obsession…

My Thoughts:
This was a very different story than a typical World War II novel. When Elin Lund from Copenhagen was called in to assist the Berlin detectives there were obvious trust issues on both sides and they each had very good reasons for distrust. There was danger everywhere, so the atmosphere thoughout the book was fraught with tension. Everyone had to be careful of what they said and who they said it to - even where they they said it because the Nazis were listening in buildings and on phones. There was added difficulty in trying to keep a lid on the fact there was a serial killer loose in Berlin so that the general public stayed uninformed. This was fast-paced, action-packed, and kept me on edge throughout the book. The danger was palpable. I recommended to anyone who enjoys a good mystery/thriller.

Thanks to MIRA through Netgalley for an advance copy.

I should have liked this more than I did. It's right up my alley as a thriller and historical fiction, but it just didn't do it for me. I found it slow, and way too long. I didn't really connect with the characters. It's just didn't work, in my opinion.

I enjoyed this book but wish it was told in both points of view. Loved the suspense level and how Kurt and Elin work hard at finding a serial killer during the Nazi times. I felt for her as she’s afraid to open up to him, how much can she trust him? Really loved the shock value at who the killer was. Thankfully there’s a happy ever after. I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy and I recommend this book.

I was given an advance reading copy (arc) of this book from NetGalley.com in return for a fair review. Professor Elin Lund, also known as ‘Dr. Murder’ because of her successful criminal profiling is summoned from her home in Denmark to investigate a series of murders in 1938 Berlin. A widow who was once married to a Jewish man, she is desperate to protect her young son. Finding herself in the middle of Nazi-control, she isn’t sure who she can trust, but finds herself leaning on Kriminalinspektor Kurt Schneider, the official in charge of the case. Author Karen Robards weaves an entertaining tale of a murder mystery set in the middle of Adolf Hitler’s reign. In order to return home, she has to solve the case, but she is soon convinced that the killer is one of Hitler’s men. Intriguing twists and turns occur throughout the book, making it interesting, as well as entertaining. The main characters are very likeable and you can’t help but root for them. Overall, ‘Some Murders in Berlin’ is worth the read—not only do the murders keep your attention, but the setting also provides an electrifying background.

Complex thriller in 1943 Berlin!

Heartstopping thriller set in Berlin in 1943. Denmark had just surrendered to the Nazis when Professor Elin Lund, a forensic psychiatrist, from Copenhagen is directed by Nazi command to go to Berlin to investigate a serial killer. Blonde women have been found murdered in identical situations.
Elin can’t disobey. She’s hiding a secret, or two. She takes two fellow academics with her as consultants, members of the Danish Resistance, who need to get out of Denmark. Pia is a photographer and Jens is a brilliant mathematician. They are members of the Danish Resistance.
She is to work the stern CID detective, Kriminalinspektor Kurt Schneider.
It turns out Kurt’s a man with his own set of secrets. I really came to appreciate the man Kurt is.
Convinced the killer has some attachment to the police, Elin methodically follow all the evidence to build a picture of their man.
Elin has always hated being in Berlin. Her mother, a prominent psychiatrist, had been killed in a hit and run accident when Elin had been a young girl. (More revelations!) Going back there was hard, leaving her son was harder. The search for the seriously deranged killer becomes more dangerous as the pair infiltrate his lair and upset his regime. Elin receives threatening notes from the killer. The pair are beset on all sides. It turns out the killer seems to be targeting young women of the Lebensborn Society—women who will give birth to pure Aryan babies.
Add to this Kurt had displeased General Reinhard Heydrich, part of Hitler’s the heirachy, He'd been part of the bloody, failed invasion of Russia, Operation Barbarossa. Kurt had returned wounded by shrapnel blasts and with and shell shock. Elin is made very nervous by General Haupt who’d requested her presence.
The developing relationship between these two wounded people is a thing of delight.
A spine tingling thriller that leads into the jackals’ den that was the Berlin under the Third Reich.

A Harlequin Trade ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I found this book to have a slow start and almost gave up. So glad I didn’t! The story had mystery, history, and romance. And of course, the little twist at the end. Elin is a psychiatrist (surprising for the time) with a specialty in serial murders. She’s also superior and demanding, with, as it turns out, good reason. The crime scene processes might be based more on current times as opposed to the period of the story, but to be fair that’s not my area of expertise. Regardless, once I got into it, I found it difficult to walk away. I would (and do) recommend this book.

This is my first Karen Robards book, and I was riveted. It combines mystery, thriller, unexpected romance, and a WWII story into one awesome read. Elin Lund, a Danish psychiatrist and profiler, is coerced into solving a string of serial killings in WWII-era Berlin. Kurt Schneider, head detective, reluctantly welcomes her to his team. The book is full of twists and turns, most of which I didn't see coming. I highly recommend it—this story kept me on the edge of my seat until the end.

Thank you, Mira, and NetGalley Books, for the early read in exchange for a fair review.

Some Murders in Berlin by Karen Robards

I’m “95 percent sure” (pg.122) readers will be swept into this thrilling murder mystery just as I was.
Set in Berlin in 1943, the main characters are: Dr. Elin Lund, a renowned murder investigator from Denmark, and Kurt Schneider, the Chief Nazi Kripo investigator assigned to find the murderer(s) of several women. As Dr. Lund commences work on the case, the Nazis are overtaking her home country. “The German beast was finally bearing its teeth and claws.” She is extremely apprehensive about her son and in-laws because they are Jewish. She wants to solve these murders and get right back home to her son, Niles.
Without giving away any of the story, I can relate that this mystery unravels like peeling away the layers of an onion. Robards takes us into each scene with rich imagery, “Seven hours later, Elin was in the lab in the basement of the Alex, grainy eyed with exhaustion. Except for the brightly lit area right around her table, the rest of the lab was dark and shadowy. A sliver of light showing beneath the closed door made her think that she was not the only one still working, but she’d seen no one in hours and could hear nothing beyond the clink of her instruments as she finished what she was doing and gathered them up.” (Pg.98) “In the near distance, the imposing spire of Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church was silhouetted against the even sky. Closer at hand, the twilight cast its purple cloak over the cobbled street under better conditions, the streetlights at the corners already would have been lit. But instead, blackout curtains were being drawn across windows every as the city prepared for its nightly plunge into darkness.” (Pg.215).
The author masterfully develops the main characters such that we feel their emotions and hear their voices. “As the eerie voice in which he’d said it replayed in her head, it was all she could do not to give in to the dread that seized her and start shivering again.” (Pg.138) “Scheider’s brows snapped together. Brooding gave way to scowling. ‘You should have asked me first… without my permission…You were brought in to help solve the case. The operative word there is help. His eyes narrowed at her, and his jaw had hardened.’” (Pg. 102)
Double lives abound in this story of innocents and murderers. We see the best and the worst of human beings. The twists and turns of this novel will surprise readers. I highly recommend this riveting story and rate it at 5.

This was my first Karen Robards book and I have to say I truly love her writing! This is a great WWII mystery novel that both keeps you wondering what will happen next, but also tells of what was happening behind the scenes in Berlin.

I highly recommend this novel for anyone that wants to get into historical fiction!

This was a wonderfully written book. I have not read this author previously and will definitely take a look at other books. I enjoyed the characters and getting to know them.The suspense was good, and I liked how everything unfolded. This is a historical thriller, and the author did a good job of providing the reader with Berlin history along the way.

I thoroughly enjoyed this gripping tale. The romance was obvious, but the rest of the plot was delightfully fraught with twists and turns. I enjoyed this glimpse into the World War time period and I really loved the murder mystery. I could not put this book down!

A different sort of WWII novel. Elin, a Danish psychiatrist and expert on murder has been summoned to Berlin and ordered to find the villain who has killed eight women- and counting. She's working with Kurt, who resents her at first and then, well there's romance which frankly I could have done without. She's also got her colleagues Pia Andersen and Jens Miller, who as part of the Danish resistance, committed sabotage because she hopes things will be cooler in Berlin for them than Copenhagen (seriously- not sure why anyone would have thought that). Then there's her story, her fear for her son because her husband was Jewish. While some of this seems implausible, it's also a tense read with good atmospherics (I know). Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Fans of Robards will enjoy this one.

Someone is murdering beautiful young women in 1943 Berlin

Elin Lund, a psychiatrist with training in forensics and an interest in murder, lives in Copenhagen with her young son Niles, Her husband Lars was killed soon after Germany invaded Denmark, so when she is summoned to Berlin to assist the authorities in solving a spate of murders she reluctantly leaves her son behind with her mother-in-law and heads to the last city she (or anyone with any sense) would want to be at this point in the war. She brings with her two colleagues from the University of Copenhagen, Pia Andersen and Jens Miller; she claims that their help is essential to her work but in fact is doing so to get Jens, who works with the Danish resistance and during his last mission was injured while narrowly avoiding capture, out of Copenhagen. Elin’s combination of training and skills make her well-suited to guiding the authorities to those who kill, and have earned her the moniker, “Dr. Murder”. When she and her team arrive in Berlin, the gruesome nature of the killings they are tasked with helping to solve are the least of their problems…the Kripo detective who is leading the case, Kurt Schneider, did not ask for her help (and doesn’t seem to want it), Schneider’s superiors make it quite clear that there is to be no publicity about the case as it could negatively impact morale across the country, and she should assume that the killer is from the lower rungs of society (no Aryan, they reason, could possibly act this barbarically). At the same time, Elin fears that the German authorities back in Copenhagen will figure out Jens’ involvement with the Resistance and the three of them will be in deep trouble, especially given the arrests just after their departure of two prominent Jewish members of the university for sabotage, one of whom is her father-in-law. Up until now, the Germans have not subjected the Danish Jews to the round-ups and incarcerations that those in other conquered territories have suffered, but the war is not going well and the Germans are cracking down. With every reason to want to return to Denmark and keep her half-Jewish son safe, Elin must work with Schneider and other members of the Kripo, unable to trust any of them and under scrutiny from those in power at the top, and hamstrung by the regime’s focus on maintaining the facade of a well-run and morally impeccable society. Over time an unwelcome attraction grows between Elin and Schneider, and as the killer targets Elin she will need to probe tragedies from her own past for possible clues as to who is responsible for the string of brutal murders. Time is running out….can they identify and stop the killer before he claims another victim, possibly Elin herself?
Some Murders in Berlin is a solid thriller set in the waning months of WWII, with an intelligent and resourceful female protagonist and an equally skilled counterpart in Schneider, a man who has made some powerful enemies within the hierarchy of his country’s government and who is battling his own demons. Neither one trusts the other (and who can blame them…in that time and in that city, who would trust anyone else, especially a stranger?), yet they must develop some sort of partnership if they are to identify the murderer and stop the killing spree. Each has secrets that they keep from not only one another but the world, and know that having the wrong person learn those secrets could end their careers and even their lives. All in all this is a great read, although there were a few places when terms used and subjects raised seemed more 2024 than 1943 (pretty sure that the word “rape” would not have bandied about between men and a woman in that era, for example), but the story was well paced and the characters were distinct and relatable. Fans of Ashley Weaver, Susan Elia MacNeal and Jacqueline Winspear would likely enjoy this tale, and I would recommend it as well to anyone else who enjoys romantic suspense set in this period of history. Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/MIRA for allowing me early access to this historical thriller.

I did it! I finished! It took me almost two months, but I finished. Unfortunately, this book was really slow for me. Plot wise, it’s solid, it’s engaging, the characters aren’t idiots. I won’t lie, I didn’t think of the main bad guy as who it was till the reveal- which isn’t always something that happens to me. I’m not sure if the fact that it took me so long because it’s a historical thriller set in WW2 and a lot of people in that time were AWFUL, but props to the author to keep me guessing. My biggest struggle I think, was the pacing. It starts out with a dead body and I liked the crime solving skills the FMC uses to find evidence at each murder scene. I also appreciated the fact that the people that died stayed dead… or maybe that’s a fantasy trope that just drives me nuts and this is clearly not a fantasy. Anywho. I finished it, and didn’t DNF so two stars for that. It’s decent, but I don’t see myself reading more historical thrillers anytime soon. Oh, one last comment, there was another review complaining about sex in the book, and I gotta say, it’s fade to black and tastefully done- I was expecting something crazy with what the other person complained about.

Shoutout to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Elin is a specialist, nicknamed “Dr Murder”, she is called in from Denmark to Germany,to help solve a series of murders of young women. Kurt, a german policeman is in charge of the investigation and neither one can fully trust the other in the waning years of Nazi Germany. Elin tries to maintain a delicate balance among all the powers in play as she and Kurt become closer and strive to solve the mystery in the heart of the secret dance clubs. Karen Robards delivers a great story as usual, drawing the reader into the devastating world of war