Product Description

Gerhard Self, the dour private detective, returns in this riveting crime novel about terrorism, governmental cover-up, and the treacherous waters where they mix.

Leo Salger, the daughter of a powerful Bonn bureaucrat, is missing, and Self has been hired to find her. His investigation initially leads him to a psych ward at a local hospital, where he is made to believe that Leo fell from a window and died. Self soon discovers, however, that Leo is alive and well and that she was involved in a terrorist incident the government is feverishly trying to keep under wraps. The result is a wildly entertaining, superbly nuanced thriller that follows one detective’s desire to uncover the truth, wherever it may lead.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #227052 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-12
• Released on: 2007-06-12
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In German author Schlink's meandering second crime novel available in English to feature aging PI Gerhard Self (after Self'sPunishment), a man named Salger hires Self to locate his missing daughter, Leonore. With little help from the father, Self tracks the missing girl to an insane asylum outside Heidelberg, where he's informed by a doctor that Leo has recently died there in an accident. Self quickly learns, among other details, that the death report is untrue, Leo's father is not really her father and that the case is connected to a top-secret government investigation. Self can be completely off the wall one minute—he lies outrageously to anyone who might have information and breaks-and-enters without compunction—and the next he's as comfortable as an old shoe, having a glass of Riesling and hanging out with his cat, Turbo. The eccentric detective is the big draw, with the less than action-packed investigation coming in a distant second. (June)
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Review
“A sophisticated, chilling and superbly written thriller.”
—Michael Dibdin, author of Back to Bologna

“A delightfully unique protagonist, a marvelous complex mystery.”
—Mike Lawson, bestselling author of The Second Perimeter

“Immensely pleasurable and deeply intriguing. Schlink has crafted a novel rich with the comforts of insight and humanity.”
—Dan Fesperman, author of The Prisoner of Guantánamo
 
“From this highly gifted writer another delightfully winding crime story, told with bleak and bitter irony.”
—Håkan Nesser, author of The Return

About the Author
Bernhard Schlink was born in Germany. He is the author of the internationally bestselling novel The Reader, as well as four prize-winning crime novels-The Gordian Knot, Self's Fraud, Self's Punishment, and Self Slaughter--that are currently being translated into English. He lives in Bonn and Berlin.

Customer Reviews

Self's Deception
A little known German writer who made a hit worldwide with The Reader, his Self novels do not dissapoint A great new character, very smart plots with human psychology and socio-political commentary all blended nicely.

A Morally Bankrupt Self
Gerhard Self, former Nazi public prosector is now a 69 year old private detective. Haunted by his past, he spends his days waiting for a case to come his way while fending off emotional ties to his much younger girlfriend Brigitte. One day he receives a phone call from a German offical asking him to find his daughter who has not reregistered at the university.

This sets in motion a long, convoluted plot revolving around a student terrorist attack on an American military facility in Germany. By part two of the book I was no longer interestsed in the plot. I found Self a self-absorbed (pardon the pun) character who is morally bankrupt (not surprising for a former Nazi) who sees nothing wrong with helping a terrorist escape Germany.The funny thing is the writer doesn't seem to find anything wrong with it either.

His being enamored of the young, beautiful Leo, the daughter being sought, I found equally unpleasant given the poort treatment his loving girlfriend Brigitte receives from him.

In a good mystery the reader must engage with the main character on some level. I found myself to be unable to do this Self. Schlink's stunning novel, "The Reader" set me up for something greater than what was delivered here.

Self's Deception
Crime novels - be they mystery, murder, suspense, thriller - require an interesting protagonist to work effectively. Indeed, sometimes the crime itself may take a backseat to the adventures and doings of the main character. Bernhard Schlink's new novel, Self's Deception, follow this route. It is Gerhard Self, the protagonist, who makes the story, and not the crime and certainly not the mystery. Self is introspective, ironic, slightly bitter but aware of himself in a world that is puzzling, historic, cultural, intellectual, mysterious, vapid, violent. Unfortunately this reliance on character is so strong in Self's Deception that the plot, that rambling, confused mess, suffers too much. Gerhard Self is an interesting enough fellow that he did not need a fairly average thriller plot on which to hang his cap, but because Schlink has seen fit to throw him in the midst of terrorism, murder and intrigue, that is what he has to do. Character, finally, takes a backstage to plot.

Gerhard Self was once a Nazi prosecutor, and is now a private investigator in his late sixties. He is calm under pressure, inward and introspective about almost everything, and seems to take more joy in the intellectual pursuits of his love than he does in his work. When he is hired to find Leo Salgar, the disappeared daughter of a powerful Bonn bureaucrat, Self instead wanders about having conversations, thinking about chess, drinking coffee and wondering about the world. But this is endearing, a wholly effective quality for a private eye to possess. The nature of his trade naturally requires lengthy periods of waiting and watching, sitting in cars drinking coffee for hours on end. Introspection is a natural 'curse' in this case, and Self indulges at every stage. Perhaps because he is interested in classical music, literature and the history of Germany post World War II, Self comes across as intelligent and charismatic. Indeed, following his thoughts often proves more entertaining than following the plot.

In true mystery style, Leo Salgar's story was not completely revealed by her father. On top of that, is the man who hired Self really her father at all? Self is paid staggering sums in quick succession to remain on the case, in envelopes that are unmarked. He is given a number that is always connected to an answering machine, and proves to be in the abandoned, rented shop of someone who seems to have no relation to Salgar at all. We are given false clues, true clues, red herrings, dead ends, bullets in lounges, philosophising, land rent advice, chess, a wedding, the list goes on. How much of all this applies to the plot? Not a great deal. How much applies to the main character? More, but still, there is a lot of superfluous information thrown at the reader. For instance one character, an ageing ladies man, has decided to marry. On the day of his wedding, he is stabbed by the brother of his soon to be wife. Later in hospital, he reveals to Self that he finds the idea of chasing women less desirable than before. Interesting, sure. Relevant? Not at all. This little vignette has no bearing whatsoever on the main plot, and comes towards the end of the novel, when the plot should be ratcheting up in intensity and suspense. It is little missteps like this which harm the novel more than help.

There are sixty-eight chapters spread over around three hundred and fifty pages. That comes to around five pages per chapter, which isn't much at all. Each chapter begins and ends a sequence of events, the result of which is that while reading, we are rushed along, racing through chapter after chapter of event, information, event, exposition, event. It is an exhaustive, unrewarding way to frame a story, because the reader is never allowed a chance to relax and enjoy the character. And, because Self is more important than the plot, we notice particularly just how much racing around to nowhere at all we are doing. On the rare occasion that the novel does slow down to allow us time with Self, it is completely enjoyable. If only Schlink had seen fit to expand, extend, enhance. Slow down, even. There are many little quirks of characters that pop up, only to disappear once the five pages of their chapter is done. Nagelsbach, the Chief Inspector friend of Self, is a hobbiest model maker, building miniature replicas of the great sculptures, and then architectural achievements, of European geniuses. '...his mission in life, to which he was going to devote his retirement, was to build a model of the Vatican. ...What could I tell him? That art was more a matter of creation than an attempt to portray reality? That in life the goal wasn't as important as the journey?' Self uses the quirks as a way to think on matters weighty. We can only wish that the author allowed himself the luxury of slowing down to further explore these surface thoughts, to create depth in what is an interesting character.

The climax of the novel comes about rather strangely. The short chapters and rapid fire pace are so confusing that by the end, it is unclear what is the problem, why there is a problem, and who is responsible. Self jumps in and out of jail, characters who were not a part of the plot suddenly loom large, characters who were a large part of the plot disappear. There doesn't seem to be a thread on which to hang the plot. The dénouement, similarly, is confusing and too short.

Schlink has wrapped a great character around a thriller without a plot. He should have either focused more upon Gerhard Self and less upon murders, terrorism and suspense, or made Self less interesting, and increased the thriller aspect. As it stands, we are left with a novel that does two things moderately well, but nothing excellently. Confusions, awkward jumping, horrible pacing, poor plotting and a wonderful character are the hallmarks of this game.