In the opening chapter of this novel, Fabrizio Collini walks into a Berlin hotel posing as a journalist, kills the man he had arranged to meet, and then waits for the police to turn up and arrest him. He admits to the killing but refuses to reveal anything about his motive. His defence is assigned to a young and inexperienced lawyer Caspar Leinen. When it transpires that he knew the victim, and was romantically involved with his grand-daughter, Leinen initially takes steps to get taken off the case but he perseveres eventually uncovering the reason behind the killing and, in the process, revealing uncomfortable truths about the legal system in post-war West Germany.I had guessed early on that the motive for the killing probably lay in the era of the Third Reich, so there were few surprises there. The really interesting thing was to discover how a prominent lawyer with a bad record during the Nazi era was later given a role at the heart of the post-war legal establishment, from where he may have been able to turn a statute of limitations into something more like a general amnesty for all those associated with killings under the Third Reich. It was also interesting to get some idea of how the German legal system works, with the defence lawyer seemingly performing roles that in England would be shared between a solicitor and barrister.The story is told quite sparingly, coming in at under 200 pages. That said, it is more than just an extended transcript of a court case. One of the additional elements that I liked was the baker with a shop near the court who Leinen meets regularly. He provides an answer to a question that often springs to mind when encountering legal fiction or drama: how can a lawyer defend someone who is guilty? The answer is that they have no choice, it is part of the job, just as the baker has to be satisfied with merely retailing the pre-baked products of the chain for which he works as opposed to actually baking. Whatever profession we enter, we may not be able to practise it as we would really like but instead have to do what is asked of us. Inevitably, in a novel that also concerns the Nazi era, this does lead on to questions about when it is no longer permissible simply to follow orders? While reading the Devils Disciples I also read other books as the masterpiece is long!! This book is quite the opposite in terms of length but is superb too. Starts out as seemingly a no win case of blatant murder and develops nicely but that is as far as I will go so as not to ruin the plot. Written by a lawyer turned author -- Grandson of one of the Nuremberg defendants Baldur von Schirach who got 20 years. Beautifully written and thankfully the English translation isbrilliant and so it runs smoothly. Highly recommend it.
What do You think about De Zaak Collini (2011)?
Gripping. Read it in one sitting, it's not a long novel but it's a big book!
—Anjhum
Superb little book. Gripping from the start. Unpredictable.
—T2Kazd
I haven't enjoyed a thriller so much for a long time
—socool
A brillant page-turner, was impossible to put down.
—mrumley7
