The Crooked Maid

Item: The Crooked Maid
Author: WhichBook

Dan Vyleta

Vienna 1948 - a place where small actions can lead to tragic results and silence may seem the best policy. This novel is a wonderful evocation of the desperation felt by many at this time, including Austrians re-writing their recent pasts. A great read which also made me wonder how I might act under similar circumstances.

Extract

Wolfgang smiled sourly, took a pinch of drug. 'Do you remember the priest at the church? Father Ludwig? God what a swine he was. Every time some girl got herself pregnant, out of wedlock, I mean, he'd lay into her until she sobbed and was ready to throw herself off a bridge. He'd come here afterwards and brag about it to Father. ... Well, guess what? Father Ludwig was sent to a camp and died a martyr ... Father wrote a letter of complaint ... it sat on his desk until the end of the war.'

Parallels