Uno a uno, a lo largo de varios años, la mujer y dos de los tres hijos de un prominente hombre de negocios de Hamburgo, Maximilian Holler, han sido asesinados. A pesar de la intachable reputación de Holler, la investigación saca a la luz una serie de oscuras operaciones inmobiliarias, probablemente conectadas con el pasado nazi del padre de Holler.
Josef Stachelmann, profesor de Historia en la Universidad de Hamburgo y especialista en el periodo del nacional-socialismo, es muy popular entre sus alumnos y tiene un futuro prometedor en el mundo académico. Sólo tiene un problema: no consigue sacar adelante su tesis. Está completamente estancado y los papeles se acumulan encima de su mesa de trabajo en lo que él denomina su “montaña de la vergüenza”. Entonces, un antiguo amigo, ahora inspector de policía, le convence para que le ayude a investigar la posible trama nazi del caso Holler, investigación que le llevará hasta las siniestras Totenkopfverbände de las SS.
A partir de ese momento los acontecimientos se precipitan y Stachelmann pasa a ser el objetivo de un asesino implacable que no cejará en su empeño hasta verle muerto.

Scandinavian crime novels have a certain feel to them when read translated into English. A Paragon of Virtue by Christian von Ditfurth was translated from the German, but it has that same linguistic feeling. In it, Josef Stachelmann, a non-tenured history professor, is not doing so well. His doctoral dissertation excited many and led to his teaching position at the university in Hamburg, but he's been unable to write anything further, instead spending his time doing more and more research, until the books and photocopies form what he calls his "mountain of shame". He's contacted by an old friend, a detective working a particularly difficult case; over a long period, the wife and two children of a wealthy businessman have been murdered. The police are examining the past of this philanthropic businessman, trying to find someone who might want him to suffer.

The plot is well-crafted, with roots in Germany's uncomfortable past. Stachelmann, and his old friend Ossi, are well rounded and interesting characters, even if they aren't very cheerful. This is the first of a series of crime novels featuring the history professor and I'm unhappy to report that only this first book is available in an English translation. ( )

For some reason, I have not been able to get into this story. It may just be the fact of my "mood" reading kicking in. I will try again later in the future. ( )

Wow, I really had a difficult time staying interested in this book. Perhaps something was lost in the translation, but the writing seemed extremely awkward to me and detracted from the overall plot of the mystery - to the point that I could hardly make it through to the end. This one wasn't for me. ( )

I started the book three times, just couldn't get into it for some reason. I'm sure von Ditfurth is a great author, but this book didn't do it for me. Sorry. ( )