Novels
Bergdorf co-owner Mirko Beetschen has written three thrilling novels.
His first novel, the psychological thriller «Schattenbruder» (Bilgerverlag), was published in 2014. For his second novel, the Gothic novel «Bel Veder» (Zytglogge, 2018), he received the Literature Prize of the Canton of Bern in 2019. In 2020 he published a first series of art cards from his photo project «Urban Wanderings».
His new novel, the thriller «Das Haus der Architektin» was published in March 2023 (Zytglogge).
Visit Mirko Beetschens - author page:
THRILLER
Das Haus der Architektin
Island madness
Hidden away on an island in Lake Neuchâtel, inaccessible and abandoned for decades, lies the brutalist estate «Les Espoirs», breeding ground for countless legends. Here lived the meanwhile mostly forgotten architect Marie-Yolande Rabaut, who didn’t allow any reports on her house whatsoever. When Michael T. Ungermann is asked to visit and write about this modernist extravaganza as the first journalist ever, he can hardly believe his luck.
On a cold winter morning, he has a boat drop him off so he can explore the island estate all by himself, accompanied only by his two dogs. His initial enthusiasm for the architectural curiosities, however, soon turns into bafflement. What are all those rooms and labyrinthine corridors for? And why are the dogs acting so strangely? The longer he lingers on the island, the more uneasy he feels. When he injures himself and finds that all connections to the mainland are cut, he has no choice but to spend the night in the house alone with the dogs. Alone?
ZYTGLOGGE VERLAG
Hardback with dust jacket, 13 x 21 cm, 443 sides
Picture credits cover: Edin T | www.editdesign.de
ISBN 978-3-7296-5124-1
Release date: March 13 2023
CHF 32.-
GOTHIC NOVEL
Bel Veder
The author cleverly arranges the motifs and stylistic elements of a classic Gothic novel into an atmospherically dense, gripping thriller that is most certainly no bedtime story.
Autumn 1946. The ancient owner of an abandoned grand hotel in the Bernese Alps disappears without a trace and is declared dead. His niece Eleanor arrives with her twin sister Violet from Baltimore to claim the inheritance and meets the members of her European family.
Until the opening of the will the small group settles within the empty rooms of the remote hotel palace and dreams of revived grandeur. Eleanor, however, feels increasingly threatened by the strange environment. The mountains as well as the abandoned halls and corridors of the hotel unsettle her. Is the old building really as empty as it seems. When a terrible accident happens and an unexpected snowstorm cuts the hotel off, the situation escalates.
Literary prize of Bern's Office of Culture 2019
Recommended by «New Books in German»
Hardcover with dust jacket, German, 13 x 21 cm, 443 pages, Cover photograph: Schweizerische Nationalbibliothek, Eidgenössisches Archiv für Denkmalpflege (EAD): Archiv Photoglob-Wehrli ISBN: 978-3-7296-0997-6 | ZYTGLOGGE PUBLISHER
CHF 32.-
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THRILLER
Schatten-
bruder
Mirko Beetschen’s debut novel is a psychological puzzle about identity and appearances, a multi-layered thriller with a surprising outcome.
Samuel Bach (37) seems to have everything he could wish for: He’s a successful journalist and architecture critic, lives in a wealthy Swiss city and enjoys his single life, culture and a small circle of friends. When he flirts with a stranger one night, however, his life takes, his life takes a wrong turn.
Raymond does his best to maintain contact – much to Samuel’s chagrin. The seemingly random encounters and efforts of his devotee become increasingly irritating and more and more threatening. The shy stranger gradually evolves into a merciless stalker, and Samuel has no other choice than to turn the tables. That’s when he makes a shocking discovery.
Hardcover, German, 324 PAGES | ISBN 978-3-03762-046-5
BILGER VERLAG
