Hamburg Noir

by Jan Karsten (Editor)

Overview

The historic northern port city of Hamburg now joins Berlin as the Akashic Noir Series continues its foray across the German landscape

From the introduction by Jan Karsten:

The many facets of Hamburg’s ambivalent identity, forged over centuries, are on full display in the stories collected in this anthology. Here, we have assembled some of the city’s finest and best-known writers, luminaries in the world of crime fiction and German literature, featuring multiple recipients of the German Crime Fiction Award and the Hubert Fichte Prize, among others. Relative newcomers rub shoulders with established authors, some of whose work now spans decades . . .

The fourteen stories in this collection all look to where good (crime) fiction has always looked: toward lesser-known settings and living situations, repeatedly drawing our attention to lives overlooked, the lost souls and the powerless who have slipped through the cracks of commerce. The perspectives on the metropolis are as diverse as the writers’ backgrounds, resulting in a varied depiction of Hamburg as a colorful hodgepodge of people inhabiting a lively city of millions. Between water and spirits, between power and oblivion, between dream and reality. 

BRAND-NEW STORIES BY: Nora Luttmer, Till Raether, Matthias Wittekindt, Ingvar Ambjørnsen, Bela B Felsenheimer, Jasmin Ramadan, Frank Göhre, Timo Blunck, Katrin Seddig, Tina Uebel, Zoë Beck, Brigitte Helbling, Kai Hensel, and Robert Brack. Translated by Noah Harley, Geoffrey C. Howes, and Paul David Young.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781636141152
Publisher:	Akashic Books, Ltd.
Publication date:	08/05/2025
Series:	Akashic Noir Series
Pages:	296
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

JAN KARSTEN is the publisher and editor of CulturBooks, an award-winning independent publishing house based in Germany that specializes in contemporary international literature and crime fiction and has twice won the Deutsche Krimipreis award. Karsten also translates literature from English, including works by Keith Gessen, Carl Nixon, and Kathryn Scanlan. He lives in Hamburg.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Introduction

PART I: WATER & SCHNAPPS

“Ant Street” by Nora Luttmer, (Rothenburgsort)

“I’ll Be Gone in a Minute” by Till Raether (Altenwerder)

“Way Down Below” by Ingvar Ambjørnsen (Hoheluft)

“Under Blackthorn” Matthias Wittekindt (Billwerder)

PART II: DREAM & REALITY

“Angel Fricassee” by Timo Blunck (Niendorf)

“Who’ll Look After Our Women If We Don’t?” by Bela B Felsenheimer (St. Pauli)

“Crazy Angels” by Jasmin Ramadan (Eimsbüttel)

“The Outer Facade” by Frank Göhre (Winterhude)

“The Assignment” by Katrin Seddig (Altona)

“Reeperbahn 29 Revisited” by Tina Uebel, (Reeperbahn)

PART III: POWER & OBLIVION

“Abreast Schwarztonnensand” by Zoë Beck (Blankenese)

“Aikido Diaries” by Brigitte Helbling (Horn)

“The Girl at the Dom” by Kai Hensel (Heiligengeistfeld)

“Expropriation” by Robert Brack (Ottensen)

Editorial Reviews

"This is a solid . . . collection of dark tales written around the German city of Hamburg . . . You may not have heard of most or even any of these writers but most assuredly you will remember their tales of Hamburg long after you close the covers of this engrossing assortment of their talents."— Deadly Pleasures

"Even the supposedly ‘most beautiful city in the world’ has its dark sides. This well-edited anthology impressively shows them in literary form. Powerful stories: Hamburg from below."— Hamburger Abendblatt

"Hamburg, the metropolis on the River Elbe, has always been an important trading city, a gateway to the world, a center for musicals, and a tourist magnet. But there are other sides to Hamburg [and] the editor of this volume shows this in his fourteen short stories by renowned authors . . . These are short crime stories, but they are also character and milieu studies, masterfully and pointedly told, despite and precisely because of their brevity, and they cast a spotlight on Hamburg’s dark side. Absolutely worth reading, even if you don’t live on the Alster, and therefore recommended to all readers."— EKZ

"Fourteen new stories emphasize the contrast between Hamburg as a home for the affluent and ‘a place for the stranded’ . . . Hamburg certainly deserves a ‘noir’ to call its own, and Karsten is clearly happy to provide one."— Kirkus Reviews

"[A] vivid and memorable portrait of Hamburg’s seedy past and present."— Publishers Weekly

"Hold the eggnog: What you need is a draft of 'edgy fatalism and sexy recklessness,' of flashy crime, gallows humor, and 'desperate deals with a variety of devils,' served up every year since 2004 by the editors of Akashic Books' brilliant noir anthologies. From Brooklyn to Boston, from Phoenix to pre- and post-Katrina New Orleans, each volume in the series reveals a city's distinctive inner darkness."— O, The Oprah Magazine

"Over the past few years, some of the best collections of short stories have been the Noir anthologies published by Akashic . . . To me, these collections are total gems, a quality read from some of today's best authors."— Oline Cogdill Sun-Sentinel

"Diversity is the hallmark of the series. While ostensibly dark tales of crime and despair, the genius of the series lies in its ability to use such an uncharacteristic point of entry to convey the identity and essence of a place with remarkably poignant accuracy."— PopMatters

From the Publisher