89, NG29, E81, / WG60, D8, C1, Frz0, B2, NA0

Stuart Turton, The Devil and the Dark Water

Ansich liegen mir historische Romane nicht besonders, aber hier ist völlig faszinierend, wie Turton den klassischen Whodunnit auf den Kopf stellt und vor allem wie am Schluß nach der Auflösung ein ganz ungewohnter Ausgang aufgezeigt wird. Wenigstens wird die ungeschriebene, vor allem von Agatha Christie bekannte Regel, dass der unwahrscheinlichste Charakter sich als Täter erweist, hier beibehalten. Und ich muss leider zugeben, bis zum Schluss fiel es mir sehr schwer nicht an übernatürliche Phänomene und gar den Teufel zu glauben, so überzeugend war alles beschrieben...

This was a merchant vessel flying United East India Company colours, which meant profit went before every other consideration. It wouldn't matter if the ship made it back to Amsterdam if the cargo had spoilt, or if the trade at the Cape had been handled badly. The Saardam could drift into port full of bodies and the Gentlemen 17 would still call it a success so long as the spices weren't damp.
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The rich mistakenly believed their wealth was a servant, delivering them whatever they wanted.
They were wrong.
Wealth was their master and it was the only voice they heeded. Friendships were sacrificed at its behest, principles trampled to protect it. No matter how much they had, it was never enough. They went mad chasing more until they sat lonely atop their hoard, despised and afraid.
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He'd travelled into the afterlife, hollering for help and hearing nothing back. He knew there was no God waiting. No devil. No saints or sinners. There were only people and the stories they told themselves. He'd seen it himself. People gave the heavens a voice, so they had something to ask for: a better harvest, a healthy child or a milder winter. God was hope, and mankind needed hope the way it needed warmth, food and ale.
But with hope came disappointment.
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Power should be a burden, not a shield. It should be used for everybody's betterment, not merely for the person who wielded it.
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The nobility was like that. They gorged on scandal, but quickly forgot what they'd eaten. After all, there was always more coming.
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It was the devil brought want, he preached. Tempting people with fripperies: sugar, tobacco, alcohol; things that distracted them, that disappeared to quickly, that always needed replacing, things to go mad chasing.
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(Stuart Turton, The Devil and the Dark Water, 2024)