The New York Times bestselling author of The Hangman's Daughter returns with the first volume in a brand-new mystery series which introduces a gravedigger and young inspector who must stop a serial killer in fin de siecle Vienna--the period during which modern criminology was born.

Vienna, 1893. A gravedigger at the city's famous Central Cemetery, Augustin Rothmayer is an unorthodox yet highly educated oddball who finds solace amongst the dead as well as in the writing the pages of the first almanac of his profession. But his fragile peace is abruptly disturbed when young inspector Leopold von Herzfeldt, an ambitious young transfer from Graz, arrives in need of help from someone expert in death. No one knows the subject better than Augustin Rothmeyer.

A superstitious killer is on the loose. His victims include several maids, each brutally staked. Recognizing the killer is using an ancient ritual for keeping the undead buried, the gravedigger joins the inspector on a journey that will take them deep into the underworld of their glamorous cosmopolitan city. In their search for a depraved monster, they receive unexpected help from telephone operator Julia Wolf, who impresses them with her unusual insight even as she fights her own personal demons.

Oliver Pötzsch's inventive historical crime series delivers the thrills and historical detail modern international mystery fans crave: a grippingly plotted mystery, a rich and painstakingly researched setting, a fascinating look into the beginnings of modern criminology, and an unlikely and unforgettable trio of characters.