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Snipers
The Carnival Sniper—as famous as Jack The Ripper. And like Jack The Ripper, never caught, his identity lost to history. In 1913, the Carnival Sniper terrorized Vienna, murdering the famous and not-so-famous alike. Police Detective Johann Runge never caught the Sniper and his failure defined the rest of his life. In 2005, bestselling crime writer Sofie Branstadter receives permission to use modern forensic investigative techniques on the Sniper’s victims. She believes she can figure out the identity of the Sniper, but she needs the help of Runge’s great-grandson, classical pianist Anton Runge. Together the two of them plunge into a world of scientific evidence and fantastic clues, all leading to one unbelievable conclusion. “The SF thriller is alive and well, and today’s leading practitioner is Kristine Kathryn Rusch.” —Analog “A little gem of a thriller. Startling and wonderfully effective.” —The Daily Mail (London) on Hitler’s Angel “Part police procedural, part political thriller, this clever tale features real life characters interacting with fictional ones.” —New York Times bestselling author Jeffrey Deaver on G-Men
346 pages, Paperback
First published March 18, 2013
7 people are currently reading
78 people want to read
About the author
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
1,365 books720 followersKristine Kathryn Rusch is an award-winning mystery, romance, science fiction, and fantasy writer. She has written many novels under various names, including Kristine Grayson for romance, and Kris Nelscott for mystery. Her novels have made the bestseller lists –even in London– and have been published in 14 countries and 13 different languages.
Her awards range from the Ellery Queen Readers Choice Award to the John W. Campbell Award. In the past year, she has been nominated for the Hugo, the Shamus, and the Anthony Award. She is the only person in the history of the science fiction field to have won a Hugo award for editing and a Hugo award for fiction.
In addition, she's written a number of nonfiction articles over the years, with her latest being the book "A Freelancer's Survival Guide".
She has also published as:
Sandy Schofield (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kristine Grayson - romances
Kathryn Wesley (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kris Nelscott - mysteries
Kris Rusch - historical fiction
Kris DeLake - romances
Her awards range from the Ellery Queen Readers Choice Award to the John W. Campbell Award. In the past year, she has been nominated for the Hugo, the Shamus, and the Anthony Award. She is the only person in the history of the science fiction field to have won a Hugo award for editing and a Hugo award for fiction.
In addition, she's written a number of nonfiction articles over the years, with her latest being the book "A Freelancer's Survival Guide".
She has also published as:
Sandy Schofield (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kristine Grayson - romances
Kathryn Wesley (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kris Nelscott - mysteries
Kris Rusch - historical fiction
Kris DeLake - romances
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
September 16, 2013
I stumbled on an excerpt from Snipers and was so intrigued I just had to read the whole book. I wasn't disappointed.
The story is cleverly woven together from four viewpoints - two from the present, two from the past - and combines elements of science fiction with a murder mystery.
I don't want to spoil the plot so all I will say is that Rusch weaves those viewpoints together seamlessly. Add some great character development to the mix and you have a story that will keep you turning the pages long after you should have turned the lights off.
Highly recommended.
The story is cleverly woven together from four viewpoints - two from the present, two from the past - and combines elements of science fiction with a murder mystery.
I don't want to spoil the plot so all I will say is that Rusch weaves those viewpoints together seamlessly. Add some great character development to the mix and you have a story that will keep you turning the pages long after you should have turned the lights off.
Highly recommended.
January 9, 2014
THis was a very interesting take on Time Travel and what things would change if someone took it into their mind to kill certain men in our history who were responsible for so many deaths. Intriguing!
April 24, 2019
I'm a sucker for anything time travel related. The interplay of changes made juxtaposed with the ethical dilemma of the consequences of those changes keeps me intrigued. It can all relate back to the human question that keeps many up at night:
"What if?"
Rusch somehow manages to combine a mystery, thriller, sci-fi time travel novel, told from multiple perspectives--that works really well. The way it's presented is almost seamless.
I say almost because, without giving away too much, part of the mystery is figuring out who one of the characters is and their purpose. It might take you a few rounds before you understand, as a reader, you're not supposed to know.
You can tell Rusch is a master of her craft as she handles the obvious issues with time travel paradoxes with ease. On top of which, it was really fun to go along with her thought experiments about what a future would look like with some of those paradoxes in place.
The more you dive into this book, the more you want every strand to be explained.
Unlike other mystery/thriller books where you finish it after the climax just to finish it, in this one you're glued to the very last word.
"What if?"
Rusch somehow manages to combine a mystery, thriller, sci-fi time travel novel, told from multiple perspectives--that works really well. The way it's presented is almost seamless.
I say almost because, without giving away too much, part of the mystery is figuring out who one of the characters is and their purpose. It might take you a few rounds before you understand, as a reader, you're not supposed to know.
You can tell Rusch is a master of her craft as she handles the obvious issues with time travel paradoxes with ease. On top of which, it was really fun to go along with her thought experiments about what a future would look like with some of those paradoxes in place.
The more you dive into this book, the more you want every strand to be explained.
Unlike other mystery/thriller books where you finish it after the climax just to finish it, in this one you're glued to the very last word.
October 22, 2020
I always like a good mystery, though I don't read them as much as I used to, but when a mystery has scifi elements, (future tech, time travel, and a good detective story to boot, well, then in that case, I have a hard time resisting. Great story here, and one I believe any scifi mystery fan would enjoy.
July 5, 2016
A stand-alone murder mystery/time travel story.
Snipers is a murder mystery which also has time travel elements but the SF part never dominates. The past is Vienna 1913 and the present is Vienna 2005.
1913 has three storylines: one is an assassin who goes around killing certain people to prevent them from doing stuff, one is William who has a nuke with him and he trails his victim Stavros Papadopoulos, and the third is Johann Runge, a detective ahead of his time with regards to police procedure. The modern story follows Sofie Branstadter, a historian and a famous non-fiction writer who wants to write her next book about the Carnival sniper, and Anton Runge, Johann’s great-grandchild.
The assassin is determined to kill some people in order to change the future (his past). However, Johann Runge is hot on his trail. Runge even writes a non-fiction book about the assassin whom everyone calls the Carnival sniper. His book is hugely successful but because Runge didn’t catch the killer, he’s widely thought of now as an unsuccessful cop even though he solved a lot of other cases. Sofie’s parents were killed by an unknown murderer when she was just a little girl, so she’s fascinated by the Carnival sniper who is also world’s first serial killer. She wants to get new evidence and starts by exhuming the killer’s first victim, Viktor Adler. The Austrian courts agreed to Sofie’s request to dig up Adler’s body and see what can be learned from him. To her surprise her team finds strange kinds of bullets which seem to be top secret in 2005.
I’m a fan of Rusch’s SF and mystery stories so it’s not surprising that I enjoyed this book a lot. Sofie has her own problems and reasons for writing about the Carnival sniper and Runge is a meticulous detective. The assassin and William also have they own motivations so they aren’t just faceless lunatics. The story has quite a few surprises so I don’t want to tell too much about it.
Snipers is a murder mystery which also has time travel elements but the SF part never dominates. The past is Vienna 1913 and the present is Vienna 2005.
1913 has three storylines: one is an assassin who goes around killing certain people to prevent them from doing stuff, one is William who has a nuke with him and he trails his victim Stavros Papadopoulos, and the third is Johann Runge, a detective ahead of his time with regards to police procedure. The modern story follows Sofie Branstadter, a historian and a famous non-fiction writer who wants to write her next book about the Carnival sniper, and Anton Runge, Johann’s great-grandchild.
The assassin is determined to kill some people in order to change the future (his past). However, Johann Runge is hot on his trail. Runge even writes a non-fiction book about the assassin whom everyone calls the Carnival sniper. His book is hugely successful but because Runge didn’t catch the killer, he’s widely thought of now as an unsuccessful cop even though he solved a lot of other cases. Sofie’s parents were killed by an unknown murderer when she was just a little girl, so she’s fascinated by the Carnival sniper who is also world’s first serial killer. She wants to get new evidence and starts by exhuming the killer’s first victim, Viktor Adler. The Austrian courts agreed to Sofie’s request to dig up Adler’s body and see what can be learned from him. To her surprise her team finds strange kinds of bullets which seem to be top secret in 2005.
I’m a fan of Rusch’s SF and mystery stories so it’s not surprising that I enjoyed this book a lot. Sofie has her own problems and reasons for writing about the Carnival sniper and Runge is a meticulous detective. The assassin and William also have they own motivations so they aren’t just faceless lunatics. The story has quite a few surprises so I don’t want to tell too much about it.
July 10, 2015
I've been on a time travel bender lately, and this novel tries to keep itself very grounded in real science and real police procedurals, with just one big twist of time travel. The story alternates between different points of view in the past (mostly 1913 Vienna with the unnamed Sniper targeting key 20th century figures, before they were famous, in an attempt to avoid the 1st and 2nd World Wars), and the present (2005 - close enough) where a history researcher is digging up the old cases from 1913. In the middle is the original detective trying to modernise police investigations (for example not contaminating crime scenes) and getting vilified for letting the Sniper slip from his grasp, never to be caught again.
The time travel is handled very well, using the branching idea - if you go back in time changes you make will mean you cannot return to your own version of the present. Instead you will return to a new version of the present which follows your actions in the past.
The characters are given a lot of depth, but still seem a little soft/indistinct. I found the plot to be very gripping and the conclusion quite satisfying for tying up loose ends and yet leaving open the possibility of a sequel.
The time travel is handled very well, using the branching idea - if you go back in time changes you make will mean you cannot return to your own version of the present. Instead you will return to a new version of the present which follows your actions in the past.
The characters are given a lot of depth, but still seem a little soft/indistinct. I found the plot to be very gripping and the conclusion quite satisfying for tying up loose ends and yet leaving open the possibility of a sequel.
August 25, 2013
Snipers is a well crafted mystery with strong SF overtones. All of the action takes place in Vienna, but in two timelines--one in 1913 and the other in 2005.
The main protagonist, Sofie Branstadter, is a successful investigative journalist. She is writing a book about a series of famous unsolved murders that occurred in Vienna in 1913. As her investigations lead her deeper into the mystery, she finds oddity piled on oddity.
I cannot say more without giving away important details. Suffice to say, no one knew it at the time, but there was something special about Vienna in 1913.
Kristine Kathryn Rusch has written a tight story filled with action in one timeline and good detective work in the other. Good book, recommended.
The main protagonist, Sofie Branstadter, is a successful investigative journalist. She is writing a book about a series of famous unsolved murders that occurred in Vienna in 1913. As her investigations lead her deeper into the mystery, she finds oddity piled on oddity.
I cannot say more without giving away important details. Suffice to say, no one knew it at the time, but there was something special about Vienna in 1913.
Kristine Kathryn Rusch has written a tight story filled with action in one timeline and good detective work in the other. Good book, recommended.
July 31, 2016
On the one hand: terrifically clever, although I was unable to answer a particular question using a quick Internet search, and so it might be even *more* terrifically clever, but I haven't been able to nail that down.
On the other hand: I didn't line up with the characters emotionally, not even close. I couldn't put it down, but the characters didn't move me as people. I'm gonna call that as an "it's me, not you."
Fun, quick read--I don't want to spoil anything, but if you're into 20th Century history, give it a shot.
On the other hand: I didn't line up with the characters emotionally, not even close. I couldn't put it down, but the characters didn't move me as people. I'm gonna call that as an "it's me, not you."
Fun, quick read--I don't want to spoil anything, but if you're into 20th Century history, give it a shot.
October 29, 2014
I picked this book off the library Readers' Choice selections and was expecting a story about an historian researching a cold case--one of the first recorded mass murders by a sniper in the 1900s. I liked that the author also flipped back in time to that event and gave us the character of the assassin and the police detective who was trying to catch him, a detective a head of his time in handling crime scenes and evidence. What I wasn't expecting was that the assassin came from the future. This was a time travel science fiction novel too! What a great twist. If you could come back through time to eliminate some of the worst people with the most horrific impact on human life, who would you target? Rusch had excellent, sympathetic characters, a nice touch of romance, and a twisty plot that kept me guessing. Good book.
February 26, 2016
Travelling back in time to kill someone and change history has been described quite a few times already, but this take - a historian trying to understand killings that happened long ago - felt fresh. I enjoyed discovering the differences and watching the characters put the pieces together (the readers have an advantage of another point of view).
The ending tied up the main arc but left quite a few loose threads around - a mild disappointment, but if they're just waiting for a follow-up story, then I'm in.
There's just one thing I don't get:
The ending tied up the main arc but left quite a few loose threads around - a mild disappointment, but if they're just waiting for a follow-up story, then I'm in.
There's just one thing I don't get:
October 7, 2013
This had some great elements--time travel, world history what-ifs, and a nice look at the everyday life of a non-fiction historical writer. I really enjoy Ms. Rusch's Retrieval Artist series, and I was super excited to learn of this book from a friend. But I think I was expecting a bit more from it. It is a great story told with a very light, casual style. I most enjoyed the story lines following the Assassin and Runge. A quick, fun read, dealing with one of the most discussed what-ifs of alternate history, with a few wrinkles added to make it unique.
August 6, 2014
At first I was not into this book, then I just go hooked and couldn't put it down. There are two time lines and they are very well interwoven. What it you went back in time to prevent WWII? Good read.
I read this book since it was selected as one of the Salt Lake County Readers Choice Nominees. I always try to read all the nominations just to expose myself to new authors and new books that I wouldn't typically read.
http://www.slcolibrary.org/rc/rcwr/pd...
I read this book since it was selected as one of the Salt Lake County Readers Choice Nominees. I always try to read all the nominations just to expose myself to new authors and new books that I wouldn't typically read.
http://www.slcolibrary.org/rc/rcwr/pd...
December 11, 2014
Fun, page-turning read. I don't know why the book was picked up by a small imprint. Perhaps the implications of the subject matter were too controversial for mainstream presses? In any case, I enjoyed this book. I would have liked more mood, depth, and character development, as Rusch did well in the Retrieval Artist books. I felt strangely disengaged from the characters despite the page turning. They never quite came alive.
March 10, 2016
Exquisite and subtle blend of history, mystery, romance, and science fiction. Great characters and an intricately woven plot. Loved the period details and setting. Hoping for a sequel.
My only quibble is the consistent misspelling of "Wien" (the German name for Vienna) as "Wein" (the German word for wine) in reference to the Wien Nord (Vienna North) train station every few pages. Not a problem if you don't speak German.
My only quibble is the consistent misspelling of "Wien" (the German name for Vienna) as "Wein" (the German word for wine) in reference to the Wien Nord (Vienna North) train station every few pages. Not a problem if you don't speak German.
April 15, 2017
I'm a fan of Rusch's Retrieval Artist series, and was happy to check out this unrelated novel. I prefer the series: its overall concept interests me more. It took me a while to get involved in this story, but eventually, the mystery and the characters pulled me in enough that I kept going. If she writes related books, as is possible, I would probably give them a try.
July 23, 2014
It took me about 60 pages to get into this and I'm glad I stuck with it - intriguing plot and good character development. I really liked it and one of the main things I'd ask the author to do in her next books, is to be sure the spelling and phrasing are correct. Sometimes it was a bit distracting, but overall, a really great book!
January 31, 2015
I'm a Kristine Kathryn Rusch fan. I love her writing style. I'm also a mystery fan. Combine the two, and it's a win/win. Her writing is more muted than the urban fantasies I usually read, and that made for a nice contrast. She's more cerebral, more subtle. This was a nice change of pace. The ending didn't quite do it for me, but other than that, I enjoyed the book.
April 17, 2015
This book is one of the most brilliant pieces of time travel fiction I have ever read. One of the leading arguments for the impossibility of time travel is that we haven't had any visits from the future. But what if we did? In "Snipers" a modern day historian is investigating a century-old crime but all her clues point to the future...
September 1, 2013
Not my normal genre at all, but a very captivating and compelling read nonetheless. The romantic subplot felt a bit contrived at moments, but generally very solid. I read it in three days flat, and what more can you ask from a book, really?
April 28, 2015
I ended up enjoying this more than I thought I would. At some point, I warmed to the characters and that's when the story took off. I wish I could say when this was, but I truly can't. I also found the end to be rather fitting.
November 7, 2013
Great premise for a time travel book. Interesting mystery. Good characters.
August 10, 2016
I enjoyed the book and the what if aspects of it. Ah, if it were only possible to assassinate Hitler before he was anybody.
January 11, 2016
This book was listed on my libraries reader choice. I wasn't disappointed. Kathryn is a great writer bring the past and present into one single story. I can't wait to read more that she has written
August 11, 2014
Time travel.
August 12, 2014
This was a quick, fun, intriguing read. It switches from several viewpoints but it does it seamlessly. This book explored time travel in a unique way that was interesting to think about.
October 14, 2015
un like most time travel struys this one starts in the new time line
June 3, 2016
Wow! Very good.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews