Fiction

Split: A Novel

Split: A Novel

  • Downloads：9252
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2023-12-03 07:21:58
  • Update Date：2025-09-15
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Alida Bremer
  • ISBN：B0BRXMYGHL
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Alayne Emmett ，

I found this book very political and boring。 It took awhile to get going and by then I just wanted to finish it。 Not a great start to a new month。

Michelle Newmark ，

Very hard to follow with all the diversions and so many characters。

Shereadbookblog ，

1936 Split， Croatia， Yugoslavia is teeming with individuals of various ethnicities and political proclivities。 Having come off the Great War and seemingly heading toward another， there are Croats， Serbs， Italians， Mulims， Jews， refugees， locals who smuggle them， Fascist supporters of Mussolini， Communists， Nazis， a German film crew making Nazi propaganda。 Josip Broz， known as Tito， is preparing from abroad for his eventual ascension as leader of the country。 During one hot week， a murder is comm 1936 Split， Croatia， Yugoslavia is teeming with individuals of various ethnicities and political proclivities。 Having come off the Great War and seemingly heading toward another， there are Croats， Serbs， Italians， Mulims， Jews， refugees， locals who smuggle them， Fascist supporters of Mussolini， Communists， Nazis， a German film crew making Nazi propaganda。 Josip Broz， known as Tito， is preparing from abroad for his eventual ascension as leader of the country。 During one hot week， a murder is committed and it is up to Superintendent Mario Bulat to sort through all the possible suspects to find the guilty party。 As he searches， the reader is introduced to various residents of Split as well as their political leanings。This translated historical fiction/mystery is not a typical read。 The former Yugoslavia was a mingling of various southern Slavic peoples and that mixture is realistically portrayed。 The mystery takes a back seat to all the political machinations going on at that time。 There are a lot of historical facts noted and those unfamiliar with them may find themselves Googling for more information。There are a lot of characters and they are all listed and described in a preface to the chapters。 I thought I might lose track of who was who， but there was enough repetition of main players that I caught on to who was who quickly。 The writing is beautifully descriptive and detailed， portraying the charm and allure of the city， as well as its people and its cuisine。 This book is not for everyone， but I really enjoyed it。 Thanks to #netgalley and #amazoncrossing @amazonpublishing for the ARC 。。。more

Charlene Keller ，

I was intrigued by the title， cover and general synopsis of this book。 At the time my daughter was on a trip to Split， Croatia， so it piqued my interest。 Well， this is a very well written account of a murder mystery， depicted in detail in a lovely seaside country at a time in history where there was a lot of unrest ，etc。 The murder mystery takes a back seat for most of the book。 If you want more detail about the story itself you may refer to other reviews on here。 But in general I’m not a fan of I was intrigued by the title， cover and general synopsis of this book。 At the time my daughter was on a trip to Split， Croatia， so it piqued my interest。 Well， this is a very well written account of a murder mystery， depicted in detail in a lovely seaside country at a time in history where there was a lot of unrest ，etc。 The murder mystery takes a back seat for most of the book。 If you want more detail about the story itself you may refer to other reviews on here。 But in general I’m not a fan of historical fiction and despite that I would recommend this book if the story intrigues you。 I would agree with other reviews that there are a lot of characters to keep track of。 Thankyou to author Alida Bremer， Netgalley and Amazon Crossing publishers for tte opportunity to read this book ahead of tte publishing date。 Charlene @lastnownext 📚🌸🤗 。。。more

Chris Surikow ，

Thank you net galley for giving me this opportunity to read this book。The story takes in what was then known as Yugosalavia just before wwII。There is a murder and there are several suspects who could have done it。Along with the murder there is also a fisherwoman who has disappeared。 Whether or not if she is just missing or has been murdered we don't know。The Germans are in Split filming a movie。I found that there was too many characters to keep the flow of the story， otherwise I did enjoy it。The Thank you net galley for giving me this opportunity to read this book。The story takes in what was then known as Yugosalavia just before wwII。There is a murder and there are several suspects who could have done it。Along with the murder there is also a fisherwoman who has disappeared。 Whether or not if she is just missing or has been murdered we don't know。The Germans are in Split filming a movie。I found that there was too many characters to keep the flow of the story， otherwise I did enjoy it。These are my own opinions of the story。 。。。more

Joseph Whipple ，

Very intriguing and original perspective on how to write a suspenseful story。 You'll enjoy it as much as I did。 Very intriguing and original perspective on how to write a suspenseful story。 You'll enjoy it as much as I did。 。。。more

booksta_lana ，

This was a very unusual read for me。 I was not interested in the mystery plot line; however， the historical and cultural commentary was one of the most unique and interesting ones I've seen in the historical fiction genre。I loved the settings and descriptions of food and just the everyday lives of the Split residents。Overall， if you want a good setting and to learn about the history of Split this book would work for you。 Reading it during summer was the best decision。 This was a very unusual read for me。 I was not interested in the mystery plot line; however， the historical and cultural commentary was one of the most unique and interesting ones I've seen in the historical fiction genre。I loved the settings and descriptions of food and just the everyday lives of the Split residents。Overall， if you want a good setting and to learn about the history of Split this book would work for you。 Reading it during summer was the best decision。 。。。more

Ali Tappe ，

3 ⭐️Split is a historical murder mystery set in Croatia during the start of the WWII era。 We follow multiple character and an investigation into a murder。 There was so much happening （and so many characters） throughout the novel that it was a little hard to follow or perhaps because this was a translation of the original work。 What I liked about this book is the setting， many books that I read are set in either the UK or the US。 I do believe this is my first Croatia set book！ This will be a grea 3 ⭐️Split is a historical murder mystery set in Croatia during the start of the WWII era。 We follow multiple character and an investigation into a murder。 There was so much happening （and so many characters） throughout the novel that it was a little hard to follow or perhaps because this was a translation of the original work。 What I liked about this book is the setting， many books that I read are set in either the UK or the US。 I do believe this is my first Croatia set book！ This will be a great read for anyone interested in mysteries set in WWII era。 Thank you NetGalley for a ARC in exchange for an honest review！ 。。。more

Leanne ，

The perfect book to take you on a espionage journey through time。 With action packed mystery and romance。

Amy ，

Special mention to the character list and map at the beginning 🙌I loved the detailed descriptions of food that set the scenes， very evocative imagery。 The entwined complex politics of Europe in the 1930s also featured heavily。 The prose flowed really well and was a pleasant read。

Monika Caparelli-Hippert ，

Mich hat hier das Cover gecatched， und der Klappentext klang gut – musste ich lesen。 Und jetzt mein persönlicher Knaller: stellte sich doch raus， dass „Split“ die englische Übersetzung eines deutschen Romans ist。 Das habe ich jetzt echt clever gemacht， *lol*。 Ich habe dann die deutsche Ausgabe gegoogelt; unter dem Titel „Träume und Kulissen“ ist das Buch bei Jung und Jung vor 2 Jahren erschienen （ 1。 Edition / 16。 Juli 2021）。 Wobei: der Verlag sagt mir nichts， und sowohl Cover als auch Titel sin Mich hat hier das Cover gecatched， und der Klappentext klang gut – musste ich lesen。 Und jetzt mein persönlicher Knaller: stellte sich doch raus， dass „Split“ die englische Übersetzung eines deutschen Romans ist。 Das habe ich jetzt echt clever gemacht， *lol*。 Ich habe dann die deutsche Ausgabe gegoogelt; unter dem Titel „Träume und Kulissen“ ist das Buch bei Jung und Jung vor 2 Jahren erschienen （ 1。 Edition / 16。 Juli 2021）。 Wobei: der Verlag sagt mir nichts， und sowohl Cover als auch Titel sind mir nie aufgefallen。 Von daher hat man bei der internationalen Fassung ein paar Dinge besser gemacht， und ich hoffe， das Buch kriegt im neuen Design auch mehr Aufmerksamkeit。 die hat dieses Buch nämlich definitiv verdient。Also， nun aber kurz zum Inhalt auf Deutsch: wir sind im Jahre 1936 in Split， dalmatische， sprich kroatische Hafenstadt im damaligen Königreich Jugoslawien。 Die Stadt ist bevölkert von Italienern， Kroaten， Serben， Juden， arm und reich， alt und jung， und man hat das Gefühl， in einer buntgemischten mediterranen Mini-Metropole zu sein。 Der zweite Weltkrieg lässt schon langsam seine Schatten auf Europa fallen， und in Split tummeln sich in diesem heißen Sommer diverse deutsche Filmcrews， von denen die eine Hälfte der Mitglieder der neuen nationalsozialistischen Partei angehören und die andere Hälfte froh ist， dem Deutschen Reich zumindest für ein paar Wochen den Rücken kehren zu können…。in Split treffen Faschisten diverser Nationalitäten auf Schmuggler， und Spione gibt es überall。 Und inmitten all dessen passiert ein Mord。 Und zwar schon ganz am Anfang – gehörte das Opfer zu den lokalen Freimaurern？ Die habe ich in meiner Aufzählung gerade vergessen， die mischen ja auch noch mit， ganz top-secret。 Ein paar Tage später gibt’s eine weitere Leiche， die im Hafen aufgefunden wird – die Polizei hat also alle Hände voll zu tun。 Mario Bulat， Hauptermittler， hat mehr als genug Verdächtige， und kann niemandem vertrauen。Mein Leseeindruck: die Autorin hat es hier für mich wunderbar geschafft， die Stimmung und Atmosphäre einzufangen。 Die letzten noch halbwegs heilen Vorkriegsjahre in einer jugoslawischen traditionsreichen Hafenstadt， ein Melting-pot der Nationen， ein Vielvölkergewimmel und mittendrin die Mordermittlungen。 Ein absolut gelungenes Gesellschafts- und Zeitportrait。 Das hat mich gefesselt， das war gut， das war atmosphärisch dicht。Was ich nicht so toll fand， und wo mich die Autorin dann auch ein wenig verloren hat， waren die -zig Protagonisten， von denen keiner in meinen Augen ein Hauptdarsteller war。 Wir hatten echt unglaublich viele Leute， unglaublich viele kleine Sub-plots， aber irgendwie gab es keinen Held， keine Heldin， mit der man durchgängig hätte mitfiebern können。 Die Protas waren gefühlt alle gleichwertig。 Finde ich für eine Doku okay， aber für einen Roman fehlt mir da was。 Was durchgängig für mich rüberkam war die Liebenserklärung an die Stadt。 Split muss toll sein。 Ein weiterer Ort für meine Reise-Bucketliste 😊。Geschrieben ist der Roman sehr gefällig und flüssig， wobei ich ja nur die Übersetzung beurteilen kann。 Ha， und hier ist ein mittelgroßer Brüller passiert; ich habe mir leider die Stelle nicht markiert， aber ich bin beim Lesen echt drüber gestolpert: irgendwann geht’s darum， dass irgendwelche Leute keine Kirschen essen sollten。 Im deutschen war das 100%ig die Redewendung， dass mit jemand nicht gut Kirschen essen ist （mit den Deutschen zum Beispiel， hahaha）， und dann ist im englischen tatsächlich „cherry eating“ draus geworden。 Also Augen auf beim Übersetzen， eine blumige Redewendung aus der einen in die andere Sprache zu übertragen， klappt nicht immer…。！ „It‘s best not tot angle with someone“ wäre mein Vorschlag hier gewesen…。 Ich komme mal zu einem Fazit， das Buch hat mir mit einigen Abzügen gut gefallen， und ich könnte mir vorstellen， dass das eine coole Verfilmung geben könnte。 Traumhafte historische und sommerliche Kulisse， Spannende Zeiten， Kapitalverbrechen – das ist vielversprechend！Herzlichen Dank an Netgalley für das Rezensionsexemplar！ 。。。more

Mary ，

Split is a historical murder mystery set in Croatia when Europe was on the cusp of WWll。 There was a lot of political unrest throughout the novel， German Communists， movie makers， and more that made it hard for me to follow the plot and keep from being confused about who the characters were。 Still， I liked trying to keep up with Mario Bulat's investigation of the murder。 Thanks to author Alida Bremer， Amazon Crossings， and NetGalley。 I received a complimentary copy of this ebook。 The opinions ex Split is a historical murder mystery set in Croatia when Europe was on the cusp of WWll。 There was a lot of political unrest throughout the novel， German Communists， movie makers， and more that made it hard for me to follow the plot and keep from being confused about who the characters were。 Still， I liked trying to keep up with Mario Bulat's investigation of the murder。 Thanks to author Alida Bremer， Amazon Crossings， and NetGalley。 I received a complimentary copy of this ebook。 The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own。 。。。more

Thomas ，

This book is set in 1936 Split， Croatia， then part of Yugoslavia。 Croatia is now an independent country。This book is a work of fiction， but some of the events and people are based on real people and events。 The city of Split is a hotbed of spies， Jewish refugees escaping antisemitism in Germany， and Italian fascists who want to make Split part of Italy。 Into to this mix a body is found and police Superintendent Mario Bulat must find out who killed the dead man。 He does put together who the proba This book is set in 1936 Split， Croatia， then part of Yugoslavia。 Croatia is now an independent country。This book is a work of fiction， but some of the events and people are based on real people and events。 The city of Split is a hotbed of spies， Jewish refugees escaping antisemitism in Germany， and Italian fascists who want to make Split part of Italy。 Into to this mix a body is found and police Superintendent Mario Bulat must find out who killed the dead man。 He does put together who the probable killer is， but is unable to arrest the killer。The author gives enough clues so the reader knows who the killer is about 2/3rds the way in。 I enjoyed this book for the descriptions of the characters， the food， the plants， and the scenery。 The translation is excellent。 I rate it 4 starsThanks to Amazon Crossing for sending me this eARC through NetGalley。 #Split #NetGalley 。。。more

Shanna ，

Split is a complex interesting novel with a good setting。 The imagery takes you away。 However， it is a very slow read。 The characters could also use some more development。

Shannon AnneShirley_and_me ，

The town set in Croatia， is on the edge because WWII is on their doorsteps。 Set on the Adriatic sea， the town is caught between the Nazis and the Mussolini's Italians。 The mystery starts with a body found in some fishing nets。 This historical mystery SLOWLY unfolds through out the story。 There really isn't a main character per say。 In fact， I kept getting confused as to who the characters where which caused me to have to go back and forth in the story。Honestly I didn't love this book。 On one han The town set in Croatia， is on the edge because WWII is on their doorsteps。 Set on the Adriatic sea， the town is caught between the Nazis and the Mussolini's Italians。 The mystery starts with a body found in some fishing nets。 This historical mystery SLOWLY unfolds through out the story。 There really isn't a main character per say。 In fact， I kept getting confused as to who the characters where which caused me to have to go back and forth in the story。Honestly I didn't love this book。 On one hand it was interesting because it was on an area of the world I don't know much about but on the other hand I found it slow and hard to follow。 It isn't a book I would read again。Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to review this book in exchange for my honest review。 The opinions are my own。 。。。more

Maria ，

Thank you to netgalley for this arc。I was interested in this book because of the setting， but I wasn't sure about the plot because it seems like a murder mystery， which I usually don't care for。 Split was a murder mystery in a way， but not really in the traditional sense。 This book takes place over a week in Split， starting with characters finding the body of a local man。 We have such an interesting cast of characters， including a German film crew， communists， Italian fascists， freemasons and mo Thank you to netgalley for this arc。I was interested in this book because of the setting， but I wasn't sure about the plot because it seems like a murder mystery， which I usually don't care for。 Split was a murder mystery in a way， but not really in the traditional sense。 This book takes place over a week in Split， starting with characters finding the body of a local man。 We have such an interesting cast of characters， including a German film crew， communists， Italian fascists， freemasons and more。 It was interesting to read about this very precarious time period， and the slow murder investigation that is happening。 It's also interesting to read about what was happening in Split at the time。On the other hand， this book felt so long for a 250 page book。 There are so many characters I often lost track of who was who and what group they were part of。 There is a list of characters in the beginning of the book but it's troublesome to flip back and forth to check who these characters were。 Also， I don't want to spoil the ending， （view spoiler）[ but it wasn't satisfying for me。 I guess it was realistic but I'm bummed out now。 （hide spoiler）] 。。。more

Keren Krinick ，

"Split" by Alida Bremer （Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp-Translation） was an interesting historical fiction/murder mystery novel。 Full of politics， current events of pre-WWII time at the region， prejudice， as well as romantic and textural depictions of day-to-day living and cuisine at that city。 Told in a romantic/nostalgic voice， while painting a vivid picture for the reader。 Thank you NetGalley， the author and publisher for the advance reader copy。 All opinions are my own。 "Split" by Alida Bremer （Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp-Translation） was an interesting historical fiction/murder mystery novel。 Full of politics， current events of pre-WWII time at the region， prejudice， as well as romantic and textural depictions of day-to-day living and cuisine at that city。 Told in a romantic/nostalgic voice， while painting a vivid picture for the reader。 Thank you NetGalley， the author and publisher for the advance reader copy。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more

Krista ，

Split was an intriguing deep-dive into the way of life and political climate of this Mediterranean city during the 1930’s。 After reading the blurb， I thought the murder mystery plot line would take center stage， but this is foremost a historical fiction novel， and it took me a while to acclimatize to the narrative style。 Though the characters are interesting and diverse， there are a lot of them， with Slavic or German names unfamiliar to me， and when the author switched points of view， it took me Split was an intriguing deep-dive into the way of life and political climate of this Mediterranean city during the 1930’s。 After reading the blurb， I thought the murder mystery plot line would take center stage， but this is foremost a historical fiction novel， and it took me a while to acclimatize to the narrative style。 Though the characters are interesting and diverse， there are a lot of them， with Slavic or German names unfamiliar to me， and when the author switched points of view， it took me at least a page to pinpoint which character we were following。 But the setting was fascinating， the cultural details rich， and although I didn’t feel a strong narrative drive as I’d expect in a murder mystery， I kept reading。 Another narrative detail I found unfamiliar was the lack of a clearly defined ‘main character’。 About a quarter of the way through， it seemed to me that Split itself was the main character。 I don’t know if this was the author’s intent or not， and while I found Split interesting， I didn’t connect with it emotionally like I would with a character who was a person。 Overall， I found this novel refreshing， and would recommended to someone looking for a fresh take on a historical murder mystery。 。。。more

Maggie ，

'Splt' is a very complex novel， set in 1936， prior to the Second World War， in what was then the oĺd Yugoslavia on the Adriatic Coast。 There are many elements to the story， including descriptions of the customs， culture and poitical landscape。 The Germans had begun to integrate， whilst the Jewish refugees found themselves fleeing once again。 We are told about secret societies and the rise of communism， stirring tensions and suspicions。 All of these elements meander through the novel， with many 'Splt' is a very complex novel， set in 1936， prior to the Second World War， in what was then the oĺd Yugoslavia on the Adriatic Coast。 There are many elements to the story， including descriptions of the customs， culture and poitical landscape。 The Germans had begun to integrate， whilst the Jewish refugees found themselves fleeing once again。 We are told about secret societies and the rise of communism， stirring tensions and suspicions。 All of these elements meander through the novel， with many frequent references to the traditional foods！ The murder of a young man is central to the plot， but somehow any investigation is slow and dragged out until the final chapter because of the many digressions throughout the story， making it hard work at times， added to which there is an overall heavy and oppressive atmosphere accompanying the narrative。 This book may appeal to readers of foreign historical fiction。 Whilst appreciating that a lot of documented facts have been included in the narrative， I felt the psychology employed， along with its constant diversions left me exhausted！ On a positive note， the lavender biscuits sound nice！ 。。。more

Gemma W ，

This was a really unusual but entertaining and immersive read。 It is set in Split over a week of heatwave in July 1936。 The reader is directly plunged into the midst of this place in turmoil。 The possibility of war is looming over the European continent， and this port on the Adriatic is right in the middle。 Mussolini’s government is on their doorstep， and the town is awash with an incongruous mix of refugees fleeing tightening persecution in Hitler’s Germany， but also German filmmakers who are u This was a really unusual but entertaining and immersive read。 It is set in Split over a week of heatwave in July 1936。 The reader is directly plunged into the midst of this place in turmoil。 The possibility of war is looming over the European continent， and this port on the Adriatic is right in the middle。 Mussolini’s government is on their doorstep， and the town is awash with an incongruous mix of refugees fleeing tightening persecution in Hitler’s Germany， but also German filmmakers who are using the city as a backdrop to film Nazi propaganda films。 The whole town is on edge。The townsfolk are divided， still recovering from the Great War and not wanting to face the reality of the events heading their way， and others who have suddenly woken up to the political reality。 Somewhere over in Spain， revolutionary Josip Broz – Tito – is working on the best way to communicate Marxist-Leninist ideas。 There are tensions between the ethnically Croats， Serbs， Muslims， and Italians。 The whole book sets the scene wonderfully。 Amongst all these comings and goings， one night a body is found wrapped up in some fishing nets。 Superintendent Mario Bulat is sent to investigate the crime， but mainly to find an appropriate fisherman or communist on which to pin the blame。 It weaves a wonderful tapestry of a town with one foot in Yugoslavia and one in Italy， on the edge of history that is about to implode。 My only issue with this book， which was to do with my lack of general knowledge， rather than the book itself， is that I was fairly unfamiliar with that corner of the world and some of the historical context （other than the broad-brush strokes） that were coming into play。 As a consequence， my reading of the book was interrupted by many， many research tangents which interrupted the flow of the mystery for me。 What is a Split Cake？ What is the Montreux Convention？ What was the free state of Fiume？ What were the People’s Olympiads？ And so on。 So， the 250-page book took me a disproportionate length of time to get through， and I kept losing the thread of the actual mystery and plot。This didn’t detract from the enjoyment of the story for me though， although did mean it wasn't much of a page-turner。 It was a little reminiscent of Olivia Manning’s Balkans Trilogy or Sarah Gainham’s Night Falls on the City， in that it had that eery quality， where you know what hand history is about to deal them， but the characters do not。I really recommend if you are looking for a slice of history set in Croatia。 。。。more

Sharon ，

Split is an atmospheric mystery set in Croatia just before WWII。 There is a heavy political vibe with an ensemble cast of spies， Nazis， socialists， film makers， and travelers weaving in and out of the story which revolves around a murder。 I enjoyed the lush settings and rich interplay of characters but got rather hopelessly confused somewhere along the way。 A fun and unusual read。My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review。

klaudia ✮ ，

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────💌 April 11， 2023: E-ARC provided via NetGalley。 Big thank you to AmazonCrossing。

spencer wright ，

A mystery book set during WWII， which is always a popular setting。 This one doesn't have too much romance， and instead has more believability too it， both of which are major positives for me。 A mystery book set during WWII， which is always a popular setting。 This one doesn't have too much romance， and instead has more believability too it， both of which are major positives for me。 。。。more

Laura Potts ，

An interesting mystery rich with history， unique characters and a beautiful setting。 This was a fun short mystery and an excellent translation， I was enamoured by the setting and I loved having a peak into an eclectic group of characters。 I would highly recommend for an entertaining mystery that has a detailed history/is mixed with WWII in Eastern Europe。