MURDER MINDFULLY

Karsten Dusse is an attorney and worked for many years as an award-winning TV writer. His debut mystery, which draws heavily from his own mindfulness practice, was the bestselling paperback of the year in Germany. All five novels in the resulting series have since reached the top of Germany’s bestseller lists. His novels have been translated into thirty languages and adapted worldwide as a Netflix series.

Florian Duijsens works as a translator and editor, and teaches at Bard College Berlin. Recently, he has also taught in the Young Writers Workshop at Simon’s Rock, Bard College, and at the Free University in Amsterdam. The co-founder and co-host of the Dead Ladies Show event series and podcast, he is also the senior editor of BLAU International and has moderated discussions at the International Literature Festival Berlin, LCB, and elsewhere. Aside from translating (children’s) books, he edits and translates work for publishers, museums, and galleries around the world, and his writing and translations have appeared in Aperture, The Guardian, Asymptote, Ursula, and other publications.

“Wickedly funny, delightfully charming . . . a joy to read from start to end. Take a deep breath and get ready to laugh your way through this propulsive murder mystery. Headspace meets Dexter.” —Nina Simon, New York Times bestselling author of Mother-Daughter Murder Night

“Dusse pairs brisk plotting with a sardonic send-up of self-help culture, keeping the suspense taut while supplying plenty of laughs. The result is an inventive, endlessly surprising comic thriller.” —Publishers Weekly

“Brutal but hilarious . . . Takes down the wellness industry while sending up the legal profession. Watching a worm turn—into a vengeful monster—has never been such fun.” —The Times (UK)

“There surely couldn’t be a more ‘arresting’ start to your new year of reading than to indulge in the sheer comic joy of Murder Mindfully, German lawyer and debut novelist Karsten Dusse’s dark and sublimely entertaining crime romp . . . Murder Mindfully is a triumph of twisted storytelling ” —Lancashire Post

“A razor-sharp satire on stressed-out modern society, a darkly comic and hugely entertaining crime thriller and—believe it or not—also a handy guide to improving your life through mindfulness.“ —Robbie Morrison, author of Edge of the Grave

Dear Reader,

There was a time in my life when I was burning the candle at both ends: I was simultaneously the head writer of Germany’s most successful sketch comedy show, a lawyer on Germany’s most famous courtroom TV show, and on weekends flying as a first officer and co-pilot for a business jet operator. Each of these things alone was amazing—but taken together, I never had time to relax. And in combination, each job gradually became a burden.

It was during this period that I began exploring mindfulness. One of the first exercises I discovered for myself was called “intentional centering.” Instead of letting myself be blocked by all the things I still had to do across three jobs, I focused on one task at a time. The exercise works in three steps:

1. I notice the intention of what I am about to do.
2. I take a deep breath in and out.
3. I perform the task calmly and centered.

Instead of sitting paralyzed on the couch thinking about the three scripts I still had to read for the courtroom show, a sketch I needed to deliver, and the suitcase I had to pack for my weekend trip to Moscow, I focused on one task at a time.

I laid out the scripts. Breathed in and out. And read the scripts. Then I went to the bedroom. Breathed in and out. And packed the suitcase for Moscow. Afterward, I returned to the couch. Breathed in and out. And wrote the sketch.

I applied this exercise one-to-one to Björn Diemel—albeit in a completely different context. Björn also has a task he doesn’t want to do: he has to saw up a corpse for disposal. The intentional centering exercise isn’t designed for that—but it works just the same.

Björn notices the intention of what he is about to do. Breathes in and out. And starts the chainsaw.

Thank you for reading,

Karsten Dusse