The Master of the Day of Judgment

By Leo Perutz and Leo Perutz (Intro by Anthony Boucher

Book Overview

"The Master of the Day of Judgment" is a gripping psychological thriller and a masterwork of suspense set against the backdrop of 1909 Vienna. The story follows Baron von Yosch, a man who finds himself at the center of a series of mysterious and seemingly contagious suicides that claim the lives of the city's intellectual and artistic elite. As von Yosch attempts to clear his name and solve the riddle of these deaths, he is drawn into a labyrinthine investigation that borders on the supernatural.

Leo Perutz weaves a complex narrative that blends the traditional detective story with deep metaphysical inquiry. The work explores the fragile boundary between sanity and madness, the weight of hidden guilt, and the terrifying power of the creative imagination. Through its atmospheric depiction of pre-war European society and its use of unreliable narration, the book creates a sense of pervasive dread that lingers long after the final page.

Regarded as a classic of early twentieth-century literature, "The Master of the Day of Judgment" is celebrated for its structural precision and its sophisticated exploration of the human psyche. It remains a compelling study of obsession and the ghosts that haunt the corridors of the mind, offering a profound reading experience that transcends the standard mystery genre.

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• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1025829301
• ISBN13: 9781025829302
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Tradd Street Press
• Length: 210 Pages
• Weight: 0.66 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Masterpiece, no other word

1909. Strange suicide plague in Vienna. Why do all these people kill themselves, while they have no reason at all to do so? Wouldn't be something - or somebody - else? Warning to impossible crime fans: one of the so-called "suicides" is a locked room.While he - remarkably - uses Golden Age school's apparatus, Perutz gives here a book that is wholly sui generis. It could be a mystery. It could be weird. It could be both. Mystery fans will be delighted by intricate plotting, virtuoso use of multiple solutions and a totally unexpected ending. They'll also be delighted, along with others, by magistral recreation of a vanished world, quirky atmosphere and characters, and a reflection on time, art and reality. Yet in the end, the book's real nature remains a mystery. There's only one thing to know: it's a masterpiece.

The other austrian insurance novelist

This novel is an entertaining mystery (suicide or murder?), a haunting meditation on history and fate, and a playful self-referential narrative a la Borges or Calvino. In fact, Borges liked Perutz's work well enough to promote its publication in Argentina while Perutz was living in Tel Aviv and was banned from publishing in Germany. Like his coeval Kafka, Perutz also wrote fiction while working in insurance (though LP was an actuary in Vienna and Trieste, unlike FK, who worked in Prague, LP's birthplace).

Best author of German tongue in the 20th century

Leo Perutz is a true master of the German tongue, very powerful and strong. But he is also a great storyteller, something very rare in German literature. All of his novels are highly recommended. It is a shame they're mostly out of print. Read them, and start with this one.

A gem of a thriller, sorrily underrated

Literature is full of great authors that do not receive the praise they deserve, for all kinds of reasons. Leo Perutz is one of them. I can only urge you to try one of his works once, and "The Master of the Day of Judgment" is a good place to start. Its central idea is shocking and original, the writing is crisp and tantalizing, and the book, while short - certainly compared to today's massive thrillers, is surprisingly "finished". Valid excuse to, for once, shout in a review: READ THIS BOOK!!!