
The Girl and the Gravedigger
A Novel
Oliver Poetzsch(Author)
HarperVia (Publisher)
Published on 9. April 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
448 pages
978-0-06-334849-3 (ISBN)
Description
"Supremely enjoyable . . . Readers will have fun." -Publishers Weekly
When the mummified remains of a famed Egyptologist are discovered in the Vienna art museum, Inspector Leopold von Herzfeldt reunites with gravedigger Augustin Rothmayer to excavate the city's dark underbelly in this thrilling historical mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of The Hangman's Daughter and The Gravedigger's Almanac.
Vienna 1894. Augustin Rothmayer, the oddball gravedigger from Vienna's Central Cemetery, is approached by Inspector Leopold von Herzfeldt with an unusual favor: he needs Augustin to teach him everything he knows about preserving a dead body, information vital to a new investigation.
Opening an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus, employees of Vienna's Museum of Art History have discovered the well- (and quite recently) preserved body of Alfons Stroessner, famed professor of Egyptology. Some believe that the professor was the victim of an ancient curse. But neither Rothmayer nor von Herzfeldt give credence to such superstitious rumors. They are certain it was murder.
The trail to unmask a killer leads them to fin-de-siecle Vienna's unscrupulous upper class and to some eccentric and unusual places, including "mummy parties" and human zoos. An engrossing and twisting historical mystery, The Girl and the Gravedigger once again brings turn-of-the-century Vienna to life in all its glitter and grime.
Translated from the German by Lisa Reinhardt
When the mummified remains of a famed Egyptologist are discovered in the Vienna art museum, Inspector Leopold von Herzfeldt reunites with gravedigger Augustin Rothmayer to excavate the city's dark underbelly in this thrilling historical mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of The Hangman's Daughter and The Gravedigger's Almanac.
Vienna 1894. Augustin Rothmayer, the oddball gravedigger from Vienna's Central Cemetery, is approached by Inspector Leopold von Herzfeldt with an unusual favor: he needs Augustin to teach him everything he knows about preserving a dead body, information vital to a new investigation.
Opening an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus, employees of Vienna's Museum of Art History have discovered the well- (and quite recently) preserved body of Alfons Stroessner, famed professor of Egyptology. Some believe that the professor was the victim of an ancient curse. But neither Rothmayer nor von Herzfeldt give credence to such superstitious rumors. They are certain it was murder.
The trail to unmask a killer leads them to fin-de-siecle Vienna's unscrupulous upper class and to some eccentric and unusual places, including "mummy parties" and human zoos. An engrossing and twisting historical mystery, The Girl and the Gravedigger once again brings turn-of-the-century Vienna to life in all its glitter and grime.
Translated from the German by Lisa Reinhardt
Reviews / Votes
A supremely enjoyable, well-researched adventure. Readers will have fun. - Publishers WeeklyA vivid period mystery with an engaging trio of protagonists. - Kirkus Reviews
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers Inc
Dimensions
Height: 155 mm
Width: 229 mm
Thickness: 29 mm
Weight
436 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-06-334849-3 (9780063348493)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
02/2026
HarperCollins
€14.97
Available for download
Persons
Born in 1970, Oliver Poetzsch is the New York Times bestselling author of The Hangman's Daughter series and the Leopold von Herzfeldt series and has worked for years as a scriptwriter for Bavarian television. A descendant of one of Bavaria's leading dynasties of executioners, Poetzsch lives in Munich with his family.