Mindfulness is defined as the awareness of one’s internal state and surroundings. Not something that I’ve been able to come to terms with, until now! Bjorn Diemel is a criminal defence lawyer whose main client is Dragan Sergowicz, leader of a crime gang. Bjorn is separated from his wife Katharina but dotes on his daughter Emily and would do anything to keep her safe in his life. Kudos to the translator, it must be difficult to translate humour but this worked a treat, from start to finish.

Briefly, permanently stressed Bjorn is attending mindfulness courses and starts to use the lessons learned in ensure his life with Emily changes for the better and he can hopefully reconcile with his wife. Unfortunately this involves the literally frying of Dragan and then taking over his empire. Of course it becomes more than natural for a number of other murders to take place to ensure his state of mindfulness remains calm!

A tongue in cheek murder thriller translated from German but losing none of its dark humour in the translation. Beware of some seriously gory bits though! The characterisations are good and despite his predilection for murder Bjorn is slightly redeemed by his undying (pun intended) love for Emily. You will never look at a mindfulness book in the same way again. Enjoyable and highly entertaining. 4.5⭐️

Probably the most fun I’ve had with a book this year as the story of the put upon lawyer who finds peace and more on a mindfulness course turns into a absolutely epic crime caper.

It’s an in your face, loud, thrill a minute crackerjack and I all for more now i know it’s just book 1 in a German bestselling series.

Quirky, clever and devious, it’s madcap, completely unbelievable yet deliciously escapist and I can’t praise it up more.

Final book of the year is my book of the year

So, I chose this book on the fact that the plot sounded funny generally I hate mindfulness. I hate the way people go on about it and the way that it's heralded as this miraculous idea.
So what a stunning book this was, in which it not only had me laughing at every page, it also opened my eyes to mindfulness and to what it actually entailed. Turns out this is exactly the kind of self help book I've ever needed.
The characters were all hilarious, I loved the depth to each of them and the small snippets of info learnt about each one along the way. The inner mafia/mob workings were believable and I enjoyed how everything linked back to previous points.
It was great writing and I was engaged the whole way through, the length felt perfect as well and didn't drag on unnecessarily and all the loose ends were tied up which is a major plus point for me.
Impeccable ending which was perfect and I enjoyed this so much more than I anticipated.
The book has been adapted for a Netflix show so I'm now going to watch that in hope it can live up to the book, because honestly what a brilliant read. I will definitely be keeping track of any new releases from this author!
Favourite Quote - First off, I'm not a violent man. Quite the opposite. I've never once gotten into a fight. And I didn't even kill anyone until I was forty-two.
Favourite Character - Sasha

4 Stars from me

For me this is a light-hearted poke at a crime thriller with the lead character, Björn, appearing to be the world's most unwitting / inadvertent serial killer.

It's also pretty obvious that the author really does know a lot about mindfulness and I've got to admit that some of the advice makes way more sense then any actual mindfulness books that I've read!

Björn leads a slightly chaotic life and it seems he gets rather easily tied up in some really quite unfortunate situations. But, his saving grace as a character is that he loves his almost estranged wife and his daughter, Emily, and would do literally anything to protect her and make her happy.

And so ensues a series of almost slapsticesque events ranging from mafia hits to pre-school places and it is just as unpredictable as it sounds. Somehow Björn gets himself into and out of the most outlandish of situations.

I would describe Murder Mindfully as a tongue-in-cheek crime thriller, honestly I didn't think this concept would entirely work but it does and I enjoyed the book.

This was an enjoyable read. The book follows Bjorn who is a very stressed criminal lawyer. Bjorn's wife gets him to go to mindful counseling, to help him and their marriage. Bjorn's main clients are very violent gangsters who are enemies. The book follows Bjorn as he goes from being a lawyer to a gangster himself all through mindfulness.

Really good book, I did find it a bit slow in parts. I will definitely be looking out for more books by this author.

Rating is really 3.5 stars. Thanks to Net Galley and Faber and Faber for the opportunity to read.

This was a book full of murder, and humour! The book follows Björn, a lawyer to a gang leader, as he begins his journey to mindfulness - and murder! This was a great read that really held my attention and I couldn’t stop reading!

4.5⭐️
Such a clever concept, this was so much fun to read.
The skilful humour and layers of plotting made this an enjoyable and engaging experience, it was dark but at the same time full of a surprising amount of positivity. Taking the time to breathe deeply and fully understand your situation gives you the opportunity for clarity.
I loved the mindfulness quotes, and have written a few down as they really resonated with me. I am determined to add a little bit of mindfulness into my life, so many of the ideas make sense.

Its a great book with a great dark, sense of humour. The main character is forced to take a mindfulness class by his long suffering wife and somehow applies it to killing people, yet the author writes it in a way that you find yourself agreeing with his logic.
Its definitely worth a read.

I thought this was a very clever mix of mindfulness tips interwoven with a struggling lawyer’s descent into a life of crime by his use of those mindfulness tips. My only criticism would be that it dragged a bit three quarters of the way through but then picked up again at the end. Overall, recommended.

It is certainly not usual to have a self-help therapy book merged with murder but this is exactly what Karsten Dusse has done. It is a witty, clever and insightful read. Of course, if you are very mindful, you may think, this title is familiar. Yes, it’s been on Netflix recently but this is the translation from German that is now available. It is well written and examining a work-life balance has never been more entertaining.

*4.5* stars

Calm your mind. Be here, now. Take a breath. And kill.

We’ve all heard of mindfulness, maybe even practice it, but who on earth would use it to kill? Björn, that’s who!

Björn is a lawyer, and he was 42 before he killed someone. Through one of his clients, he found himself involved in organised crime, and ended up killing someone - and then killing became something of a habit!

It all started when his wife, Katharina, gave him an ultimatum - get his work/ life balance sorted out or she would leave him, taking their daughter with her. Well, Björn’s first step is to take a course on mindfulness, just to show how serious he is about saving his marriage. Eventually though, he begins to use it in the most absurd and violent ways.

You’d expect a novel about a murderer to be anything but amusing, but amusing it is! It’s a unique storyline, fast paced, with characters that come fully fleshed, particularly our protagonist. The bonus is, there are some useful tips on mindfulness, but just use it in a positive way folks! Recommended.

It is not often I award five stars but I so thoroughly enjoyed this book and believe it warrants nothing less. Who would have thought that mindfulness could be integrated so well with murder and organised crime?! I loved the first person writing style and the dark humour and quips throughout the book. I found myself totally on the side of the main character and admiring his way of dealing with the various problems which befell him one after another and the murderous solutions he so cleverly engineered. I definitely want to read more in this series.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review and to the author for his wonderfully dark but novel slant on mindfulness.

Murder Mindfully is the first book in a darkly comic, tongue-in-cheek crime series by German author Karsten Dusse (translated by Florian Duijsens). The series, called Achstam Mordern in German, now runs to five volumes. Murder Mindfully is the English translation of the first of these but it is likely that the others will follow.
Bjorn is a lawyer who does the dirty work for his firm, representing and facilitating the work of an underworld crime boss. But the work is affecting his chances of promotion, his life, his marriage and his relationship with his daughter. So he reluctantly agrees to see a mindfulness expert. Reticent at first, Bjorn starts to use the advice and techniques that he is taught to declutter his thoughts and finds that his new outlook has a positive impact on his relationships. So when his crimelord client tries to interfere with Bjorn’s planned weekend away with his daughter while also fleeing from the police, Bjorn lets the rules of mindfulness guide his actions and kills the man. Thus begins Bjorn’s takeover of the organisation, guided by the tenets of mindfulness, which does not necessarily argue against a little more killing.
Dusse uses Bjorn’s focus on mindfulness to walk the difficult highwire act of delivering a pacey, tense crime thriller in a humorous, satiric vein. This is exemplified most by Bjorn’s use of his criminal gang to take over a day care centre so that he can ensure a place for his daughter. But in doing so Bjorn finds that the offer of day care places is an excellent form of soft power.
While Bjorn manages to tie up a few loose ends by the end of Murder Mindfully there are still plenty of hurdles looming on his horizon. English readers will have to wait for the next book to come out to find out what happens next. In the meantime there is always the Netlfix adaptation of this book with a second series expected in late 2025.

I had no idea that this book had been adapted by Netflix when I requested it but having read it, I’m interested in seeing how they’ve done it. It’s a pretty unique storyline and considering, I’m not a big fan of organised crime stories, I found it very readable.

Bjorn’s wife Katharina is going to leave him if he can’t get a better work/life balance. As they have a young daughter together, Bjorn is determined to right this. It turns out that a mindfulness class is the answer to Bjorn learning to slow down, breathe and focus on what really matters. So, when his crime boss client starts to interfere with family time, Bjorn calmly ‘deals’ with him and the aftermath with more than a healthy dose of violence.

Each chapter is prefaced by an extract from Bjorn’s mindfulness leader’s book. The excerpt echoes what’s to come in the following pages and Bjorn repeatedly refers to the book throughout the story. It was a really effective grounding technique and in a clever way, it really centred mindfulness as a discipline amongst a crazy, bloody narrative.

The humour is that kind of blunt, honest brand that is perhaps quite European. It reminded me of the comedy in Jonas Jonasson’s or Fredrik Backman’s books, despite it not being Swedish (Karsten Dusse is German). It had that same quirky style and delivery and it was present throughout. I think it was this cheeky, sarcastic tone that kept me as interested as I was.

Most of the characters are scary, dangerous people but it was really amusing to see these little glimpses of the children that they once were. These men have killed, stolen and lied and yet they still actually just want to be acknowledged and accepted.

At its heart, Murder Mindfully is a story about family and a father trying to do his best for a child he adores. Emily is perhaps the wisest character in the book and she provides a real, good reason for Bjorn doing the ridiculous, crazy things he does. I’m sure a lot of parents will agree with the sentiment that they would do anything for their children, even cause chaos amongst organised crime communities.

Murder Mindfully is a quirky, fast-paced thriller with more than a lot of comedy. If you like Anxious People by Fredrik Backman, I think you’ll like this a lot. It’s got guns, very high stakes, some bad people and a glowing kernel of wholesomeness.

Just Incredible.

This book is about Bjorn, but along the way you will get humor, mindfulness, suspense, thrills and then some beautiful characterization.

This novel is a must read for anyone but especially those who love a bit of wit with their murders.

I recommend and I cannot wait to read another by this author.

I really enjoyed this dark, funny and clever story. Bjorn is a burnt out lawyer with a crime boss client and an unhappy wife until he take mindfulness classes. Genuinely funny and very cleverly plotted, this is a brilliant read.

Please read this, it is laugh out loud funny.
When Lawyer Bjorn is sent on a mindfulness course by his wife, he has no idea what direction it would send his life in.
Every day he has to deal with Dragan, his scumbag client. Because of this, he has never made partner at the firm because he deals with him so well.
His wife is fed up with the constant demands from the client and gives Bjorn an ultimatum.
Using his new mindful approach, Bjorn finds inventive ways to deal with his problems and spend quality time with his little girl, Emily.
Very, very funny.

I was really excited to read Murder Mindfully by Karsten Dusse. I had seen that the German TV adaptation of the book was heading to Netflix and a lot of hype was surrounding that.

Bjorn is a criminal defence lawyer working for a major law firm. His sole client, Dragan Sergowicz, is wealthy but also a leader of one of the largest criminal gangs in the city. Dragon keeps Bjorn very busy. Bjorn is overworked and rarely sees his family. In a last ditch attempt to save his marriage and keep his family together, Bjorn visits Breitner for Mindfulness sessions.

What follows next is such a page turning rollercoaster ride!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I loved how Bjorn embraces mindfulness techniques to manage the situation he finds himself in with his client. There are some absolute laugh out loud moments as Bjorn employs mindfulness techniques to troubleshoot. This is a fast paced intelligent and funny read.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Faber and Faber, for making this e-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Enjoyable, if a little slow and repetitive at times. I liked the “extracts” from the book but I think it would have been better to have them either interspersed through the chapter or at the start of the chapter, not both.

I also enjoyed how some of the things that I thought might get the main protagonist caught out came close but didn’t get him in trouble.

It felt a little weird at times noticing British slang being used by German characters but I assume this is a quirk of the translation.
I’d happily read more from this author to get a more rounded view of their work.

Well, what a refreshingly different thriller. It is very dark but funny too. An organised crime gang's legal brief is getting a lot of grief from his wife. She hates his long hours and resents the distraction of his job when he should be spending time with his young family. So our legal eagle takes a few courses in mindfulness. As the leader of the OCG is witnessed murdering a man by a coachload of school children, the lawyer realises there are only a few options and his mindfulness training kicks in. What follows is a serendipitous revelation for the lawyer.
The ending of the novel was masterfully perfect.