When Captain Josef Slonský is sent to investigate reports of an unpleasant smell in an apartment building, he already knows what he’s going to find.
The man has been dead for some time with a brutal wound to the head. With no signs of forced entry, it seems likely he knew his attacker.
But this is not an unknown victim. Slonský recognises him as Dominik Vitek, previously the manager of various cabaret clubs in the centre of Prague.
Vitek’s clubs had great success and he even opened the first women’s club – The Ladies’ Lounge – as a safe place for the rich and powerful women of Prague to meet.
But his clubs were also known to host meetings of dissidents when the country was still under the Communist regime. Though, as many years have passed since then, Slonský is not sure if there is a connection with Vitek’s death.
Was Vitek the victim of an old grudge? Was he punished for something in his past?
Or is Slonský about to uncover something more sinister?
The Ladies’ Lounge by Graham Brack is published on 5 September, 2025. It’s Graham’s eighth Josef Slonský crime thriller.
If you’d like more reading ideas, there are over 190 books published this year in our round-up of historical writing to look forward to.
