Moord / Doeschka Meijsing . Moord en doodslag / Geerten Meijsing

Doeschka Meijsing is the older sister of Geerten Meijsing, and both are Dutch novelists. Doeschka is three years older than Geerten. Their relationship is marked by mutual irritation and rivalry, although it isn't clear whether this is serious at all or just mockery before their readership. The omnibus edition brings together two novels Moord, written by Doeschka Meijsing and Moord en doodslag by Geerten Meijsing.

The novel written by Doeschka was composed while she visited her brother, Geerten, in Italy, where he resides. Her novel mostly describes this visit to Italy, and the background of their lifelong rivalry. In the novel she ponders on murdering her brother, but this does not happen. The tone is that of irony and mockery.

in Moord show more en doodslag Geerten describes an Italian murder case, a book reminiscent of Capote's In cold blood. In between chapters, Geerten considers his relation with his sister, the irritation and inconvenience it gives him. The same tone of mockery. To this, Geerten adds some insight into the professional legal opinios of their father about the softening effect of circumstances in most murder cases.

The two books are vastly different. Nothing of consequence happens. The only thing that serves as a tie between these two novels are the lives of their authors as brother and sister, while thematically, both novels describe some form of their rivalry and mocking irritation. Nonetheless, they bring their work together, they succesfully cooperate, although no love is lost between them.

The novels themselves are not very interesting. What is interesting are their little mockeries. show less