Crime Writer Margot Kinberg

If you’ve ever been betrayed by someone, even in something seemingly small, you know what a terrible experience that can be. And a betrayal can have lasting effects on a person, too, even if the betrayer is remorseful. It cuts deeply, and it’s an experience a lot of people have had. We see it a lot in crime fiction, too, and that’s not surprising given that betrayal happens in real life, and can be a motive for a crime. There are many, many examples of how betrayal fits in to the genre; here are just a few.

Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile begins as Jacqueline ‘Jackie’ de Bellefort asks her best friend Linnet Ridgeway to hire Jackie’s fiancé Simon Doyle as her land agent. Linnet can certainly afford to do so, and all starts out well enough. Then, Linnet betrays Jackie and ends up marrying Simon. During the Doyles’ honeymoon, Jackie keeps turning up everywhere they go, including their cruise of the Nile. One night during that cruise, Linnet is shot. Jacquie is the obvious suspect, but it’s proven that she could not have committed the crime. Hercule Poirot is on the same cruise, and he works to find out who the killer is. In this case, you could argue that the betrayal set off a terrible chain of events.

In Philip Kerr’s March Violets, we are introduced to former police officer-turned-private investigator Bernie Gunther, who lives and works in pre-World War II Berlin. One night, he is hired by wealthy businessman Hermann Six to find a missing diamond necklace that disappeared when his daughter and her husband were murdered. Six makes it clear that Gunther is to find the jewels, not investigate the murders, and that’s how Gunther starts. But the two crimes are too integrated to be treated separately, so Gunther ends up asking questions about the murders too. The search for answers leads him into real danger, as there are several people who don’t want the truth known. Throughout the novel, we get a sense of the rising power of the Nazis, and the real danger in which many people (especially, but not only, Jews) found themselves. There were plenty of incidents, too, in which Jews, gays, and other Nazi targets were betrayed in exchange for money or some privilege. It’s an uncomfortable look at how betrayal impacts not just a person, but also a society. We also see that in Rebecca Cantrell’s Hannah Vogle series, which takes place at about the same time, in the same place.

Len Deighton’s Berlin Game, which takes place during the 1980s, is the first of his trilogy to feature Bernard ‘Bernie’ Sansom. He’s a former MI6 field operative who’s retired and now works in MI6’s London Central office. In one plot thread of the novel, he is informed that there is very likely a mole at London Central, and that person is betraying the UK to the KGB. There are several possibilities, too. The mole could be Sansom’s own supervisor Dicky Cruyer. And he’s far from the only suspect. Everyone at London Central is very skilled, so if Sansom is going to find out who the mole is, he’s going to have to work carefully and with all the skills he has. In this case, Sansom isn’t just investigating a personal betrayal, although the culprit is compromising him. He’s also investigating a betrayal of the country.

Karin Alvtegen’s Betrayal is the story a much more personal, domestic sort of betrayal. Eva Wirenström-Berg and her husband Henrik have been married for fifteen years and are parents to six-year-old Axel. They’re living just the sort of white-picket-fence life that Eva has always wanted. Then, to her shock, Eva finds out that Henrik has been having an affair. At first, she doesn’t know who the other woman is, but she decides she will find out. Her search for the woman, and consequences of that, go much further than she’d originally planned. Her hurt and resentment at her husband’s betrayal lead her to do things she never thought she’d do. It’s an interesting look at how profound the impact can be when someone you trust betrays you.

And then there’s Attica Locke’s Black Water Rising. Jay Porter is a struggling lawyer in 1980’s Houston. He is Black, living in a traditionally racist area, so it’s hard for him to get his business going. Still, he does have clients and he’s doing his best to make good. One night, he witnesses what turns out to be a murder. He does call the police, but beyond that, he doesn’t want to be involved. One of the reasons is that, when he was younger, he was part of the 1960s Black Power movement, along with people such as Stokely Carmichael/Kwame Touré. Unfortunately, he was betrayed and ended up in prison. He’s been able to start his life again, but he is distrustful of the police, and he doesn’t want to get involved in a case like this. It happens anyway, though, and Porter ends up making some dangerous and powerful enemies.

Betrayal is a terrible feeling. And it’s no wonder that people who have been betrayed have such a difficult time trusting anyone again. People who betray others are impacted, too, by what they’ve done. It’s a powerful dynamic, and it’s no wonder we see it in crime fiction. These are just a few examples. Which ones have stayed with you?

*NOTE: The title of this post is a line from the Hooters’ Satellite.