Moorland #1: The Twins

"Andreas Winkelmann is the master of horror, which lurks right on our doorstep. In 'Moorland' he proves once again why he regularly tops the SPIEGEL bestseller list."

A psychological thriller with 95,000 copies sold in Germany

When the swamp claims you: The new bestseller guarantee

Fog, cold, silence. Andreas Winkelmann returns – with a setting so oppressive that you can almost feel the dampness on your skin.

Eighteen-year-old twins Nike and Jana just wanted to take a trip to the moor. They never returned. No trace. No bodies. Just an abandoned camera in the swamp. But then a new video appears on Jana’s TikTok channel. Is she still alive? Or is the perpetrator playing a sick game?

Detective Malia Gold must not only race against time, but also against a secretive village community where silence is a tradition. And the moor is reluctant to reveal its secrets…

Why this thriller belongs on your reading list:

Atmospheric horror: The «Moorland» is more than a setting – it is a silent killer.
Modern investigative setting: Social media traces (TikTok) meet archaic village structures.
The author: A guarantee for page-turners – Andreas Winkelmann never disappoints.

Coming up:

MOORLAND #2: THE BRIDE (Die Braut)

Droemer Knaur | November 2026 | 400 pages

A moor ablaze. A murderer searching for his bride. And an investigator with a profound secret.

As a fire rages relentlessly through the moor, threatening to destroy everything in its path, the fire brigade makes a gruesome discovery: a body in the trunk of an abandoned car. Shortly afterwards, a murdered woman is discovered, her appearance disturbing, as she has been dressed up like a bride. Two deaths in quick succession bring Detective Malia Gold into the picture. She has known the moorland since childhood, and her mother, Ruth Sichler, a local tracker, assists her with the investigation. More separates the two women than unites them. But if Malia is to solve this case, she must make peace with her mother and her past. And then there is the fire, which continues to spread. It threatens not only to destroy the evidence but also the place Malia calls home.

Masterful suspense! Andreas Winkelmann describes the rugged beauty of the North German moorland while simultaneously dissecting the depths of human depravity. Tense conflicts collide with an atmospheric natural setting!

Moorland #1: The Twins