The Ratline

The Exalted Life and Mysterious Death of a Nazi Fugitive

By: Philippe Sands

Narrated by: Philippe Sands, Katja Riemann, Stephen Fry

Length: 13 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

"Hypnotic, shocking, and unputdownable." (John le Carré, internationally renowned bestselling author)

Baron Otto von Wächter, Austrian lawyer, husband, father, high Nazi official, senior SS officer, former governor of Galicia during the war, creator and overseer of the Krakow ghetto, indicted after as a war criminal for the mass murder of more than 100,000 Poles, hunted by the Soviets, the Americans, the British, by Simon Wiesenthal, on the run for three years, from 1945 to 1948....

Philippe Sands pieces together, in riveting detail, Wächter's extraordinary, shocking story. Given full access to the Wächter family archives - journals, diaries, tapes, and more - and with the assistance of the Wächters' son Horst, who believes his father to have been a "good man," Sands writes of Wächter's rise through the Nazi high command, his "blissful" marriage and family life as their world was brought to ruin, and his four-year flight to escape justice - to the Tirol, to Rome, and the Vatican; given a new identity, on his way to a new life via "the Ratline" to Perón's Argentina, the escape route taken by Eichmann, Mengele, and thousands of other Nazis. Wächter's escape was cut short by his mysterious, shocking death in Rome, in the midst of the burgeoning Cold War (was he being recruited in postwar Italy by the Americans and the U.S. Army Counter Intelligence Corps or by the Soviet NKVD or by both; or was he poisoned by one side or the other, as his son believes - or by both?)....

An extraordinary discovery, told up-close through access to a trove of family correspondence between Wächter and his wife - part historical detective story, part love story, part family memoir, part Cold War espionage thriller.

"Breathtaking, gripping, shattering." (Elif Shafak)

©2021 Philippe Sands (P)2021 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Gripping...fascinating and important, told in vivid detail...fiercely inquiring...suspenseful...extraordinary." (The New York Times Book Review)

"Fascinating and haunting, a disquieting book that raises more questions than Sands could possibly answer...a book that should be read and pondered again and again." (BookPage)

"Part detective story and part love story...Sands's ability to tease out Horst's emotional, and often contradictory, views of his father as an indicted war criminal is fascinating...he unlocks here a series of provocative questions about culpability, collective guilt, and the advancement of international law." (LA Review of Books)

The ratline

Wonderful story The crime was obvious from beginning but the story shows how difficult the truth is to be validated and accepted by some Great story My country should be ashamed to allow the rat line to exist

Meticulous and well researched!

I truly enjoyed this book. I learned so much information and thank the author for his meticulous research and dedication in searching for the truth regarding this family.

Kinda disappointing

I've found other books about fugitive Nazis much more interesting.. I love to hear what a difficult time and mostly unhappy life these men had.Its interesting to.learn about It how wife and how she made the best at whatever situation she was in.She also comes across as someone.who loves herself the most.Her set absorption may be her means of coping and keeping her head in.the sand.
Thinking about herself and keeping her mind off of the .Even when Otto is dying she refuses to face it

Ratline strong overall

The weakest part of the book is the lack of focus on Otto’s crimes in Poland and Ukraine. It is understood that he was wanted for roundups and killings, but I just didn’t get a feel for his actions as head of the Nazi General Territories. His wife’s cloying letters took up a lot of the book, which didn’t give me much insight into Otto. I liked the readers. I wanted to know more about the Bishop’s reasons for helping Otto and the other escaping killers.

Fascinating well performed book

An outstanding book. Truth is strange than fiction. Very well researched and performed Offers multiple viewpoints on Ww Ii

Amazing Story

Time heals all wounds and also covers up a lot of dirt. This is an astounding story of a high ranking Nazi who was aided by a number of people in escaping the Reich atvthe end of the war. The fact so many willing participants helped him escape is a solod explanation of why this Nazi and others felt they were victims followimg orders who deserved better. The sense of entitlement is mind boggling and while it soumds petty and vindictave I was bitter he never realized what a POS he is and he was never brought to justice.

Excellent historical whodunnit

This was an incredible book. I enjoyed it immensely. The “plot” surprises were unexpected and so engaging. The story leads to profound questions about collective guilt, the Cold War mentality, human nature, family ties, and to what extent time heals. The multiple readers of the audio book was a good choice.

Wow!

Amazing book! You know the book is great when you are sad it’s over. Sands takes you on a journey that creates such vivid imagery along the way!

Fascinating and unexpectedly touching

Like Daniel Mendelsohn's riveting and deeply moving account in "The Lost," this story of tracking down every last clue about the "exalted life and mysterious death" of a Nazi fugitive from justice and sharing it with his son, who was determined to cling to his father's memory as a man of moral principle, is both fascinating and unexpectedly touching. Highly recommended by this listener.

Great Follow Up to East West Street

Like his last book and also the Ratline podcast, Philippe Sands is meticulous yet sensitive, his historical writing is so very human and personal that one cannot help but be swept up in the story. I hope to one day meet this man so I can tell him how much his works have affected me. Highly recommended.