Het bedrog van Göring by John Kuipers

Why read the book?

John Kuipers wrote Het bedrog van Göring. It is the second book in the Charlie Swieninck series. The story takes place in August 1941 in The Hague under German occupation. A body floats in the Hofvijver next to the Binnenhof.

The dead man is Joseph Foulon, a Belgian art expert who examined a newly found painting by Frans Hals for the Mauritshuis museum. Soon after, the real painting called Lachend meisje disappears and a clever forgery takes its place. Charlie Swieninck, chief of the Bureau Bijzondere Delicten, must find the killer and recover the stolen artwork. He works with art historian Rosalie Callenbach and his assistant Boy Valk.

The case leads straight to greedy dealers, forgers and agents working for Hermann Göring, who wants the masterpiece for his collection. Kuipers mixes real historical events with fiction. Readers see the pressure on Dutch police and the greed that war brings out in people. The book came out in June 2023. It won praise for its tense plot and accurate details of the time. Kuipers adds sharp humour and real tension. The book helps people understand the first years of occupation in the Netherlands.

Favourite quote

In wartime even beauty can be stolen and truth can be forged.

What I Loved

Het bedrog van Göring gives a tense and clever crime story set in dark times. Kuipers builds a strong plot around murder and art theft. He shows how the Nazi hunger for Dutch masterpieces created chaos and danger. The book points out the difficult position of Dutch officials who tried to do their job while the Germans pushed in.

Charlie Swieninck stays stubborn and honest in the middle of it all. Kuipers talks about the shadowy world of art experts, charlatans and high-ranking Nazis. He asks why some people chose greed over honour. He ties this to bigger questions about loyalty and survival under occupation. The book makes you think about what you would do in the same spot. It calls for courage when the rules change fast.

Kuipers writes in a direct style that keeps the pages turning. His voice feels real and sharp. The examples come from actual events mixed with strong twists. Readers feel the fear and moral weight of the time. Kuipers looks at how small decisions lead to big trouble. He shows the cost of blind ambition.

He gives hope that truth can still matter even when power rules. The book has parts on family life and daily struggles in war. It talks about leaders who lose their way. Kuipers offers a strong end that leaves you wanting the next story in the series.

Key Takeaway

War turns even beauty and art into objects of greed and power. True justice is hard to find when the occupier makes the rules.

Note

This book is only available in Dutch

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