Centroeuropa

In Mora’s clever U.S. debut, a small Prussian village is upended in the early 19th century by the discovery of numerous corpses buried on a new arrival’s plot of land. Redo Haupstshammer travels with his wife, Odra, to Szonden with the intention of settling down for good. Odra dies on the journey, however, and when Redo attempts to bury her on his property, he unearths the body of a Prussian soldier; a few days later, he finds two Napoleonic soldiers buried together. Redo digs up more than a dozen additional bodies, all of which are completely frozen and will not thaw. While waiting for local authorities to figure out how to handle the situation, Redo becomes increasingly frustrated by his inability to work his land, or even bury Odra. Mora populates the narrative with a cast of memorable characters, including a mysterious witch and a giant named Udo, whom bees won’t sting, on the way to a last act that features both nightmarish imagery and a stirring finale. The result will appeal to readers who like their historical novels with an eccentric twist and a dash of Nabokovian playfulness. (Mar.)