In the frozen forests of the Bavarian Alps, the body of Christoph Geissler, a young diplomat, is discovered impaled with a wooden spear wrapped in mistletoe. The ritualistic nature of the killing sends shockwaves through the royal court of King Ludwig II – a troubled ruler obsessed with Wagner, Norse mythology, and his dreamlike castles.

Berlin dispatches Major Reinhardt Neumann, a decorated war hero turned detective, to investigate. But as an outsider in the close-knit kingdom, Neumann is met with hostility and silence. The deeper he digs, the more he unearths evidence of a shadowy pagan cult – the Wotan Brotherhood – who may hold the key to Geissler’s murder.

But is Ludwig himself involved, or is the eccentric king the next target? As political conspiracies and ancient rituals collide, Neumann must tread carefully. Powerful enemies want the case buried – and him along with it. When the wolves start closing in, he must uncover the truth before he becomes the next body in the snow.