In the Swiss detective novel “The Judge and His Hangman”, Inspector Bärlach of the Bern police must solve the murder of his best officer. The prime suspect is Richard Gastmann, a known criminal. Since Bärlach is terminally ill with cancer, he has no time to waste and resorts to unorthodox methods to bring Gastmann to justice.

The protagonist in Max Frisch’s novella “An Answer from the Silence” has turned thirty and is about to marry. Afraid of settling into a dull life and convinced that he is destined for greatness – though uncertain in what form – he flees to the Swiss Alps just days before the wedding. His goal is to climb a mountain via the north ridge, a route never taken before. Upon his return, he realises that his pursuit of greatness has been in vain and that every life, no matter how ordinary, is worth living.

Juliette, a young girl with a Swiss father and a Cuban mother, arrives in a Swiss village to stay with her uncle, who runs a tavern on the shores of Lake Geneva. Her outstanding beauty unsettles the small community and casts a spell on the local men. Juliette is not interested in their attention and seeks refuge with Rouge, an elderly fisherman who lives by the lake.

Hans Castorp, a young German engineer from Hamburg, visits his cousin, Joachim Ziemssen, at the Berghof sanatorium in Davos, high in the Swiss Alps, where Joachim is undergoing treatment for tuberculosis. What was meant to be a brief visit turns into a seven-year stay in the secluded and exclusive sanatorium. During his time in the mountain resort, Hans encounters a diverse cast of characters who embody the various ideological and cultural currents of European civilisation on the eve of the First World War.

Joseph Marti is the assistant to Carl Tobler, a flamboyant Swiss engineer who invents machines that nobody wants to buy or license. Although Joseph sees his master’s bankruptcy coming closer by the day, he enjoys the sumptuous meals and garden parties at his master’s villa and the stunning mountain views over Lake Zurich.

Victor Frankenstein, a young Swiss scientist, creates a living being from the limps of dead bodies. However, the creature’s ugly outward appearance causes fear and hatred in people. This rejection turns it into a vengeful monster seeking retribution against its creator and humanity.