Daniela Franz
The truth is not what happened. It's what they decide to publish.
The Vienna Weight is a cerebral, slow-burn espionage thriller trilogy set in the shadowy corridors of international diplomacy and treaty verification. At its center is Yasmin Daryaee, a Verification Officer at the Treaty Verification Office in Vienna — a woman who works in the shadow of institutions and discovers, file by file, that power does not fear lies. It fears those with the courage to name them.
Setting
Vienna, Doha, Europe
Genre
Spy Fiction, Political Fiction
Books
3
Series started
May 10, 2026
The truth is not what happened. It's what the institution decides to publish.
File Doha-118 looks flawless. Too flawless. Yasmin Daryaee knows something is wrong — but her own Director doesn't want her to find the truth.
In a system built on truth, the greatest lie is the institution itself.
Astana, minus twenty degrees. The Treaty Verification Office isn't just compromised — it was designed to be corrupt. And the architect is her former mentor.
The legacy of a spy is the silence they leave behind.
A sealed envelope from her late father. A 2009 map of a shadow architecture. In Helsinki, Yasmin must decide: remain a passive observer, or step fully into the crosshairs.
Daniela Franz writes espionage thrillers that combine tactical precision with moral complexity. With The Vienna Weight she explores more cerebral, institutional territory: women protagonists confronting the corruption of power with tools of intelligence, not violence. Her prose is taut, measured, and built on authentic detail.
Learn More