Daria Helck
I rarely have just one idea.
I write thrillers, run companies, and build book worlds for kids. Usually on the same day. This is where you’ll find what’s finished, what’s in the works, and what else won’t let go of me.
I’m a lot of these things at once.
I’m Daria. I rarely take things just as they are. I want to know why they are that way and whether they could be better. With companies as much as with stories.
And somewhere in between live four guinea pigs who now have a book series of their own.
If you’re here for Lena Voss: her world continues here.
The thriller series
Lena Voss
An oceanographer who sees in the data what others don’t want to see yet. The series is planned as five books. Three are out, and I’m writing the fourth right now.
The disasters are nature. The tragedies happen where people let the truth in too late.
Book 1TIEFSTRÖMUNGpublished
Book 2GLUTZONEpublished
Book 3TIEFENSCHLAGpublishedAbout me
Who I am when there’s no project running. So, rarely, but it happens.
My books
Lena Voss, the individual books, and whatever else comes out under my name.
The world of Lena Voss
Characters, places, and background. Spoiler-free.
Projects
Travido, FEEL Group, FLITCH. What the companies do and what I do there.
From the journal
Odds and Ends
Four guinea pigs and a book series.
Rocky, Mr. Grey, Toffy and Mojito live with us. In summer they’re outside in their enclosure, in winter they move into the house. A few weeks ago it …
Life and Perspectives
I used to think coaching was nonsense.
To be honest, for a long time I thought all of it was nonsense. Coaching, personal growth, books with exercises you fill in. I run a business. I …
Thoughts on Business
Ideas for eight lifetimes. And one calendar.
I have the ideas and the creative energy for eight lifetimes. But only one life. That’s not a coffee mug slogan, that’s my everyday reality.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Lena Voss?
Lena Voss is the main character of my thriller series of the same name: an oceanographer at the ICRU in Hamburg, a fictional institute that turns data on natural hazards into warnings. She sees things in the readings that others don’t want to see yet, and she has to decide when a warning comes too early and when it comes too late.
What order should I read the Lena Voss books in?
Start with Book 1, TIEFSTRÖMUNG, then Book 2, GLUTZONE, and Book 3, TIEFENSCHLAG. Each book tells its own disaster, but Lena’s story continues through all of them.
How many books are in the series?
The series is planned as five books. TIEFSTRÖMUNG, GLUTZONE, and TIEFENSCHLAG are out. I’m writing the fourth, WEISSGRAU, right now. The fifth is called NULLMERIDIAN.
Can the books be read as standalones?
Each book’s disaster is self-contained. But the characters, and whatever is still unresolved between them, develop from book to book. You’ll get the most out of the series if you read it in order.
I liked “The Swarm.” Is Lena Voss for me?
Probably. Lena Voss is a science thriller about natural hazards that really exist, told from the point of view of a woman who is the first to see them coming. It’s not a loud action thriller. It’s suspense that builds, with believable science and people you won’t forget in a hurry.
Is the Gulf Stream really collapsing?
What people usually mean is the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), which the Gulf Stream is part of. Researchers largely agree that it will weaken over this century. Whether and when it will reach a tipping point is disputed. TIEFSTRÖMUNG doesn’t ask whether Europe will freeze, but what a faster weakening would mean for the dikes along the Elbe.
How dangerous is Campi Flegrei?
Campi Flegrei, west of Naples, is an active volcano without a mountain: a collapsed crater where hundreds of thousands of people live. For years the ground has been rising, accompanied by earthquakes people can feel. The last eruption was in 1538. No one can predict when there will be another. GLUTZONE is about how hard it is to decide to evacuate a city before anything has been proven. The Osservatorio Vesuviano reports on the current situation.
Can there be a tsunami in the North Sea?
Rarely, but it has happened: about 8,000 years ago, a huge section of seabed slid away on the Storegga slope off Norway, and the wave reached the coasts of Norway, Scotland, and the Shetland Islands. An event like that is considered very unlikely today. TIEFENSCHLAG asks how early you can issue a warning when the numbers aren’t clear yet.
Is the ICRU real?
No. The ICRU in Hamburg is fictional, and so is the company Meridian. The natural hazards behind them are real: the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, Campi Flegrei near Naples, and the Storegga Slide off Norway.
Is Lena Voss available as an audiobook?
Not yet. All published books are available on Amazon as Kindle e-books and as paperbacks, and with Kindle Unlimited you can also borrow them.
Who is Daria Helck?
I write thrillers for adults and books for children and teens, and I’m an entrepreneur: CEO of Travido, co-founder of FEEL Group and of FLITCH. You’ll find more about me on the “About me” page.