Prague Fatale is the eighth book by Philip Kerr that follows hard-nosed Berlin homicide detective Bernie Gunther as he navigates his way between everyday street murders and the much more menacing variety of killing ordered in Germany’s corridors of power. Once in Prague the danger goes up a notch, taking the reader from the heights of manorial splendor to the dark dungeons of the Prague Gestapo.

Thieves have made off with a rare 2.5-meter bronze Czech statue depicting the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary — in a state of undress. The unconventional statute, created by Prague sculptor Pavel Purkrábek, had been perched on a hilltop overlooking the town of Bohdaneč in the Kutná Hora region since 2007.

Agustí Villaronga’s “Black Bread” (Pa Negre), kicked off this year’s La Pelicula Spanish film festival in Prague on Feb 15. with both the director and the film’s cinematographer in attendance. But while Villaronga flew in from Spain to make an appearance, his director of photography, Antonio Riestra — who had worked in Mexico on “Amores Perros” and “Frida” — was able to reach the festival by tram, having relocated to Prague about four years ago.