ABOUT
THE BOOK

In the new unified Germany, Bernard Willenbrock, an East German engineer and latecomer to the free-market, is the proud owner of a thriving used-car dealership with a steady stream of cash-only clients from Eastern Europe. The business practically runs itself, leaving Willenbrock free to spice up his days with extramarital adventures. Willenbrock’s self-satisfaction appears impregnable. Yet little by little, a series of ever more menacing incidents occurs: an attempted break-in, the theft of several cars, a vicious beating – his innermost certainties are eroded. No amount of locks and latches, it seems, can contain his growing obsession with external safety, relieve his suspicion of those closest to him, or stop the coming violence.