Speak out for the fate of millions or turn a blind eye? We all have choices Absolutely exceptional So beautifully written with precision & wisdom & real emotional acuity A remarkable achievement' STEPHEN KELMAN author of Pigeon English 1944 Germany Ernst Beck's new job marks an end to months of unemployment Working for Erfurt's most prestigious engineering firm Topf & Sons means he can finally make a contribution to the war effort provide for his beautiful wife Etta & make his parents proud But there is a price Ernst is assigned to the firm's smallest team
- the Special Ovens Department Reporting directly to Berlin his role is to annotate plans for new crematoria that are deliberately designed to burn day & night Their destination the concentration camps Topf's new client the SS As the true nature of his work dawns on him Ernst has a terrible choice to make turning a blind eye will keep him & Etta safe but that's little comfort if staying silent amounts to collusion in the death of thousands This bold & uncompromising work of literary fiction shines a light on the complex contradictions of human nature & examines how deeply complicit we can become in the face of fear