East Germany in the 1970s is the highly original setting for this debut novel, which begins with Oberleutnant Karin Müller being summoned to the Berlin Wall (or the “Anti Fascist Protection Barrier” as it’s known in those parts) to investigate the death of a little girl who has apparently been shot trying to cross the wall from the West. This is an unflinching account of a dark period of our history, lightened by a great humanity.