Artifice

Preyed upon by a Dentist/Nazi Henchman, Franz T---- finds deliverance trapped inside a Nazi gas van and escapes to plot revenge. Pursued therein by overbearing neighbors and bumbling
malcontents, the novel considers an existential conflict in a world of fate and doubt.

The novel opens in the office of dentist Dr. Spinnel in which protagonist Franz is undergoing tooth extraction for, what Spinnel claims, is a personal sacrifice to support the war effort. Sacrifice complete, a medicated fuzzy Franz wanders the street towards
his home only to be abducted by a pursuant Nazi Gas Van or “concentration camp on wheels.”

The drivers of the van, the now moonlighting Dr. Spinnel and his partner/spy Komplizzen apprehend Franz, but not before a neighborhood snoop, Mrs. Trak, can spy their secret operation. With Franz and others secured inside the gas van’s cab, the drivers navigate the evening streets of revelry as the vehicle’s exhaust is pumped into the cab. What occurs is not as Spinnel or Komplizzen or even what Nazi Germany expected.

Instead, Franz survives the fumes and as the doors are opened he leaps to free himself and flees into the night. Spinnel and Komplizzen initiate pursuit, but in the madness Komplizzen is collided with and killed, Wahncraft loses precious property and Franz becomes an altogether other person. Through it all everyone fights to manage and starts to sense that something artificial is at play and that while some are doomed to a life of chaos and tragedy others benefit from the power of the Elect.