Schuß in's Geschäft (Der Fall Otto Eißler)

Vienna in the immediate aftermath of the war is a city caught between ruin and opportunity. The streets pulse with discarded aristocrats, street‑wise merchants, and a flood of speculative entrepreneurs all seeking to turn chaos into profit. Political factions clash, the economy trembles, and the fragile new republic teeters on the edge of external threats, giving the capital a restless, almost theatrical energy.

Into this maelstrom steps a determined investigator who follows a trail of dubious contracts and whispered rumors surrounding a perplexing murder. As he navigates the glittering yet treacherous world of post‑war finance, he encounters former war profiteers, desperate politicians, and ordinary citizens trying to survive. The early chapters weave together personal ambition and the broader social upheaval, setting a tense stage for a case that could expose deeper currents of corruption in a city still rebuilding its soul.