1916, Bois de Bolante, France. The battles in the trenches are raging
fiercer than ever. In a deserted mineshaft, French sappeurs discover an
unconscious man, and nickname him The Mole.
Claiming he has lost his memory, The Mole is convinced that he's dead,
and that an Other has taken his place. The military brass considers him
a deserter, but front physician and psychiatrist-in-training Michel
Denis suspects that his patient's odd behavior is stemming from
shellshock, and tries to save him from the firing squad.
The mystery deepens when The Mole begins to write a story in écriture
automatique that takes place in Vienna, with Dr. Josef Breuer, Freud's
teacher, in the leading role. Traumatized by the recent loss of an arm,
Denis becomes obsessed with him, and is prepared to do everything he can
to unravel the patient's secret.
Set against the staggering backdrop of the First World War, The Shadow
Of The Mole is a thrilling tableau of loss, frustration, anger, madness,
secrets and budding love. The most urgent question in this extraordinary
story is: when, how, and why reality shifts into delusion?