Salomon "Sally" Sorowitsch, a gifted counterfeiter and bon vivant, lives in pre-war Berlin, enjoying a decadent lifestyle funded by his illicit activities. His world turns upside down when he is arrested by the Gestapo and imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp. Sally's expertise in forging documents is quickly noted by the camp authorities, leading him to be transferred to Sachsenhausen, where he is coerced into participating in "Operation Bernhard," a covert plan aimed at destabilizing the Allied economies by producing massive quantities of counterfeit British and American currency. The stakes are high, and Sally must navigate a treacherous landscape, balancing survival with the moral dilemmas posed by collaborating with the enemy.

As the operation progresses, tensions rise among the group of prisoners conscripted for the forgery work, who grapple with the ethical implications of their actions and the potential consequences for their fellow inmates and the wider world. The struggle between self-preservation and resistance takes a toll on Sally, complicating his decisions and relationships with others in the camp. Despite the relative privileges and better conditions afforded to them, Sally and his team remain acutely aware of the ever-present danger and the thin line they walk between life and death. The atmosphere in the camp becomes increasingly fraught with suspicion and fear as the end of the war approaches, bringing new challenges and uncertainties.