Winner of the 2024 Sydney Taylor Honor Book Award

Lithuania, 1943. A father drowns in the all-consuming grief of a daughter killed by the Nazis. He can't bring Chaya back from the dead, but he can use kishuf, an ancient and profane magic to create a golem in her image. A Nazi killer, to avenge her death. When Vera awakens, she can feel her violent purpose thrumming within her. But she can also feel glimpses of a human life lived, of stolen kisses amidst the tragedy, and of a grisly death. And when she meets Akiva, she recognizes the boy with soft lips that gave warm kisses. But these memories aren't hers, and Vera doesn't know if she gets or deserves to have a life beyond what she was made for. Vera's strength feels limitless until she learns that there are others who would channel kishuf for means far less noble than avenging a daughter's death. As she confronts the very basest of humanity, Vera will need more than what her creator gave her: Not just a reason to fight, but a reason to live.--