First published 2023
Rita Klein masters computer programming in 1960s New York until an unplanned pregnancy derails her career. At the Hudson Home for Unwed Mothers, social workers force her to give up her baby. Rita struggles to rebuild when she meets Jacob Nassy, a Dutch Holocaust survivor still haunted by his separation from his mother as a child. Rita discovers that Nazi persecution relied on Hollerith punch-card computers like the ones she programs. She decides to use her technical skills to help Jacob find answers about his past. Her search leads to Cornelia Vogel, who operated punch-card machines in occupied Holland during 1941. Cornelia translated computer instructions for a census that the Germans used to target Dutch Jews. She risked her life helping her Jewish neighbor Leah Blom escape persecution. As Rita uncovers the connection between Cornelia and Jacob's mother, buried secrets emerge that could destroy her relationship with Jacob or finally give them both the peace they need.
Genres: literary-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, 21st-century
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: New York, Holland, Hudson Home for Unwed Mothers
Period: 1960s, 1941
432 pages · Paperback · William Morrow Paperbacks
Content warnings: pregnancy-loss