A Bend in the Stars

the long version

**A heart-pounding adventure amid the chaos of World War I, a scientific race against Einstein to solve one of the last great mysteries of the universe, and a love story as epic as the railways crossing Russia.** In the summer of 1914, as war with Germany looms and the czar's army tightens its grip on the local Jewish community, Miri Abramov and her brilliant physicist brother, Vanya, are facing an impossible decision. Since their parents drowned fleeing to America, the ambitious siblings have been raised by their babushka, a matchmaker who taught them to protect themselves at all costs: to fight, kill if necessary, and always have an escape plan. But now, with fierce, headstrong Miri on the verge of becoming one of Russia's only female surgeons, and Vanya close to solving the puzzle of Einstein's elusive theory of relativity, can they bear to leave the homeland that has given them so much? Before they have time to make their choice, war is declared and Vanya goes missing, along with Miri's fiance. With the help of a mysterious, wounded soldier, Miri braves the firing squad to search for them both. As the eclipse that will change history darkens skies across Russia, not only the safety of Miri's family but the future of science itself hangs in the balance. This description comes from the publisher.