On the brink of World War II, with the Nazis tightening their grip on Berlin, a mother's act of courage and love offers her daughter a chance of survival. Hanni Kohn knows she must send her 12-year-old daughter, Leah, away to save her from the Nazi regime. Hanni?s desperation leads her to Ettie, the daughter of a rabbi, whose years of eavesdropping on her father enable her to create a mystical, Jewish creature, a rare and unusual golem she names, Ava, who is sworn to protect Leah. Once Ava is brought to life, she and Leah and Ettie become eternally entwined, their path fated to cross, their fortune?s linked.