The Bletchley Riddle

Jakob Novis is one of two protagonists, alongside his younger sister, Elizabeth “Lizzie” Novis. He is the son of his late English father and his American mother, Willa, whom he believes to have died in Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland. He is 19 years old, and he works at Bletchley Park with a top-secret team of code breakers hoping to break the code produced by the Enigma machine that the Germans use to communicate. He loves solving ciphers and riddles, and he thoroughly enjoys his work—at the expense of his other, more emotional obligations. The secretive nature of his work and his generally avoidant nature have left him out of touch with his sister. When she evades their grandmother’s plan to send her to the US, Lizzie becomes Jakob’s problem, and he struggles to navigate her demands that he communicate with her openly.

His distance from Lizzie isn’t intentional or malicious. He is absorbed by his work, which he rightfully sees as crucial to the war effort. He also naturally struggles to get along with many people, not just her. He frequently has a wry sense of humor that sometimes helps him avoid the emotional weight of a situation.