After a term in work camp of Siberia he is shifted to a secret laboratory where he keeps missing his love and is employed to develop an eavesdropping device to use against America as well as Stalin.

[5][6][7] Notable people like composer George Jacob Gershwin, scientist Albert Einstein, pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff, musician Glenn Miller, and politician Lavrentiy Beria find mention in the novel.

[9][10][11] Kirkus Reviews appreciated Michaels for showing "exceptional poise and command in his debut novel" and mentioned that "both the voice and the stories it tells transcend the dusty contrivances of much historical fiction, resulting in a novel that feels both fresh and timeless.

"[12] For Orlando Bird of The Telegraph, the novel has "extraordinary stories" which are "worth retelling" but "the results are mixed ... [and] can make for unsatisfying reading", as "the fiction has a hard time adding much fascination to the bare facts".

"[13] Brendan Canning, a founding member of the band Broken Social Scene, appreciates Michaels for "delving into Termen's one true obsession, Clara, reflecting his never-ending inner dialogue with her that continues for days, months, years."

[4] Matthew Adams writing for The National compares the novel with Vladimir Nabokov's 1947 novel Bend Sinister and calls it "a debut that is charming, amusing, often deeply affecting".

[14] The jury for the award were Canadian author Shauna Singh Baldwin, British novelist Justin Cartwright, and American writer Francine Prose.

Michaels was nominated for the award along with David Bezmozgis (The Betrayers), Frances Itani (Tell), Heather O'Neill (The Girl Who Was Saturday Night), Miriam Toews (All My Puny Sorrows), and Padma Viswanathan (The Ever After of Ashwin Rao).