EBWe’re only about three months away from the publication of one of my favorite books we have this winter: Keija Parssinen’s THE RUINS OF US. If you don’t want to believe me about how great it is, believe these people:
“THE RUINS OF US is a stunning debut novel—a love story that spans continents. Writing with kindness and longing about Saudi Arabia and Sugar Land, Texas, Parssinen teaches us that while cultural differences run deep, when it comes to matters of the heart, we are all the same. I was dazzled by this book.”
–Amanda Eyre Ward, author of Close Your Eyes
“THE RUINS OF US tells a gripping story about Saudi Arabian princes and bureaucrats, wives and extra-wives, sons and daughters, fanatics and exiles whose appetites and beliefs have been, until now, unavailable to readers of contemporary American fiction. Keija Parssinen uses her first-hand knowledge of the cross-roads where U.S. and Saudi Arabian interests intersect, and sometimes collide, and she directs the human and historical traffic with a maestro’s sense of pace, and a true storyteller’s sense of consequence.”
—Scott Spencer, author of Man in the Woods
“THE RUINS OF US is an arresting story of family and country. Parssinen’s characters are richly conceived and her evocative petrol universe of wealth, privilege, and intrigue is unforgettable. Powerful storytelling that is refreshing and entertaining.”
–Anthony Swofford, author of Jarhead
“A big, brave novel, Keija Parssinen’s THE RUINS OF US takes us behind the compound walls of Saudi Arabia and into the secret passions that threaten to tear one family apart. Step into Parssinen’s sensual prose and be transported.”
–Anna Solomon, author of The Little Bride
“In THE RUINS OF US Parssinen carries the reader from Texas into the Saudi Kingdom in the grip of a story that is both entertaining and wise. Through an expertly drawn cast of characters and a suspenseful and timely series of events, it poses the universal questions: how much do we really know about the ones we love and how far will that love carry us when the earth below our feet starts to shift? THE RUINS OF US marks the debut of an enormously talented writer who is unafraid to lead us on the greatest adventure of all—into the wilds of the human heart.”
—Lise Saffran, author of Juno’s Daughters
