After living in a corrupt, totalitarian regime in which you are denied the very basic individual rights of freedom– to speak without censorship, to worship without intimidation, to read books you want and meet friends without fear of being spied or reported on, to grow professionally without shameful compromises, to get a passport without the humiliation of having to bribe a corrupt official—when all of these become unbearable, fleeing is one of the very few options; no certain destination, no one waiting for you, yet the only way you can save your sanity, dignity, and integrity. This is a personal account of a long journey from total desperation, through life and near-death events, to safety, hope, and freedom, and I hope that, as crude and unhindered this story is, it is also highly entertaining.

I was born the youngest princess of a tiny country in the Alps, but I've never been any good at being a princess. I'm shy and bookish, and I don't know how to flirt. The only man I'm comfortable around is my best friend, Alex. I used to have a crush on him, but I don't anymore. I absolutely don't. Right now, I'm interested in a handsome French millionaire, but I need Alex to help me learn how to be attractive to men. He agrees because he's my friend, but he doesn't seem happy about it. And I need to remember that Alex is just giving me lessons. He isn't the man I'm trying to win.

The BBC Between the Covers Book Club Pick 'Sentence by sentence, Ben Hinshaw offers wit, sensitivity and sharp observation. Then slowly the reader sees the grand design - the intricate, braided storylines, sustained with energy and relish. It is entertaining, and something more - truly involving, like a whole novel sequence cleverly condensed' Hilary Mantel Surrounded by the dramatic beauty of Guernsey, a teenager discovers a secret and finds his betrayal has the power to ruin adult lives. In London, a marriage shot through with infidelity leads to a quest for revenge, resulting in a series of simultaneously comical and catastrophic events. And in California, as wildfires threaten landscapes and lives, a young veteran struggles with the trauma of war, seeking solace at a local ranch. In this extraordinary debut, a cast of characters grapple with unexpected betrayal, the loss of innocence and the lies we tell. With sharp insight, Ben Hinshaw illuminates the unnerving nature of what it means to grow up, to be a teenager playing at adulthood and an adult playing games. 'Remarkable . . . virtuosity of technique accompanies keenness of insight and depth of characterisation . . . Hinshaw's impressively accomplished debut puts him in [Tim Winton and Jennifer Egan's] company' Sunday Times 'Ben Hinshaw renders ordinary human agonies with extraordinary precision and emotional insight. He specialises in the atmosphere of human interconnection, in subtle revelations and indelible images. This book is a riveting and beautifully patterned map of the emotional archipelago of longing and learning, loving and leaving' Max Porter 'A surprising and enjoyable read . . the exercise of working out how the web threads together is part of the pleasure of this book . . . this novel without guardrails stands as a brave debut' The Times