Waist Deep - by Linea Maja Ernst (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

"Clever, wry, and incredibly sexy." --Susannah Dickey, author of Tennis Lessons The luscious summer novel and international sensation. A story about friends, lovers, and friends' lovers.Five friends from university; seven summer days in a lakehouse in Denmark. A chance to swim, catch up, and mess around like old times. But the idyll is fragile. Lost without the uninhibited magic of their youth, Sylvia is left wondering what happened to the radical ways of living they embraced at university. Tensions rise under moonlit swims and wine-drenched dinners, and Sylvia is stunned to learn her old crush Esben will be getting married at the end of the week--a crush her monogamous girlfriend would definitely not approve. While the group sunbathe, cook, and flirt their way to midsummer night, new desires prove not everyone has left their arcadian fantasies behind. An instant bestseller in Scandinavia and now translated into ten languages, Waist Deep is a modern Midsummer Night's Dream that offers a provocative flourish to the perennial question: does growing up have to mean giving up on your dreams?

Review Quotes

"The Quintessential Millennial Novel" -Vogue "So much more profound than its first impression as a smart summer read and, perhaps, why it's been translated into 10 languages and optioned for a movie adaptation." -The New York Times "A cross between Vincenzo Latronico's Perfection and Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream...[a] deft portrait of millennial disenchantment." -Paulina Prosnitz, Air Mail "Clever, wry, and incredibly sexy" -Susannah Dickey, author of Tennis Lessons "Sensuous and vivid, simmering with sexual tension and with an undercurrent of deep longing... A book to devour" -Laura Kay, author of Wild Things "Trembles and flashes with hot emotion, confusion and pangs of longing. I loved its cast of characters" -Amy Key, author of Arrangements in Blue "Delicious, and provocative" -Esther Freud, author of My Sister and Other Lovers "The kaleidoscopic novel heralded as the book of the summer" -Dazed "One of the best queer translations of the year." -Queer Book Club "A gorgeous Big Chill novel." -Emily Temple, LitHub "A top rec if you went to a liberal arts college and your book club is also your polycule." -Christopher's Books "A lush, decadent exploration of the blurry boundaries between sexuality and gender, lovers and friends, that will leave you yearning for wine-drenched summer evenings." -British GQ "Timeless and folkloric" -TLS "An evocative debut about the fragility and fluidity of adult friendship" -The Observer "Beautiful and sensuous" -The Daily Mail "A fascinating, articulate, and entertaining look into the complexities of adult relationships." -Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Linea Maja Ernst is a staff writer at the Danish newspaper Weekendavisen, where she writes about literature, pop culture, and private life. Waist Deep is her debut novel.