Letters from Yelena

A dark, lyrical novel of a ballerina in despair by “one of the most exciting young authors on the literary scene” (Rookie Magazine).

My letters to you, my darling Noah, will be maps, in which I hope I can be found…

Natalya never truly knew her late mother, a brilliant but flawed ballerina who left Ukraine for the UK to fulfill her dreams and dance in one of ballet’s most prestigious roles: Giselle. But as she pursues whatever shreds of information she can find, she locates Noah, a man who possesses a boxful of his old correspondence with Yelena. He is fiercely protective of Yelena’s privacy, though, and says she can only have the letters after his death.

About a year later, the letters come to Natalya—and they tell the story of two people trying to find their way back to each other. In them, Yelena visits the darkest corners of her life and childhood and, before she knows it, her past begins to catch up with her in ways she can’t control. A dark, intricate labyrinth, Letters from Yelena explores the depths of one woman's own inner torment, the extremes to which we can be taken, and whether or not there is a way out.

“A significant voice in British fiction…a writer of great talent.”—Andrew Crumey, author of The Secret Knowledge