The Ruins of Us: A Novel

ISBN: 978-0-06-2064448-6 Published: 2012 Harper Collins Trade paperback, 321 pages Exotic Saudi Arabia is the setting for this stunning debut novel that kept me enthralled from beginning to end. It is mystery, romance, real-life family drama, and political intrigue all rolled into one magnificently-told tale! Forty-seven-year-old, American-born Rosalie is married to fabulously rich and handsome Saudi businessman, Abdullah (Abdi), with whom she has two children. They appear to have a perfect life together. On a shopping trip with her teenage daughter she discovers that her husband of 25 years is buying jewellery for another woman. When Rosalie confronts Abdullah she learns that he has taken a much younger second wife – something that is legal in the Moslem Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, but which is frowned upon by modern Saudis. The household is thrown into turmoil and chaos as Abdi tries to share his life with two different women. Meanwhile, fuelled by anger, resentment, and a growing disdain for his parents, their teenage son becomes increasingly rebellious and ever more attached to fundamentalist Islam. Events come to a head when Rosalie is kidnapped, and taken into the desert. Though she is rescued, and unharmed physically, their life will never be the same. Abdi, Rosalie and their son must face difficult truths about themselves and their family dynamics. When Abdi’s second wife becomes pregnant, Rosalie must decide whether she can cope with the new development or leave behind her life in Saudi Arabia and start her life anew. The author describes interesting scenes of life in “the Kingdom”. “They passed a high-end lingerie store, where mannequins wreathed in satin stood on tiptoe and thrust out their breasts. A male salesman was helping a female customer, who was completely veiled; even her hands were gloved as she reached to touch the negligees and corsets.” The author has experienced Saudi life firsthand so her descriptions of exotic flowers, the desert, the people, the political situation, clothes, food, and attitudes lend authenticity to the story. The story is sad, but compelling as it explores universal themes of love, betrayal, family, the consequences of anger and the changing face of love. The characters are complex. The title is thought-provoking - not “The Ruin of Us” but “The Ruins of Us”. There is something of their family that survives. Will it once again thrive as a close-knit unit? Note that there are f-words peppered throughout the story as well as religious expletives.

This is a magnetic narrative which is wrapped around the love of an expat, Rosalie, and her Saudi husband, Abdullah. They meet as students, at a Texas University, and after they marry, Abdullah convinces Rosalie to return to his native country. She had been raised there, because her father had worked for an oil company, and needs little persuasion. The pull of the country was drawing her back and she was eager to go. Forgetting her hippy past and disregarding the lack of freedom for women, she reentered the Kingdom, making a valiant effort to live there and raise her family. The author was also raised in Saudi Arabia, for the first 12 years of life, and she deftly shines a light on the culture, the beauty, the excesses of the royals, the oppression and the fanaticism of a government ruled dually by religion and the oil fields. It illumines the hatred for the infidels, fueled by not only the religion, but also by the extreme poverty and arrogance of the Americans, who treat them like second class citizens in their own country. The royals and those associated with the government are privileged while everyone else is in an underclass. The story shows how the ways of the old world mesh with the new, sometimes not very smoothly, sometimes causing irreparable tears in the fabric of relationships. She exposes the threads of discontent in the poor and even the rich, the insecurities that live within the young boys that can turn them into terrorists, not even realizing the consequences of their reckless behavior. Lost and confused, they turn to the radical approach to Islam, worship their Imams and are too immature to realize the frightening implications of their behavior or the devastating consequences. They think no further than the moment and are simply not able to make rational decisions. These young rebels often observe the behavior of others, interpreting with the eye of the religious zealot, creating explanations that are misleading and overblown, which then leads them to radical retributive behavior that is not grounded in reality. Their solutions are often barbaric. The book illustrates how the culture might encourage a misunderstood young man to commit heinous acts, in the name of his religion. It shines a light on both the privileged and underprivileged, offering explanations for how both are led down the path of radicalism by home life, greed, the political environment, deprivation, emotional neediness, and a need for structure and direction. There were moments when the story seemed a trifle contrived and the events serendipitous, but despite this, the story is very engaging. About two thirds of the way through the book, the tension builds to a crescendo and the reader will feel real fear because the scene depicted is too close to the reality of today. We are all only too aware of the cruelty of which extremists are capable. She demonstrates how Bin Ladens might be born out of innocence and immaturity, encouraged by radical Imams who prey upon unsuspecting victims, unaware of the cost of what they might be called upon to do. The characters are clearly defined and the author’s style is inviting. You know immediately that you will enjoy the book. Parssinen wisely uses her words to demonstrate the workings of the two worlds, the Saudi and the American, as they come into conflict with each other. It is a wonderful book for a book club. The discussions on marriage, fidelity, women’s rights, counter cultures, religious freedom, democracy, family life, monogamy and freedom, to name a few, should be very entertaining and enlightening.

An absorbing family tale/thriller of the expatriate wife so absorbed in her husband's culture that she does not feel that subtle shift as he seeks the "other " she represented. And the stunning ways in which she finds that her children "are not her own."