AshehougAgency

Beautiful Prospects

Newlywed Emma deserves only the best. That’s why she has left everything behind and moved with her husband Andreas to Venezuela, where her new upper-class existence offers everything she ever dreamt of. She loves the sweet desserts, the shopping sprees and the cold wine; she even loves the danger she runs of being mugged in the streets – it makes her feel valuable, treasured.

But soon, Andreas can no longer satisfy Emma’s needs for love and attention and in her hunt for better options, Emma sets off a spiral of destruction that sucks in everyone around her.

A distorted, Bovaryish portrait of a self-absorbed woman, Beautiful Prospects is a mercilessly heartbreaking novel, written with intensity and humor of the darkest kind.

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Praise for Beautiful Prospects:

“Now that we are rich, isn’t it time to pay someone to do the boring and heavy work, without feeling guilty? Røed’s novel gives us some new perspectives. More than a question of conscience, isn’t it a question of whether such a development will do something with us, and especially the next generation. I therefore recommend that you read  Beautiful Prospects, because it is both good and relevant.” (Dag og Tid)

“a well-written, but also strange story, that through an uneventful intrigue builds to a surprisingly melodramatic climax.” (Dagens Næringsliv)

“A fascinating portrayal of the heavy lightness of a rich person’s life … Tone Røed writes herself elegantly into Emma’s head and lets every line of dialogue and every observation be filtered through her before the reach the paper. There is enough outer action to let the reader wonder where the story will go.”
(Dagsavisen)

“convincing … Everything seems authentic”
(Stavanger Aftenblad)

“Emma’s boredom and insecurity is depicted in a straightforward and precise prose, with the same unease that drives the main character to ever more extreme acts. The result is a sore and engaging portrait … Last but not least, this book is a striking portrayal of the cultivation of physical perfection and eternal youth of our times. The unease is what drives the story forward, and it captivates the reader until the very last page”
(Aftenposten K)

“a novel which has every opportunity to become one of the most important to be published in Norway this year … so far this is the breakthrough of the year … With Beautiful Prospects Tonje Røed has written a novel it is impossible to remain indifferent to. Not necessarily because of the theme, but rather the brilliant way in which the storytelling pulls the reader in. Through the interplay between a deceptive surface and self destruvtive undercurrents she creates a tension that grabs the reader from the first moment, and that is released in a dramatic climax.”
(Hamar Arbeiderblad)

“An intens portrait of a total inner meltdown … The author Røed masters the art of being political without making self-righteous assertions. There is a sting in her writing, but she takes careful aim before she fires. This is a writer worth taking note of.”
(Adresseavisen)