Granta Books (February, 2017) ‘In Kassabova’s study, these tragic borderlands are brought to life with poetic grace, and her interaction with their inhabitants confers a haunting power on her journey.’ Colin Thubron
‘An exquisitely crafted blending of travelogue, memoir, dance history and some seriously good writing on the human condition, it delves deep into the obsessive nature of tango and vividly depicts a world full of beauty and heartbreak, love and loss.’ The Independent 'The exoticism here is reminiscent of Somerset Maugham's Borneo Stories and the quasi-hallucinogenic experiences of Paul Bowles's The Sheltering Sky.' The TLS
"Not many books on the travel shelves have the force of revelation, but this one does. Kapka Kassabova leads us into a country most of us have hardly read about with an elegant assurance, an acid wit and a heart-rending precision that can make you see the world quite differently. This book is a treasure." Pico Iyer