Mistress of the Persian Boarding House

A stirring, intimate novel inspired by the life of Marina’s paternal grandmother.

Born into the elegant comfort of upper-class Russian society at the turn of the twentieth century, Zina yearns for independence and a life she can call her own. After the Bolsheviks topple the Czarist government, she narrowly escapes with her husband and adopted daughter. But once they arrive in Tehran, tragedy strikes again, and she finds herself alone and impoverished.

At a modest boarding house, Zina must sta...