Julia Langbein – författare

A brilliantly funny debut novel that follows a writer lured to Los Angeles to adapt her feminist mermaid novel into a big-budget action film, who believes her heroine has come to life to take revenge for Hollywood's violations.

"Brilliantly sharp, funny, and thought-provoking, the gripping story of a woman trying to find her way in our chaotic world." -Madeline Miller, bestselling author of Circe

Broke English teacher Penelope Schleeman is as surprised as anyone when her feminist novel American Mermaid becomes a best-seller.  Lured by the promise of a big payday, she quits teaching and moves to L.A. to turn the novel into an action flick with the help of some studio hacks. But as she's pressured to change her main character from a fierce, androgynous eco-warrior to a teen sex object in a clamshell bra, strange things start to happen. Threats appear in the screenplay; siren calls lure Penelope's co-writers into danger.  Is Penelope losing her mind, or has her mermaid come to life, enacting revenge for Hollywood's violations?

American Mermaid follows a young woman braving the casual slights and cruel calculations of a ruthless industry town, where she discovers a beating heart in her own fiction, a mermaid who will fight to move between worlds without giving up her voice. A hilarious story about deep things, American Mermaid asks how far we'll go to protect the parts of ourselves that are not for sale.

A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF THE YEAR - "Sublime." -New York Times Book Review

"Brilliantly sharp, funny, and thought-provoking, the gripping story of a woman trying to find her way in our chaotic world." -Madeline Miller, bestselling author of Circe

Broke English teacher Penelope Schleeman is as surprised as anyone when her feminist, eco-warrior novel American Mermaid becomes a best-seller. But when Hollywood insists she convert her fierce, androgynous protagonist into to a teen sex object in a clamshell bra, strange things start to happen. Is Penelope losing her mind, or has her fictional mermaid come to life, enacting revenge against society's limited view of what a woman can and should be?

   American Mermaid follows a young woman braving the casual slights and cruel calculations of a winner-take-all society and discovering a beating heart in her own fiction: a new kind of hero who fights to keep her voice and choose her place. A hilarious story about deep things, American Mermaid asks how far we'll go to protect the parts of ourselves that are not for sale.

Regulatory reforms in the EU’s Eastern neighbourhood countries are not as sluggish as often perceived. Rule enforcement is happening despite the presence of domestic veto players who favour the status quo, the lack of EU membership perspective and the presence of Russia as an alternative governance provider.

Using Ukraine as a primary case study, this book examines why convergence with transnational market rules varies across different policy sectors within the Eastern neighbourhood countries. It analyzes the drivers of regulatory change and explores the conditions under which post-Soviet economies integrate with international markets. In doing so, it argues that the impetus for regulatory change in the Eastern neighbourhood lies in specific strategies of domestic empowerment applied by external actors. Furthermore, through the study of the impact of Western and Russian transnational actors, the book concludes that Russia’s presence does not necessarily hinder the integration of the EU’s Eastern neighbours with international markets. Instead, Russia both weakens and strengthens domestic support for convergence with transnational market rules in the region.

This book will be of key interest to students and scholars of European/EU studies and international relations, especially in the areas of regulatory politics, transnational governance, public policy, and post-Soviet transitions.

Regulatory reforms in the EU’s Eastern neighbourhood countries are not as sluggish as often perceived. Rule enforcement is happening despite the presence of domestic veto players who favour the status quo, the lack of EU membership perspective and the presence of Russia as an alternative governance provider.

Using Ukraine as a primary case study, this book examines why convergence with transnational market rules varies across different policy sectors within the Eastern neighbourhood countries. It analyzes the drivers of regulatory change and explores the conditions under which post-Soviet economies integrate with international markets. In doing so, it argues that the impetus for regulatory change in the Eastern neighbourhood lies in specific strategies of domestic empowerment applied by external actors. Furthermore, through the study of the impact of Western and Russian transnational actors, the book concludes that Russia’s presence does not necessarily hinder the integration of the EU’s Eastern neighbours with international markets. Instead, Russia both weakens and strengthens domestic support for convergence with transnational market rules in the region.

This book will be of key interest to students and scholars of European/EU studies and international relations, especially in the areas of regulatory politics, transnational governance, public policy, and post-Soviet transitions.