Five Self-Obsessed Danes Make For A Surprisingly Fun And Sexy Summer Read

Waist Deep , the debut novel and international bestseller by Danish writer Linea Maja Ernst, reads like it's inspired equally by television sitcoms and A Midsummer Night's Dream. The premise of Waist Deep fits both genres, with an ensemble cast in a cinematic location: Five old friends from university, plus two partners, plus two children, all reunite at a summer house on a remote lake in Denmark for a week. The one where the gang gets back together!

Once everyone is there, hosts Karen and Esben announce their plan to get married at the end of the week, surrounded by their friends.The one with the surprise wedding! But like any friend group, there are subterranean tensions and histories, old crushes that revive in new locations. You can already picture the tagline rife with suspense: Will their relationships survive the week?

Like a play, or even a title sequence, Waist Deep begins with a cast of characters, mapping out relationships and personalities before the narrative gets going. There are the five old friends from university: