Enjoy the NEWEST Multi-Award-Winning, June. 2020 version. Kindle & paperback exclusively from Amazon. (Used, poorly edited version should not be available but is sold by resellers.)
Gold Winner E-Lit Award (Multicultural Fiction), Bronze Winner IPPY Award (Best Adult Fiction E-Book), Finalist Foreword Review Book of the Year (Multicultural Fiction), Three Finalist Awards Next Generation Indie Book Contest (General Fiction, E-Book Fiction, and Chick Lit). Finalist IndieExcellence (Multicultural) and International Book Awards (Best New Fiction)

Sex, Sauna, and Sisu

Sex, sauna and sisu stir up a crazy stew when an unknown Finnish cousin and his hot friend burst into Alina Escala's quiet Silicon Valley life. In a robust but bumbling quest for love and belonging, Alina tolerates her outspoken cousin and pursues his alluring friend-while plagued by repressed grief, mind-boggling headaches, wacky dates, and some truly tragic hair days.

Cultures clash and passions peak as the ever-blunt Finns mix with Alina's crowd, resulting in a summer of surprising romantic entanglements.

From an exclusive, historic enclave in Northern California and the stunning Yosemite Valley to Helsinki and the remote waterside cottages of Finland, Alina's award-winning search for family is both an exploration of unknown Finland and the exploration of an unknown self.

Sex: Since the death of her parents and the clang of her biological clock, Alina desires a man and baby, family. As a constant reminder, her best friend Meredith has a lovable toddler with Alina's ex-boyfriend.

Sauna: any story permeated with the unique East-meets-West Finnish culture, history, and wisdom ("If tar, liquor and sauna do not help, the disease is fatal"), must include Finland's national pastime and sacred cleansing ritual.

Sisu is the classic Finnish quality of fortitude, grit, and sometimes foolish stubbornness that drives thirty-three-year-old Alina through a ribald summer of love and woe.

"FROM FINLAND WITH LOVE swept me away. I was on board and fully engaged from the very first scene to its satisfying ending. Alanko writes with humor and grace, deftly weaving moments of poignancy and longing with madcap antics and sparkling dialogue. Alina is an unforgettable character and the supporting cast of characters is rich, varied and utterly original. I highly recommend this book."-Vicky Mlyniec, Award-winning writer and editor

"FROM FINLAND WITH LOVE is studded with stunning descriptive prose about the American and Finnish landscape which had me yearning to go. I also loved learning about the Finnish culture which is described so beautifully. The inevitable disasters had me cringing and giggling in equal measures and despite her numerous mistakes, I never stopped rooting for Alina."-Nikki Mason, BestChickLit.com

"A wonderful, rich and funny book packed with engaging characters, witty dialogue, tender moments and indelible scenes filled with sweetness and longing, mishaps and misunderstandings, all told with a distinctive Finnish flare... and if you're at all curious what that means, you absolutely, positively have to read FROM FINLAND WITH LOVE."-Tom Parker, author of Anna, Ann, Annie: A Novel

From Finland with Love - pokkari, Englanti, 2013