'Decentring statist and media constructions of Chinese national security and foreign relations, Slavic Brides shows how geopolitics interface with the grounded realities of marriage migration and failed love. This book lends provocative insights into how femininity and whiteness are embodied in foreign wives, symbolising the realisation of China's sexualised national desires.' Elaine Ho, National University of Singapore 'Rich, nuanced, and deeply textured, this study of Sino-Slavic marriages offers unique insights into intimate geopolitics as well as the current political situation. A must read.' Franck Billé, UC Berkeley 'Treat yourself to this fascinating, original and compelling analysis of China's geopolitical strategies. Elena Barabantseva skillfully employs multiple methods and historically informed cross-disciplinary research to reveal the under-theorized yet powerful interplay of emotional, sexual, marital/familial, socio-cultural, economic, political and nationalist factors informing -- indeed, underpinning -- China's foreign policy.' V Spike Peterson, University of Arizona 'Elena Barabantseva's book explores Sino-Russian relations in a truly innovative way. Her fascinating analysis of the intimate geopolitics of post-Soviet brides in China shows how the PRC's state policies are informed by national desires, and how we need to understand the rise of China as a gendered and racialized experience.' William A. Callahan, Singapore Management University 'Pushing the boundaries of crossborder marriage studies, Barabantseva proposes 'intimate geopolitics,' a concept that deftly synthesizes Chinese imaginaries with lived courtship and marriage experiences of Slavic women who marry into China. Using multi-method research - encompassing media/digital analysis and extraordinary ethnographic empathy - this highly original study illuminates ongoing global recalibrations of geopolitics, racial hierarchies, and China's place in these shifting structures.' Louisa Schein, author of Minority Rules: The Miao and the Feminine in China's Cultural Politics
