My full name is Hilda Denize Pinto Samo Gudo Johannsen. Yes, you might want to think twice before asking me to spell it all out! I’m Brazilian, my husband is German, and we have lived in Mozambique, Moldova, Indonesia, and now India. 

For anyone who has spent decades as an expat trailing spouse, seeing your children leave the nest and your husband become a stay-at-home retiree is a major change of life, dynamics and pace.

My new novel tells the story of the interweaving lives of a British expat woman and her Filipina maid in Malaysia. It’s ultimately a tale of love, belonging and discovery — loosely based on my own experiences as a trailing spouse.

In 2008, I had an ideal life. I was working part-time for a chemical company as a supply chain implementation lead, and I was a part-time stay at home mom in the suburbs of Richmond, Virginia. It felt like I…

For my ninth move as a Navy wife, I traded in Seattle’s jeans-and-tattoos vibe for the power suits, prestige, and politics of Washington, D.C.

Since Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie died in November, I’ve been listening to “As Long As You Follow” on repeat, remembering how I once joked that it was the perfect song for the career expat.

My unpredictable life’s journey, complete with stumbles and rocky patches, has held me in good stead as an expat spouse.

My journey as a trailing spouse began with my wife’s job offer with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees in Ukraine. Six years later, we were fleeing for our lives.

Isn’t it amazing how we can see the same thing and come to such wildly different conclusions?

From Paris to London to Delhi, “Mademoiselle Prune” offers a fashion-forward spin on trailing spouse life.