Jacob’s Ladder by Ludmila Ulitskaya

The latest work by one of Russia's best living authors is based on her own and her family's lives. The primary character is a lady who discovers her grandfather's letters and diaries, whom she has never met. Surprisingly, she discovers that their lives are inextricably linked.

The story features two plotlines: one concerning her grandpa, who was imprisoned during the Stalinist era, which causes family members to abandon him. The second is a modern-day woman with a tumultuous life and love story. Like Ulitskaya's earlier works, this one is full of intellectual narration, introspection, profound psychology, and investigation of something that ties a person with their roots in many (albeit not always positive) ways.

Link to watch: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41940270