In 2002 she moved back to Moscow[2] and graduated from the Maxim Gorky Literature Institute.

[6][7] In 2012, Ganieva participated in the International Writing Program's Fall Residency at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, IA,[8] and published her second novel, Holiday Mountain (Russian: Праздничная гора), also set in Dagestan.

Ganieva spoke about the book to the audience of the London bureau of the Voice Of Russia radio.

In April 2015, her novel Bride and Groom was released in Russia and listed for the major literary awards, such as the Russian Booker Prize, although it did not win.

[15][16] In June 2015, Ganieva was listed by The Guardian as one of the most talented and influential young people living in Moscow.