I’m a part of the Elif Fan Club!
“The past lives within the present, and our ancestors breathe through our children.”
Summary - The story is centered around the characters of Asya Kazanc and Armanoush Tchakhmakhchian. It is set in Tucson, Arizona; San Francisco, California; and Istanbul, Turkey. The novel deals with their families and how they are connected through the events of the 1915 Armenian genocide.
Most summaries make this book seem more complicated than it actually is. You follow Asya. You follow Armanoush. Then you wait and see how their stories connect. It was beautiful. I absolutely love Shafak’s writing. What I wasn’t expecting was that ending, wowzers, it was GOOOOOD.
As many of you know when I find an author I love, I read their backlist and that is what I’m doing (with some previous #read friends who read Island of the Missing Trees) as we get closer to her newest book being published.
The ones we are reading: Bastard of Istanbul Forty Rules of Love Honor The Architect’s Apprentice Three Daughters of Eve
Most of us have read 10 Minutes and we all read Island of the Missing Trees together.
I’m very much looking forward to continuing this project - y’all know I love a backlist
Have you read any of Elif Shafak’s books? If you haven’t I highly recommend them.
Find The Bastard of Istanbul at the publisher →
Toni Rocchetti is a copy editor helping authors strengthen their narratives, deepen character arcs, and find the story that is already in the draft. She reads 80+ books a year across literary fiction, memoir, and nonfiction — and writes about what she is learning along the way. Work with Toni →
