msbohlander's review
challenging
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
jade_valenzuela's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
100reads's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The writing is beautiful but this novel could have been only 100 pages. Too much repetition makes it boring. Otherwise would reread the first 100 pages. And Celile is a complex character.
rouge_red's review
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
A woman veeery coming into her own and the men who are obsessed by her by imbuing her with their own ideas about who she is and what she wants. She was raised with the idea of "being seen and not heard" by her beloved grandmother. But there comes a time I wished for more interiority (for a larger part of the story) from her because it was frustrating listening to these men talk around/about her. It was an interesting to, and at times felt like we were talking in circles, but it did feel realistic enough.
lleullawgyffes's review
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
logantmartin's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Tammy Wynnette said it best: "From the start most every heart that's ever broken was because there always was a man to blame."
Suat Dervis's writing style is simple in that mid-century dime-novel way. Paragraphs are often one sentence long, as if to say that the ten words you've just read are all there is to know about the subject at hand. Dervis is very direct about a character's emotions, but that directness leaves the reader feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount of passion contained in the words.
This novel follows a woman who has an affair with her husband's business partner. The conflict stems not from the men's competition over Celile, but their shared relationship with her. They are grappling with the conflicting ways that men view women, often simultaneously: as helpless virgins and as lying temptresses. Muhsin, the lover, believes that Celile has been sent to him by her husband as an offering in exchange for more favorable business terms; in other words, she is both a puppet and a manipulator. Ahmet, when he finds out about the affair, believes that Muhsin has stolen his wife from him even as he curses Celile for deceiving him.
Normally, writers are told to focus on characters' agency, especially when it comes to female characters. But here, Celile is systematically deprived of agency. She is totally at the whim of her husband's will, then of Muhsin's. The only decision she seems to make in this novel is to leave Ahmet. All along the way, Dervis makes it clear that Celile doesn't have many choices in life because she is an upper-class woman with no skills. Without her partners, she would fall into penury. Throughout the novel, it's clear what becomes of such women: they turn to sex work.
The relationships in this novel are complex and interesting because the characters have these flaws. It's reminiscent of Jane Austen, only without so much sitting around and talking. Men are all the same, it says, and searching for a good one is pointless, especially when you've already got a bad one at home. If you need a good cry, this novel is the one for you.
Suat Dervis's writing style is simple in that mid-century dime-novel way. Paragraphs are often one sentence long, as if to say that the ten words you've just read are all there is to know about the subject at hand. Dervis is very direct about a character's emotions, but that directness leaves the reader feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount of passion contained in the words.
This novel follows a woman who has an affair with her husband's business partner. The conflict stems not from the men's competition over Celile, but their shared relationship with her. They are grappling with the conflicting ways that men view women, often simultaneously: as helpless virgins and as lying temptresses. Muhsin, the lover, believes that Celile has been sent to him by her husband as an offering in exchange for more favorable business terms; in other words, she is both a puppet and a manipulator. Ahmet, when he finds out about the affair, believes that Muhsin has stolen his wife from him even as he curses Celile for deceiving him.
Spoiler
Later, Muhsin discovers that Celile is pregnant with his child, he is angry with her, thinking that she has gotten pregnant on purpose to force him to marry her, while at the same time feeling sorry for her.Normally, writers are told to focus on characters' agency, especially when it comes to female characters. But here, Celile is systematically deprived of agency. She is totally at the whim of her husband's will, then of Muhsin's. The only decision she seems to make in this novel is to leave Ahmet. All along the way, Dervis makes it clear that Celile doesn't have many choices in life because she is an upper-class woman with no skills. Without her partners, she would fall into penury. Throughout the novel, it's clear what becomes of such women: they turn to sex work.
Spoiler
At the end, there is a moment where Celile contemplates suicide. But even then, she can't make the jump.The relationships in this novel are complex and interesting because the characters have these flaws. It's reminiscent of Jane Austen, only without so much sitting around and talking. Men are all the same, it says, and searching for a good one is pointless, especially when you've already got a bad one at home. If you need a good cry, this novel is the one for you.
aplanetarymind's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Read for Translated Lit book club. My first Turkish novel (in translation) - I was certainly feeling the stylistic differences, although whether this comes from the original language, the author's style, the original time period or just 'literary fiction' I could not say, but an interesting change from the styles I otherwise tend to read. Having finished the book, what strikes me most is its highly introspective nature, from which I think its looseness and far more non-linear arrangement derives. Without doubt the characters take precedence here, and I would even go to say that the novel is as much, if not more, three complementary character studies as a chronology of plotlines.
More...