Set against transcendent love, unrelenting hatred and loyalties to friends and family, Turquoise is the story of an enduring and passionate love affair between Yasmin and Renan, which spans two decades, two marriages and three continents.
Yasmin and her Armenian classmate Ani were oblivious to ethnic differences during their school years in Istanbul. Years later they run into each other, and Ani introduces Renan, her husband, to Yasmin. At that moment under the blazing autumn skies, as Yasmin locks eyes with Renan, she knows that she has come upon her destiny. But political tensions in their land soon force Renan, her secret love, and his family to immigrate to Sydney.
A few years on, Yasmin's diplomat father is appointed as the Turkish Consul General to Los Angeles where the family faces a devastating tragedy that will impact their lives in ways unfathomable. She is now forced to make a choice between passion that defines her and reason that guides her.
When so much is stacked against Yasmin and Renan, how can love possibly triumph? ~~synopsis from Goodreads
Check out the international giveaway at the bottom of this post and then come back tomorrow when Ayshe will be talking about the voices in her head.
My thoughts on Turquoise ~~
OMG! Don't you just LOVE this cover?? I think it is amazing! Okay ~ big breathe ~ I got that out of my system ~ now on to the book.
As I read the short bio of the author, I realized that she wrote a lot of her own life into this story. Turquoise takes place all over the world; Istanbul, Paris, New York, Sydney, San Francisco ~ all places that Ayshe has lived. Write what you know, right? So this story has a very international flavor to it. I loved reading about all the varied settings and customs.
I started this story expecting a troubled love story between a man and a woman. The reader does get that but there really is so much more here. I couldn't help thinking about all the other love stories within the story and wondering if the author was giving the title a double meaning?
There is the deep love between Yasmin and Renan, of course, but there are also so many other people in Yasmin's life that she loves; her family, of course, her good friend, Ani, but most of all, her beautiful daughter. I felt that their love was the deepest and purest love of all.
I have to admit that the story took a little bit for me to get into but then something clicked and I became totally engrossed in the book and didn't want to stop reading. Ayshe is working on the sequel to Turquoise and I am anxious to see what happens to Yasmin and Renan.
Having lived in Istanbul, New York City, San Francisco, Paris, Florence and Sydney, Ayshe Talay-Ongan is a true citizen of the world. Turkish by birth, American by citizenship and Australian by residence, Talay-Ongan has called Sydney home since 1989.
A psychologist (M.S., Ph.D., Columbia University), and emeritus academic, Talay-Ongan has three published textbooks in developmental psychology and dozens of research articles in academic journals.
Turquoise – A Love Story (January 31, 2012, Sid Harta Publishers) is her debut novel. The book captures the saga a love that spans two decades, three continents and two marriages, and is inspired by Talay-Ongan’s own life experiences. It's sequel, Emerald, is currently underway.
Talay-Ongan lives in Sydney, Australia with her family and Burmese cat Simba, who likes sleeping on her head.
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I received an complimentary e-book for my honest review.
