Book Review and Giveaway: Turquoise by Ayshe Talay-Ongan

Continuing our, 'and now for something different' vein we've been on this month: 

Synopsis: 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.

Review: Boy, what DOESN'T this book cover? It has loyalty, friendship, love, romance, ethnic divide, political and socioeconomic turmoil, immigration, and motherhood! WHEW! I admit I had a hard time getting into the book. I just wasn't finding the characters likable, and the ethnic strife was more than I wanted to read at the moment. But then it seemed like the author caught her stride, and the book opened up, and the characters bloomed. They are flawed and human, to be sure, but in the end, that makes them more believable and honest. If you are looking for something different this Summer, this is the book. After all, doesn't 'true love' belong to Summer?

About the Author: Ayshe Talay-Ongan is an emeritus academic and still teaches in various forums. She is the author of three textbooks in developmental psychology. She lives in Sydney with her family and Simba, her cat. Turquoise is her first novel. Its sequel, Emerald, is currently under way.

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Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook, free of charge, from JKS Communications, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or other, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it