Last Letter from Istanbul
As seen:
By Lucy Foley, and and, Emma Gregory
avg rating
2 reviews
‘This will sweep you away for the summer. Lucy Foley blends a rich history, haunting secrets and a timeless love story’ Santa Montefiore, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Deverill series
1921 Each day Nur gazes across the waters of the Bosphorus to her childhood home, a grand white house, nestled on the opposite bank. Memories float on the breeze – the fragrance of the fig trees, the saffron sunsets of languid summer evenings. But now those days are dead. The house has been transformed into an army hospital, it is a prize of war in the hands of the British. And as Nur weaves through the streets carrying the embroideries that have become her livelihood, Constantinople swarms with Allied soldiers – a reminder of how far she and her city have fallen. The most precious thing in Nur’s new life is the orphan in her care – a boy with a terrible secret. When he falls dangerously ill Nur’s world becomes entwined with the enemy’s. She must return to where she grew up, and plead for help from Medical Officer George Monroe. As the lines between enemy and friend become fainter, a new danger emerges – something even more threatening than the lingering shadow of war. TweetReviews
Macclesfield Library Reading Group
Many thanks to The Reading Agency and Harper Collins for providing copies of Last Letter from Istanbul, Macclesfield Library Reading Group have enjoyed reading and discussing this delicate story of human behaviour in the reality of war.
The more we talked through the book, the characters and the plot the more it occurred how the huge themes of war, human nature, tradition, culture and love is told through a million small details in the book. The plot itself is not fast paced but each chapter we look through a window into each character and through their experience of daily life in the occupied city, we gain an understanding and an empathy with Nur, George, The Boy, The Prisoner and The Traveller .
“An interesting historical take on fascinating lives with a sad backdrop.”
“A historical eye-opener with no real “plot” but characters are well portrayed, a poignant read.”
“A Well written book about loss and war and the human minds ability to restrain feelings. An Excellent read.”
“A slow start, one needs to persevere to find an enjoyable read.”
“Although this book starts very slowly and it feels like a struggle it does get so much better. It is understated but the layers of complexity stay with you.”
This book is set in occupied Istanbul, just after the end of WW1. It follows the lives of four of the people as they live through this traumatic time and the book is split into bit-sized chunks as each person tells their tale. Nur, a Turkish lady, is struggling to support her mother and grandmother financially, but also emotionally as they come to terms with the fact that her brother, who has been missing in action for a long time will probably never return home. She has also “adopted” an Armenian orphan boy. Nur comes from a privileged background and her childhood days were spent in a large house which is now occupied by the Allied forces and used as a hospital. George is a British doctor who works in this hospital. As the narrative progresses the boundaries between friend and enemy, innocent and guilty start to become blurred.
Once the pace had picked up and I had got to know the characters and had an awareness of what was going on, I enjoyed reading this book. It is a gentle, reflective novel (despite the setting, which is harrowing at times), and essentially a slow-paced, but beautifully told story. There is a slight twist at the end which I hadn’t anticipated.
The biggest problem that I found with this book was the painfully slow start. If I hadn’t been committed to reading it I think I may well have given up. Although the pace did pick up a little, it never really reached much of a velocity. However, I’m glad I persevered. One further issue that I had is the writing style - each chapter is written from the point of view of one of the main characters which makes it very disjointed and difficult to get your teeth into.
This is the second Lucy Foley book I have read and I would certainly be willing to read more. In terms of this particular book, if you are looking for thrills or a page-turner I would probably advise going elsewhere. If you are happy with a slow burner, you are likely to enjoy it.
