At 15, Meryem is raped by her uncle, the ruling sheik in her... Turkish village... she does not do her duty and hang herself, so her cousin... a young... veteran returned from fighting the Kurdish "terrorists," must take Meryem to Istanbul and murder her. On their journey, they meet up with a... professor who has fled his wife... Told from the alternating viewpoints of these 3 travelers, who change each other... novel by an eminent Turkish writer... gripping contemporary story... gets behind stereotypes of exotic Islam to reveal the diversity in individual people and the secrets and lies, cruelty and love, in family, friendship, and public life.