The Oracle of Stamboul is the story of Eleonora Cohen, a child savant and the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy. Eleonora spends the first 7 years of her life in obscurity with her father and stepmother in Constanta. Her loving father recognizes and fosters her intelligence while her stepmother tries to hide and even kill it. When her father travels to Stamboul on business Eleonora, determined not to be left behind, stows away in his luggage. In Stamboul she is tutored and treated like the special child she is. But her father's contacts in Stamboul have secrets that soon bring her to the attention of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. Soon Eleonora is forced to make a life altering decision. To live her life for others or for herself.
The Oracle of Stamboul is a bit more on the mystical side then what I normally read but for this story I felt it worked well. Eleonora seems at once a ordinary child and a blessed being. I wanted to bring Eleonora home and protect her from the world. Be prepared for a bittersweet, slightly painful ending but read it anyway for the lovely and often sad adventure of Eleonora Cohen.
The books you read are so different from the ones I choose. But, you make them sound so interesting that I have to immediately add them to my "books to read list." Expanding my reading can only be a good thing.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThank you Susan. I love books and like sharing them with everyone I can.
ReplyDelete