Summer Heat

by Defne Suman

'Vivid, evocative and tender.' Elif Shafak

'In our family, secrets were buried deep like treasure, never to be spoken of...'

1974. Melike should be school is shut and her parents have stopped hosting parties for their rowdy political friends. But she's scared. She can tell from her parents' urgent whispers about prison, invasion and military coups that Istanbul is changing. So when the family relocate to a quaint village in the south, Melike is hopeful life might get better. And for a while, it does. But then her beloved father disappears...

2003. Nearly three decades have passed, and Melike has done her best to move on. But despite her successful career as an art historian and a husband who adores her, she has always felt a lingering discontent. When she meets mysterious – and extremely handsome – stranger Petro, Melike feels her fortunes changing. But Petro isn't who he says he is. And when Melike uncovers his true identity, she also lays bare a lifetime of hidden pasts...

With a backdrop of the Turkish army's occupation of Cyprus in 1974, Summer Heat explores family secrets, tangled identities and one woman's place in her country's devastating history.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Book Club, Turkish Literature, Summer, Contemporary, Historical

414 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 24, 2025

About the author

Defne Suman was born in Istanbul and grew up on Prinkipo Island. She gained a Masters in sociology from the Bosphorus University and then worked as a teacher in Thailand and Laos, where she studied Far Eastern philosophy and mystic disciplines. She later continued her studies in Oregon, USA and now lives in Athens with her husband. The Silence of Scheherazade was first published in Turkey and Greece in 2016 and is her English language debut.

Reviews

[Roman Clodia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love, family, war

Suman has a lovely ease and warmth in her writing but this is distinctly more 'women's fiction' (I hate that patronising label! but what's an alternative?) than litfic. It can feel a bit too easy and unnuanced, lacking complexity both in the story that's told and the use of language. That said, the main characters are boldly delineated, especially Melike and her father, and Melike's story of her childhood is done with compassion and a nice sense of a young girl's perspective, even if there's a rather simplistic psychology to Melike's behaviourthat she had so many lovers because she was searching for her father.

The war here is the invasion and, later, division of Cyprus in the 1970s and the central atrocity is one that both characterises modern warfare far too often, and which is central to many books in this genre targeting women readers. I think what I'm saying is that the geography might change but I've read this story, in this style, many times before. It's unashamedly aiming at the heart, and pulls it off, too.

What I especially like is the evocation of the setting, first Istanbul and then Cyprus. Suman has a deft and sensual way of describing place, and scents are especially strong: rose water, pine, jasmine perfume the pages.

I'm also a sucker for father-daughter stories so ended up abandoning my more critical faculties and had a good emotional wallow, complete with tears!

I'd suggest fans of Kristin Hannah and books like The Kite Runner should check this out.

Thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC via NetGalley

[Kyriakos S Kyriakou · Rating 4 out of 5]

Με ανάμοιχτα συναισθήματα τελείωσα το βιβλίο, που με ταξίδεψε στα τρία πιο αγαπημένα μέρη του κόσμου για μένα (δεν τα αποκαλύπτω για να μην κάνω σπόιλερ). Θα κρατήσω το ποιο έντονο και συνάμα λυτρωτικό, την συγχώρεση! Αυτή που επουλώνει πληγές και ανοίγει πύλες για ένα καλύτερο μέλλον!
Για περισσότερα: https://anotherlookforyou.blogspot.co...

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summer Heat is a complex, realistic, engaging, and occasionally heartbreaking narrative. It is a summery novel with a wonderful and bitter taste of Turkish and Greek culture and history. The author's storytelling glides through time with outstanding ability in conveying the characters' life stories and struggles. It's been a long time since a book I read captured my thoughts and won me over, like this one. The language was stunning, and it flowed seamlessly. While reading it, there were moments where I was so shocked by what I'd read that I wanted to take a break to process it all, but the story wouldn't let me go, so I kept reading and reading and getting engrossed. All the characters, from our main character, Melike, to Petro, Safinaz, Orhan, Gulbahar, and Eleni, are genuine, realistic, and loyal to the narrative. It was a valuable novel that, through family history, brought together many places, such as Turkey’s Istanbul, its Buyukada, Greece’s capital Athens, at a certain point even Germany, and eventually the island of Cyprus, weaving together entangled lives and family secrets, as well as the unique perspectives of each character and their place in the plot. The author described sorrow, grief, love, abandonment, and reunion wonderfully. Engaging, honest, and heartfelt; very emotional yet still realistic. The author treated this story meticulously, which is beautifully translated into the strong psychological component of the characters and the historically significant importance of the plot. It's a novel with good literary taste and a compelling tale. Once begun, it is impossible to put down! 

Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for providing me with an ARC of this beautiful translation!

[A. Raca · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Belki de vatan dedikleri buydu. Ortak kaderi ve kederi paylaşan büyük bir aile."

İyi bir aile hikayesi Yaz Sıcağı...
Resmen Melike ne yaptı acaba diye meraktan bırakamadım. Ailelerde konuşulmayanlar, kaderlerin bir yerden sonra birbirine benzemesi, iç içe geçmiş hayatları güzel vermiş yazar.
Kıbrıs Rumları ile Türkleri arasındaki dostluk/ düşmanlık kalp kırıcıydı. Ama yazarın bir çok şeyi araştırıp objektif baktığı çok açık. Açık, yargısız, arkadaşça...
Mavi Orman'dan sonra yazarın romanlarındaki anne/ baba ilişkilerini kafada oturtmak daha güzel oluyor.
Umarım daha çok yazar...

[Ena u zemlji knjiga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Defne Suman svoje bogato iskustvo (odrasla je na prelijepoj Bujukadi, godinama živjela na Tajlandu, Laosu, u Americi, danas je jedna od najtraženijih joga instruktorica, živi u Atini...) utkala je u ovaj roman i stvorila predivnu priču o odrastanju, porodici, ljubavi, identitetu, a što je važnije od svega o dvije predivne zemlje – Turskoj i Kipru. Ponovo sam u mislima prošetala prelijepim Istanbulom, živopisnim Fenerom koji me prošle godine u augustu oduševio svojim uskim ulicama i starim kućama, svjedocima bogate historije grada, te Kiprom, destinacijom za koju priželjkujem da ću uskoro posjetiti. Čitajte, vjerujem da će i vas obuzeti.

[Amina Hujdur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Odlična. Odlična i odlična!
Podijeljeni Kipar, neostvarena ljubav, porodične tajne...
Oduševila me. Stil pisanja je jedinstven.

[Georgia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Δείτε επίσης και στο Chill and read

Η Μελίκε και ο Πέτρος, μια Τουρκάλα κι ένας Έλληνας, θα συναντηθούν για πρώτη φορά στο Φανάρι. Η ιστορική συνοικία, έχει μεγάλη σημασία για τη Μελίκε, καθώς εκεί πέρασε ένα μεγάλο κομμάτι από τα παιδικά της χρόνια, παρέα στη γιαγιά της τη Σαφινάζ. Θεωρεί τυχαίο που ο Πέτρος επέλεξε να συναντηθούν στην εκκλησία όπου άναψαν οι δυο τους κερί πριν από τόσα χρόνια!

Η Μελίκε και ο Πέτρος θα δεθούν αμέσως και θα νιώσουν πολύ κοντά ο ένας στον άλλο. Κι αυτό γιατί η τοποθεσία συνάντησής τους, κάθε άλλο παρά τυχαία είναι. Ο Πέτρος θα φέρει αναμνήσεις στη Μελίκε. Θύμισες που πάλευε καιρό να ξεχάσει και μυστικά καλά κρυμμένα θα έρθουν στο φως και θα αναγκάσουν τη Μελίκε να κάνει αυτό που απέφευγε τριάντα χρόνια τώρα!

Μια ιστορία αγάπης θα εξελιχθεί στις σελίδες αυτού του βιβλίου, με συναισθήματα δυνατά, σε μια καρδιά που είχε μάθει να μένει στην επιφάνεια. Οι αναμνήσεις της ηρωίδας, θα δώσουν την εικόνα της Κωνσταντινούπολης αλλά και της Τουρκίας, σε χρόνια που έχουν περάσει και πονάνε και τους δύο λαούς. Λάθη του παρελθόντος θα έρθουν να στοιχειώσουν το σήμερα και τα αμέτρητα “γιατί” κάποια στιγμή θα απαντηθούν, μα η απάντηση που θα δώσουν θα είναι πολύ διαφορετική από ότι θα περίμενε η ηρωίδα.

Οι πράξεις μας έχουν αντίκτυπο στους άλλους. Είτε το θέλουμε είτε όχι, κάποιοι θα πονέσουν, θα πληγωθούν. Κάποιοι θα ζούνε με τις ενοχές, γι’ αυτά που οι πράξεις τους προξένησαν σε άλλους ή για αυτά που νομίζουν ότι ώθησαν τους άλλους να πράξουν. Οι ανθρώπινες σχέσεις είναι περίπλοκες. Δεν φτάνει μόνο η αγάπη. Αλλά και αυτή θα πρέπει να δίνεται απλόχερα σε όλους τους αγαπημένους μας. Ποτέ με το σταγονόμετρο, γιατί τότε είναι επικίνδυνο να χαθεί και αυτός που τη δέχεται τη φοβάται κιόλας.

Το δεύτερο βιβλίο της Δάφνης Σούμαν που μεταφράζεται στα Ελληνικά θα μας μελαγχολήσει αλλά θα μας βάλει και να σκεφτούμε τις πράξεις μας, τις σχέσεις μας, τις συμπεριφορές μας.

[Tessa · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 very slow and had a lot of flashbacks in
Also did not like the main character one bit

[Renklikalem · Rating 5 out of 5]

yeni romanin cikmasina artik sayili gun kalmisken, yazarin eski kitaplarindan birini, yaz sicagi’ni okudum.
benim icin hikayenin, kitabin guzelligi disinda soyle nefis bir yani daha oldu, bir suredir okuduklarim arasinda beni bu kadar icine alan, sarip sarmalayan olmamisti. soluksuz akti gitti, kurgusuyla da, diliyle de cok iyi geldi. bir aralik okuduklarim beni oyle sarsti ki biraz molaya ihtiyac duydum fakat hikaye birakmadi, okumaya devam ettim.
melike, orhan, safinaz, gulbahar, petro, eleni… ic ice gecmis hayatlar, aile sirlari ve mubadele hikayeleriyle orulmus istanbul, buyukada, atina, almanya ve nihayet kibris’i bir araya toplayan, her bir karakterin ve mekanin hikayeye katkisi cok kiymetli bir romandi.
okuyunuz, okutunuz!

[Zoe Giles · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

summer isn’t quite over… yet. at least with my September reads. There is nothing I love more than picking up a book you have never heard of before but gravitate towards on a table in a bookshop, and then it turns into a phenomenal read. Summer Heat is a translated fiction from Turkey & it completely hit the mark. Set in a dual timeline of an art historian’s childhood in 1974 during the Turkish Army’s invasion of Cyprus and adulthood in 2003, we follow her journey unravelling secrets about her family, past and future. Melike is a boldly complex & realistic protagonist navigating grief, parent-child relationships, love & passion. Furthermore, the featured landscapes of Istanbul, Buyukada, Athens & Cyprus play characters themselves, threaded into the identity of the story itself. I was utterly captivated.

[Xristina Liosi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Το κέρδισα σε ένα διαγωνισμό, δεν νομίζω να το αγόραζα ποτέ απο μόνη μου. Ελαφρώς μπερδεμένο στην αρχή τουλάχιστον, αλλά τελικά μου άρεσε. Ηταν ενδιαφέρουσα η ματιά και ο παραλληλισμός στις κουλτούρες Ελλάδας και Τουρκίας.Φυσικά μου άρεσε και ο απαγορευμένος έρωτας...όπως πάντα βρίσκω οτι ξεφεύγει απο το "νορμάλ" ρομαντικό...

[Bookish Bluestocking · Rating 4 out of 5]

Η πρώτη μου επαφή με την συγγραφέα Defne Suman ήταν κάτι παραπάνω από ικανοποιητική. Φίλες που είχαν διαβάσει το βιβλίο είχαν εκπλαγεί όταν τους έλεγα ότι ο ελληνικός εκδοτικός οίκος το πλασάρει σαν μια ιστορία απαγορευμένου έρωτα μεταξύ μιας Τουρκάλας και ενός Έλληνα. Μάλιστα, μία γέλασε και μου είπε ότι δεν θα μου αποκαλύψει το κέντρο βάρους του βιβλίου αλλά ότι θα με αφήσει να το ανακλύχω μόνη μου. Και είχε απόλυτο δίκιο να μην το κάνει!
Το βιβλίο λοιπόν είναι η αποδόμηση της ζωής μιας γυναίκας, η απογύμνωση των ανασφαλειών, κάθε φοβίας της, η επεξήγηση της συμπεριφράς της και στο τέλος η αποκάλυψη και διαπίστωση ότι ο άνθρωπος είναι πολύ μικρός μπροστά στην ομαδική αγριότητα και ότι δεν κουβαλάει εκείνος το βάρος του κόσμου σαν τον Άτλαντα αλλά μόνο μικρά κομματάκια ευθύνης, χαράς και επενέργειας με τους άλλους.
Η ηρωίδα η Μελικέ είναι μια "δυτική" Τουρκάλα, παντρεμένη με έναν ευλατάστατο σύζυγο που της δίνει χώρο να ζήσει τη ζωή της. Η ίδια κουβαλάει παιδικά τραύματα λόγω εγκατάλειψης και εξαφάνισης του πατέρα της όταν ήταν 11 χρονών, χωρίς να της έχει δοθεί εξήγηση και χωρίς οικογενειακό υποστηρικτικό περιβάλλον. Προσπαθεί μέσω εφήεμρων σχέσεων να καλύψει το κενό που της άφησε η απουσία του πατέρα, η αδιαφορία της μάνας και η γαφνική απώλεια του μόνου κοντινού της ανθρώπου, της γιαγιάς από πατρική γενιά.
Το βιβλίο είναι ένα ψυγογραφικό sudoku από αυτά που αγαπάει η ηρωίδα και την κάνουν να αισθάνεται καλά. Αρχικά η συγγραφέας παρατηρεί και καταγράφει με εξαιρετική γραφή - εδώ πρέπει να παρατηρήσω ότι η μεταφράστρια έκανε καταπληκτική δουλειά, η απόδοση είναι και η ίδια λογοτεχνικό πόνημα - τις μεταπτώσεις και τις αντιδράσεις της Μελικέ και σιγά σιγά μας δίνει το κλειδί που μας βάζει στα κλειδωμένα δωμάτια του ψυχισμού της. Μου αρέσει ποολύ ο τρόπος γραφής και το ξετύλιγμα των συναισθημάτων της Μελικέ, η οποία κατά τη διάρκεια του βιβλίου μαθαίνει για το παρελθόν της, συμφιλιώνεται με αυτό και ξαναπαίρνει τη ζωή της στα χέρια της αντί να αφήνεται στα χέρια άλλων.
Εχει εκδοθεί στα ελληνικά άλλο ένα βιβλίο της, θα είναι μέσα σε αυτά που θα πιάσω σύντομα.

[ValTheBookEater]

favourite read of the year so far. I was savouring it because going back to the book would become the most exciting part of my day. this story is crafted like a house of cards. the back-and-forth between timelines, family members or revelations wasn't confusing and the prose was engaging, not shying away from its political and historical contexts. the characters were also quite compelling and their traumatic experiences all recounted with care.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Defne Suman like nobody else writes about horrible and difficult things with such warmth and care, that you don´t want to stop reading her stories.
Summer Heat is not a fun read. It´s about people unwillingly entangled in a cruel history vortex. Turkey never liked Christians or any other infidels. The last hundred and fifty years are marked by blood. The Ottoman Empire had a mission of spreading Islam far and wide. When they failed to conquer Europe, they continued their mission closer to home. They slaughtered over a million people, which is known today as the Pontic Genocide. This didn´t end there, the systematic harassment, discrimination and occasional violence keeps continuing today. Do you know why Cyprus is divided in half? How did it happen? I knew something, but not a lot. This book clarified the matter. Just remember that this is a work of fiction, not a historical account.
When history happens, when big guys quarrel between themselves (tsars, kings, sultans etc) it´s the ordinary people who suffer the most. Always. When two very different cultures clash there are no victors, only losers and victims. Defne writes about suffering. Because people in Turkey and their neighbors have been suffering for centuries. This affects generations of people who cannot overcome their trauma.
So we see the turbulent history of one particular family. They are Greek Christians, which means they´re a very unwanted part of society. Three generations of this family have been affected by the history and cultural conflict, but each in a different way. Every person seems to be having a secret, a shadowy episode in the past. Everyone loved and lost. The dynamics between family members are troublesome. Nothing is clear. There is a lot of love but it´s very difficult, broken love. It´s this type of bond, that requires a lot of care and patience to be repaired. But what if someone doesn´t care enough?
The most enjoyable part of this book is the historical aspect of the conflict. The family's story is touching and well-presented. However, Melike, the main character, and the youngest family member is somehow frustrating. Her emotional and irrational behavior and inner thoughts don´t make her very likeable. Maybe Defne has made her character this way on purpose, to show that even though Melike never experienced personally any violence, she is still affected by her family's trauma. This is why she is the way she is.
Let´s look at this story as a warning. The fighters of Islam aren´t friendly. Two years ago 50 people died in a fire of the Coptic Church in Egypt. The firefighters weren´t in a rush to come over and help despite being only two blocks away. Last year we saw another ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh, a land taken from Armenia by Azerbaijan. Armenia and Georgia are the only Christian countries in the region and they don´t have any allies around. There are countless examples. Thank goodness we have Defne who tells the world about crimes committed by Turkey. This is a part of history that today's Turkiye desperately tries to erase.

[Betul Pehlivanli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oldum olası mübadele romanlarını severim ama ucu Kıbrıs’a bağlanan bu hikaye benzerlerinden farklıydı.Kıbrıs Rumlar’ının da,Kıbrıs Türkler’inin de kötü niyetli kişiler ( Rumlar’dan intikam almaya çalışan Türkler ve Türkler’den intikam almaya çalışan Rumlar) sebebiyle büyük acılar çektiklerini anlatan satırları okumak cidden zordu...Acıyı,hüznü,aşkı, terk edilmeyi ve kavuşmayı öyle güzel anlatmış ki yazar.Defne Suman’a bir kez daha bayıldım.Anlatım da hikaye de inanılmaz akıcıydı.Vaktim olsa bir gün içerisinde okuyup bitirebilirdim.Ben bu hüzünlü hikayeyi çok sevdim.Defne Suman ile tanışmadıysanız,hemen bir kitabını edinin ve okumaya başlayın.Herkese gönül rahatlığıyla tavsiye ediyorum...

[belisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

sonuna kadar okuyamadım, birkaç bölüm kaldı
storytel e-kitabı yayından kaldırdı, zaten boş bir zamanda başlamıştım
sonunu da merak etmediğim için kitabı almayacağım...

böyle kitapları hikaye temelli olarak değerlendiriyorum, kitap sadece hikayeden oluşuyor, bu da şu demek derin tahliller yok, karakter çözümlemesi çok kısıtlı, edebiyat güzel olsa da sınırlı, bu nedenle hikayeler insanlar anlatılanlar ilginç olsa da böyle okumalar çerez gibi geliyor.

Bu yaz Nermin Yıldırım'ı dinledim storytelde mesela, hikaye ilginç anlatım yeterli olsa da bana hitap etmediği için aa başka kitaplarını da okuyayım hissi oluşmuyor, rastlarsam okurum diyorum...

[Gülen Erendag · Rating 5 out of 5]

İki kerede bitiriverdim, baştan sona soluksuz, aldı beni götürdü Melike'nin hikayesi. Sürükleyici, içten, kalpten... Duygusal ama gerçekçi. Yüksek bir bilinç ve birikimle ele alınmış, psikolojik yönü çok güçlü aynı zamanda da tarihi...
Her karakter sahici, samimi. Sanki hepsini hep tanıyormuşum hissiyle benimsedim.
Başladığım andan itibaren bırakmak istemedim ama bitmesini de istemedim!

[Funda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yorum yazmam çok fazla ama bu kitaba borcum olduğunu hissettim. Teşekkür etmezsem, kozmik bir borç kalacakmış gibi üzerimde... Ben Defne Suman'ı Mavi Orman kitabı ile tanıdım. Sonra İnsanlık Halleri geldi benimle Almanya'ya. Saklambaç'ı heyecanla ısmarladım, meselesi- aslında Türkiye coğrafyasının en kadim derdi, Doğu-Batı; gelenek-modernite- beni heyecanlandırmıştı. Romanı okudum ama yazarı daha çok seviyordum. Bir ilk romandı elbette, bir yas dönemi yazılmıştı, muhtemelen de kendini yazdırmıştı roman.
İki gün önce Yaz Sıcağı'nın aldım elime, sıcaktan bunaldığım bir gün. Gün, geceye karıştı, gecenin sessiz serinliğinde elimden bırakamadan iki günde bitirdim. Sevdim elbette, çok fazla yazılmış hatta yorulmuş bir konuyu bunca taze bir nefesle anlatmak... Benzer bir aile hikâyesinin, kuşakların yükünü sayfalarda paylaşmak. Yine iyi geldi, yine iyileştirdi bir yerleri Suman'ın şefkatli kelimeleri. Ama hayret daha baskın bir histi. Saklambaç'tan sadece bir kaç yıl sonra bu kadar yetkin bir eseri kaleme almak. Kurgusu, kelimeleri, melodrama kaçmadan boğazınızı, gözlerinizi yakan bir hikâye örmek... Söylemek istedim, teşekkür etmek elim kalbimde.

[Katie Kacher]

This book was great in my opinion. Lots of good quotes and a beautiful setting.

The book follows a woman as she is exposed to new information about her past and her family. It felt intimate and moving to follow the woman as she came to terms with, assessed, and tried to change how her past influences her current feelings, impulses, and beliefs

The narrative switches between the present time and different moments from the main character’s adolescence. The author, translator, editors and whoever else was involved did a wonderful job placing the flashbacks. The story structure felt so natural that it’s hard for me to understand how it was manufactured by a writer rather than it being something that occurred spontaneously in the character’s mind as new experiences stirred up memories from the past.

This book deals with fate and how events and feelings carry across generations. In that sense, it had some similarities to Middlesex.

[Nuray Atacık · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yaz Sıcağı karakterlerin yaşam öykülerini anlatırken zamanda çok ustalıkla hareket ediyor. Romandaki her kişi geçmiş, bugünü, duyguları, tutkuları, kaygılarıya o kadar güçlü var oluyor ki, bir süre sonra hep birlikteymişiz gibi geliyor. Edebi tadı yerinde, hikayesi güçlü, okuması çok zevkli bir roman. Zevkle tavsiye ediyorum.

[Fatma Güneş · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yazarın Emanet Zaman kitabını daha çok severek okumuştum, bunun da dili konusu güzel ama bazı yerlerde sıkıldım.

[Rita Egan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summer Heat
by Defne Suman

You could be forgiven for assuming by the cover that this is a light and fluffy summer romance. While the central themes revolve around forbidden romance, there's nothing light about the content and yet the tone contains humour, flippancy and more than a touch of irony.

As Melike castigates herself for her inability to remain faithful to her handsome, successful and devoted husband, the questions about her constant search for elicit excitement mount. We learn early that her sense of abandonment by her father, her grandmother's mental health issues, her mother's remoteness and her brother's coldness are somehow linked to the 1964 expulsion of Greeks from Turkey, and through backwards glances in the narrative, the threads of secrets become revealed.

The locations of this story are splendidly told, from Istanbul to Athens, to Limassol and the mountain villages of Cyprus. As Melike unravels her family's skeletons, we get a history lesson on the violent crisis that split Cyprus along The Green Line when two great cultures, Greek and Ottoman, clashed with devastating consequences.

Earthy and sensual, this is a saga of a family that was pulled asunder. It is heartbreaking and thought provoking, asking questions about what it is to be a daughter, a sister, a wife, a lover. A summer novel bound to sweep you up and away.

Publication date: 9th May 2024
Thanks to@ #NetGalley and #HeadofZeus for the ARC.

[Abdullah Hussaini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summer Heat ialah sebuah novel yang menggabungkan trauma peribadi, rahsia keluarga dan sejarah negara. Ceritanya bergerak antara dua garis masa utama iaitu tahun 1974 (ketika campur tangan tentera Turki di Cyprus) dan 2003.

Melike, sejarawan seni yang berjaya dan tinggal di Istanbul. Di luar, kehidupannya tampak sempurna, memiliki kerjaya yang stabil dan suami yang setia; namun di dalam dirinya, dia gelisah dan sering dibayangi peristiwa masa kecilnya: ketika bapanya tiba-tiba menghilang, keluarganya terpaksa berpindah, dan suasana politik di sekelilingnya berubah secara mendadak.

Kehadiran seorang pemuda bernama Petro, telah mencuit sesuatu dalam dirinya, lebih daripada cinta, tetapi rahsia terdalam keluarganya. Penuh cium, senggama, ghairah, flashback dan kenangan, Defne Suman memang pandai menyeret pembaca untuk terus menyingkap halaman berikutnya.

*Novel ini dihadiahkan oleh pemilik Kalem Institut, pemegang hakcipta karya asal Defne Suman dalam bahasa Turki.

[Idilik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kitabı Balat/Yaz sıcağı yazar ile okumali türü için çok hızlı bir şekilde okudum hatta takside bitirdim buluşma yerine gelmeden... Defne Suman bu kurgu roman isini gitgide tadından yenilmeyecek bir kıvama getiriyor. Son iki romanında da kitabı bitirip kapattıktan sonra açıp bı tekrardan okuyorum başlarını yeniden.. Çünkü bu yetenekli, sıcakkanlı, samimi yazarımız okurlarına jetonu hep progressif olarak düşürtuyor ve kitap bitince kocaman bir hiimmmmmm diyor okur. Hep yazsın hep okuyalim hata hep değişik semtleri kullansın dekor olarak ve biz de onunla yeniden keşfedelim yaşadığımız şehri. Yazarlığını geçtim insan olarakta tanımaktan/ tanışmaktan keyif aldım.. Hala kitaplarıyla tanışmadiysaniz hadi hadi koşun kitapçıya:)

[Brczdn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ender olarak sevmediğim roman karakterlerinden biri oldu Melike. Onun o bencilliği, sürekli kendine acıması, pasaklı halleri beni çileden çıkarsa da kitabın konusu o kadar güzel ki ve defne suman her zamanki gibi öyle yalın anlatmış ki çok severek hikayenin içine girerek okudum. Altını çizdiğim paragraflar oldu.
Melike babasının onları terk edip gidişini içine sindirememiş, annesi ile ilişkisini gerektiği gibi sürdürememiş bir kadın. Sevgiyi hep başka yerlerde başka ilişkilerde aramış.
Yıllar sonra babasından gelen davet acaba ona hangi kapıları aralayacak? Geç de olsa döne döne aradıklarını bu davet sayesinde bulacak mı? Ve çocukluğundan beri doğru bildikleri aslında sırlardan mı ibaretmiş? Yakın tarihimiz kıbrıs çıkartması hakkında da söze dökülmeyen gerçekler var. Mutlaka okuyun.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love this author, she writes such compelling stories. This novel sees the protagonist, Melike, delving into a mysterious family past she knew nothing about, travelling from Istanbul to Athens and on to Cyprus to uncover family roots she didn’t know existed. Melike is married and successful but somewhat unsatisfied with her life, when Petro shows up under the guise of being a producer scouting locations in Istanbul. Really, he was sent by the father she hasn’t seen in over 30 years, who abandoned her and her family when she was 11. The family mystery is an interesting one and beyond that, one thing I have consistently admired in Defne Sunam’s writings is the rich details evoking the Turkish background - the descriptions of food in particular are numerous and stimulate the senses in a way that give you a real feel of the time and place.

My thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher, Head of Zeus, for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this on the shelves of the Bookhive in Aylsham. I have always been interested in Istanbul and was keen to read a novel set in Cyprus during ‚troubles.‘ Melike tells her story, which is contemporary, butcovers three generations of her family. I had not read a novel like it before but really enjoyed her style. I have not been to Istanbul or Cyprus or Buyukada but feel I know them a little now. The female perspective of what happened in Cyprus in 1974 was enlightening.

[Rocelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5⭐️ I feel so conflicted rating this book. I absolutely loved the plot, the background and learning more about Cyprus’ history. And I’m also a sucker for father-daughter relationships. But my goodness, I hated the slow pace of this book and the unlikable main character. Only around page 150/200 did it really become interesting to read. And I skipped all of the long and tiresome emotional outbursts by Melike (especially when it comes to men).

[Sibel Kaçamak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hızla okunan sürükleyici bir hikaye. Suman aile sırlarını açmayı seviyor, bunu da gayet güzel başarıyor. Yanında kültürel toplumsal psikolojik gözlemler de hediyesi oluyor. Kişisel olarak Emanet Zaman'ı daha fazla sevdim. Okur daima verilenden fazlasını ister ya Safinaz'ın iyice detaylı öyküsünü çok merak ettim, bir ikinci cilt olsa hiç fena olmazdı.