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A Liminal Melodrama
When Dilek heard the offer from Fuat, the doctor at the private clinic where she worked, she laughed it off. But Fuat was serious. He said he could make her look like Melisa, the famous influencer who had just left the clinic.
“I can make you look like her,” he said. “The next time she comes in, you’ll leave this clinic looking like her, and you’ll begin living her life. The cameras downstairs will catch you.”
Dilek stopped watching the woman giving an interview outside the clinic. She closed the curtain and stepped away from the window.
“Why her and not you?” Fuat said.
But Dilek knew Fuat could never pull it off alone. Only his partner, Bülent, the best plastic surgeon in Istanbul, could make Dilek look like Melisa. If he agreed.
The surgeries left Dilek looking neither like herself nor like the person she wanted to become. She was caught in between. She could not return to her old life, and the life she had dreamed of remained out of reach.
Dilek’s transformation is only the first fracture in a much larger story. The pursuit of justice through beauty will overturn a balance that is already destructive, already fragile. But there is another side to the story: what happens when the world believes someone else is you?
Blending psychological thriller with literary fiction, A Liminal Melodrama explores identity, obsession, beauty, power, and the terrifying fragility of being believed.
“I can make you look like her,” he said. “The next time she comes in, you’ll leave this clinic looking like her, and you’ll begin living her life. The cameras downstairs will catch you.”
Dilek stopped watching the woman giving an interview outside the clinic. She closed the curtain and stepped away from the window.
“Why her and not you?” Fuat said.
But Dilek knew Fuat could never pull it off alone. Only his partner, Bülent, the best plastic surgeon in Istanbul, could make Dilek look like Melisa. If he agreed.
The surgeries left Dilek looking neither like herself nor like the person she wanted to become. She was caught in between. She could not return to her old life, and the life she had dreamed of remained out of reach.
Dilek’s transformation is only the first fracture in a much larger story. The pursuit of justice through beauty will overturn a balance that is already destructive, already fragile. But there is another side to the story: what happens when the world believes someone else is you?
Blending psychological thriller with literary fiction, A Liminal Melodrama explores identity, obsession, beauty, power, and the terrifying fragility of being believed.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 6, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 28, 2026
***I received a free Kindle copy via Goodreads Giveaways in exchange for an honest review. ***
I tried, ok. I TRIED. Several times, actually, and this is just not for me.
Hard DNF. I am not sure if there is a translation issue, an AI written issue, or just plain ole bad writing that should have never seen the light of day, I do not know and at this point, I don't care.
This is CHOPPY. The book opens with the chapter header "Melisa". Ok, so we are following Melisa, seeing the world from her POV. NOPE, Melisa is legit being followed/stalked/watched by Dilek. The entire first page is SHE, SHE, SHE, SHE. We have a woman being watched by another female and we are just saying she?? We have it listed as Melisa but it's actually Dilek that we are reading thoughts and actions?
I had to reread the first couple of pages several times and by the 3rd time, I was annoyed and over it. I managed to make it to page 30 of this, after several attempts, the last being while I was sitting in the waiting area of a doctor's office. Feeling relief at hearing my name called, knowing that I was about to get stuck with several needles, but that being a better option than continuing to read this, let me know right then, there was no pushing through this. Forcing myself to see this to the end was going to make me dread reading, dump me back into a reading slump, as I was just going to choose to do any and everything BUT read if I pushed myself.
I just am not enjoying this, with the bad writing paired with subpar pacing that doesn't even allow the reader to get into the meat of the story before they become disinterested.
I want to feel bad for DNF'ing another won book but I did the math, I have quit on less than 9% of the books that I have won from giveaways, and 9% isn't much of anything, so yeah, I am DONE.
I tried, ok. I TRIED. Several times, actually, and this is just not for me.
Hard DNF. I am not sure if there is a translation issue, an AI written issue, or just plain ole bad writing that should have never seen the light of day, I do not know and at this point, I don't care.
This is CHOPPY. The book opens with the chapter header "Melisa". Ok, so we are following Melisa, seeing the world from her POV. NOPE, Melisa is legit being followed/stalked/watched by Dilek. The entire first page is SHE, SHE, SHE, SHE. We have a woman being watched by another female and we are just saying she?? We have it listed as Melisa but it's actually Dilek that we are reading thoughts and actions?
I had to reread the first couple of pages several times and by the 3rd time, I was annoyed and over it. I managed to make it to page 30 of this, after several attempts, the last being while I was sitting in the waiting area of a doctor's office. Feeling relief at hearing my name called, knowing that I was about to get stuck with several needles, but that being a better option than continuing to read this, let me know right then, there was no pushing through this. Forcing myself to see this to the end was going to make me dread reading, dump me back into a reading slump, as I was just going to choose to do any and everything BUT read if I pushed myself.
I just am not enjoying this, with the bad writing paired with subpar pacing that doesn't even allow the reader to get into the meat of the story before they become disinterested.
I want to feel bad for DNF'ing another won book but I did the math, I have quit on less than 9% of the books that I have won from giveaways, and 9% isn't much of anything, so yeah, I am DONE.
Did Not Finish
June 26, 2026This one just wasn’t for me.
July 21, 2026
I think I can perform plastic surgery now. Interesting idea but I think that I had a hard time following the characters well enough to understand but got the gist of it.
July 21, 2026
I feel as if I could perform plastic surgery now. It was an interesting ending but I think it just jumped to the end.
October 5, 2026
I received a digital copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway.
I liked the premise of this book, and it held my interest enough to finish it. I did find it confusing at times when a pair of characters were talking to each other. I wasn’t always clear which dialogue belonged to who; was it intentional? If not, then I think some tighter editing would have helped. And the ending felt rushed. Still, I would like to read more by this author
I liked the premise of this book, and it held my interest enough to finish it. I did find it confusing at times when a pair of characters were talking to each other. I wasn’t always clear which dialogue belonged to who; was it intentional? If not, then I think some tighter editing would have helped. And the ending felt rushed. Still, I would like to read more by this author
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews