Divorce Turkish Style

August 17, 2015
A small newspaper item reporting the untimely death of Sani Ankaraligil, an environmental activist and the soon-to-be ex-wife of the heir to one of Turkey’s heftiest fortunes, is about all it takes to intrigue amateur sleuths Kati Hirschel and her friend and employee, Fofo, in Aykol’s chatty third outing for the spunky Istanbul mystery bookshop owner (after 2013’s Baksheesh). Kati and Fofo manage to find more than a few people who might have wanted the fetching blond dead, starting with the pollution-generating factory owners who turned her childhood village into a sulfurous toxic wasteland. Add rumors of a couple of lovers to the mix—one Sani’s now-married college sweetheart, the other a younger pop star—and the inquisitive duo are inclined to disagree with the police view of the case as a tragic accident. The twist-filled plot careens through Istanbul as unpredictably as the traffic, the final destination ultimately less important than the scenic journey to get there.