The Oracle of Stamboul

A Novel

By: Michael David Lukas

Narrated by: Mozhan Marno

Set in the heart of the exotic Ottoman Empire during the first years of its chaotic decline, Michael David Lukas’ elegantly crafted, utterly enchanting debut novel follows a gifted young girl who dares to charm a sultan—and change the course of history, for the empire and the world. An enthralling literary adventure, perfect for readers entranced by the mixture of historical fiction and magical realism in Philip Pullman’s The Golden Compass, Orhan Pamuk’s My Name is Red, or Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude, Lukas’ evocative tale of prophesy, intrigue, and courage unfolds with the subtlety of a Turkish mosaic and the powerful majesty of an epic for the ages.

A Haunting Story

The story of Eleanora Cohen unfolds as if one has come upon a ball of silvery yarn and lets it unfurl, following it as one is led through a precocious child’s mind and the paths of a magnificent exotic city. Mysterious birds appear and vanish leaving the reader/listener with more questions than answers. The author’s writing flows as beautifully as the Bosphorus.

Okay, Not Fabulous

Would you try another book from Michael David Lukas and/or Mozhan Marno?

I probably would not try another book by this author. I read it because it was a book club pick, but did not enjoy it really. I wasn't crazy about the narrator either; her voice was a little sharp.

Would you recommend The Oracle of Stamboul to your friends? Why or why not?

No, would not. It was fairly well written, but I was bored by it. It should have been much more interesting, given the subject matter.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

That would depend on who the director and actors were.

Exotic historical fantasy

The lovely writing wrapped around unique characters in a world I have little known. Enjoyable and unique.

A great book

I enjoyed this fiction historical novel. Authentic characters. Stamboul and its colors come to life.
Excellent narrator.

Lots of atmosphere

I've read that this story of a child prodigy is a true, or true-ish, story, which may explain why, as beautifully written as it is, it never actually goes anywhere. The prodigy appears, and then she disappears. Since the author has invented an entire variant of a hoopoe, he could have gone a little further and invented some plot resolution. As it is, our heroine appears to be in some danger, or in the power of a potentially dangerous person, but then she isn't after all, and then she decides to take herself out of the story. It was a little like eating cotton candy: sweet and irresistable and utterly ephemeral.