A beautiful book that centres around star-crossed lovers Kostas (Greek) and Defne (Turkish) who meet in secret from their families as civil war breaks out in Cyprus. The portrayal of all nature is wonderful — the birds and trees have voices and stories emerging from the pages in some of the most magical imagery I’ve read.

It’s an enriching and compassionate account of how human war affects everything and leaves devastating effects on nature left behind. I wasn’t aware of the turbulent history of Cyprus, but this account is peppered with real events, such as when celebrity guests at the Ledra Palace Hotel were evacuated in the summer of 1974 and left in such a rush that the Hotel invoiced them (as accounted in the Observer, London, 15 September 1974). The novel is full of amazing facts about butterfly migration, fig trees, insects, songbirds and much more — and there are even some great cleaning tips (‘how to take rust off? Rub it with onion.’, p 319). A sad novel that jumps over time and shows how humans and nature both need to heal and regrow.