Tulip of Istanbul

About the Book Tulip of Istanbul is a historical novel depicting the Ottoman Empire's most glorious times in art and aesthetics, elegance and grandeur of dreams. At the same time, it was an era of splurge and wastage, of economic and social collapse. Known as the Tulip Age, this period saw in 1730 a great public revolt which changed the course of Turkey's destiny.

The novel begins with the story of a young man who finds his beautiful wife murdered on their wedding night. What is more perverse, the innocent young man is charged with the murder of his wife and thrown into prison. In order to prove his innocence and to find the murderer of his lover, his only clue is a tulip bulb that he found in the palm of his dead wife. He has a secret identity, which he was initially unaware of - he is a prince, a sultan's son, who has grown up outside the palace. An intrigue develops in the power circle about his rumored existence.

The story is interwoven with historical and cultural details. introducing the reader to life within royal palaces and dervish lodges, horticultural secrets about growing exclusive tulips, innovative treatment for the mentally unstable in the asylum, torture devices in the prison, and conspiracies hatched in coffee houses and humans by disaffected revolutionaries and gangsters.

Iskender Pala creates a bewitching tapestry of the splendours and vices of Istanbul at a time when the world was still in thrall to its military, political, and artistic achievements.

About the Author Iskender Pala was born in Uşak in 1958 and received his undergraduate degree from the faculty of literature of Istanbul University in 1979. He received his Doctorate in Ottoman Divan Literature from the same university in 1983. His short stories, essays, academic papers and newspaper columns have inspired his readers to see Divan literature in a new light. A recipient of the Turkish Writer's Association Prize (1989), The Turkish Language Foundation AKDTYK Prize (1990) and the Turkish Writer's Association Essay Prize (1996), he was given the title "The People's Poet' by popular vote in Uşak. His books Death in Babylon, Love in Istanbul, Tulip of Istanbul and The King and the Sultan, Od and Mihmandar have won numerous literary awards and enjoy a wide readership. Honoring his success, he was granted the 2013 Presidential Culture and Arts Grand Award in literature. İskender Pala is married with three children and teaches at Kültür University.

Preface Tithin a few moments of seeing the sign about an "Auction W of Stamp Collections an Marmara Hotel, I was following the arrow into the hotel conference room. It was unusual for me to act so decisively, especially since I had neither seen the catalogue nor made a reservation to attend the auction. The simple reason was that I was extremely cold and thought a glass of hot tea might warm me up. There was also the possibility that I would see some familiar faces and be able to do a bit of networking.

For years, I had been holding public seminars under the heading "Divan Poetry Hour" at six o'clock every Wednesday evening. That particular day, the discussion had strayed somewhat from poetry and I found myself having to discuss the idea that those who dismiss the importance of anything, in reality consider everything to be important. I had been wandering around Beyoğlu on my own, pondering the questions that had arisen during the seminar, with a blizzard raging around me and a biting wind whistling past my ears and stinging my eyes. The auction room was bustling with people, many of them well-known collectors. After a few friendly greetings, I went to look at the books on sale. About half of them were handwritten works, so I asked for a catalogue to see if any might be useful for my work.

**Contents and Sample Pages**