Turkish Literature: Zarife (Paperback)

Zarife aspires to leave her poverty-stricken existence and is drawn into the deceptively seedy world of the super-rich. She manages to become one of the wealthiest--and therefore, most respectable--women in Turkey, but does so using a combination of smarts and sex. Complex and self-aware, Zarife masters the rules of the game to get to the top, and makes sure that she wins. Though her success means that any past indiscretions are forgotten, she realizes that her chosen lifestyle has a hollowness to it; maybe she has lost as much as she has gained.