A Recipe for Daphne
ABOUT
THE BOOK
An American-born traveler to one of Istanbul’s oldest communities receives an unexpected welcome in this heart-warming and romantic debut.
Fanis is at the center of a dwindling yet stubbornly proud community of Rum, Greek Orthodox Christians, who have lived in Istanbul for centuries.
When Daphne, the American-born niece of an old friend, arrives in the city in search of her roots, she is met with a hearty welcome. Fanis is smitten by the beautiful and aloof outsider, who, despite the age difference, reminds him of the fiancée he lost in the 1955 pogrom.
Kosmas, a master pastry chef on the lookout for a good Rum wife, also falls instantly for Daphne. She is intrigued by him, but can she love him in return? Or will a family secret, deeply rooted in the painful history of the city itself, threaten their chances?
NOMINATING LIBRARY COMMENTS
“The Novel describes Istanbul in a beautiful way. Readers can find useful information about the city (Constantinoupolis or Poli) about cultural heritage, Greek and Turkish expressions, details about marriage traditions, images, sounds, memories. A very nice romance, an interesting love story. Veria Central Public Library, Greece
Because it’s a meditation on identity and the scars of history, through [Anastasiadou’s] rich characters, the Rum people’s —Greek Orthodox Christians, some of whom trace their roots back to the Byzantine Empire— painful history over the last century comes to light. It’s also a novel to be thoroughly savored, from its enticing culinary elements to its charming love stories. “A Recipe For Daphne” is a ground-breaking, multifaceted novel that begs to be re-read innumerable times. Library of the Department of Greek Philology from the Democritus University of Thrace, Greece