Orhan's Inheritance

"Orhan's Inheritance" is an excellent work of historical fiction focused on the genocide of Armenian Christians in Turkey during World War I. Aline Ohanesian provides readers a beautifully crafted story that brings this little known tragedy to life through a story based on the real-life experiences of her grandmother.

As a fellow historian, I share Ohanesian's insight that "...buried deep within the stories of nations were the stories of real people..." Only in bringing these stories to light can we grasp the powerful perspective of the past as so much more than memorized names and dates, but rather the actual lives of real people who faced the challenges of their times on a personal level. This necessary process opens our eyes to the true impact and consequences of what otherwise often seems vaguely abstract and sterilized points of history shrouded in politics and battles but with little connection to human experiences. This is particularly true of incidents that reveal the depths of inhumanity humans have inflicted on one another, such as genocides, the Holocaust, treatment of indigenous peoples, slavery, the Inquisition, etc. The hope is that if we can truly understand what brought humans to such inhumane treatment of fellow humans in the past, we might be able to avoid such tragedies. Yet a quick glance at modern events reveals we have a long way to go to achieving such a lofty goal. However, works such as this novel significantly contribute to bringing to light the monumental historical tragedies that would otherwise remain hidden and unacknowledged with the sacrifices and great human costs known only to those who experienced them and passed down as, what Ohanesian calls, "transgenerational grief" among the groups of people most directly effected.

Ohanesian does a remarkable job of creating and developing characters and a storyline that intimately connects the reader to the actual events of the historical period. The empathy she evokes makes for sometime difficult reading as the reality of the characters' experiences is both unpleasant yet significant. This is a powerful book that I highly recommend. Remarkably, the story yields romance and suspense as well as historical insights. I am very impressed by this author's first novel and look forward to reading more of her work in the future.

My husband and I were reading this book simultaneously and we each felt it equally gripgping. For any readers who have any knowledge of what the Armenians went through at the beginning if the last century and would like to inow more this book is spellbinder ng

The story which is portrayed here deserves to be read. But I feel that the way it is portrayed is a double edged sword because, although the romance makes it easier to read, it makes it less appealing to men.

A very engaging story of forbidden love between a Turkish man and an Armenian woman who separately, against the odds, survive WWI Turkey and forge ahead with their lives. The story is loosely based on the actual experience of the author's relative.

Well-written and engaging tale of the Armenian genocide in Turkey. The tale follows several characters as they grow and discover the effect of the actions of their peers, their families, and themselves.

I was deeply touched to learn more about the Armenian genocide in 1915 in the Ottoman Empire ( now Turkey) and its pact on present day Armenians. Mostly, the author reveals this through story and very few passages feel didactic.

Fascinating story of one family's family secrets around the time of the genocide of the Armenians by the Turks.
The author creatively travels in time between the modern world and the family's history during the atrocities...

My mother lost 2 children during this genocide involving Armenians The baby boy was butchered by the Turkish sword. Her 10-year old daughter died of hunger somewhere in the Arabian desert. Author told it as it was. A horrible act by the Ottoman government. If you doubt this, read Henry Morganthou 's account of the genocide.

Orhan's Inheritance is riveting story set in a very sad time in history. The story is so interesting, the reader is drawn into the plot ... it's not until 200 pages later that you realize you've just had a history lesson! Aline does a beautiful job of not overly politicizing the historical landscape, but rather she tells a sympathetic story with magnificently deep characters. Set aside a few days before you begin, because once you start you will not be able to put down this book!

An Amazing panoply of succinct yet deeply expressive sentences, woven in a thrilling mystery. Certain passages gave me the chills. Aline Ohanesian has marked her literary prominence. Much like the “tiny blue flowers dancing their way toward a gold-leafed rim,“ this superb novel works its way from Anatolia to Los Angeles, through an amazing path of love, Genocide, tolerance and coexistence. Bravo!

Orhan's Ineritance by Aline Ohanesian is the best book that I have read in a long while. The setting is Turkey in the early 1900's (WWI). The characters are well developed. The plot begins when the grandfather, DeDe, dies and leaves and unusual will. The author switches from present day to the time of the 1900's when Germany and Turkey joined forces during WWI. I read this book in two days. I think that this author will be with us for a long time to come.

I really liked the story. I thought the writing was light and lyrical. A couple of the books events seemed quite unlikely, but it is a historically based novel set within the bounds of Turkey during the controversially named Turkish-Armenian War, and unusual events may have been more of the norm. I chose this book for our book club and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I highly recommend it.

You ask difficult questions as I am midway through another novel so don't clearly remember the sexual context or even the narration. I can tell you it was an interesting perspective of war, the victims, and the accidental oppressors. I also enjoyed reading about this historical situation which is often mentioned in the news but without much detail. This is the third novel I've read about it although one was more of a background than this one was. The shifting narrator and setting, both time and place, periodically confused me as I was reading this on my Kindle rather than in a real book. With that, I would have looked back more often. I also discovered some vocabulary that neither I nor my Kindle knew the definitions of. I did enjoy the novel a lot and have recommended it to others. It was recommended to me by a friend who had heard the author discuss the text at her book club. This would have been a wonderful addition.

Since I read Chris Bojalian 's "Sandcastle Girls", I have been looking for other works on the Armenian genocide. This was a good but uncomfortable read. The brutality, and heightening tragedy was striking. The characters are rich . This was a story within a story and well done.

A beautifullywoven story.it was seeing the strands of a Turkish rug woven on a loom.
The rug tells the history of the Armenian genocide and the Turkish involvement.
The characters Orhan and Seda are woven so well into the story.
A book you won't be able to put down.

It's important that the Armenian story be told - there are several novels published about the genocide, especially at the 100th anniversary nears - but this is the first one I've read that has included a Turkish perspective.

The story of the people in Turkey was informative! The description of the setting and characters created vivid images. The plight of the characters lingered...long after the book was finished. The problem/plot was a bit difficult to follow at times.