I enjoyed this short, fable-like novel from one of Turkey's most famous writers, and found it surprisingly relevent to today's world. Hilal is killed by his wife's lover in a fit of rage. The lover is then murdered by villagers but it is the wife, Esme, who is forever blamed for Hilal's murder.

The inhabitants of the village then spend decades convincing Esme's son to kill her as none of them want to do it.

The writing is simple and poetic, biblical almost. And the themes of jealousy and violence against women are still relevent today.