In Elif Shafak's latest novel, There are Rivers in the Sky, two rivers take center stage. One is the river Tigris in ancient Mesopotamia and current day Turkey and Iraq, the other is the river Thames in London. Shafak takes the reader on a journey through time, starting with a single drop of rain, in 630 BCE in Nineveh during the reign of king Ashurbanipal, the last great king of Assyria.
"Later, when the storm has passed, everyone will talk about the destruction it left behind, but no one, not even the king himself, will remember that it all began with a single raindrop."
This might have been the best first sentence of a book I've read for a couple of years. I was intrigued from the very beginning. This single raindrop is the thread that runs through the whole of the novel. It introduces the reader to one of the novel's main characters, Arthur Smyth. In 1840, his poor mother, Arabella, gave birth to Arthur on the muddy banks of the river Thames. It is where he receives his nickname, King Arthur of the Sewers and Slums. Upon his birth the single raindrop falls again from the sky, this time as a snowflake, and into the newborn baby's mouth.
Arthur grows up to be a peculiar boy, with an interest in Mesopotamia, and working his way up out of the slums. He manages to get himself a position at the prestigious British Museum, where he studies ancient tablets from Mesopotamia and discovers the famous poem The Epic of Gilgamesh. He travels to Nineveh, near the river Tigris, in search of missing pieces of the poem.
Near the river Tigris, in the year 2014, Narin's story is set. Narin is a young girl of the Yazidi faith. She lives with her father and grandmother in Turkey. The family wants Narin to be baptised in the holy Valley of Lalish in the Nineveh Plains in northern Iraq. This storyline introduces the reader to the Yazidis, a people of a heavily persecuted religion, resulting in the historical Yazidi genocide in 2014.
This part of the story interested me the most, as I do not remember being taught about the Yazidi faith during my studies. As some of you might have read on my blog before I have studied Religious Studies. Perhaps it has been introduced to the curriculum following the genocide in 2014. It shows I have some catching up to do!
Then there is a storyline set in 2018. This storyline is centred around Zaleekhah Clarke, a young woman in London, who has just left her husband and has rented a houseboat on the river Thames. I can hear you think, 'What does she have to do with it all?' Well you might have figured out already that water is one of the key themes of Shafak's novel. Zaleekhah is a scientist, Dr. Z. Clarke, hydrologist.
All these different storylines, Shafak manages to bring them together perfectly. I would love to describe how she does this, but that would spoil the whole reading experience. All I can say is that it is masterfully done. Shafak's writing is beautiful. Even though the storylines are set in totally different times and settings, I felt as if I was there with them. Going through the highs and lows with the characters. Especially the genocide parts are hard to read, but it is so important that everyone knows what is happening even today in other regions of the world.
Please do not let the harsh historical and present day events keep you from reading this beautiful and at the same time educational novel!

Elif Shafak manages to present the lives of those touched by the epic of Gilgamesh through time. The scope of the novel is immense and complex. Not once did I want to put the book down to take a breath, I wanted the words to wash over me. The interwoven tales each have their own setting/time that’s as vivid as the characters themselves. The stories are all about life, love and healing. Each one beautifully presented through lyrical prose that I just don’t think any review will able to do it justice. This book is emotive and immersive with some really important messages about life and living. Definitely a new favourite book of mine that I will have to constantly recommend. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

There are Rivers in the Sky is a very interesting book. Span over multiple generations and different parts of world it touches on various topics from a drop of water to the epic of Gilgamesh to Yazidis and their persecution. I learnt a lot from this story and I always had my phone open so I could also do my own quick research whilst reading. Saddens me how events that were true 200 years ago are still relevant today. Whilst certain things certainly have changed at times feels like nothing has changed.

I have read few stories by Elif Shafak and there's no doubt she's an incredible writer and her prose is always so beautiful. Amongst the 3 narrations her strongest was Arthur's and then Narin's. Her weakest plot was Zaleekhah's and I felt we could've done without her plot. It felt unnecessary and towards the end when Narin and Arthur's connection was revealed I was still waiting for what Zaleekhah has to do with all this. I also felt at times the writing in middle became slightly repetitive and was waiting for the plot to pick up. Overall a very melancholic and sad book. Thank you Penguin UK for the eARC via NetGalley.

A tour de force, which is at once a historical novel, an emotive and elegant critique of the plight of the Yezidi people, and a nuanced discourse about history and its ownership. The story occurs across three periods - in the mid 1850s a young boy in London's slums becomes fascinated by the Mesopotamian culture and cuneiform, in 2014 a 9-yeal-old Yezidi girl living in Turkey is growing up steeped in her ancestral culture only to be thrust into the midst of another conflict afflicting her people, and, in 2018, a young water researcher living in London is struggling with personal trauma and tries to build bridges to her past and ancestry in Mesopotamia. Water is the red thread connecting all the stories in the book, and showing how it links lives, peoples, periods, and histories.

I really liked the book and was struck mostly by the incredibly impressive amount of research that went into writing it, and creating such a compelling well-written and engaging narrative. Having finished it, I still feel that a part of my mind still inhabits these pages and cries for the fate of the Yezidi people. The writing is at once telegraphic and dry, and, because of this, also emotive and emotional, drawing out such yearning and feelings of grief that tears do not suffice to quench. The characters in the book are sculpted with deep precision, and create multi dimensional human beings that feel alive, and make their experiences jump out from the pages and embed themselves in the readers memory and perception.

While I admire the book, the writing, and the subject matter, there was still one aspect of the book I found borderline intolerable. Specifically, the story of the drop of water and the continuous references to it felt shambolic and irrelevant. It really angered me - it added nothing to the story, failed to create any mystery, felt super forced, and came across as some sort of fan service for people need some mysticism in a story that already has so much power that it's nigh overwhelming. It was like that extra ingredient in a fantastic dish that just makes you wince - without it the dish would have been perfect, but having been added it makes the experience so much less than what it has the potential to be.

Hugely recommended to anyone - history buffs, folks fascinated by Mesopotamia, those interested in the Yezidi people, and people who are keen to better perceived the role of water in history, ancient and modern alike.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of the book in return for an honest review.

There Are Rivers in the Sky is 400+ pages, so it's definitely a commitment, but it's a lovely story. We follow multiple characters, their stories all set in vastly different times, places, and circumstances. Arthur is a destitute young genius in 19th century London, determined to make something of himself in the field of archaeology, particularly focused on finding and translating ancient Mesopotamian artefacts. Narin is travelling across the globe with her family for a religious ceremony that they hope will improve her quality of life, as every day she drifts closer to a fate nobody would wish for her. Zaleekhah moves to a houseboat on the Thames to escape her dead marriage, seemingly having lost the motivation to continue living. A hydrologist by occupation, she finds joy in water, though even this happiness is marred by pollution.

Each story is independent yet subtly linked by certain recurring motifs. The prose is gorgeous, dialogue realistic and believable, and the character building is wonderful. Personally, I felt it was lacking a little something extra to tie all the stories together in the conclusion, but equally I hate when author's try to link things together too much that it comes across and unrealistic and overdone.

Overall, this was a really quality novel, just missing out on a 5☆ for me personally, but I've no doubt this will be a favourite for many people! I'm looking forward to reading more of Shafak's novels for sure.

There are rivers in the sky takes storytelling to a new level. Three characters stories are told and alls entwined by water.

Shafak first takes us to the ancient city of Nineveh, home to the river Tigris. We learn how King Ashurbanipal of Mesopotamia built an extensive library. The libraries eventual crumble leads to the discovery in its remains of a home- The Epic of Gilgamesh. Fascination with this poem lines three lives spanning from 1840-2018.

Arthur is born in 1849 in Oondon, by the river Thames. His underprivileged upbringing gives him the drive to succeed and he finds himself working for a successful publisher. It is here that he first comes across the book- Nineveh and its remains. He is unable to shake his interest and travels to the River Tigris in search of the missing parts of the poem.

Narin’s story begins in Turkey, 2914. She is ten years old and suffering with the deterioration of the hearing. Her grandmother is determined to bring her to a scared temple alongside river Tigris in the hope that she can be cured. However, the rise of Isis means that her journey is full of what’s he and difficulty.

Back to London, 2018, Zaleekah moves to a houseboat after separating from her husband. Zaleekah is a qualified hydrologist who was raised by her uncle after both her parents died. Despite her ‘privileged’ upbringing she is desperately unhappy and plans to take her own life. That is until she meets Nen and discovers the wonders of Nineveh and its remains.

Intricately written to link three characters in three different times with one drop of water that reinvents itself again and again.

Leaves the reader thinking about the conceit of the transcendence of water through time and places.

I'm obsessed with that! Heart-breaking, charming and so important story of so many different lives combine into one book is always a great pleasure. Elif Shafak is extremely gifted, cause she can connect past, present and even future a little bit and make us, readers, dive deep into her words and find extraordinary in reality.

Here, we have Rivers. It seems that they are the main topic of this, but in fact it is a background to so many other histories waiting to be discovered. Beautiful, but also very difficult, challenging cause we have to face the naked truth of our present like attacks, unethical treatments and many other topic from the gray area. I'm not adding any more details, cause I don't want to give you any spoilers, but you can trust me, there was a jaw-dropping plot twist.

I see how Elif's books are resonating with me, how I expecrience them and how they help me see through and change my perspective a little bit. And honestly, she is an author I can read over and over again, cause everytime I read her book I find something new in myself what was waiting to go to a surface.

Elik Shafak's beautiful story that interweaves characters across centuries and continents has moved me so much. The book has a complex narrative arc that moves seamlessly between storylines, and builds characters that are vibrant, deep, flawed, and living life as best they can while seeking some degree of happiness and fulfilment. It is a book about what it is to be human, and I cared for each and every character.

Water, so crucial to our existence, is given a central role in the telling of the story, which is interwoven around a drop of water that connects everything. It illustrates the cycle of life and over the course of centuries, observes aspects of human existence.

As well as being totally engrossed in the story and feeling connected with the protagonists, I found the context and setting both informative and interesting, I learnt so much about life in different times and parts of the world, and it made me reflect on the political and social impacts of our actions. Despite being rich with well-researched and intricate historical information, Shafak tells the story in way that is easy to read and absolutely compelling. The writing is lyrical and gorgeous. I enjoyed every minute and this will be up there with my favorite books of 2024.

With thanks to NetGalley, Penguin and Elik Shafak for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited when I heard of the new book by Elif Shafak, and she didn’t disappoint. When it comes to reading her books, one can be sure to be in for a treat. Her novels are always ambitious, complex, made of different storylines and characters that are masterfully interwoven into the main narrative. The same happens with this new novel; the story starts in Mesopotamia (which is in itself a very fascinating idea), and it moves on to 19th-century England, where one of the main characters, Arthur, was born, and then to modern day Turkey and back to modern day London. It might sound like a lot, but Shafak’s writing is able to guide the reader through all these different storylines and places, and to allow them to see the full picture, all the connections between the stories, and the beautiful fabric that results from them. I absolutely recommend this book, together with other two books that are my personal favourites: The Bastard of Istanbul and The Island of Missing Trees.

•thanks to #netgalley and the publisher for the #ARC in exchange for an honest review•

A beautifully written novel with multiple timelines, each one compelling and engaging. It is a story with wonderful characters and an interesting central theme which threads its way throughout the story. Highly recommended. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

I have read all of Elif Shafak's novels and have loved each and every one of them. Never has an author had the ability to take you to a far away land and make you feel like you are there. Such a wonderful description of some beautiful places

The writing in this book is beautiful and elegant, as you would expect from Elif Shafak. The stories are woven masterfully and you can tell that the author did her research and is very knowledgeable about many subjects, especially language, history and culture. I had heard the word Yazidi but I had no idea who the Yazidi people were and how they have been treated for centuries. Among all of the knowledge I have gained from this book, the story of the persecution of the Yazidis is what will stay with me and what I will research further. Its truly horrifying, it is still happening and Yazidi women are still missing today.
There is a lot of historical detail and some lovely illustrations in this book, all of which is very interesting to me. I have been to the British museum and seen the things mentioned in this book and I realise that I didn't truly appreciate what I was looking at. I didn't appreciate how these things were made, lost, found, transported, essentially stolen. The fact that these objects are thousands of years old is obvious but I had never considered where they had been throughout the centuries. Who had them, who moved them, how they were damaged, the stories of the people around these items. All of this is richly told in this book.
My absolute favourite thing in this entire novel s the relationship between Narin and her grandma. It is so beautiful how much these two souls loved each other, more than anything in the World. It did make me cry and I wanted to protect them.
Each atrocity, each war crime, every bit of persecution around the World affects children like Narin and mothers and Grandmothers, fathers, husbands. Ordinary, innocent people. They are not just the numbers given on the television, they are not just a collective group of people, each victim is an individual with a story, dreams and hopes. They could have had a different future if it had not been taken from them by those with more power and this book helps to remind us of that beautifully.

This is, without doubt, one of my books of the year. The stories, interwoven and based on three main characters, are engrossing and offer great contrasts. The latter part of the book is really dynamic as the three storylines become more and more intense and, to be honest, quite challengingly upsetting at times.

The ending is beautiful, returning to the lyrical early part of the writing.

I really enjoyed this novel. Reading it very slowly and stopping frequently to think over what I had read.

Thank you so much.

Wow, what a book ! I hardly slept while reading this fabulously immersive book , I just could not put it down. The narrative is just faultless, I will read this book again.

Elif Shafak writes beautifully and never fails to interest and engage. I loved the water theme that runs through the book, focusing on three tributaries in different times and countries, finally joining the sea by the end. I found her central character, Arthur, to be the most intriguing because of his passion for Messopotamia and his quest to search for its secrets, overcoming his shockingly poor start in life. I'm not sure the other two strands were as well drawn or understood, and may have been a little contrived in places. Although the background and detail were fascinating in general, I did feel that some of the factual sections felt rather didactic and overblown in places, slowing down the pace and detracting from the intimate tone of the individual stories. However, with a little judicious skimming, I managed to immerse myself in the diverse plots and get carried along with the flow. An absorbing and unusual read.

Thank you to the publishers for an advanced copy. Wow what a read! 5 stars. Elif Shafak is one of my favourite authors of one of my favourite books ever (The Island of Missing Trees) and I was so happy and looking forward to reading an advanced copy of this. I learnt so much history about places and topics I have never heard about before reading this. I was so invested and touched by this book that 60 per cent of my way in reading this I went to London to the British Museum to see the artefacts discussed in this book. Seeing these in the flesh was something I can't even really put in to words. It was amazing. This book absolutely fascinated me. The story begins in Nineveh back in 640 - bc alongside the River Tigris with King Ashurbanipal , the story of the Epic of Gilgamesh on inscribed tablets in Cuneiform symbols where later on in the 1800's we meet Arthur who was actually born alongside the River Thames. Poor but very clever he is taken in by the poem and starts working at the British museum where he is gifted enough to be able to decipher the symbols and work out that the tablets are actually a poem with parts missing which are still buried in the middle east. I loved the different generations and stories interwoven in this book with Narin and Zaleekhah bringing the present and past together. There was a lot of truth in this book of fiction which made this seem more real and devastating. There has been so much history of horror, destruction pain and suffering with unnecessary killing , war and terror which still happens all these centuries later. The writing as ever was immersive and I just loved the whole water and rivers link throughout. Elif has done an outstanding job of bringing the stories together. I will be recommending to others and looking for more books from this author.

What an interesting book. At once moving, compelling and a subtle dive into emotion and human motivation, but set in a world, or rather several worlds that most of us wouldn't normally inhabit. Elif Shafak has a lovely turn of phrase and several times I had to stop reading to simply wallow in the words. There were other times, when I felt a little overwhelmed by the amount of description and I wanted to float over it. I didn't think this detracted from the book, and as a reader, it's my choice. Be aware, there is violence. People do unspeakable things to other people, but Elif Shafak manages to both acknowledge and present it to us, with enough distance that I'm able to stand to the side and honour those people who suffered. Would I recommend it. Yes. Absolutely. I couldn't say you'll enjoy the book, because it's not that sort of book, but you are likely to be enthralled. There's something mystical and captivating about it.

A Journey Through Time Woven with Water

Elif Shafak weaves a spellbinding tapestry in “There Are Rivers in the Sky.” This isn’t just a novel, it’s an experience that transcends time and cultures, this book transports you with its intricate narrative and unforgettable characters.

The story follows three individuals, each living in a different era, yet connected by a single drop of water and the mighty rivers Tigris and Thames. Shafak’s prose is both clever and powerful, drawing you into the lives of a Victorian orphan with a prodigious memory, a disillusioned hydrologist seeking solace on a houseboat and a young Yazidi refugee, with links back to an ancient Mesopotamian library housing a lost poem.

As their narratives intertwine, themes of love, loss, memory, and the enduring power of stories emerge. Shafak reminds us, like water, stories have a way of persisting, carrying echoes of the past into the present. The novel is a moving testament to the human spirit’s ability to find connection and meaning even across vast stretches of time.

If you enjoyed the intellectual and emotional depth of Orhan Pamuk’s “My Name is Red,” then “There Are Rivers in the Sky” is a must-read. Shafak’s masterful storytelling will leave you pondering the mysteries of life, the significance of the past, and the enduring magic of rivers that flow not just through landscapes, but also through time.

There are Rivers in the Sky is a book that I was highly anticipating having enjoyed previous books by this author. I can safely say I was not disappointed and this may even be one of my favourite books of the year so far. The book follows three main characters across three timelines exploring ancient Mesopotamia to modern day London. I really enjoyed how this book was laid out and the journey that took place to link the characters and timelines. This is an emotive and thought provoking read that I'm sure will stay with me long after finishing reading. A truly beautifully written story that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. Highly recommend.

This month, I really enjoyed reading Elif Shafak’s “There are Rivers in the Sky”. The novel hasn’t yet been released but I was lucky to be given an advance review copy to read. I’ve had this novel on my TBR list since it was announced and I knew that I would love it because her writing style is just fantastic. Not only is her writing intelligent and well-researched but her style is beautifully rich and lyrical. This feels particularly apt in this novel, which centres around the search for a long-lost poem from ancient Mesopotamia.

The novel moves between three different narratives that run concurrently throughout the novel: London, Narin in 2014 Turkey and Zaleekhah in 2018 London. From the outset, the motif of water pulls the strands of each narrative together; however, as the novel progresses, we see that each story is interconnected in other ways too.

The novel is fairly standard in length but feels epic in stature as it explores issues around love, loss, identity, grief and genocide to name but a few. I have a feeling that we’ll see this one nominated for various awards.