The Island of Missing Trees

The idea of forbidden love is one of the major themes explored in the book and is embodied by two couples: Kostas and Defne, and Yiorgos and Yusuf. From the very outset, the reader is made privy to the eventual fate of both these couples. The prologue describes the corpses of two men lying at the bottom of a well in Cyprus, and it is fairly easy to surmise that these men are Yiorgos and Yusuf from the initials inscribed on the pocket watch that lies beside them underwater. Similarly, Chapter 1 reveals that Kosta and Defne ended up together in London, married and with a daughter, though in the 2010s, Defne passed away. With respect to the stories of these two couples, the rest of the book involves unravelling how they got to these places and the different trials, tribulations, and consequences they had to face along the way.

In Kostas and Defne’s case, the restrictions placed on their relationship are entirely social: They belong to different communities which are experiencing a significant amount of tension between them in 1974. In Yiorgos and Yusuf’s case, however, the restrictions are also legal: In 1974 Cyprus, not only was homosexuality taboo, but it was also punishable by law.