I like to read this book. It is like a mirror to show how the Turkish government made a mistake to get charge of thousands of non muslims in one night. The government changed its public's lives in one day. Many of them have been left to start a new life after the Wealth Tax. I have not forgiven the Government decision. They behaved like taking a revenge from non muslims. Also we have seen many looters in the during of those processes. If you did not have any government protect. Then you should have sold your assets with a quite cheap price to sharks that waiting. I am feeling sorry for those who lost all what they had. I knew it to build a new live is very hard from my life's experience. If this is made by your government and you are forced to dive from cliffs that is not acceptable at all. Halit Bey is a wealthy aristocrat. However his wife is a non muslim. That's why he was charged almost 75 thousands liras. He lost everything that he has and lived his last days in a deep soar. Many of main characters lives are changed. Nimet was a Durmuş' wife and she was cheated by her husband in the end of book. Because Durmuş used this Wealthy Tax situation in order to get as rich as Halit Bey. He then had a fair with Halit Bey's life partner who is Nefise. He is liked that replaced the empty position of Halit Bey. However one thing was a certain that he has never been an aristocratic figure and remembered as Halit Bey. Almost everything is a sad story from my view. Many of those people afterwards left Turkey and immigrated to Armenia, Greece, the Usa, the Uk and Israel as we have known. I wish they had not lived all those bad things in Turkey. We have lost many aristocrats, cultural diversities and educated professionals after 1940s.
