Editors Reads Verdict
A portrait of Cyprus before and during the 1974 invasion — Hislop at her most politically engaged, using two families to trace how war destroys communities that have lived together.
What We Loved
- The Famagusta setting — and its ghost-town aftermath — is haunting
- The political dimension of the Cyprus conflict is handled with unusual balance
- The friendship across ethnic lines is the novel's emotional core
Minor Drawbacks
- The hotel setting occasionally tips toward glamour at the expense of complexity
- The resolution is less emotionally satisfying than The Island
Key Takeaways
- → Famagusta as a ghost city — frozen in 1974, still unresolved
- → The Cyprus conflict as a wound that has not healed
- → Friendship across ethnic and political division
| Author | Victoria Hislop |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Headline |
| Pages | 432 |
| Published | January 1, 2014 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction |
| Difficulty | Beginner |
| Best For | Readers visiting Cyprus; fans of Mediterranean historical fiction; Hislop readers |
The Sunrise is the most magnificent hotel in Famagusta — marble floors, a pool that seems to merge with the Mediterranean, a clientele that includes film stars and politicians. It is 1972, Cyprus is a republic of ten years, and the Georgious family, who own The Sunrise, and the Özkan family, their closest friends, Turkish Cypriots who manage the hotel’s restaurant, live in the particular way that communities living together do: with friction and love, with arguments and celebration, in a city where Greek and Turkish, Christian and Muslim have coexisted for centuries.
Then comes the summer of 1974. The coup backed by the Greek military junta; the Turkish invasion in response; the occupation of northern Cyprus; and the evacuation of Famagusta — in which 40,000 Greek Cypriots fled in a single day, leaving their city intact, their tables still set, their cars still parked, to return in days (they believed) when the situation was resolved. Fifty years later, the city is still empty, still frozen in that August morning, fenced off behind barbed wire.
The Sunrise is Hislop’s most explicitly political novel — a portrait of what political conflict does to communities that have lived together, told through two families whose friendship is the casualty of events they did not choose.
Reading Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
What is "The Sunrise" about?
Famagusta, Cyprus, 1972. The Sunrise hotel is the most glamorous in the eastern Mediterranean, and the Georgious and Özkan families are its heart — one Greek Cypriot, one Turkish Cypriot, bound by friendship across the island's division. Then 1974 arrives: the Turkish invasion, the occupation of northern Cyprus, and the abandonment of Famagusta — a ghost city still frozen in that summer. Hislop's most politically charged novel.
Who should read "The Sunrise"?
Readers visiting Cyprus; fans of Mediterranean historical fiction; Hislop readers
What are the key takeaways from "The Sunrise"?
Famagusta as a ghost city — frozen in 1974, still unresolved The Cyprus conflict as a wound that has not healed Friendship across ethnic and political division
Is "The Sunrise" worth reading?
A portrait of Cyprus before and during the 1974 invasion — Hislop at her most politically engaged, using two families to trace how war destroys communities that have lived together.
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