Who She Left Behind

A BookLife Editor's Pick!

"Who She Left Behind" is a captivating historical fiction novel that spans multiple generations and delves into the emotional lives of its characters.

Set in various time periods, from the declining days of the Ottoman Empire in Turkey to Armenian communities in Rhode Island and Massachusetts during the 1990s, the book provides a deep immersion into a lesser-known era. The story revolves around themes of survival, motherhood, and love, drawing inspiration from the author's own family history. The narrative is framed by a mysterious discovery of Armenian dolls at Victoria's grave many years later, which leads her on a quest for redemption as an immigrant, wife, sister, and aunt.

If you love "The Sandcastle Girls" by Chris Bohjalian, "Orhan's Inheritance" by Aline Ohanesian, "Rise the Euphrates" by Carol Edgarian, or "All The Light There Was" by Nancy Kricorian, then this book is for you!

"Victoria Waterman's captivating debut is a searing, multi-generational account of one family's legacy of love, trauma and resilience. 

With events unfolding in Massachusetts, modern Turkey and the Syrian desert, Who She Left Behind, is a harrowing tale of the Armenian Genocide which highlights the female voices long since erased or forgotten from history. Waterman breathes life into her characters, mothers and daughters separated and displaced by war, who join forces to uncover and heal historical and familial wounds. Her sumptuous writing and uncommon wisdom about the human spirit will haunt readers as much as it beguiles them. Who She Left Behind is a book about the beauty and terror of what it means to be human." - Aline Ohanesian, author of "Orhan's Inheritance"