My first thanks go to my agent, Kelly Falconer, who saw the potential in a half-baked idea and then guided me through two years of writing with total patience, wisdom and good humour. Also to my editors at William Collins, Arabella Pike and Jo Thompson, for their enthusiasm for this subject and belief in a first-time author.
To my colleagues at The Times for allowing me to travel widely, indulge my obsessions, and for their patience as I have been writing this book – I promise I won’t take on any more projects! – and particular thanks to Anthony Loyd for his mentorship, friendship and encouragement.
To Bradley Secker, Yusuf Sayman and Marine Olivesi – the best travel and reporting buddies I could have wished for, and whose spirits are ever-present in these pages. I would not have been able to do any of the reporting without the help and guidance of Burhan Yüksekkaş, Onur Çakır, Ceren Kenar, Aymann Akkad, and all the other fixers, translators, local journalists and whisperers who have asked not to be named – you know who you are.
To Anthony and Jane Franks, Nathan Freeman and Glenn Middleditch for reading early versions of the manuscript and offering excellent and unflinching feedback – your free copies of what, thanks to you, is a much improved book are in the post.
And finally, and not least, thank you to Kadıköy, always a haven of hope and sanity, and without whose meyhaneler, tea gardens, clothes-wearing dogs, street musicians, graffiti artists, seafront, Fenerbahçe fans and protests, I probably would have gone home by now.