The White Castle/Orhan Pamuk

The White Castle, Orhan Pamuk's celebrated first novel, is the tale of a young Italian scholar. Captured by pirates between Venice and Naples, he is put up for auction at the Istanbul slave market, and bought by a Turkish savant eager to learn about scientific and intellectual advances in the West. But as they bond over each other's sins and secrets, and their relationship grows increasingly complex, master and slave find themselves part of the Sultan's army, and on a journey that will lead them, ultimately, to the White Castle.