This book comes at an important time in state–society relations in Turkey after the attempted coup against the Islamist-led Peace and Justice Party (AKP) government in July 2016. What Neslihan Cevik does is to show that there a growing trend in Turkey of women self-styling their veils, noted as “veil-chic;” this is an indication, along with human rights organizations and political liberalism at the grassroots level, that there is a clear divergence among Islamists, secularists, and ordinary Muslims who interpret Islamic tenets within different realms of modernity (social, political, and so on) and see no contradictions with their faith by doing so. The author highlights a third way for ordinary Muslims to be able to integrate their iman (inner belief) in everyday circumstances, rejecting the notions of secular exclusivity, which in Turkey has been critiqued as too assertive in opposing religion and too discriminatory by marginalizing religious minorities (p. 9) as well as Islamism, widely regarded as a “front” for a specific political agenda that “perceives an inherent divide between Islam and modernity” (p. 15). Instead, so-called Muslimism promotes the idea of personal choice, autonomy, and responsibility that is ideally suited to a liberal political model.

The book systematically charts Islamic principles in public life in contemporary Turkey. The first two chapters discuss the enabling factors of Muslimism and how din (religion), dunya (this world) and dawla (the state) contribute to a schema that helps differentiate Muslimism from Islamism. I am not sure that Muslimism is the right word, since adaptation can be different among those who are classified as Muslimists. This lack of recognition of diversity within and between the four cases—the Peace and Justice Party, Capital Women’s Platform, Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed People, and Independent Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (p. 23)—is problematic and could become even more so should the term be used extensively. Surely, it is more accurate to simply talk about “the majority of Muslims” who acknowledge pluralism, the secular modern order, and the general premise of cultural tolerance.

Muslimism in Turkey and Beyond is also not very convincing in its use of the AKP as a case of Islamist-Muslimism hybridity. Perhaps in the early 2000s, but post-2011, the literature on the AKP has drawn attention to the fact that it is becoming more Islamist. This point is acknowledged in the introduction, and so its inclusion remains a mystery. Surely, consistency of approach is important in identifying a new theoretical framework. One might assume that the AKP was simply reflecting popular domestic sentiment and aspirations for European Union accession in the early 2000s, and that the later swing toward Islamism was a return to the norm. Sena Karasipahi’s Muslims in Modern Turkey: Kemalism, Modernism and the Revolt of the Islamic Intellectuals (2008) noted that Turkish Islamic intellectuals were, since the 1980s, arguing for the superiority of Islam over secular democracy. Thus, this type of political hybridity at least may never have existed, or if it did, secular policies such as a ban on the veil may themselves have been a veil for more Islamist-inspired policies further down the line.

Cevik rightly cites financial liberalization, the end of the Cold War, globalization of markets, and the prospect of EU membership as creating “a favorable context for religious change” (p. 20). This goes a long way in aiding our understanding of how new institutions and lifestyles were established and why Turkey appears to be a rather exceptional case in the Middle East. The third chapter analyzes the theological foundations of Muslimism. It explains how there are criticisms by Muslimists about religious approaches that take early regulation about usury, for example, out of its historical context (p. 98). The inference throughout is that Muslims are constantly having to make value-based decisions in areas where hoja (religious authority figures) have not commented directly as to whether a particular situation is halal (permissible) or haram (impermissible). Muslimists are also shown to regard such authority as mere guidance and tend to rely on their own reading and faith.

The fourth chapter covers Muslimist engagements with secular modernity. When referring to filtering out the negatives of modern life (p. 128), most Muslims would probably concur. Indeed, many other religions would probably concur: It is an essential act of moral responsibility that is not unique to so-called Muslimists. The point on page 149 that “the self is to no longer submit to the religious authority” but “to critically engage and question” shows the extent to which Turkish Muslims are forcing “religious scholars” to respond to a more educated population, including more empowered women in a patriarchal society. This chapter also discusses the rise in popularity of the hashema swimsuits for women (otherwise known as the burkini).

The fifth chapter explores the Muslimism political ethos in the context of secularist fears that Muslim participation was always about steering the state toward a theocracy and loss of personal liberty. The author states on page 171 that the process of shaping the political process requires them to “articulate and overcome complex tensions,” especially maintaining the balance between state authority and religious freedom. Avoiding subjugation ensures that an uneasy status quo will persist. The encroachment of the state into public life in recent years and the turn against secular Kemalism puts the government at odds with many domestically and in the EU. We are, therefore, left with a manifesto for a “new Muslim politics” (p. 199) that looks increasingly unlikely to occur.

The conclusion looks ahead to Muslimism in Turkey and beyond. The underpinnings of a new orthodoxy in other countries could be present; indeed, pluralism and participation in modern life and institutions were factors associated with the Arab Spring. What is less certain about the future is the extent to which Turkey will remain a beacon of modern Muslim life and whether its success can be replicated across the Middle East. The conclusion is clear: There is flexibility and autonomy in the multitude of ways in which an individual can adhere to a halal approach and way of life. Orthodoxy can shift between one generation and the next. The general argument about connectivity between inner ethics and broader society, including tolerance (p. 113), appears to be synonymous with the term Muslim and the application of Islamic tenets in a universal context. The takeaway question, therefore, is not so much about the individual Muslim, but the economic and political preconditions necessary for opening up societies to greater religious freedom, expression, tolerance, and innovation.