The Turquoise Eye (Tyrkysové Oko)

A bracelet set with a turquoise eye binds two cousins at a breaking point in their lives and reopens family wounds that never healed. When they attempt to sell a valuable heirloom from their lineage of goldsmiths, Eliška and Justýna awaken an old hatred that places them under threat and surveillance. In Přerov, a silenced past turns their personal crisis into criminal danger.

The Turquoise Eye is an emotionally charged family thriller about how a long-buried secret of origin unleashes a chain of violence decades later.

The story follows two cousins, Eliška and Justýna, who have been inseparable since childhood. They were raised under the shadow of their grandmother, a jeweler who, after losing her workshop, hid precious stones and maintained a clandestine jewelry operation with her sons for years. As a relic of that past, both cousins keep bracelets set with a turquoise eye.

In the present, their lives collapse almost simultaneously. Eliška, still married, is involved with a young man named Oskar. She becomes pregnant and prematurely gives birth to a baby girl with a severe heart condition. Meanwhile, Justýna discovers that her husband is having an affair with Róza, Eliška’s teenage daughter, which leads to divorce. Although the scandal shakes their bond, the cousins remain united, supporting each other through necessity and shared history.

Desperate for money to pay for her baby’s treatment, Eliška decides to sell an old turquoise statuette inherited from her grandmother. What appears to be a practical decision reactivates a generational conflict long thought buried.

Decades earlier, the grandmother had twin sons with a married gemstone trader. One of the twins was Eliška’s father. The other married Božena, a resentful and hardened woman, and had two daughters with her, including Justýna. But before that marriage, Božena had become pregnant by the same gemstone trader. To avoid scandal, the child was officially registered as her younger brother. That child is Lojzík. He grew up believing Božena was his sister and only discovers in adulthood that she is his mother—a revelation that fractures his identity. Božena, meanwhile, has long believed that the grandmother’s branch of the family kept the money and the stones while she bore the shame of an illegitimate child. Her resentment festers into hatred.

When Božena learns that Eliška intends to sell the statuette, she interprets it as yet another betrayal. Convinced the object rightfully belongs to Lojzík, she decides to take revenge. To carry out her plan, she recruits Oskar—Eliška’s unstable, drug-using lover—promising him money and ownership of her rural property if he helps punish the family. Oskar agrees. Božena designs a chain of revenge beginning with Eliška and extending to Justýna, a nun sister, and finally Róza. She aims to erase that entire branch of the family. Lojzík participates as a psychologically submissive accomplice.

Oskar and Lojzík go to Eliška’s apartment under a domestic pretext. Trusting them, she lets them in. Inside, Oskar brutally murders her while Lojzík witnesses the attack. They tattoo a crude eye on her back and take her turquoise bracelet as a trophy. Oskar attempts to kill Justýna as well but fails due to an unexpected interruption. Justýna survives, deeply traumatized.

The case is assigned to criminal investigator Seidl, who begins unraveling the family network, the clandestine jewelry trade, Božena’s hidden pregnancy, Lojzík’s true parentage, and Oskar’s role as executioner. During interrogation, Oskar confesses that Božena hired him, wrote the anonymous threatening letters, and planned further murders. He also admits he killed for money and out of fear of having to support the child he had with Eliška. Confronted by police, Božena shows no remorse and claims she delivered justice. She even attempts a double suicide with Lojzík by poisoning their tea, but both are stopped in time.

The story ends with Eliška dead, Justýna alive but permanently scarred, and the family irreversibly fractured. Eliška’s daughter survives, and Justýna assumes a protective role toward her. The closing underscores the central idea: family secrets do not disappear when hidden; they are inherited, distorted, and eventually demand their price.

RELEVANT INFORMATION: Lenka Chalupová is a Czech writer and journalist whose work has reached a wide readership thanks to her blend of historical fiction and mystery. Since her debut, she has published more than a dozen titles combining dramatic and detective-driven plots with a deep connection to Czech history. She has been recognized with the Olomouc District Literature Award, underscoring both her narrative quality and her impact on the contemporary Czech literary scene.

The Turquoise Eye is a crime thriller built on a plot dense with family conflict, well-defined secrets, and a mystery that unfolds progressively. The narrative combines police investigation, intimate drama, and a historical past that weighs heavily on the characters, adding depth. Its female protagonists are complex and layered. The story has strong audiovisual potential: a limited number of key characters, a central symbolic object, a recognizable urban setting, and a structure ideal for a miniseries or feature film.

AUDIOVISUAL POTENTIAL: TV Series, Miniseries, Feature Film, TV Movie

AVAILABLE LANGUAGES: Czech