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mes987's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
danzemacabre's review against another edition
5.0
God, what a ride. I'm ashamed at how long it took me to finish this masterpiece of a book, but I did and I don't regret it.
I'm always left dazzled after finishing any of these stories, it's like playing with a kaleidoscope (Do those exist anymore.) and suddenly having it jerked out off your hands when you're done. Feeling lost even.
Such a rich composition of characters, backgrounds, everything there is to it feels like a feast to the reader.
Long story short, I'm in love.
I'm always left dazzled after finishing any of these stories, it's like playing with a kaleidoscope (Do those exist anymore.) and suddenly having it jerked out off your hands when you're done. Feeling lost even.
Such a rich composition of characters, backgrounds, everything there is to it feels like a feast to the reader.
Long story short, I'm in love.
carriepond's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
P. Djèlí Clark's A Master of Djinn is set in an alternate version of Cairo in the early 1900s in which humans and magical beings like djinn live alongside one another after the veil between the magical and mundane worlds was opened. Special Agent Fatma el-Sha’arawi, the youngest woman working for a governmental agency called the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments, and Supernatural Entities, is asked to investigate the murders of members of a secret brotherhood dedicated to al-Jahiz, the man responsible for opening the veil decades before. The murderer claims to be al-Jahiz himself, returned to advocate for those oppressed and downtrodden by society, but is he?
This was a fun read-- it had magic, mystery, badass women to root for (and against). It ran a little long and felt like it could have been tightened up a bit, but I really enjoyed my time in this world.
This was a fun read-- it had magic, mystery, badass women to root for (and against). It ran a little long and felt like it could have been tightened up a bit, but I really enjoyed my time in this world.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Xenophobia
adamgeorgandis's review against another edition
4.0
Recently, I decided to read all the books nominated for this year's Nebula and Hugo Awards; A Master of Djinn was the fourth book I chose. I had not previously read P Djeli Clark's shorter works. (Both "A Dead Djinn in Cairo" and The Haunting of Tram Car 015 are set in the world of A Master of Djinn.) I suspect I will read these works soon: I found the world of the novel utterly enchanting, and I look forward to future visits. My hope is that Clark will use the world he has created in these works in the same way Becky Chambers has used the world she created in The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, as it is the world itself, more than any character or plot twist, that I find so appealing. (This is not to say that I find Clark's characters uninteresting; in fact, I very much enjoyed getting to know Fatma, Siti, and Hadia, among others.) A real delight, and a series whose future installments I will look forward to with excitement.
unwritttenpages's review against another edition
5.0
alternatívna história. džinovia. a je to ešte k tomu queer. <3
sienamystic's review against another edition
4.0
Very fun, very atmospheric, but at points it is really obvious that this was a short story being dragged out to full length. Unfortunately it affected my liking of the heroine. Still, an enjoyable read.
skeleton_ashleigh's review against another edition
2.5
It wasn't bad. The narrator was hard to listen to sometimes. Her cadence pulled me out of the story a lot. I might have liked it more if I read the physical book.
emhildeb's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I'm very disappointed. The hype didn't deliver for me. The characters were not necessarily flat but not well rounded. The plot was also very straightforward. Fatma isn't a good detective either. I clocked the controlling the djinn and that it would be the sister immediately. I thought that the angels were out of place in the world and the story and wish it would've been explained a bit more, as well as the magic and culture. The ending was entertaining though.