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whataboutzana's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Slavery, Racism, Colonisation, Xenophobia, and Cultural appropriation
Minor: Misogyny, Sexism, and Stalking
mandkips's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Gore and Violence
Moderate: Death, Slavery, Racism, and Police brutality
mar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Racism, Violence, Gore, and Death
Moderate: Sexism, Racial slurs, and Slavery
Minor: Religious bigotry, Stalking, and Police brutality
ceallaighsbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“Usually the secrets we keep deep down, ain’t meant to hurt other people,” he said. “Not saying they won’t, but not through intentions. Those deep secrets, we hide away because we’re afraid what other people might think. How they might judge us, if they knew. And nobody’s judgment we scared of more than the one we give our hearts to.”
“Justice comes for the wicked in time. The scales of Thoth demand it.”
“If you steal, steal a camel, she heard her mother whisper. And if you love, love the moon.”
- everything by P. Djèlí Clark
- Legendborn, by Tracy Deonn
- N. K. Jemisin’s Dreamblood duology
- The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova
Graphic: Gore, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Misogyny, Murder, Racism, and Sexism
Minor: Police brutality, Slavery, and Stalking
poffalina's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Moderate: Slavery, Violence, and Gore
leahsbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Slavery, Self harm, Racism, and Racial slurs
dedonohoe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Moderate: Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Slavery, and Violence
TL;DR: A Master of Djinn is a queer, magical steampunk fantasy anticolonial alternate history murder mystery detective novel. And it’s excellent. My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars A mysterious scientist-philosopher-magician of a bygone era opens the human realm to greater settlement by djinn and other “mythical” beings. Thanks to this historical development, Egypt has greatly benefited from advanced djinn magic and technology to become an early nineteenth century superpower. One of the reasons I was excited to read this book is that the description (steampunk alternate history with anticolonial bent) reminded me of Nisi Shawl’s Everfair, which I read and enjoyed a couple years back. There were indeed thematic and steampunk genre similarities between the two, but these are ultimately very different kinds of stories. Mystery, detective, and fantasy tropes are far more prominent in A Master of Djinn. The main character, Fatma el-Sha’arawi, is an investigator with the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities. The supernatural bureaucracy elements of the story reminded me a bit of the Ministry of Magic in Harry Potter, as did the protagonist’s mission to stop a megalomaniac from harnessing potentially catastrophic magical powers. There is so, so much to love in this book. The clues, twists, and turns of a good mystery. Strong, complex female heroes, sidekicks, and villains. A queer love story that navigates racial, religious, and other differences in identity and lived experience. Gender politics of turn of the century Cairo. Revenge fantasy scenes where white colonizers get what’s coming to them. Vivid and imaginative descriptions of setting and characters that make glorious use of color (e.g. Cairene woman protagonist is known for wearing androgynous and brightly color-coordinated European suits). Compelling historical allusions (e.g. Black New Orleans jazz musicians who fled Jim Crow America for Egypt give commentary on the racial politics of their adopted country of refuge). As a big language nerd and someone who has traveled and lived in places with Turkic, Persian, and Arab cultural influences, I also LOVED the religious, cultural, and linguistic details that Clark weaves into his story. It’s quite apparent in his fiction that Clark is a historian by training. I also want to address the question of whether A Master of Djinn is a standalone work. When I requested an ARC for A Master of Djinn, I hadn’t realized that P. Djèlí Clark had already written two novellas set in this fantasy world and featuring these characters. I was curious whether they were important to understanding and enjoying his debut novel, so I decided to buy and read them before jumping into A Master of Djinn. I can definitely report that it’s not necessary to read “A Dead Djinn in Cairo” or “The Haunting of Tram Car 015” in advance. The important information gets repeated in A Master of Djinn for the benefit of the uninitiated. That said, if you want to get a taste of this world before committing to the full novel, “A Dead Djinn in Cairo” is very short (43 pages) and tells the story of a previous case Fatma has solved that is very relevant to the case she becomes embroiled in during the events of A Master of Djinn. “The Haunting of Tram Car 015” is longer (82 pages) and centers on side characters (Fatma only makes a brief cameo) and a case that is not central to A Master of Djinn. However, it is entertaining in its own right and provides background for some of the religious conflict present in this imagined Cairene society, as well as recent political movements for gender equality that are alluded to in A Master of Djinn. Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for giving me advance access to this book in exchange for an honest review.noreadingdegree's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
i have read all of P. Djèlí Clark's work previous to this and was ecstatic when I saw that he was releasing his first full length novel in his alternate steampunk Cairo. I was a little apprehensive because Clark typically writes shorter fiction and I was unsure of how it would translate into a longer work. Overall, I think Clark did an outstanding job with A Master of Djinn. I find his storytelling so incredibly invigorating and refreshing. I just come to life when I read his words. The things that I think he did best in this novel were the characterizations of his female characters, exploration of queer relationships, and top notch worldbuilding. However, I felt that the mystery/detective plot line became convoluted especially towards the end of the book. This felt like it was originally another novella, but was bumped up to novel status. It felt like Clark had to fill in the gaps to boost it from 200ish pages to 400+ pages. Those parts didn't necessarily work well for me, but I still very much enjoyed the novel. Now I need a follow-up story furthering exploring Siti and Fatma's relationship!
Graphic: Gore, Self harm, and Violence
Moderate: Slavery
protests with violent encounters with police force.