Reviews with content warning for Racism - A Master of Djinn

Loved the worldbuilding and the characters and the themes. The pacing was a bit off at times and the mystery plot was a bit obvious, probably as a symptom of the author moving from novellas to novels with this book. I liked all of the choices. I just think the execution could be polished a bit more in future books (which I definitely plan to read).

The narration for the audiobook was kind of odd. If they were going to do accents for the entire book, surely it would have made more sense to find a narrator with an actual Egyptian accent?

If you enjoyed the Kane Chronicles or the Bartimaeus Trilogy as a child and want something that draws from the same mythologies but has a better understanding of imperialism and other issues, A Master of Djinn is definitely a great choice for that.

And it's sapphic!

One other thing: I was under the impression that Islam and magic don't mix and that it's bad to mix the two in fantasy writing, but I haven't seen anyone say anything about that aspect of the book, so it's possible that I was misinformed.

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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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whatcassiedid's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

Wow I loved this so much! Excellent world building (although it seems like reading the novellas set in the same universe first might have helped with some backstory) and great characters all around. I don't think I've ever read anything set in Egypt and certainly never anything like this.

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krysley's review

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Originally read in 2021. Re-read in 2023 for book club. My original review (below) still applies.

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I absolutely love this world and the characters P. Djèlí Clark has created. Admittedly, this audiobook started off a little slow for me, but once the action started ramping up I was hooked again.

My only complaint would be that it felt like I never got to see the relationship build between Fatma and Siti from when they first met in A Dead Djinn in Cairo to this full-length novel.

The narrator, Suehyla El-Attar, is excellent once again. She gives a good sense of place and characters with her intonations and accents. I will say that she sometimes breaks up her sentences oddly, making them sound like fragments, but it's nothing major that would turn me away from the audiobook. Actually, I would highly recommend the audiobook just for that sense of place El-Attar adds.

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thoughtsontomes's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This was an absolute delight. The world is lush and expansive. The characters and their interactions are lovable while still being flawed and realistic. There is a sapphic relationship. The mystery kept me on my toes with enough foreshadowing to be satisfying. The villain had every ability to be 2 dimensional but turned out to have some substance. Everything was tied up perfectly. I'm be not so patiently awaiting the next novel in this series.

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