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daydreamingreads's review
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
klaartjesmits's review
4.0
A gripping, philosophical and beautifully written YA historical mystery novella set in Baghdad in the Abbasid period. The Djinn's Apple follows Nardeen, a young girl seeking revenge for the brutal murder of her family after her father had been accused of killing the caliph's cousin.
Many different themes are explored in this relatively short book: medicine and magic, grief, justice and revenge, politics, the position of women, religious persecution, love and more. Morani has a very lyrical and philosophical writing style which often encouraged me to stand still and reflect on the different meanings behind a sentence.
I was especially captivated by the very three-dimensional protagonist and how she changes throughout the story. Because the book is less than 150 pages some other characters didn't feel fleshed out enough for me, Al-Aasefi and Suhaib in particular. I think I would have loved the story even more if it was a bit longer.
However, the shocking conclusion to the murder mystery had me at the edge of my seat and will stay with me for a long time!
Thank you to the author, to Neem Tree Press and to Edelweiss for the eARC.
Content warnings: blood, death of a sibling, death of a parent, medical procedures, misogyny, murder, physical illness, physical injury, physical violence, poisoning, religious persecution, slavery, suicidal ideation
Many different themes are explored in this relatively short book: medicine and magic, grief, justice and revenge, politics, the position of women, religious persecution, love and more. Morani has a very lyrical and philosophical writing style which often encouraged me to stand still and reflect on the different meanings behind a sentence.
I was especially captivated by the very three-dimensional protagonist and how she changes throughout the story. Because the book is less than 150 pages some other characters didn't feel fleshed out enough for me, Al-Aasefi and Suhaib in particular. I think I would have loved the story even more if it was a bit longer.
However, the shocking conclusion to the murder mystery had me at the edge of my seat and will stay with me for a long time!
Thank you to the author, to Neem Tree Press and to Edelweiss for the eARC.
Content warnings: blood, death of a sibling, death of a parent, medical procedures, misogyny, murder, physical illness, physical injury, physical violence, poisoning, religious persecution, slavery, suicidal ideation
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Slavery, Blood, and Murder
bingsoojung's review
DNF @ 33%. While I loved what I understood of the Djinn’s Apple, ultimately that was far too little to understand the story itself, as the prose, structure, and pacing of the story in the first third is utterly incomprehensible. As far as I can tell, the Djinn’s Apple is non-linear, however its lack of linearity is not a fun quirk of a creative author’s storytelling, but an otherwise talented prosaist’s inability to clearly show or explain what is taking place within the story. In the end, while I wanted to love and finish this story, I couldn’t, simply because I don’t know what the heck was going on.
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc.
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc.
nadineeeeeee's review
4.75
thank you to netgalley and publisher for the arc!
to be honest, i went into this totally blind and with no expectations AT ALL. i barely knew what this was about, besides the summary that was provided in the netgalley website. i had never heard of the author, Djamila Morani, nor the translator, Sawad Hussain, at all, so i didn’t really know what to expect in terms of the writing either.
but. i was so so SO pleasantly surprised. it was incredibly well written, i was hooked right from the beginning. i saw this one passage on politics at the start, and i just knew this was going to be good.
to be honest, i went into this totally blind and with no expectations AT ALL. i barely knew what this was about, besides the summary that was provided in the netgalley website. i had never heard of the author, Djamila Morani, nor the translator, Sawad Hussain, at all, so i didn’t really know what to expect in terms of the writing either.
but. i was so so SO pleasantly surprised. it was incredibly well written, i was hooked right from the beginning. i saw this one passage on politics at the start, and i just knew this was going to be good.
‘Politics has beautiful side that charms men who fall into her clutches and worship her, giving her everything they have. But she's also a woman with secrets too holy to divulge, desires too ugly to speak aloud, promises like sandcastles crumbling under the waves of her fury. If she showed them her true face with all its adornment, their souls would be the sacrifice.’
like woah!!!!
and from then on, all i found was a sentence, a paragraph, a passage, to annotate, because it truly BLEW my mind. it was a short book, but so concise and beautifully put that you just can’t help but be immersed in it.
our main character, Nardeen, was hard headed and strong-willed. i love seeing her grow and how she navigated her new circumstances after the tragedy, both under the influence of her new teacher, Muallim Ishaq, and through her own way. though we didn’t really get into much details of it, for it is again a really short book, we still got enough glimpses of it to know how she developed, with grief and anger still rooted deep inside her.
i loved how we got to know more about Baghdad in the past too. i loved how they put a glossary and also a reader’s guide at the end to put more context in the historical figure and place that were mentioned in the story.
i’m going to be honest, if there’s one thing i least expected to be in this book was that there would be a romance story. BUT THERE IS. and i actually loved it. i lost all of my annotations because i stupidly deleted the netgalley app before thinking twice, but there is a simple fleeting moment there that still sticks in my mind. simply written, but said a ton.
‘i studied the corner of his mouth turning downwards. it hit me, the magnitude of the crime that we committed against Suhaib— me and Al-Aesafi— I bowed my head in sorrow and walked silently’
like. ALL THIS. “the magnitude of the crime that we committed against Suhaib” and it’s literally just him losing his smile 😔😔😔😔
well i actually did lose my mind, thank you very much.
my only complaint about this book, the only reason why it didn’t touch 5 stars for me (though i’m very tempted), it’s just that it’s waayyyy too short.
it wasn’t much of a problem at the beginning nor the middle part, but the ending just ended up feeling so rushed. like it was suddenly just finished. a bit anticlimactic. i just wish we didn’t toppled all at once into the ending but instead went through the revelation slowly and with more tension in the air.
i loved this book though, that’s why i didn’t want to end it so fast and so suddenly!
all things aside, this is a story about family and grief and loss. and, as a consequence of that, it’s also a story about avenge and revenge. and the way the author described nardeen’s feelings around it, and overtime as it stayed and disappeared, was just sublime.
to me, the part in which this book lacked a bit (tension), was made up for the delivery of the lyrical writing and the easy flow of the story.
if you want something short, and yet also something that would also leave a mark, something that’s beautifully written and filled with sentences after sentences to take with you, then i would DEFINITELY recommend this book! in fact, i could not recommend it enough!! GO READ IT ‼️
4.75 stars! (★ ★ ★ ★.75)
15.04.24
tinyelfarcanist's review
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Sexism, and Death
Moderate: Grief, Child death, and Misogyny
Minor: Slavery, Animal death, Blood, Violence, and Medical content
green_ghost's review against another edition
4.0
Thanks to NetGalley and Neem Tree Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
The Djinn’s Apple is a deeply impactful story, filled to the brim with grief and love. I highly recommend checking out this book, but please check the content warnings first!!
Sawad Hussain has done an excellent job translating this story, and I’ll be definitely checking out other works translated by her!
silverchild's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-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? No
4.0
Nardeen comes from a Persian generation line, the Baramikas, who helped the great Caliph, Harun Al-Rashid, come to power but fell on dismay and were executed. She is the sole survivor of her family's slaughter and has to hide from the Caliph's men for fear of her life. She finds an unexpected ally in Muallim Ishaq, a great Jewish teacher and doctor at the hospital her father worked and he becomes her new family. But the pain lingers in her heart and she wants revenge.
I loved it. There's a glossary and other information about the Persian empire and the Caliph, who was a historical figure. The author presents life and medicine in the Persian empire in detail as well as the place of a woman in them. The book got the English PEN Translates Award.
I loved it. There's a glossary and other information about the Persian empire and the Caliph, who was a historical figure. The author presents life and medicine in the Persian empire in detail as well as the place of a woman in them. The book got the English PEN Translates Award.
loz_reads's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75