Reviews tagging 'Classism'

A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark

23 reviews

thecolouryes's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Classism and Sexism

Minor: Colonisation, Violence, and War

emily_mh's review

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

5.0

I was absolutely thrilled, 100% of the time, to be reading this book. It literally felt like I was Fatma and Hadia’s cat sidekick (which they don’t actually have in the story), rubbing my paws together after investigating a lead and asking “where to next, ladies?” I was just enthralled. I absolutely adored the alt-history, steampunk, supernatural Cairo the novel’s events are set in. You’ve got mechanical, thinking buildings, airships and aerial trams, secret bars, and in the midst of it all, a Ministry that is trying to keep all hell from breaking loose (literally). What is so compelling is that general knowledge of the existence of magic and its spread in society only happened 40 years prior to the events of the novel; it is still super new to everyone and not everything is known, so this Ministry doesn’t really know what it’s doing or what it’s up against - kind of like the reader!

I also loved the characters. Our MC Fatma is this prodigal agent who is super capable and practical, and goes around wearing outlandish English suits. She’s in a relationship with SC Siti, who is this unpredictable, confident woman with some mysterious otherworldly powers. Fatma is assigned a partner at the Ministry, Hadia, who is steadfast, passionate, and kind. Fatma’s development is about her relationships with Siti and Hadia; in the former they aren’t communicating well, while Fatma wants nothing to do with the latter. Both relationships end in a much, much better place than they began.

The fault with this book lies partially in some lines of cliche dialogue, and occasionally some clumsy world-building (”I think it’s X!” “X? You mean [insert exactly what X is here]”), that perhaps indicated the level of craft could have been improved overall. But it mostly lies in the fact that Clark could have introduced more suspects and hidden the perpetrator better, as the writing of the clues was heavy-handed for an adult mystery. The combination of these factors meant I guessed who the perpetrator was very early on. HOWEVER, I didn’t guess the motive or the mechanics of their crimes, which ended up being interestingly tied into the world-building. I would say I’d rate this book 4.25 for quality (still super solid!), but overall I couldn’t rate it less than 5 stars because I enjoyed it so damn much. I can easily see this series as a whole making my top 10 of 2024 list.

Rep: Muslim Egyptian MC, Sudanese LI, Muslim Egyptian SCs

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs

Moderate: Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Confinement, Murder, and Death

Minor: Drug use, Drug abuse, Addiction, Misogyny, Grief, Homophobia, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Kidnapping, Classism, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Cannibalism, Islamophobia, Vomit, Pedophilia, Colonisation, Blood, Slavery, War, Sexism, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual content, Fatphobia, Body shaming, Alcohol, Ableism, Suicide, and Religious bigotry

Major: six uses of the Arabic anti-Black a-slur, self-injury, body control, mind control, blackface Moderate: two uses of the archaic anti-Black n-slur, colourism, bomb Minor: gambling, apartheid, fainting, one use of the archaic anti-Black b-slur, imprisonment

asahome's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious

3.5

TL;DR: A young woman must solve a mass murder case where she discovers the supernatural is closer than she thinks. In the end, people challenge the status quo and they are not wrong when discussing the way power is distributed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, Religious bigotry, Violence, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Blood, and Colonisation

Moderate: Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Slavery, Alcohol, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Cultural appropriation, Body horror, Classism, Drug use, and Gore

willow1113's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Colonisation, Gun violence, Police brutality, Violence, War, Addiction, Classism, Slavery, Racism, and Misogyny

cozyblanketbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Death, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Classism, Racial slurs, Colonisation, Racism, and Slavery

Minor: War

jhbandcats's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

4.25

This is an entertaining tale of three strong women in a time of casual misogyny and racism (with a hint of homophobia), when chauvinism and nationalism made life frustrating at best for anyone not an Egyptian male or wealthy white Englishman. 

It opens with a chapter demonstrating Agent Fatma’s bravery and skill in dealing with an angry, powerful djinn, and goes on to give her a far more challenging assignment. She’s initially paired with an unwanted partner but very early on they work well together, with none of the squabbling common to Hollywood buddy movies. Fatma’s lover Siti rounds out the trio. The descriptions of Cairo a century ago add realism to the steampunk aesthetic. 

I would probably have given this five stars but I was so frequently flummoxed by unknown words that I would really have appreciated a glossary. The words I didn’t know have to do with politics, religion, clothing, food, and magical beings. While the meaning was usually clear from the context, I spent way too much time on Google trying to find out more information. 

Overall, though, I really enjoyed this. I’ve liked Clark’s novellas and like this full-length novel even more. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Blood, Classism, Violence, Alcohol, Police brutality, Racism, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, and Gore

mleiv's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

Vibrant, individual characters. I identified the murderer right off, but it was one of those mysteries where it just made it better because you were heckling the protagonist for not realizing it. The humor was perfect. The ending, when she reads the Djinn Lord his crimes, lol. Loved all of it. Gonna read all the short stories now, and hope for sequels.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Racism, Classism, Violence, and Murder

kappafrog's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny informative mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

This. Was. FANTASTIC!! One of the best books I've read all year. I love the setting, the characters, the history, the folklore... Wow!! I want more books like this! A historian writing steampunk that centres entirely different cultures and histories than usual... I love it! Reading this felt like eating a delicious and varied meal you'd never tasted!

Fatima and Hadia made a great detective team, and I loved Siti. There were so many amazing side characters too, from a musician refugee from Jim Crow calling himself Mansa Musa, to a haughty djinn librarian, to a master of thieves feeding hungry children while keeping some wealth for herself. The world building was so rich, with so many strands woven together to make an engrossing tapestry. I'd love to see more of this world!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death, Religious bigotry, Cultural appropriation, Police brutality, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Classism, and Racism

Moderate: Misogyny, Death of parent, Racial slurs, Body horror, Sexism, War, Slavery, Gun violence, Hate crime, Violence, and Xenophobia

Minor: Blood, Cannibalism, Dementia, Abandonment, Alcohol, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Islamophobia, and Mental illness

beepsies's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Torture, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Self harm, Racism, and Sexism

Minor: Classism, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Religious bigotry, and Slavery

styxx's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Classism, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Violence

Minor: Addiction