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the_lesbrarian's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Death, Racism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Gore and Slavery
tahsintries's review against another edition
4.0
Minor: Colonisation, Slavery, and Racism
ko_rax'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? No
4.0
First: I love, love, love Fatma's impeccable style. I got so jealous that I was debating on buying myself
My favourite aspect of this novel is its world building and how it was embedded well in its historical setting. P. Djèlí Clark spent a great time researching to turn scenes this vivid, and the unwritten rules in this magical setting bore no loopholes. It felt as if I was transported to Egypt - and I have never been to Egypt, ever - and familiarised enough with the setting to see the plot pick up as well without being overwhelmed. Also appreciated the imperialist undertones and implications in many interactions among characters.
Towards the end, however, I felt the developments a little rushed, aside from uneven/imbalanced pacing throughout the whole novel. It was intriguing to me to see
Lastly, I love
As someone who rarely dabbles in steampunk and is more into historical fiction and/or fantasy, this was a nice read for me. I have interest, though faint, in more stories set in this universe and will seek out other works of P. Djèlí Clark set in this universe, eventually.
To close it off with a quote I liked in particular:
"Usually the screts we keep deep down, ain't meant to hurt other people, [..] 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 judgement we scared of more than the one we give our hearts to. Besides, everybody got secrets. Even you, I'm betting."
Graphic: Murder, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Violence
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Colonisation, and Slavery
thecolouryes'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? No
4.0
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Classism and Sexism
Minor: Colonisation, Violence, and War
emily_mh's review
- 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
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, imprisonmentwillow_the_wisp'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? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Police brutality, and Violence
warlocksarecool21'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
4.0
What I enjoyed most about this book was the world-building. P. Djèlí Clark is very good at pulling on familiar legends and mythology and putting a new twist on it. I really liked exploring this world from Fatma’s perspective and learning more about the Ministry’s role in this version of Egypt.
I think the author writes good characters as well. Fatma is an interesting and engaging protagonist. I like the way her character was developed throughout the story. She’s smart and independent but has to learn how to rely on others and let people in. I also enjoyed Fatma’s interactions with the other characters. I really liked how she had to learn to accept Hadia as her partner and trust her to be competent and reliable and I thought Hadia was very sweet, they balanced each other well.
Overall, I think Clark did a good job at weaving commentary about various sociopolitical issues throughout the story (in a way that was relevant to the characters and plot). There were a lot of themes he was trying to incorporate, and while I don’t think all of them were given the time needed to develop a nuanced conversation I appreciate the attention that was brought to them. I think the issues best explored were how racial dynamics in Cairo impacted people depending on
Graphic: Racial slurs, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Racism
Moderate: Misogyny, Police brutality, Violence, and Gore
takarakei'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? No
3.75
- Sapphic
- Egypt in 1912
- but make it steampunk
- mystery
- other worldly beings (Djinn, Angels, Ghuls)
- a dapper main character obsessed with 'menswear'
This wasn't the best thing I've read, but the world is interesting. I could've used a glossary at parts because sometimes I felt the world-building relied a bit too much on prior knowledge of Egyptian history - particularly when it came to the political history of the more recent setting of early 1900s Cairo. I wish I could say I learned a bit more history, but for me it was hard to tell what was fantasized and what was not (besides the obvious Djinn). The mystery is a bit predictable. I liked Fatma as a main character, and her obsession with suits. I would probably read more in this world if the author wrote it, if the plot-line followed something a bit different.
Graphic: Violence, Death, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Slavery, Colonisation, and Racism
asahome's review against another edition
3.5
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
- 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
Moderate: Colonisation, Gun violence, Police brutality, Violence, War, Addiction, Classism, Slavery, Racism, and Misogyny