A review by badmc
Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson

3.0

Alif is a young adult living in a unnamed Middle Eastern country. He is a hacker who escapes censors from his room in a duplex he shares with Dina, our veiled protagonist. He gets jilted, saddled with ancient book, and jinns...

Alif is a prick at the beginning of the book, but progresses through the plot. Dina was a more interesting character, if somewhat predictable and condescending. Side characters were each interesting in thir own way, and I liked the short stories intervowen with the plot.

The plot is fast-paced and takes us through town, alleys, deserts.. We meet jinns, an imam, princes, and digital demons.

The firts half of the book was engaging - even if Alif was unnapealing. The characterization is nice, and the themes interesting. Second half of the book feels disjointed and rushed, and thr ending felt abrupt and unsatisfying.
bingo: non-western setting, stand alone