A Master of Djinn

This debut novel is by P. Djeli Clark, which is the pen name of Dexter Gabriel (born 1971), an American speculative fiction writer and historian at the University of Connecticut. I liked it alot and really thought for a long time it was written by a female author, actually.

Because the story is about a female investigator of magical crimes in an Egypt that is a world power due to the discovery of Djinn and other magical beings a couple of years before. The year is 1912, and the representatives of Europe and the world are meeting in Cairo to prevent an impending global conflict at a peace conference.

Just at this moment, a charlatan appears and pretends to be the late discoverer of the djinns and magic and all, who died at the time after discovering and opening the portal to the Djinn world. And our female protagonist Fatma investigates a case where twenty people were burnt to death from their inside, leaving their clothes intact.

The whole thing is reminiscent in language and style and time of Arthur Conan Dale and Sherlock Holmes, only set in Egypt and with many women instead of only men: our female inspector has an inofficial affair with someone who also helps in the investigation, and later is reluctantly given a female partner to work with.

Just like in Sherlock Holmes, we often met rich, white, often old, and always judgmental men of the british (and sometimes European) nobility. But there is also surprising magic, many mythical creatures from big, old, badly tempered djinn to ghuls and ifrits. Djinns, for instance, follow very precise interpretation of the terms of any contracts they enter, which they do alot. We also have truely evil, powerful enemies and creatures, a relatively square-jawed police inspector (similar to Inspector Lestrade from Scotland Yard). The plot is good and drives the action, and it twists here and there in unforeseen ways.

The orient emerges in front of our eyes, and it is not ruled by Westerners, or even men. It is emancipated from the West, and women get to feel the first effects of their own emancipation.

I like the book alot and will surely hope the author continues this (the book itself came to existence because of a few critically acclaimed short stories).

An excellent read that immerses the reader in a steampunk and magical alternative world set in the early 20th century, where djinns and other magical creatures exist in Egypt and the rest of the world. This was made possible when a mysterious mystic named al-Jahiz broke the barrier between our world and the magical one. This allowed Egypt to resist European colonization (with the help of djinn) and to become a world power.

Into this world steps Fatma el-Sha’arawi, who works at the Egyptian Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities. She helped save Egypt (and the world) from being taken over by ancient beings from another world in a previous tale ("A Dead Djinn in Cairo"). In this story, she starts with an investigation into the mysterious deaths of a secret brotherhood group that would lead her to confront a person with immense magical powers who claim to be al-Jahiz, who has returned to lead a revolution against the elite.

With a supporting cast of fascinating characters like her new partner, her secret lover, a man channelling (or becoming?) an ancient Egyptian god, djinns, 'angels' and others personnel from the Ministry, she would confront the person, leading to a climactic battle that would determine the fate of the world. And only she may be able to wield the ultimate item of magical power that can stop that person, and others, from carrying out a plan to dominate the world.

The author hints of magical beings inhabiting other parts of the world, which opens up the possibility of a series of future stories involving Fatma and other characters in other adventures around the world. If true, this is one reader eager to join in their adventures.

As others have noted, this is an alternate steampunk universe set in the 1910's. A world changed by a single man piercing the veil, and bringing Djinn and magic back into our world. Since that happened about 40 years ago, the djinn have transformed Cairo with their amazing mechanical creations, including robots, flying gliders and trams, and mechanical brains in buildings.

The main character, Fatma, is a respected, if youngest female, investigator in the Ministry of Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities. She is definitely a maverick, dressing in suits, hats, and carrying a sword cane.

The descriptions of clothing and locations feed the imagination, breathing life into the world and putting it all in your mind's eye. The gradually revealing of the consequences of the mass murder in a secret brotherhood in honor of al-Jahiz, the man who brought back magic to the world, is gripping. The impostor who claims to be al-Jahiz has a dramatic flair that makes everything so much more cinematic. There are more than enough plot twists to keep you guessing until the end, and in the end you are left wanting more of this fantastical world and this amazing investigator.

My one criticism is, of course, Fatma has to save the world.

Again.

What does that leave her for an encore?

All said, the book is a fun romp with descriptions that you can taste and see in your mind's eye. There are multiple strong female characters, which definitely gives the book a distinct flair.

I only give 5 stars to books I think I will read again, and this fits into this category easily due to the cinematic world-building, enchangint character arcs, and gripping adventure.

As much as I wanted to, I didn't find this book very compelling. I certainly like the notion of a fantasy-ish story that takes place somewhere other than London or NYC, but that wasn't really enough for me. The plot gets bogged down in endless explanations -- basically with every introduction of a new tool, location, creature, character, etc, instead of showing us the thing, the author just tells about the thing. The dialogue drags and is repetitive. The concept of the plot has a lot of potential, but in execution it is extremely predictable, especially for a book that purports to be a mystery. The book is vaguely anti-colonial, and the gender politics are certainly interesting, but at the same time it's really falls into traditional genre tropes and in a lot of ways it buys into the accepted structure of western/colonial politics. I almost put it down several times.

An excellent read that immerses the reader in a steampunk and magical alternative world set in the early 20th century, where djinns and other magical creatures exist in Egypt and the rest of the world. This was made possible when a mysterious mystic named al-Jahiz broke the barrier between our world and the magical one. This allowed Egypt to resist European colonization (with the help of djinn) and to become a world power.

Into this world steps Fatma el-Sha’arawi, who works at the Egyptian Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities. She helped save Egypt (and the world) from being taken over by ancient beings from another world in a previous tale ("A Dead Djinn in Cairo"). In this story, she starts with an investigation into the mysterious deaths of a secret brotherhood group that would lead her to confront a person with immense magical powers who claim to be al-Jahiz, who has returned to lead a revolution against the elite.

With a supporting cast of fascinating characters like her new partner, her secret lover, a man channelling (or becoming?) an ancient Egyptian god, djinns, 'angels' and others personnel from the Ministry, she would confront the person, leading to a climactic battle that would determine the fate of the world. And only she may be able to wield the ultimate item of magical power that can stop that person, and others, from carrying out a plan to dominate the world.

The author hints of magical beings inhabiting other parts of the world, which opens up the possibility of a series of future stories involving Fatma and other characters in other adventures around the world. If true, this is one reader eager to join in their adventures.

Since I first read A Dead Djinn in Cairo I have just wanted more of this universe, and The Haunting of Tram Car 015 delivered another taster, so I was so ready for this full length novel and it was everything I’d wanted from the shorter stories.

If you are new to the series, A Master of Djinn is set in an alternate Egypt in 1912. The djinn and their magic helped Egypt claim independence from the British Empire and have forged ahead in technology and social progress. It’s a little bit steam punky, with magical trams and boilerplate eunuchs, a kind of automaton with a degree of sentience.

Agent Fatma investigates cases associated with the djinn or other supernatural entities. She wears men’s suits and has a kick-ass girlfriend called Siti, who might just be more than she seems. I liked how this story weaves in different beliefs, adding in some of the ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses as well as the modern Islam. Those who believe in the old gods are often treated without respect, but if djinn are real, why not some of the other stories too?

The murderer is not hard to track down but he claims to be Al-Jahiz, returned from the grave, ready to rile up the masses to strike out against injustice. There are certainly parallels with some of the behaviour we’ve seen over the last couple of years, with people hearing what they want to hear and getting swept along with the fever.

It’s a bit of a trope, an experienced agent getting assigned a rookie partner that they don’t want, but I loved the addition of Agent Hadia and how Fatma soon comes to realise she’s treating her exactly how she wouldn’t wanted to be treated herself. Hadia wears hijab and is much better than Fatma about remembering to make time to pray. She shows that her faith can fit in with Fatma’s less traditional lifestyle.

I loved the world building, the characters and the mystery. It’s thoughtful and fun. More please!