William Ray reviewed The City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty (The Daevabad Trilogy, #1)
Review of 'The City of Brass' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
This book is a fantastic journey into another world, one rich with history and intrigue, steeped in magic, and lushly detailed.
A street-savvy charlatan with a few mysterious magical gifts finds herself whisked away into a magical world she never imagined. In some ways, it's almost like the classic magical academy setup, albeit without said academy -- a magical birthright pulls someone from their (comparatively) mundane existence, shows them undreamt power that is coupled with undreamt peril.
Despite that somewhat familiar broad outline, Chakraborty's tale manages to twist and turn throughout, presenting the reader with histories and expectations, letting them settle and then twisting them around entirely. She has a gift for making something feel established, then suddenly tossing it aside to reveal a new truth that feels as shocking as if you'd known the prior state of affairs all your life. An early chapter included a death I found …
This book is a fantastic journey into another world, one rich with history and intrigue, steeped in magic, and lushly detailed.
A street-savvy charlatan with a few mysterious magical gifts finds herself whisked away into a magical world she never imagined. In some ways, it's almost like the classic magical academy setup, albeit without said academy -- a magical birthright pulls someone from their (comparatively) mundane existence, shows them undreamt power that is coupled with undreamt peril.
Despite that somewhat familiar broad outline, Chakraborty's tale manages to twist and turn throughout, presenting the reader with histories and expectations, letting them settle and then twisting them around entirely. She has a gift for making something feel established, then suddenly tossing it aside to reveal a new truth that feels as shocking as if you'd known the prior state of affairs all your life. An early chapter included a death I found as shocking and powerful as if he'd been a long established character when he'd only been introduced a few pages earlier!
As a result of that skillful presentation, the story's depiction of the tribal politics in an unfamiliar magical world feels both ancient and alive. Those tribal politics are the central pillar of the plot, and the author really pulled me into a world steeped in ancient grudges and modern grievances. Characters would be a villain in one light, then seem suddenly heroic in another as new interactions or perspectives brought more of their identity into play. As a result, Daevabad felt rich and full, even though we mostly just saw it from the palaces and the eyes of nobility.
The historical setting means the use of Arabic and other terminology is sprinkled apologetically throughout, in a way that an entirely imaginary world would be mocked for using, but it remains mostly obvious from context, with the added benefit that for Kindle readers, the dictionary recognizes a majority of the words which are less common in English literature. While that's of little aid to fans of paper, the author also includes a helpful glossary which covers those, as well as the more fantastical additions, so it's something to keep in mind if you're tripping over it.
Fans of historical settings should be aware that while this story begins in 18th century Cairo, occupied by Napoleon, it quickly departs and never returns. If you're hoping for a historical setting with a dash of djinn, this isn't quite it. Perhaps that's something for the sequels, but in this book that is the stepping off point, rather than the true framing of the tale.
The author's writing is well-polished and filled with delightful twists of phrase. The characters are well-crafted, believable, yet distinct, and deep enough that they can each be cast as heroic or villainous from moment to moment.
While not a cliffhanger ending, I'm eagerly awaiting the publication of the next installment in this series.
