P. Djèlí Clark

Egypt, 1912. In an alternate Cairo infused with the otherworldly, the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities investigate disturbances between the mortal and the (possibly) divine. What starts off as an odd suicide case for Special Investigator Fatma el-Sha’arawi leads her through the city’s underbelly as she encounters rampaging ghouls, saucy assassins, clockwork angels, and plot that could unravel time itself, in P. Djèlí Clark's Tor.Com Original, A Dead Djinn in Cairo. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

A Tor.Com Original

A Dead Djinn in Cairo

Maria

Apiecalypse Jen

Nessa Luna

This novella has an interesting concept, but I wish it had been just a tad bit longer. I know there's a sequel (another novella) and I believe there's a full-length novel coming out soon, so I'll definitely keep an eye out for that when it comes out. 

I liked Fatma as a character, we learned quite a bit about her in these 43 pages. I also really liked the story and how it all took place in the span of a night. I am very interested in the world and hope we'll learn a bit more about this alternate Cairo in the other two books as well. 

Definitely recommend if you love anything to do with mythology and supernatural creatures!

menna

i still cannot believe that this story was 43 pages?? it's so rich in worldbuilding and, so well paced and has a very intriguing plot and i really loved the story and the execution of it all!!

Abdullah

oh, I'm soo into this. my favourite thing about this was the setting and a close second was our protagonist and her costume descriptions. it's amazing how P. Djèlí Clark introduced such an interesting and wonderful world with djinns, ghouls, angels (?) etc in only 43 pages. i want to know more about everything happening here and I'm very excited to read the sequels.

Fun very short story set in the same world as A Master of Djinn. Here we see the beginning of Fatima’s story, if only a glimpse of it. Quick, easy read with an interesting premise that I think could have been a whole book. Looking forward to the next one. 

Katie Allard

tina

this was so fun to read eventho it was so short !

This one wasn't for me. The genre is weird, the mesh of steampunk with fantasy definitely went over my head at time. The writing style wasn't for me either and I am still so confused. Maybe if I read the sequel the world building will make better sense, but this just wasn't it for me so I am not giving the sequel a chance. 

nuha ✨️

Magnus Dahl

Lia Yuliana

gonna re-read it again to make a comprehensive review!!

eden

fatma el-sha’arawi youre the love of my life

A wonderfully written novela meant to give more context for the Dead Djinn Universe series. If A Master of Djinn is anything like this, I just know I’ll love it. Satisfying and very quick read.

Cloey Yerger

Claire

I just could not connect with the prose or the story.  going to continue the series as this is more of a prequel, but I don't have high hopes.

Elizabeth Hisserich

This was really fun, if a bit too short. Excited to read more in this series. 

Cerys

Really interesting concept. Hoping to get through these small novellas before I start a master of djinn soon. I'm uncertain if I necessarily needed to read these first but if it will help the world make sense then I'm happy read. Especially as, even though these are short novellas Djèlí Clark is able to make the most of the pages they have used to fully emerse you in the world he has created.

Ambreen Hasan

короткий рассказ, в котором автор, тем не менее, смог в ворлдбилдинг и даже совсем чуть-чуть в детектив (но реально чуть-чуть, последние 3% тайны). мир интересный - стимпанковский каир 20-х годов, в котором не только джинны с ангелами водятся, но и женщине разрешено быть детективом и носить мужские костюмы и короткие стрижки. пока не очень понятно, справится ли автор с образом героини и с лейсбийским романом в следующих книгах, но чем черт не шутит

Imane

This very fun novelette sets up perfectly the world of Fatma el-Sha'arawi, an inspector for the Ministry of Alchemy in early 20th century Cairo. I found the world-building fun and remarkably well expanded upon for such a short story, and the plot didn't feel too rushed or too heavy for the short length of the story. Since you can't really have it all in a book that is already so rich in world-building elements and a fun storyline, the work done to make the main character Fatma feel at least semi-fleshed out was rather flimsy. I also CANNOT stand passages where a character catches a glimpse of themselves in a mirror and start describing their facial feature, so this part had me rolling my eyes real hard. But all in all I enjoyed it and I highly recommend it for lovers of urban fantasy, lightly steampunk universes, fantastical "mystery of the day" type of stories, and djinn-inspired stories. Looking forward to reading more (lengthier) stories set in this world! Special mention to the bit that said that invoking djinns in this world had run off the colonisers back to their dreary British island lmao.

Sahi K

Definitely a solid 4.5. 

I’ve always heard that the short stories by Tor.com are awesome but never got around to reading any before. But as I’m waiting for the nebula nominated The Haunting of Tram Car 015 to arrive from the library, I decided to try this short in the meantime. And it was just wow. 

Clocking at just about 40 pages, I was only expecting a fun murder mystery being solved by a female investigator but I didn’t expect the author to capture the atmosphere of a steampunk, paranormal early twentieth century Cairo so beautifully. In so few words, we get a brief history of the world and all it’s magical inhabitants, experience the slightly sexist culture, look at the various forms of innovative transportation available and also follow a badass woman solve some gruesome suicides/murders through her sharp intellect and observational skills. I was completely mesmerized while listening to the audiobook, and I would be remiss not to mention the stunning job done by the narrator and kept wishing that the story would go on. 

Finally, all I want to say is that if you enjoy short stories, you cannot miss this one. It has everything you need in an urban fantasy packaged into just a few pages and I promise you, it’ll instantly impress you. Also, it’s free!!! So what are you waiting for - read it or listen to it (listening is a way better option here) and be ready to be captivated. And now I’m doubly excited because we have a full length novel coming up in 2021 featuring our badass investigator Fatma called A Master of Djinn and I can’t wait to read it as soon as possible.

Toni Turner

Yeah hi catch me reading the novel very soon. Also! The artist Kevin Hong is incredible and while looking for the cover for my notion stuff I found soooo much cool art for this world and there characters.

a ray

Kathleen Boyle

This was a great introduction to the world and characters. I'm looking foward to reading the two other novellas before diving into the full length novel, there is so much that can be explored and so many directions this could go in!

Cheryl Hedlund

Such worldbuilding in so few pages. A steampunk-fantasy-alternate-history Egypt and a detective solving paranormal crime! Yes, sign me up. Such atmosphere and fun mystery adventure through the streets of Cairo.

This was a fun adventure and murder mystery set within a pretty cool world, but it also... felt so much like American mystery tv series in its characters and plot contrivances. The detective is the exact detective we all know from tv and movies, the way they talk to each other is the exact police banter we know from there, and the trope of immigrants from other worlds (in this case djinn, efreet, and "angels") being a terrifying threat who plan to swarm and eradicate you is also the same-old tropey fear I've seen countless times. 

All kinds of African, Christian, and Arabic religion and mythology is jumbled up in a blender and re-interpreted - which is, of course, always the prerogative of fantasy fiction, but it comes here with quite a lot of disrespect for those traditions. E.g. are we really supposed to believe that the Christian church and Islamic leaders would meekly accept some otherworldly beings in metallic bodies who came here through a portal as authentic angels, instead of seeing them as liars or blasphemers? But maybe this will be explained in future books set in this world: the world building was actually quite impressive considering how short this was. 

The plot is very predictable, though, checking off all the standard mystery trope boxes one by one. This becomes especially painful towards the end, when the MCs somehow aren't at all aware what the villain is so obviously planning to do and fail to try to prevent it, even though all the clues are there and impossible to overlook. (view spoiler)[I'm talking about his suicide in order to complete the ritual. (hide spoiler)]

That said, this world is quite interesting and different from the usual, so I can forgive the cliches much more easily. I should also mention that I don't like tropey detective fiction, so if you happen to love it, this story may work much better for you. 

Anyway, this is a story that would make a wonderful movie - I'd love to see this world brought to life on screen. Will I continue the series? Maybe... I'd have to be in a detective fiction kind of mood.

A Dead Djinn in Cairo A Tor.Com Original

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