The City of Brass

October 2, 2017
The familiar fantasy theme of a young person learning of a hidden supernatural legacy is given new life in this promising debut novel, set in late-18th-century Egypt. Twenty-something Nahri, who has the ability to sense illness in others and to heal some ailments, supports herself as a fortune-teller and con artist in Cairo. Her routine, if precarious, existence, is shattered when a girl she is trying to help is possessed by an ifrit. Nahri only avoids being killed through the intervention of Dara, a djinn, who reveals that Nahri is from a family of magical healers. Chakraborty combines the plot’s many surprises with vivid prose (“The cemetery ran along the city’s eastern edge, a spine of crumbling bones and rotting tissue where everyone from Cairo’s founders to its addicts were buried”), and leavens the action with wry humor. There is enough material here—a feisty, independent lead searching for answers, reminiscent of Star Wars’s Rey, and a richly imagined alternate world—to support a potential series. Agent: Jennifer Azantian, Azantian Literary.

Starred review from January 1, 2018

Nahri, a common Cairo thief who can sense sickness in others and sometimes heal them, is thrust into a magical world when she accidentally summons a powerful djinn. The handsome Dara insists that he escort Nahri to the magical hidden Daevabad, the City of Brass, where Nahri will be protected by Prince Ali's family, who have the power of Suleiman's seal. Never sure whom to trust, Nahri must rely on her street smarts to survive the dangers of the beguiling city and the duplicitous natures of those who surround her. Chakraborty's compelling debut immerses readers in Middle Eastern folklore and an opulent desert setting while providing a rip-roaring adventure that will please even those who don't read fantasy. Though Nahri is in her early 20s, young adults will recognize themselves in her. The other narrator, Prince Ali, is an 18-year-old second son who doubts the current class structure of his kingdom. Chakraborty's meticulous research about Middle Eastern lore is evident, but readers won't be bogged down by excessive details. VERDICT A must-purchase fantasy for all libraries serving young adults.-Sarah Hill, Lake Land College, Mattoon, IL

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 15, 2017

To survive on the streets of 18th-century Cairo, Egypt, Nahri, a young con artist, lives by luck and skill. While she carries out her trades of palm and tea leaf readings, along with healings, she knows them to be just tricks, not magic--until the night she summons a djinn warrior during one of her cons. She embarks on an unexpected journey to the fabled Daevabad, the City of Brass, where the six djinn tribes still reside. However, its magical brass walls cannot protect against the growing darkness that lurks within. Tied by blood to the city, Nahri is pulled into deadly court politics as divergent forces seek to use her magical abilities to their advantage. VERDICT This lyrical historical fantasy debut brings to vivid life the ancient mythological traditions of an Islamic world unfamiliar to most American readers. Chakraborty's grasp of Middle Eastern history, folklore, and culture inspires a swiftly moving plot, richly drawn characters, and a beautifully constructed world that will entrance fantasy aficionados. [See Prepub Alert, 5/22/17.]--KC

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 1, 2017
A rich Middle Eastern fantasy, the first of a trilogy: Chakraborty's intriguing debut.On the streets of 18th-century Cairo, young Nahri--she has a real talent for medicine but lacks the wherewithal to acquire proper training--makes a living swindling Ottoman nobles by pretending to wield supernatural powers she doesn't believe in. Then, during a supposed exorcism, she somehow summons a mysterious djinn warrior named Dara, whose magic is both real and incomprehensibly powerful. Dara insists that Nahri is no longer safe--evil djinn threaten her life, so he must convey her to Daevabad, a legendary eastern city protected by impervious magical brass walls. During the hair-raising journey by flying carpet, Nahri meets spirits and monsters and develops feelings for Dara, a deeply conflicted being with a long, tangled past. At Daevabad she's astonished to learn that she's the daughter of a legendary healer of the Nahid family. All the more surprising, then, that King Ghassan, whose ancestor overthrew the ruling Nahid Council and stole Suleiman's seal, which nullifies magic, welcomes her. With Ghassan's younger son, Prince Ali, Nahri becomes immersed in the city's deeply divisive (and not infrequently confusing) religious, political, and racial tensions. Meanwhile, Dara's emerging history and personality grow more and more bewildering and ambiguous. Against this syncretic yet nonderivative and totally credible backdrop, Chakraborty has constructed a compelling yarn of personal ambition, power politics, racial and religious tensions, strange magics, and terrifying creatures, culminating in a cataclysmic showdown that few readers will anticipate. The expected first-novel flaws--a few character inconsistencies, plot swirls that peter out, the odd patch where the author assumes facts not in evidence--matter little. Best of all, the narrative feels rounded and complete yet poised to deliver still more. Highly impressive and exceptionally promising.

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October 1, 2017
Nahri magically heals the sick and instantaneously learns foreign languages, abilities she uses to con Cairo's elite. During one ruse, she accidentally contacts an evil ifrit, and suddenly a smoking hot daeva (he literally emanates smoke and radiates heat) is flying Nahri to Daevabad, claiming she's the last of her race. Meanwhile, in Daevabad, tensions escalate between the daevas (pure-blood djinn) and shafits (half-blood djinn). Prince Ali, a shafit sympathizer, struggles between pledging loyalty to his royal family or to his heartfelt cause. Chakraborty's debut launches into full speed when Ali and Nahri meet. Matched in wits and candidness, they bicker at first, eventually evolving into unlikely allies. Through them, Chakraborty explores timeless issues: Does birth or experience determine a person's nature? How does one realistically help a suppressed group achieve equality? Vibrant djinn lore further complicates these open-ended questions. Vivid descriptionsbrass buildings, fine fabrics, spicy smellspercolate the lush prose, and a final twist leaves room for a sequel. Recommend this scintillating, Middle Eastern fantasy to fans of thoughtful, mystical adventures.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)