The City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty

The City of Brass (The Daevabad Trilogy, #1)

by S. A. Chakraborty

Discover this spellbinding debut from S.A. Chakraborty.

'An extravagant feast of a book - spicy and bloody, dizzyingly magical, and still, somehow, utterly believable' Laini Taylor, Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author

Among the bustling markets of eighteenth century Cairo, the city's outcasts eke out a living swindling rich Ottoman nobles and foreign invaders alike.

But alongside this new world the old stories linger. Tales of djinn and spirits. Of cities hidden among the swirling sands of the desert, full of enchantment, desire and riches. Where magic pours down every street, hanging in the air like dust.

Many wish their lives could be filled with such wonder, but not Nahri. She knows the trades she uses to get by are just tricks and sleights of hand: there's nothing magical about them. She only wishes to one day leave Cairo, but as the saying goes...

Be careful what you wish for.

Reviewed by Ashley on

3 of 5 stars

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I didn't love it like I wanted to. I think the main problem was I got some of the terms mixed up at the beginning and that mix up stayed with me through the whole book. I think it affected my ability to enjoy the story to its fullest because I didn't fully grasp the history and culture so I felt a bit lost when the book talked about it.

Politics and culture play a HUGE role in the book but I really couldn't remember why X tribe hated Y tribe or why X tribe hated some word/slur (or what it meant). I lost a great deal of enjoyment purely because there was so much I didn't remember that ended up becoming immensely important.

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Reading updates

  • 30 October, 2017: Started reading
  • 9 November, 2017: Finished reading
  • 8 November, 2017: Reviewed