Review of S.A. Chakraborty’s City of Brass, book one of The Daevabad Trilogy (no spoilers)

[@sheyslibrary]

So glad you enjoyed it! It’s one of my favorite series and (in my opinion) only gets better as it progresses

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

That's excellent to hear, Sheyenne!

[@TheBookishMom]

I love hearing your thoughts on this! After finishing book 3 recently I think this has become a favorite series of mine. My feelings about Dara really go through the ringer during this series and Ali... I think Chakraborty did an amazing job making her characters very interesting and complex.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I'm delighted to hear your take, Jessie, and you've made me even more excited to read on in the trilogy. Having it become a favorite of yours is a big endorsement!

[@TheBookishMom]

@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy awe shucks! Thats sweet. Honestly I think the series keeps getting better as the books go on and she ends it very well.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

@@TheBookishMom I look forward to it!

[@BookBlather]

This sounds incredible. I basically had no idea what this was about until just now. Glad you had such a nice time with it!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

If you ever give it a try, I hope you'll enjoy it, Dave!

[@Johanna_reads]

Wonderful review and thumbnail, Philip! This sounds like it has a wonderful, unique setting and great story. We seem to love feeling conflicted about the characters we care about in fantasy. I've only heard fantastic things about this trilogy, and hearing what you had to say about this first book increases my interest even more. I hope you enjoy the rest of the trilogy!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you, Johanna! I think this book deserves the love and praise that it's received. I enjoyed it, and I hope you will too if you ever decide to read it.

[@PetrikLeo]

Great review, Philip! I read this a long time ago, but I didn't continue after the first quarter. I definitely should give this a try again!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thanks, my friend! If you do give the series another chance, I hope you’ll enjoy it. I thought it was a solid story that was well told, and I loved the setting.

[@claradaniels1472]

I've gotten a bit backed up with my tbr so it'll take me a while to get to this, but I'm definitely thinking of buying it for my friend for her birthday! Thanks for the great review!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I hope you and your friend will both love it, Clara!

[@BookishChas]

This book sounds really cool Philip! I love stories that incorporate a unique take on Djinn. Your review makes me want to bump it onto my “read soon” list. Thank you.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

This one definitely qualifies as a unique take on Djinn. Happy reading, Chas!

[@lmp2motivation]

You are really talented my friend 🤗 you have my full support 😁 thank you for sharing this amazing video👌👌👌😁

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thanks for the kind words!

[@simonsuarez7561]

Philip the Djinn! I wonder if he would fulfill three bookish whishes haha! My first wish would definitely be to fit more reading time in my week so that I can tackle my ever growing TBR. I must say the setting of this book sounds very attractive and different, I like it. I remember with great joy as a child reading with my father the tales of Scheherazade and the Arabian Nights. If I have the chance to find the book, I'll give it a try. Great review and funny thumbnail, Philip. Thank you!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Ha ha! I wish I could grant everyone’s bookish wishes, Simon!

[@RNMcKown]

Enjoyed hearing your perspective. I am not generally a reader of "modern" - i.e., post-Tolkien - fantasy writers (or modern fiction in general), preferring going back to the older traditions, but since "The 1001 Nights" is part of those older traditions this book caught my eye in a used book store and I quite enjoyed it - being herself a Muslim Chakraborty's incorporation of Islamic themes is very natural. My only "grumble" is what struck me as Chakraborty's excessively casual (in my opinion) "North American" choice of words, especially in dialogue, irritating to me but not enough to put me off reading the rest of the Daevabad Trilogy - and I've recently acquired, although I've not yet read, Chakraborty's new (2023) "The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi", which looks intriguing. BTW, I believe "jinn" is pronounced like "gin" (soft "g") and "ifrit" is pronounced something like "i-freet".

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

This is true of a lot of modern fantasy. I keep telling people to read Ursula Le Guin’s “From Elfland to Poughkeepsie,” where she advocates fantasy prose that signals the reader is in a different world.

[@RNMcKown]

@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy Yes, exactly! Which is why I personally love the language in Morris' prose romances, even though I realise you may consider him to have gone rather to the opposite extreme!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

@@RNMcKown I actually love it personally, but I don’t think it’s very accessible for many people today. It wasn’t accessible even when he wrote back in the 19th century, at least according to some of his critics. But the medievalist in me enjoys it thoroughly!

[@C.S.Brulevent]

Great review and thumbnail ! The setting was definitely something that caught my interest for this book. You've convinced me to bump it way up my TBR ; fairly different settings, from one book to another, acts a bit like a palate cleanser when I'm reading primarily fantasy novels for a while.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thanks, Cyril! I think this could make a great shift of gears from the standard epic fantasy.

[@afantasybabble6222]

Glad you enjoyed it. S.A. Chakraborty has a new book coming out set in the High Seas. Very much looking forward to it.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Good to know, and thank you!

[@avi4905]

I was hesitant to pick this up, however when I sow it on your TBR I immediately started it. Thank you for the review, am always looking forward to more of your reviews since I base a lot of my readings on them. Great review👍

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you, Avi! I hope you enjoyed the read.

[@akashas6012]

Very good Review. I am currently rereading the trilogy. I love this complex and intriguing story.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you! I hope you continue to love the trilogy!

[@travypatty4910]

I plan on reading this book soon. I’m about to finish THE STARDUST THIEF and I would highly recommend this book for anyone that likes a dessert fantasy. Especially ones about djinn

[@brush2canvas849]

Great video! It's always interesting to hear your views, Philip. Like you I enjoy the book (have about a 100 pages left) and the setting is really well done. I like your comparison with 1001 Nights. I'm glad I finally picked this up as the book is on my shelf for a while. Also glad to see that having hired an artistic director has not deminished the overall color co-ordination of your videos. That carpet works especially well with the book cover!😄

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I thought it was a brilliant idea to film in front of the tapestry -- especially when I call the book a vast tapestry. Hee hee! Thanks for catching things that no one else does!

[@brush2canvas849]

@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy Clever idea indeed! Especially as it feeds into all those flying carpet associations. Always a pleasure to see what art you pick for your videos.

[@angelaholmes8888]

I had a blast reading city of brass I immediately requested the sequel after reading it 😀💝

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

That awesome, Angela!

[@crystalsingh7325]

Great review Phillip! I started reading this book this week & I really love the magic, folklore and world of the story. Will definately continue the trilogy. Hope you enjoy the rest of books.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I’m delighted to hear you’re enjoying this one too, Crystal!

[@maddy0119]

Very thoughtful review Phillip! I read this one a couple of years ago and while it wasn't a new favorite I really loved the magical elements and felt truly transported to this world. If you enjoyed the mythological elements you're in for more good stuff if you continue!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I love the mythological elements, so that's great news. Thanks, Maddy!

[@andreamiller3578]

I bought this book on a whim, and sat up all night reading it last Sunday. Fortunately I'm off on Mondays because I didn't finish it until 9 a.m. I bought The Kingdom of Copper yesterday and then sat up all night again finishing it. I just fell into the story and found it so magical that I couldn't stop. I'm pretty sure I'll buy the third one tonight, but I'm going to try to pace myself this time. LOL

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Wow! That’s what they mean by immersion! My best to you for book three, Andrea.

[@esmayrosalyne]

It was wonderful hearing your thoughts on this book! I read it last summer and thoroughly enjoyed it, but I do have to admit that I was expecting to love it more based on the immense hype that I had seen going around for this series. Just a perfect example of why I personally love to go into my books as blind as possible and with basically zero expectations, because otherwise I almost always tend to overhype things in my head and end up being a bit let-down. All that said, this is still a really good story! You mentioned that you probably missed some of the nods/references that Chakraborty worked into her story, but I honestly think I missed almost all of them, because I am so unfamiliar with this culture and its stories/legends. Definitely agree that it was great to get this story from two very different POVs! I really enjoyed exploring this world through such different lenses. Oh and btw, book 2 starts with a time-jump of about 5 years and I personally really liked to see how the characters had progressed in that time, I think Chakraborty pulled that off really well. Anyway, I think you'll have a great time with the rest of this series! Lots of great things to come :) Thanks for the excellent review!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you, Esmay. I completely agree that expectations are important for how we experience a book. My expectations were mixed and definitely lower than yours because I had heard both praise and less enthusiastic reactions. I think I went into it pretty neutral and ended up enjoying City of Brass. Thanks for the heads up about book two!

[@francoisbouchart4050]

It is great to hear that you are enjoying this series Philip. I own the books and they have been on my TBR for a couple of years. I need to get to them. Cheers.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I hope you'll enjoy them when you get there, Francois!

[@Thecatladybooknook_PennyD]

You've made me excited to start this in a couple of weeks with Lezlie (The Nerdy Narrative)

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Yay! I hope you'll both love it, Penny!

[@trainconductorlenin1616]

One thing I would like to add to your review Philip is that Chakraborty actually has an academic background in Islamicate history (thou. Her research goes far beyond the 1001 nights, which in the literature and writing of that part of the world is really just a drop in the ocean and actually is more popular in the west than in the middle east, North Africa and central Asia where it is supposedly set. Unfortunately due to a lack of popular interest much of this great literature from the same period just hasn't been translated or well publicized.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

That’s excellent to hear, and though I did not know about her academic expertise, it doesn’t surprise me. Thanks for sharing that!

[@robpaul7544]

Can only agree with your praise for this book, I liked it very much as well. Haven't gotten round to book 2 yet, but have it lying around and it won't be long now before I get to it.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

It's good to know I'm in great company in liking this book, Rob!

[@fcsolis]

Thank you. I'm a few pages in and loving it already.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I hope you’ll continue to enjoy it!

[@mvinson8706]

I got a sample of this on my kindle and it seemed interesting. May have to continue it. Different and compelling. Great video!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thanks, Michelle, and I hope you'll enjoy the read!

[@John-qy5rq]

Was happy to see your review of this book. We both have similiar taste so to here you like it makes me comfortable in trying this book.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I hope you’ll enjoy it, John!

[@cmmosher8035]

I really enjoyed the book as well. I thought the characters were well done and even if they were antagonists i felt like I understood their perspectives. The focus on court intrigue was fun change from what i normally. It felt like a more vanilla version of Kushiel's Dart in terms of plot focus. I do need to get to the rest of the series.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

It's a solid debut novel and very enjoyable. I've given it to my younger daughter to read, and that's a big endorsement, I think.

[@JolienReads]

I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed this book Philip! I have put it higher up on my TBR and hope to read it this Summer. The setting is the main reason why I was intrigued as well but I was a little bit afraid that it would feel too modern. But hearing about the Djin world and how they have been influenced by the culture of different tribes sounds like such an interesting world with great lore. Thanks for the review!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

The lore is one of the compelling aspects of The City of Brass, for sure. I hope you’ll enjoy it, Jolien!

[@kianwiser7743]

I just read this book for my college class on JInn, Its quite an interesting setting although I felt that the pacing was a bit off, I quite enjoyed this book as well. Always nice to get a good fantasy novel out of the medieval European setting once in a while. Glad you enjoyed it.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I think it’s awesome that you are in a class on Djinn (or Jinn), and that you get to read The City of Brass for it. Cheers, Kian!

[@chadia25]

It's nice to hear you love it. ❤ it was my first read of the year and I really enjoyed it.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I enjoyed it very much. Cheers, Chadia!

[@AnEruditeAdventure]

I was just talking about this book with a friend yesterday. Neither of us have read it, but she was interested in some genie mythology, and I knew this had some in it. I’m going to have to pick this up sometime now. Sounds like I’ll enjoy it. -T

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I definitely enjoyed it, and I hope you will too if you give it a try!

[@callinicobo5991]

Very interesting. I own the trilogy. At this moment I'm finishing the "Sheepfarmer daughter" trilogy, and once I've read "The God is not willing", I will probably start City of Brass. Thank you.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Sounds like some great ahead for you -- best wishes for it all!

[@aliaswired]

Superb nonspoiler review as always! I’m actually rereading this series now. After getting half way through Chakraborty’s newly released short story collection in this world I decided I needed to start the series again, and what a comfort they have been. The second and third books are tied for the best IMO. I actually want someone to challenge Allen to read this, because I think he will appreciate the politicking and complexity of the world and characters, though those become richer in the second and third books. Do you have a One Thousand and One Nights edition rec? I have Hanān Shaykh’s on my radar right now.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thanks so much! It sounds like I have a lot to look forward to from Daevabad. My translation of One Thousand and One Nights is a reprint of Richard Burton’s translation from the 1880s, which was highly respected at the time but may or may not be dated. I’m afraid I’m not very well informed about the best modern translations, but I wish you the best in your hunt!

[@aliaswired]

@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy thank you! I’ll add Burton’s translation to my list!

[@LEOrgill]

I read the first book awhile ago. I need to the continue on with the series. I really like the characters in the series.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I enjoyed the characters very much too!

[@zan8152]

So glad you got to this one, I very much expected you'd quite like it - for my money the 2nd book is even far better, delving into the complexity in both the romance and politics nearly perfectly. Actually turns out I don't care for the third book much at all, but... we'll wait until you get there. I really look forward to your continued thoughts here.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

A lot of people have told me that book two is a favorite. I look forward to finding out. Thanks, Zan!

[@scottferris2686]

Nice review, you have me interested to read the book now. I think it would be fun sometime for you to review and read something fluffier - a popcorn/beach read. Those books that are incredibly fun to read and turn the page on and then forget about ten minutes after you are done (I’m sure you know the kind of books I’m talking about), just a wish.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thanks, Scott! If you give this one a try, I hope you’ll enjoy it. I’ll ponder a popcorn read for a future review! 😄

[@TheyTalkPolitics]

Love the mythology

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

You can never have too much mythology, Joseph!

[@MrRorosuri]

💜💜💜

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

The same to you!

[@MrRorosuri]

Cool

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you!

[@safinan8008]

Good review video!! Sorry this series wasn’t for me.... 😑☹️... happy reading to you!! 🦋📖

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Happy reading to you too, Safina!