tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9022769091032248225.post63643986520140152..comments2024-03-22T08:58:54.753-06:00Comments on Hugo Book Club Blog: Clark's inDjinnious worldbuildingUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9022769091032248225.post-74547064385330639072022-06-28T18:47:22.452-06:002022-06-28T18:47:22.452-06:00I also mostly agree. I'd add a couple further ...I also mostly agree. I'd add a couple further caveats -- I thought the characterization of, in particular, Alexander Worthington a bit cartoonish -- a more subtle presentation would have, among other things, made the mystery work better. And I thought the prose pretty uneven -- I think one more rigorous editing pass would have have done wonders for it. It's not that Clark can't write -- he can! But there were too many little fumbles, little infelicities. To be sure, I 'read" it as an audio book.<br /><br />The imaginative aspects -- the Djinn mainly -- were great fun, and yet sometimes I though (as often with fantasy novels) that their capabilities were somewhat driven by the necessity of the plot.<br /><br />(My favorite character was Haddiya (I'm sure that's misspelled.)<br /><br />I'd call it a good Hugo nominee, but probably not one that will get my top vote. More to the point -- it's a first, novel, and it shows a lot of promise for future works. Rich Hortonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07659613066689174738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9022769091032248225.post-53935918878143213922022-06-28T12:12:12.384-06:002022-06-28T12:12:12.384-06:00We are largely on the same page. Nitpicks: the tit...We are largely on the same page. Nitpicks: the title is A Master of Djinn and Clark's alternate magical Egypt was first introduced in the 2016 story "A Dead Djinn in Cairo," available here: https://www.tor.com/2016/05/18/a-dead-djinn-in-cairo/comment-page-1/Kevinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14608416529434818694noreply@blogger.com