M. T. Khan

I read this masterpiece in one sitting. So ensnared in this world, where nothing is as it seems, I couldn't leave this story until I knew Nura and the other trapped children were safe. And are they ever really safe? I won't give that part away.

The story starts off with Nura and other children, working the mines for mica--forced into child labor due to poverty and limited resources. Nura longs for more--more money and security for her family. When digging leads her through a portal into another world, Nura comes face to face with a mirror image of herself--and a mirror image of the life she's lead in the real world--one where the rich create systems that leave the working class and poor pitted against each other to survive.

This story took my heart on a journey. Where it swelled for Nura's small wins and sank during her setbacks. This story can be read again and again, as there are threads of symbolism woven throughout that will force readers to take another look at the errors of our own current caste system.… (mehr)

What kind of magic is this?” I gasp. The makeup artist jinn only leans against the door frame of the dressing room with a smirk on his thick lips. “The kind that comes with money, beta.

Thank you TBR and Beyond Tours and NetGalley for the chance to read and review Nura and the immortal palace by M. T. Khan!

Nura and the Immortal Palace is M. T. Khan’s debut novel, perfect for middle grade readers. It was published on the 5th of July by Jimmy Patterson, which is a Little, Brown and Company imprint. The 273 page long book is set in Pakistan and the world of the djinn.

Nura is a child working in the mines trying to mine mica so that her mother doesn’t have to take up extra jobs. She’s also really fond of gulab jaman (who isn’t) and dreams of having the ability to buy few from vendors who charge even more when a poor kid comes up to buy them. She dreams of finding a mythical treasure in the mines so that her family never has to work again. After an accident that traps her best friend in the mines, Nura manages to dig down into the world of the djinn upon the invitation of her qareen.

I signed up for the TBR and Beyond Tour because I don’t think I’ve ever come across a middle grade novel that had djinn and was set in Pakistan. I hoped that M. T. Khan wouldn’t fall into the traps that most desi writers do by waxing lyrical about mangoes, and thankfully we get none of that. The book walks away with 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4 in places where half stars are not available).

The book is fast paced and fun. I was so excited to see the appearance of the qareen, and the way the author included djinn stories in here. I loved the element of Ayatul Kursi in the book; and the way that it worked. I was a big fan of how we see that there are good djinn and not so great djinn, but they’re also living in a world that is eerily similar to ours; which is the cruz of the problem. The world that Khan set up was pretty interesting.

My problem with the book was that Khan did a lot of telling and not showing. I’m not sure if that’s just a problem I face as an adult reader, or if a child will feel them same. (Note to self: need to test this book on my 11 year old cousin).… (mehr)