This month, I read a series that has been on my TBR for a long time – and although I definitely regret putting it off as long as I did, it also found me at exactly the right time. A heatwave sweeping the country and an unputdownable desert-based fantasy with capricious djinn and magical kingdoms made for a truly immersive reading experience (okay, comparing my garden to the scorching Sahara is probably hyperbole)

For those who might not have heard of the Daevabad trilogy by S.A. Chakraborty, it follows Nahri, an orphan and petty pickpocket on the streets of 18th century Cairo. This may be the point at which we meet Nahri, but the trilogy takes her (and the reader) on such a vast journey that, by the conclusion of Empire of Gold, she’s unrecgonisable from the Nahri we first met 2,000 pages ago – and this is the case with all of the other characters). When Nahri accidentally summons an ancient djinn during one of her cons, her life is irreparably changed when she and the djinn must flee Cairo to the magical city of Daevabad. That’s a very basic premise, but believe me that the world-building expands so dramatically in the second and third books.

This series is also laden with political intrigue, so if that’s an aspect of fantasy that you really enjoy (like me), you NEED to pick this one up. Genuinely, I’ve never read something so heavy on the politicking and court machinations. Without further ado, let’s delve into the full reviews for each book – I will try to keep my thoughts spoiler-free, although naturally the synopses for the second and third book might contain spoilers about the previous books, so maybe come back and read them once you’ve finished the series 👀

• The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty (The Daevabad Trilogy #1)

‘Greatness takes time, Banu Nahida. Often the mightiest things have the humblest beginnings.‘

My review: Nahri is a petty thief and pickpocket on the streets of 18th century Cairo, a city undergoing great change and tussles with different powers. When one of Nahri’s cons goes disastrously wrong and she summons an ancient and mightily powerful djinn to her side, she unknowingly sets in motion a series of events that will lead to her fleeing Cairo alongside the djinn pursued by magical creatures that Nahri thought were merely the stuff of legends. But the djinn Dara who seems to be her only ally is also keeping secrets – secrets that will emerge when they finally reach the unseen city of Daevabad and throw everything Nahri thought she knew about this new world into greater chaos. For Daevabad, the fabled City of Brass, is the centre of the magical realm and it too is being torn apart by warring factions.

Nahri soon finds herself embroiled in a court of ancient grudges, simmering tensions and tyrannical rulers as she discovers more about her own past and connection to the magical city. The quote above really encapsulates this entire series. The City of Brass is a very solid first book, an introduction into a world that we already know has the capacity to become so much bigger. The worldbuilding is a slow build, much of which we learn alongside Nahri so it never feels unmanageable or info-dumpy.

The story is also told in dual POV, with Nahri’s narrative counterpart being Prince Alizayd, the second son of the King. I think this balanced wonderfully. We see a different side to Daevabad through Ali’s eyes, particularly since he and Nahri have contrasting ideologies and politics. This also made their POVs so distinctive and I never forgot whose I was reading.

I rated this 4.5 stars and the only reason that it didn’t get a five star was just a pacing issue that might be personal preference. I found the section with Nahri and Dara travelling to Daevabad slightly boring and I know exactly why this is – I’m not a big Dara fan. He seems to be a rather divisive character in the Daevabad-universe; you either love him or you hate him. If I had to choose, I fear I’m in the hate camp. Instead I much preferred Ali – he’s sanctimonious and strait-laced – but his own struggle with his moral code and difficulty reconciling his father’s actions with his own belief system was far more interesting to me than Dara’s inner conflict.

I thought the ending wrapped up really nicely (obviously it leaves a LOT of unanswered questions that made me so eager to start book two) but it had a pretty satisfying conclusion regardless of them. I wasn’t a huge fan of the romance between Nahri and Dara, but truly it is such a small component of the story that it didn’t overly bother me.

• The Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty (The Daevabad Trilogy #2)

‘Because a lost little girl from Cairo thought she was living in some sort of fairy tale. And because for all her supposed cleverness, she couldn’t see that the dashing hero who saved her was its monster.’

My review: After the devastating effects of the City of Brass, Nahri has been left reeling by the betrayal of the one person in Daevabad she thought she could trust. In the five years since, she has set about rebuilding and making a place for herself in Daevabad. Embracing her role as the Banu Nahida, the palace’s healer, and marrying a powerful man, Nahri determines she will never again be as helpless as she once was.

Prince Alizayd has been exiled by his father, but when a series of contrived circumstances draw him back to Daevabad, he must defy his king’s orders. All the while, a threat is brewing that may demolish the fragile peace Nahri has painstakingly built, one both supernatural and very human.

The Kingdom of Copper takes all the worldbuilding and setup we got in the City of Brass and expands it tenfold. We get a third POV in this book, and similarly to the first book, each of the three narrative characters are so different. They have different politics, so a lot of the time, they are actively plotting against one another. There are pieces of information that one character might have but another doesn’t. As the reader, it was like having a completed jigsaw puzzle and watching the three of them struggle to solve it. I also felt like the political intrigue kicked up a gear – it’s what the majority of this book is comprised of, which might be boring to some readers who prefer more action, but I personally loved the slow burn of the plot.

Additionally, I really feel like the five year time-jump was the right decision to make. Each of the characters, even the side characters, felt naturally a lot more mature. They were in different circumstances and stations – for instance, Nahri is a valued healer and wife to the future King so she is in much more of a position of power in this book.

The research that Chakraborty puts into this story is insane – something that was true of the City of Brass but is doubly true of the rest of the series. I adore a historical setting, especially when it combines fantastical elements built off local folklore and legends as this is, and when so much work is put into making every single detail slot into the story perfectly, it elevates the story exponentially. No second-book syndrome around here! Authors, take notes. This is how you write a sequel.

• The Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty (The Daevabad Trilogy #3)

‘I am who I am because of that human world. It wasn’t the Banu Nahida who’d driven the peris to their knees, it was the con artist of Cairo, and Nahri wouldn’t cast her away.‘

My review: Daevabad has fallen, and after a bloody battle that saw thousands dead, the city has been stripped of all magic. The streets are in turmoil with the unprecedented loss of magic and the despotic behaviour of their new ruler. The worst demons of the magical world have been let loose and corrupted blood magic threatens its future.

Nahri and Ali have escaped unscathed and have secreted themselves away in Cairo. But a decision weighs on them; to turn their backs on the city they’ve both sacrificed so much in vain to save, or to try one last time.

I loved being back in Cairo – it felt cyclical and perfect as Nahri’s story drew to a close. I also loved seeing some different landscapes and cultures of the djinn outside of Daevabad, such as Ta Ntry. The scope of the story expanded and the stakes heightened, and overall it was a pretty spectacular finish to a masterfully woven series.

We have a wide cast of characters but none of them feel neglected or overlooked. They’re all so expertly developed and have arcs (some heroic and some villainous). I also loved how Chakraborty wrote her villains, with motivations that felt so realistic. Partly fuelled by vengeance and partly by true belief that what they’re doing is right, for the greater good of Daevabad.

There’s an endorsement from Laini Taylor on the cover that reads ‘Dizzyingly magical, and still utterly believable,’ and I agree with this. For all that fantasy books are just that – fantasy – they can still feel realistic to our world in their themes and conversations. The endlessly warring factions and how the djinn society is splintered – not just into two opposing sides, but into five or six who all believe differently – felt very true to how politics does divide people.

As I was saying at the start of my reviews, where the characters start the story versus where they end up is so vastly different that it really feels like you’ve been on the journey with them. The threads Chakraborty has woven together throughout the three books come together so seamlessly and it felt like the revelations and twists just kept coming.

All this to say, I think this is maybe one of the fantasy books I’ve read that comes to the closest to perfection. The pacing throughout the series – the balance of action and politicking, developing characters and building relationships – was struck perfectly to my liking. Even for a book of 800 pages, it felt like not a word was wasted, no scene extraneous.

• The River of Silver by S.A. Chakraborty (The Daevabad Trilogy #3.5)

‘Half of your roots missing. Maybe that just means you’re free to write your own story.’

My review: I’ll attempt to keep this one short, since this review is already so long. The River of Silver is a collection of short stories – scenes that Chakraborty had to extract from the original drafts, extra epilogues and additional backstory that she wrote to inform the story.

I really enjoyed this short addition to the Daevabad trilogy – although as I was reading the original three books, I didn’t have the impression that needed any more character development, that anything was missing, these were pleasant extras. Sometimes I’m a bit wary that authors use these novellas or short stories to make up for things glossed over in the original book, but this definitely wasn’t the case here. It was supplemental material – fun and informative to read the backstories of some of the more niche side characters – but definitely not required reading.

I appreciated that it offered me the chance to get a bit of closure from the end of Empire of Gold. I had been so invested in this world for weeks and suddenly it was over? So it was nice to jump straight into this, and have my soul healed from some of the cuter stories (we do not get a lot of cute in these books, so this rare occasion was to be savoured).

If you’re a fantasy lover and you haven’t read the Daevabad trilogy yet… what are you doing? Especially if you like it on the epic side, with a huge helping of politicking, morally ambiguous characters and fantastic arcs. Immediately upon finishing this series, I dived straight into Chakraborty’s other series the Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi (which I might have loved even more than this!) so keep your eyes peeled for that review. New favourite author has most definitely been unlocked, and I am already impatiently awaiting the release of Amina 3 (or really any crumbs that Chakraborty throws our way).

I enjoyed bingeing these so much that I’m tempted to binge another big fantasy series (something I used to do a lot and seem to have fallen out of the habit of) so let me know if there are any other series you think I’d enjoy! ⚜️

Have you read the Daevabad trilogy or any of S.A. Chakraborty’s work? Please let me know in the comments and we can shriek about how freaking good these books are.