Isilloth-draws (Isilloth) Fandoms: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien, Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types, Wiedźmin | The Witcher Series - Andrzej Sapkowski, The Daevabad Trilogy - S. A. Chakraborty, Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo, Mass Effect: Andromeda The City of Brass is an American science fiction and fantasy novel written by S. A. Chakraborty. It is the first of The Daevabad Trilogy, followed by The Kingdom of Copper in 2019 and The Empire of Gold in 2020. Deadly Scratch: The magical poison of zulfiqar swords is universally deadly and defeats even Nahid healing, so the Geziri fighting style emphasizes mobility and shallow slashes. At the end of Kingdom of Copper, Muntadhir is cut, but the Seal of Suleiman disables the magic before it can finish him off. Murder Water: Daevabad's lake was cursed by the Marid to rip apart anyone who so much dips a toe in. The monarchy uses it for executions.

The Old Gods: The marid include a couple of these among their number. Sobek, the crocodilian god of the Nile in Ancient Egypt is one. Another is Tiamat, the primordial goddess of the sea (and one of the oldest known divine beings period, as she was worshipped by Ancient Babylon at the same time they were figuring out the whole writing business). Although their glory days of godhood and worship are over, they're still active and powerful. Famed In-Story: Dara. To the djinn he's the monstrous Scourge of Qui-Zi & The Dreaded, while to the Daevas he's a heroic and romantic figure who fought to free their tribe from foreign rule. The book has two perspectives, one of which is Nahri, who, at the beginning was primarily the kind of MC I love to read about. She was sharp-tongued, independent and a likeable con artist, who makes her living on the streets of Cairo by swindling nobles and also has the ability to sense illness in others and to heal some ailments. I mean, right!? I particularly love a story of twisty, complex, dangerous, and character-driven family and palace politics, steeped in hidden history, cruel betrayals, and desires that can’t be admitted. The City of Brassdelivers on all counts." - Kate Elliott The Daevabad trilogy also ripples with political intrigue. Fantasy often provides a great lens to look at politics through a funhouse mirror, because its depiction of a world that is usually still highly monarchical allows for characters to ascend and descend the ladders of power in a manner directly based on who has favor with the ruler. (Obviously, the same happens in modern liberal democracies, but the process is often less direct.)ACTUALLY I feel like THE ISLAMIC aspect wasn’t EVEN NECESSARY to the story bc personally, it fell really flat and I can see how it would be confusing and maybe even counter-productive for people who aren’t well read in the faith. If it was just kept as a Middle Eastern rep, I probably would have liked it better. In the third book, Manizheh invokes this when she gives the ifrit Nahri's birth name, allowing them to bind her. It's especially strong because only Manizheh knew the name, which increases its power. While bound, Nahri considers which name is her true name and realizes that every important event and choice in her life was made as Nahri, making that her true name. And since everyone knows it, it has no power to bind her. I read The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi with a wide grin, my heart thrilling at each twist in our protagonist’s story. The sense of place Chakraborty has conjured is one of the novel’s signal achievements. Her research on the politics of the Indian Ocean in the 12th century is evident throughout, and there is plenty of adroit commentary on class conflict, piety, warfare and gender politics, particularly how these things are perpetuated through myth and storytelling. But there is also the fulfilled promise of a good time.” I loved everything about Dara. I was intrigued by him from the moment he entered the picture and as the plot advanced and his mysterious yet tragic past slowly started to unravel, I sympathised with him, rooted for him and quite literally, he became the reason I wanted to finish the book. Walking the Earth: At the end of the third book, Dara embarks on a quest to find all the djinn relics stolen by the ifrit and return them to the city so that they can be freed of enslavement. He fully expects this to take millennia.

Chakraborty manages what many epic fantasy writers have never achieved: a world where everyone can see themselves not only mirrored, but powerful.” - New York Journal of Books Luke, I Am Your Father: Nahri gets this from Manizheh. Though it turns out she was lying. She's actually Nahri's aunt, and also tried to kill Nahri as a baby. Altar Diplomacy: The marriage between Nahri and Muntandhir. Neither of them are the least bit interested in being married to each other, and Ghassan knows it, but he wants to create a symbolic link between his new dynasty and the Nahids they overthrew. In that city, behind gilded brass walls laced with enchantments, behind the six gates of the six djinn tribes, old resentments are simmering. And when Nahri decides to enter this world, she learns that true power is fierce and brutal. That magic cannot shield her from the dangerous web of court politics. That even the cleverest of schemes can have deadly consequences.The book begins in 18th-century Cairo and follows Nahri, a talented orphan con woman who uses palm reading and sleight of hand to swindle Ottoman nobles, and has healing powers. During an exorcism, she accidentally summons a djinn warrior named Darayavahoush e-Afshin, "Dara" for short. Recognizing her healing powers as belonging to the long-dead Nahids, a powerful magical family and ancient rulers of the djinn, he takes her on a journey to Daevabad, the city her ancestors built. Along the way they meet powerful magical creatures that are out to either help them or kill them, and their flight to Daevabad becomes one of survival. Along the way they grow close as Dara tells Nahri of the magical world she never believed in, and reveals its many prejudiced and political complications while trying to hide his own role in it. All in all, it was a fun-ish read but no minds were blown here. I loved it for the sole reason that it shifted the centre away from western myths, with a strong conclusion and a craftily set up epilogue. I'll give credit where credit is due, the epilogue was incredible.