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A review by _rusalka
Fire Boy by Sami Shah
3.0
I came across Sami Shah as he was a panelist on a show on tv about television shows and movies. And endeared himself to me as he argued passionately for scifi/fantasy/action hero movies/tv shows and loved every minute of them. You gotta love a passionate, articulate nerd. I then found out he was a comedian and author, particularly with a book out at the time titled [b:The Islamic Republic of Australia|35284595|The Islamic Republic of Australia|Sami Shah|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1526057172s/35284595.jpg|55250685] and a fantasy YA series. I had to look him up.
So I did, and this is the first in the fantasy series. And note I leave out YA. This is not a YA book. Yes, the protagonist is 17. But repeat after me: JUST * BECAUSE * A * PROTAGONIST * IS * A * TEENAGER * DOES * NOT * MAKE * THE * BOOK * YA.
Once more for the publisher down the back.
This is a full on book with rape, violence, torture and more. It's full of mythology, fantasy/urban fantasy elements, and borders on horror in parts. And that is great, but that should be the genres it plays in. It shouldn't be dumbed down to the age of the main character and thus dissuading others to read it. It also shouldn't be pressed into an 11 year old's hands with no knowledge or support for the reading matter because the characters are 16/17. Arbitrary publishing bullshit lines annoy the hell out of me.
The story itself was good. It follows our teenager finding out that Djinn and other elements of Pakistani folklore and mythology exist, and trying to reconcile and deal with the consequences of that. As well as other unexpected happenings along the way. I learnt a lot about Pakistani folklore. I had no idea there were beings who loved pastries, and I feel like I should have working in a bakery for years.
So I learnt a lot, and it was different to any other story I had read before. I didn't love it, but if I stumble across the second, I wouldn't mind finding out how it all ends for Wahid.
So I did, and this is the first in the fantasy series. And note I leave out YA. This is not a YA book. Yes, the protagonist is 17. But repeat after me: JUST * BECAUSE * A * PROTAGONIST * IS * A * TEENAGER * DOES * NOT * MAKE * THE * BOOK * YA.
Once more for the publisher down the back.
This is a full on book with rape, violence, torture and more. It's full of mythology, fantasy/urban fantasy elements, and borders on horror in parts. And that is great, but that should be the genres it plays in. It shouldn't be dumbed down to the age of the main character and thus dissuading others to read it. It also shouldn't be pressed into an 11 year old's hands with no knowledge or support for the reading matter because the characters are 16/17. Arbitrary publishing bullshit lines annoy the hell out of me.
The story itself was good. It follows our teenager finding out that Djinn and other elements of Pakistani folklore and mythology exist, and trying to reconcile and deal with the consequences of that. As well as other unexpected happenings along the way. I learnt a lot about Pakistani folklore. I had no idea there were beings who loved pastries, and I feel like I should have working in a bakery for years.
So I learnt a lot, and it was different to any other story I had read before. I didn't love it, but if I stumble across the second, I wouldn't mind finding out how it all ends for Wahid.