Becoming Jinn

Reviewed by: Kristin Taylor - Biddeford High School, Biddeford, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: May 8, 2016

Review

This is the first of what could potentially be a very intriguing series. Azra wakes up on her sixteenth birthday with prettier hair, considerably more well developed than the night before and a sparkling silver bangle on her wrist that can not be removed. She has now been welcomed into the realm of the Jinn and will be required to make wishes for people. But before she can do this, there is training that only her mother and her "aunts" can help her with. One more thing, with pending 16th birthday of one more of the daughters of these aunts, Azra and the other daughters will have their own sisterhood just like their mothers.

Interesting plot that deals with the mystery of the Jinn world where only the women and their daughters are allowed to live in the real world and the males and the women that can no longer grant wishes are banished to another realm. Not all is well within realm of the Jinn and questionings the power of the Jinn by these women in the real world is what will lead to another book in this series. Goldstein is not done, nor is Azra with what she knows.

Female relationships between each other and their daughters, family struggles and secrets and the coming-of-age are the main themes of this novel. Included in all of this is the intrigue of magic and the wishes of others that only can be granted once. Recommended for grades 7-12.

Overall Book Score: excellent