Reviews

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

isoka's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

mackdaddyramos55's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

dcampbell's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

erikajoy's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective slow-paced

4.25

rumpfie's review against another edition

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4.0

Sort of slow but an interesting and unique story.

lrose02's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book was really interesting. The digital version made it a long read, but it wasn’t helped by the fact it has some long chapters anyway. It was hard to see where it was going until at least half way through, which I didn’t mind as the subplots were interesting. There’s more death than was expected especially in the end, and some were more sad than others. I loved Chava, and to me she was a really interesting protagonist. The Djinni was slightly different due to the mess with Sophie but I could understand him. The ending worried me as I thought they would be permanently separated but I was relieved at the final paragraph. The ending wasn’t a full happily ever after, more bittersweet as there wasn’t the full freedom as expected. But both of them made do which was about as human as they could get. I loved the side characters, and the villain was just a bastard. Just a greedy little rat man who was just straight up evil but he was perfect for the plot. The folklore was used really interestingly and I liked the way the religions collided, and how different communities worked together due to Chava and the Djinni. I wish we got to hear the Djinni’s real name and that he gave it to her. 

sketchydoodle's review against another edition

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5.0

A beautiful real-world fantasy, focused on its characters and their humanity despite their magical origins.

racqthebelle's review against another edition

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3.0

This was so imaginative and the plot took many interesting twists and turns. My only wish is that fantasy authors would leave the trope of ancient creatures sleeping with teenagers behind. It’s time.

esanfang's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

glowfish36's review against another edition

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5.0

This was a very interesting read! I rarely read historical fantasies, so this was quite a treat. The characters were thorough, interesting, and full of personality. The plot was pretty good too- mostly driven by the character’s needs/wants. I was a little sad that the main women character (the Golem) was a creature searching for a master, but after a while the character grows much further than this need. I didn’t quite understand the Jinni’s sexcapade… but maybe I missed something there?

Overall, an interesting read and I appreciated the historical fantasy genre more than I thought I would!