Humorous, thoughtful, and fast-paced scifi fantasy western novella set in Kathmandu. Highly recommended for adults.

La reseña completa en http://inthenevernever.blogspot.com/2023/06/el-gurja-y-el-senor-de-los-martes-de.html

«Melek Ahmar, el Señor de Marte, el Rey Rojo, el Señor de los Martes, el Más Augusto Rajá de los Djinn, tas milenios dormido, despertó una vez más por capricho del agua y la piedra y se encontró los ojos cubiertos de arenilla. Y la boca también. Escupió polvo y le dieron arcadas».

Para seguir con recomendaciones de lecturas para ser un poquito más felices hoy les traigo una divertidísima novela que acaba de publicar Duermevela. Una editorial en la que confío completamente ya que hasta ahora todo lo que han publicado me ha encantado (y sí, cuando digo todo es realmente su catálogo al completo). Y su incursión con el humor no ha sido menos. Por eso les quiero hablar de El gurja y el Señor de los Martes, de Saad Z. Hossain. Una novela corta hilarante en la que acompañaremos a un poderoso djinn que luego de milenios dormido despierta con una misión: hacerse con el control de la ciudad más cercana, pero sin sospechar lo mucho que habrá cambiado el mundo en su larga ausencia.

The plot for this felt so rushed. The story, characters, and world had so much potential but I felt like there were so many discrepancies in development that didn’t make sense. This could of done well with some world building and more thought put into character motivations. I really had no idea who the characters were and they could’ve easily been replaced in the story.

A smart and funny mashup of fantasy and sci-fi. There’s some downright beautiful sentences in here too.

I have a question. And that question is, what the heck was I doing this time last year that I didn't rush out to get myself a copy of this novella? Because it really can't have been that important. I didn't even know what it was about! I just can't quite get my head around that; what a failing on my part. Still, thanks to WorldCon and whoever mentioned it on a panel, I finally got my act together and I inhaled it pretty damn quickly.

At some unspecified point in the future - definitely a ways into the future, but not so far that humans are off colonising the far reaches of the galaxy - Melek Ahmar, the Lord of Mars, the Red King, the Lord of Tuesday, Most August Rajah of Djinn, wakes up. Turns out he has been asleep for a rather long time, and things have changed. Wandering through the Himalayas trying to figure out what's going on, he comes across Bhan Gurung, a Gurkha living fairly contentedly, it seems, by himself in a cave. Melek Ahmar is disconcerted by Gurung's lack of servility but makes use of his knowledge about the modern world - like the existence of nanobots, and that there is a city nearby, Kathmandu, which might be ripe for him to take over; after all, a great king like him needs subjects. Melek Ahmar and Gurung go to Kathmandu and... things progress from there. Poorly, for some people; certainly sideways for a number of them. It turns out Gurung has ulterior motives; and things aren't quite what they seem in Kathmandu - although the fact that it is run by an AI, allocating karma rather than money as currency, isn't a secret.

There's a lot going on here. Melek Ahmar, the Lord of Tuesday, himself has a lot going on; all sorts of references to Greek and Egyptian and I think Hindu? mythology/ ancient history that make me long for a prequel story about the dastardly deeds of Ahmar's youth. The slow unravelling of the story behind Kathmandu, and why the world runs with nanobots, is superbly paced and very exactly revealed, until it all finally slots into place. The same with Gurung and the revelation of his character, his story. And the story overall is a joy to read; a variety of characters and their interactions, a setting that's sketched more than detailed but nonetheless brought to life, and a pace that keeps it all rolling along.

This is one heck of a story. I'll be getting hold of the two other novels Hossain has out, and looking out for more.

Great fun, wild, I have trouble describing this book. The Lord of Tuesday, a djinn, finally manages to flee his prison and now wants to reclaim his role as the Lord of Tuesday, party-goer and seducer of mortals etc pp. He however did not think that the world would end inbetween, that humans can no longer live without the help of Karma, an AI in big cities on the otherwise polluted and toxic Earth! Anyhow, this still doesn't do the book justice, it was funny, wild, and well written. I enjoyed it immensly and read it in one sitting!

5 Stars

This is the second book of his that I've read and I continue to enjoy his modernization of the djinn. His character is continue to be somewhat flat but the idea is fascinating and the writing is excellent which makes it easy to forget about the individuality of the characters.

In particular I loved this meshing of a post-apocalyptic high tech world with ancient magical powers and a heavy dose of irreverence.

It's a fun quick read and I highly recommend.