This book has 21 stories on the subject of Djinns. With one or two exceptions these appear to be new stories. The djinns are mainly an Islamic concept and the spelling varies almost as much as the characteristics. They can be quite "devilish", they can grant wishes, they live for exceptionally long periods, they are magical and these terms really only scratch the surface of these beings that are created by godly fire. It's a subject that has always intrigued me so I was looking forward to reading this anthology.

These stories vary widely in era, approach and general setting. There are ones that have a far older feel and ones that are either modern or even sci fi based. Some of the content is violent (djinns can be seen as devils or devilish at least). Some content is sexual. Some are short and some are longer. If you have an interest in the subject there should be something for you here.

I guess the majority of these tales I did enjoy at least to some degree. The nature of such an anthology is that not all the stories will appeal to every reader. For me there were probably four standout stories. Neil Gaiman's story I enjoyed but, as it is from American Gods, I had read it before. It simply reminds me of what an excellent author he is.

I did enjoy the dark mischief of The Spite House by Kirsty Logan about djinns who are no longer that and do not grant wishes… or do they? It was well written and enjoyable.

There were two others which stood out for me. I found Black Powder by Maria Dahvana Headley extremely atmospheric and very well written. This really was one of those stories that effortlessly creates pictures with words. With a real feel of the Wild West and trappers this was also faintly contemporary and mysterious as well as edgy. Great story.

The other stand out tale also created a vivid picture with words for me. Reap by Sami Shah was a clever story. It is set in the USA with a section operating drones. However the real story occurs in Afghanistan as observed by the drone operators. I found it very atmospheric and crisply written. This is one that will stay with me, along with Black Powder, for some time to come.

I think there will always be highs and less attractive stories in such an anthology. Equally what those highs are will vary from reader to reader. However I thoroughly enjoyed reading most of the stories and even the less appealing ones were largely ok for me. This would be a good read for lovers of fantasy and certainly for anyone with an interest in tales about djinns.

There were two or three short stories that were very well executed in this collection, but majority of them did not quite make the mark. The one most anticipated - by Neil Gaiman - is one I've already read before, so this might have contributed to the slight feeling of disappointment. I did, however, discover new authors.

This is a collection of stories about djinn (jinn/genie/etc), a concept that can be found in a variety of cultures. The stories run the gamut in terms of genre and culture, with each author being allowed to write (and spell) djinn as they prefer (thank you editors for not homogenizing the spelling, it was appreciated!). While Neil Gaiman is probably the most popular author in the collection, I actually skipped that story (it's an excerpt from American Gods, which I have already read and didn't particularly care for). This left me with a bunch of other stories, a few authors I had heard of, but most whom were completely unknown to me - and this is the kind of short story collection I like, something that introduces me to different authors that are amazing and multicultural and leads me down a rabbit hole of finding their other works to read.

So, I ended up being completely blown away by this collection. The stories were great, and while there were a few I didn't quite like as much as others (there are always some in a short story collection), there were so so many that I loved.

I was going to list a few of my favorite stories in this collection, but I ended up listing almost all of the stories, so instead I will just list my absolute favorite - "Reap" by Sami Shah. This story is amazing, and I've been coming back to it days later.

Overall, I can't recommend this book enough.