The Princess of Dhagabad

The Spirits of the Ancient Sands #1

by Anna Kashina

When, on the day of her age-coming, the princess opens a mysterious bronze bottle--a gift from her grandmother--she has no idea that she is about to unleash a power older than the world itself. Worse, she is not prepared for the bearer of this power to be a handsome man whose intense gray eyes pierce her very soul. Hasan, her new slave, is immeasurably wiser and stronger than anyone she has ever heard of, and he is now hers to command--if she can handle him, that is. Sensuous and delightfully intelligent, The Princess of Dhagabad is the first book in a trilogy by a talented new author. "a fine recasting of Arabian Nights material into a fable for our times." --- Locus "truly compelling" -- Booklist "a lot of originality, an exciting story, a well realized background, and vivid writing." --Poul Anderson

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Romance, Young Adult, Science Fiction, Ebooks, Unfinished

278 pages, Paperback

First published May 15, 2000

About the author

Anna Kashina is a critically acclaimed award-winning author of “The Majat Code” series, featuring adventure, swordplay, intrigue, and romance in a historical fantasy setting. She is the author of the official novelization of Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana, a bestselling video game by Nihon Falcom Co.

Awards: 2015 Prism Award (Fantasy, and "Best of the Best" grand prize), Locus Award Nominee, 2013 ForeWord Book of the Year (IndieFab) Award, 2014 Independent Publishers Book Award (IPPY).

Reviews

[Sallie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Princess of Dhagabad is pampered, sheltered and more than a little restless. She is tired of her gilded cage, wanting to experience the world outside the palace walls.
Then on her twelfth birthday, the princess is allowed to open a bottle, a gift bequeathed to her by her grandmother. She is given a Djinn, a powerful magical slave. Over the years, Hasan, the Djinn, proves his worth and devotion time and time again. Hasan is the Princess of Dhagabad’s protector, teacher, confidant and friend. Hasan and the Princess go on many adventures together and their story culminates with an unexpected twist.

Anna Kashina is a very precise writer and her talents are artfully showcased with descriptions so intense, readers can smell the spices and taste the sankajat. Anna Kashina paints the story of The Princess of Dhagabad on a large canvass. It is a larger than life fairytale that engages the scenes and transports the reader to places of magic and adventure.

[Stefanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not a lot of thought went into this. The first scene is a woman dying saying her granddaughter will be the true heir, and then days before the granddaughter turns twelve you get a whole scene of the mother wishing she had a male heir . . .

The main character is a follower, and seems pretty stupid. I may have stuck around, but after reading the reviews that the genie she unleashes is a slave who can't even defend himself without her permission I was left with a bad taste in my mouth. She's not a talented enough writer to deal with all those implications. Abandoned at 9%.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reminiscent of ‘ Tales From The Arabian Nights’, ‘ The Princess Of Dhagabad’ tells the story of the friendship between a princess and a djin. On her twelfth birthday, the princess, whose name we do not learn until the very end of the book because of the tradition of her people, is finally allowed to un-stopper the brass bottle bequeathed to her by her grandmother and discovers she has inherited a very unusual slave. His name is Hasan and he is one of the mysterious djin, a being both feared and prized. He can be anything or do anything, but only at the command of his mistress.

Hasan seems a reserved and aloof being, as one might imagine an all-powerful djin to be, but as his story unfolds, it becomes apparent Hasan was very human before he became trapped in a brass bottle. The princess craves knowledge outside of the limited sphere of the palace and the lessons she is required to take in preparation for succeeding her father as ruler of the kingdom. Hasan is happy to expand her horizons and, through his stories and their adventures together, we learn how he came to be a confined in a brass bottle and what it means to be a djin. Hasan is all powerful, but his knowledge has come at a terrible price.

One by one, the princess and the djin overcome obstacles to their friendship, which deepens throughout the years. Hasan wins the trust of the princess’ mother early by saving the young girl’s life. Proving himself valuable to the sultan, the princess’ father, is more complicated. The sultan feels slighted by fate because none of his sons have survived birth or infancy. He has only daughters, the princess being the oldest and the only child of his wife. Sensibly, the sultan listens to Hasan’s advice and the djin’s place in the palace becomes more assured.

Though the friendship between the princess and the djin maintains an innocent aspect, it becomes clear their bond is more than simple and when the princess attains her majority and a husband is chosen for her, that bond is tested. The princess will have to make a choice between respecting her father’s wishes, what is best for her kingdom and her heart.

Anna Kashina has created a full and vibrant world for her story. Her characters are richly drawn. I was excited to read a story set in a different world and enjoyed absorbing new lore as set out by the author. The friendship between the princess and the djin is especially touching and grows at a wonderfully slow and real pace. This is a love story, but it does not read like a romance novel. Rather, it is an adventure story filled with realistic relationships, from friendship to love. I look forward to reading the next novel in the trilogy, to be published in September 2012.

(Review written for and originally published at SFCrowsnest.)

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the story, hated the explicit scene that had nothing to do with the story.

[J. Else · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read. Kashina explores a world of magic and mystery unlike other books I've read before. I was drawn into the innocence of the princess and her relationship with her role/status in the world. The princess wants to learn about her world and finds that the only one who understands her passion for learning is Hasan, a djinn slave gifted to her by her grandmother. The two build a friendship that grows as they explore stories and places from the past and present.

At times, the narrative felt long. At times, scenes flew by. Some scenes were unnecessary, especially when the sultan is spending time in his harem. I don't need those details. Other times, I got annoyed by the amount of times the characters said each others' names. "Hasan!" "Princess." "But Hasan," "Yes, Princess." "Hasan!" ad infinitum. When the princess's real name was revealed, I didn't feel any weight to it--I'd hoped when her name was revealed it would be something that would change the perspective of the story a bit. Instead, the ending felt quick and abrupt. There's a grand moment, and then its over. What about the repercussions? I don't like when books just throw general acceptance over a huge decision and calls it quits. The princess makes a hard choice, and there are going to be side effects for her country. What about the sultan's thoughts at the end of the story? I wanted a feeling of joy shared with mother, father, and daughter, and this book missed accepting responsibility for the princess's actions, good or bad.

Overall, an interesting adventure with unique perspectives. I can't say I'd read it again or am completely drawn into another book in this series, but the book had some delightful moments.

[Limecello · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very slow book that is apparently a retelling of a myth?
A bit slow and navel-gaze-y ...

It's compelling because you definitely want to know what happens - and there are hints of something happening at any moment.

Hasan and the Princess - I liked the ending but I guess I wanted MORE.
I think there was also the issue then where ... well there's the imbalance of power- sure he's a djinn but he's also her SLAVE so ... how then does that really work? Sure he's "all powerful" (and all knowing?) but he's controlled by her - he can't even defend himself unless she orders it.
So ...

Also the evil prince was eyerollingly bad/evil/heavy handed there.
What was also annoying was how ... well frankly stupid all the characters were? The sultaness fears her husband, fears ... everything. The Princess too being so ridiculously timid and fearful, and Hasan being enigmatic.

The "his memories" were awkward and more skim worthy imo.


D+

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Princess of Dhagabad, heir to the throne, inherits a mysterious bronze bottle from her grandmother on her coming-of-age birthday. She opens it and out comes a djinn named Hasan. This handsome, all-powerful spirit is her slave and will follow her commands. Together they have a series of adventures as the Princess matures into a beautiful young woman. She’s always known she must marry a prince one day, but as that time nears, she wishes she could be with Hasan instead. While there are some meandering parts, the story reads as light escapist fiction and has a satisfactory conclusion.

[Threasa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story based on the Arabian Nights, and it is very entertaining. The Princess grows from a 12-year old girl to a 17-year old young lady. She inherits a bottle from her grandmother, and when she opens it, out comes a djinn. The story takes you through the experiences she has with her djinn. A most entertaining read.

[bex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice retelling of the myth. 4 star

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book

You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA

[robin misenheimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

This is a great book! I really enjoyed it. I look forward to reading more books written by this author.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book for ten cents at a garage sale, and I've been putting off reading it. Not sure why, but I just didn't have the urge to actual read it until today. And I wish I hadn't have waited. This turned out to be a pretty good book.

The Princess of Dhagabad has long awaited her twelfth birthday. For it is on this day that she is allowed to have the bottle that her grandmother left to her. And she gets quite the surprise that the bottle holds a Djinn. An all-powerful being that is essentially her slave since she holds the bottle. At first indifferent, he grows to be her closest friend and when she must marry, he is there to make sure that everything can go as smooth as possible. He just doesn't account for the Princess's wishes and sense of adventure, and the belief that she can change things that have never before been changed.

The Princess is pretty inquisitive. She has a genuine love of the world around her and it frightens Hasan, her Djinn, that she too could become like him because of the knowledge that she surrounds herself with. He, himself, is somewhat mysterious, but because the history of the Djinn and himself are laid out, it gives an interesting perspective into the life of the Djinn and how he became one. The Princess's parents, and indeed many of the people at the palace, aren't as kind or supportive of her though and at many times it feels like it is the Princess and the Djinn against the world. Which is somewhat unbelievable. I'd like to think there are more redeemable people than just the two of them.

The plot meandered along. I had a sense it was more setting up the characters and the relationships before the next book. But that was ok, I thought the history and story telling behind the characters was interesting. The writing was a tad juvenile, but easy to lose yourself in. I liked when the Princess had her world view but found Hasan's point of view to be a little over flowery. It didn't detract too much from the book though. There were some mature themes that I didn't expect in this book. The Sultan and his harem were described in great detail, including some of those activities that they partake in. Not that that's a bad thing, just not what I expected from this young adult seeming fantasy story. There is a little bit of violence, but it is not nearly as descriptive as the sex scenes are.

I'll definitely be looking out for the second book in the series. I'm eager to see what happens and if Hasan and the Princess can overcome more obstacles with their friendship.

The Princess of Dhagabad
Copyright 2000
272 pages

Review by M. Reynard 2012

More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com

[Lorretta · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this through the GoodReads Giveaways.

This was a pleasant read and had definite leanings to the "Arabian Nights" style of tales.

On her twelfth birthday, the princess is given a bottle left to her by her grandmother. Imagine her surprise when out comes a djinn to obey her every wish! The djinn becomes her constant companion to shower her with delights, help her education and protect her from the machinations of the court.

The book tells the tale of the life of the princess, the viewpoint of the djinn and we are also given flashbacks of the djinn's journey to his present day status.

I should have thoroughly enjoyed this book since it is one of the types of subject matter I adore.
I even saved it for a rare day that I had no interruption so I could devour it in peace.
Unfortunately, this book just did not live up to my expectations. I was left restless and irritated. I did not find the princess to be very likable, the other characters were sort of bland, and even the djinn did not make me wish to have or be one. It just felt sort of generic.

There is one scene involving the sultan and his new concubine that absolutely made no sense in the story. Maybe it was thrown in to serve as a set-up for book two, but then it should have been in the epilogue, but not in the middle of the current story.

The cover art is gorgeous.

[Cherish · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Princess of Dhagabad" surprised me with its engaging story and lovable characters--particularly as I picked it up for free.

Despite my love for the story and the characters of Hasan and the princess, I cannot give this story any higher than a 3-star review due to the grammar issues throughout the book. The story often makes abrupt perspective changes (from princess to Hasan and back) without properly setting up for them. Yes, the idea was to slowly let you realize who is speaking in italics, but for the first few chapters, I thought her dead grandmother was talking to us in italics instead of Hasan due to lacking even a guarded hinting towards it. Intended or not, it came off as sloppy at first and heavy-handed later.

Also, there were missing words and blatant grammatical errors throughout the work. Though they were not nearly as abundant as what is normally seen in books downloaded on free giveaways, it truly is depressing that someone who can so wonderfully craft such lovable and wonderful characters cannot bother to find an editor with even a college student's grasp of grammar to read over her work. My hope and prayer is that her second book is reviewed by someone with a better grasp of tense and of word order, and that it's done by someone with an eye for missing words.

[Erin O'Riordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another sophisticated, lovely fairy tale for grown-ups from Anna Kashina. It's an unusual story, about a pre-adolescent princess who inherits a djinn from her wise old grandmother. As the princess grows, her relationship with her magical servant grows and changes. They have strange adventures right up until the day the princess and heiress to the kingdom of Dhagabad is supposed to marry a prince and unite their two kingdoms. When that day comes, something shocking happens. Kashina writes in a dreamy, lyrical voice. This novel is written in the present tense, in both the third and second person depending on whether the point of view is that of the omniscient narrator or the subjective POV of the djinn, Hasan. I'm usually not a big fan of either present-tense or second-person narration, but Kashina makes it work. A good storyteller can make any literary device work. I enjoyed Kashina's Ivan and Marya so much I read almost all of it in one sitting; while I wasn't able to do so with this book, it was equally enjoyable.

[Deborah Balsham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was such a surprise. I think that it was a Kindle freebie or cheapie. It turned out to be a good read. It's not great literature, but it was a nice fantasy with sympathetic characters. I really enjoyed it.

It's the story of a princess who was bequeathed a djinn in a bottle by her sultaness grandmother. The grandmother had passed over her sultan son, because she felt that he was unworthy. The princess opens the bottle when she reaches a certain age.

This story has a different take on the creation of djinns than tales I've previously read. They are not demons or ifrits. They are seekers of knowledge that have gone too far.

I googled that author. This was her first book in English. She has written in German and Russian. She must be a "local," because she is on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary Hospital. She must be an interesting woman.

I truly hope that she continues the story of the princess and the djinn. I think that she plans a series.

[Kerrie-ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book. The author leads the reader through the coming of age story of the Princess of Dhagabad and of her djinn, Hasan. The world building is believable as is the development of the Princess's character. I was surprised by the ending and did not think that the princess had it in her to take such a drastic step.

The writing style of the book is a little odd. It was written from the perspective of each character but in the third person. I can't put into words how I feel about this except to say that it reminds me of the way I used to write. In addition, the perspective switches back and forth between Hasan and the Princess which might be hard for some to follow.

In the end, I enjoyed the story enough to want to read the sequel, but the writing style prevents me from giving the book more stars.

[Cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story starts off with a ton of names (places & people), which can be a bit much. As the story progresses you realize they aren't that important.

The way the story is told is interesting...at times talking directly to you. It also changes between an all seeing 3rd person to Hasan's thoughts. The author is super descriptive, but after awhile I was unsure of what all the detail was for (minus the rich imagery). What was the point of certain scenes? Perhaps I am missing something.

The story feels quite long, and I was honestly a little over it by the time I got to the end. Characters were interesting, and the ending was pretty much what I had expected from about 50% of the way through the book. Oh well.

[Rachelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fantasy romance about power and service, finding your purpose, the power of love, choosing your future, and the burden of knowledge. There is social commentary about the parallel between slaves and wives, who are property. The narrative is poetical and philosphical, reminiscient of Patricia A. McKillip. Interwoven in the story are words directly addressed to Hasan, or the reader, or a knowledge-seeker. The princess delights in knowledge by lacks the ambition to know everything; she doesn't have a name until she claims it when she sacrifices her position. Hasan learns about the power of love, the one thing he never learned. * FreeBookFriday.com prize winner *

[Claire Gilligan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why is there no 3.5 stars option! This book was thoroughly enjoyable up until the last chapter, which wasn't bad, but just felt like an underwhelming ending. That being said, it was a great, fun tale of an Arabian princess and a djinn that she inherits, giving just enough glimpse into both of their lives as well as the world they inhabit. It was quite fun! Felt a bit like a detailed fairy tale, but with a setting that was pleasantly less-common in my reading experience than the European princess story.

I'd read another book by this author, sure! This was a fun little book.

[Unwisely · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have a problem, which is that Jon Courtenay Grimwood wrote such a good series that I think other exotic SF novels will be. (Just go read the arabesk series. It starts with Pashazade.)

This one was straight fantasy but I was willing to give it a chance. Unfortunately, the overwrought prose turned me off pretty soon, and I had to give up. Not for me!

[Carla Latham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book from the Goodreads book giveaway.

This book reminded me of the One Thousand and One Nights / Arabian Nights. There were a few places where the author seemed to go off on a tangent for a few pages then meandered back to the story. Other than that, it was pretty entertaining.

[Jamie]

Won this on goodreads.com in their Firstreads giveaway program. I look forward to the reading and reviewing of this book.

-Due to some moving recently year I was a bit behind my reading, but now I am back on my books and hope to review soon. :)

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really makes you think about dreams and about what getting "everything" might mean. While the main character is a young princess, I really enjoyed the focus on the Djinn and the path he traveled. Needed occasional edits.

[Lynn Johnston · Rating 2 out of 5]

Starts out fairly promising, degenerates into blather. Predictable, sanitized "beautiful virginal princess shivers with..." choose your variable..."longing, fear, wonder", etc. Do not waste your time!

[Oliphaunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A debut novel that is beautifully crafted, delicate and strong all at once. Kashina writes with a deceptively light touch, which somehow underscores the strengths and the nuances of the story. I read it all in one gulp. Love, love this book!

[Patrick Reid · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very adult fairy tale.

Not really being a fairly tale kind of guy I was surprised at how quickly this pulled me in. I found myself hoping for a happy ending half way through the story and Hasan's journey from human to other was both very human and understandable.

[Pamela B. Sweet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally, an author with a brain.

Dear Anna, your education and intelligence show in your story; so much so that I could barely follow. But it was refreshing to read something so well done.

[m i · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclaimer: am a graduate student of pre-modern Middle Eastern societies.

Well-intentioned but reeks of Orientalism; shallow world-building and clumsy writing throughout killed it for me. And I had such high hopes.

Two stars for effort.

[Samantha · Rating 1 out of 5]

The synopsis doesn't say that the princess comes of age at 12. I don't know many 12 year old girls that look at a man and notice the depth of his eyes or his muscles. Gave me the shivers. I couldn't finish reading. ICK!