This historical intrusion fantasy is about a golem without a master created in the form of a woman and a jinni imprisoned in human form both ending up in New York City in the early twentieth century. Their lives intersect and overlap as they each struggle with the freedom and confinement of their new ways of being. For a golem, this is more freedom than she could imagine—or know what to do with. But for a jinni, this is a life of horrifying captivity... even though he can do as much, if not more, than what any human can do.

I enjoyed the book but did not love it, though I can see why many others may have loved it. Where it really work is in Wecker's depiction of the immigrant communities of gaslight-era New York, and in the two central characters. There are a lot of great observations, both large and small, of the people and their world. Good character moments, good complications, interesting interactions.

But I did find that at times the backstory of the jinni was delved into more than I was actually interested in, threatening to overwhelm the present-day material that had actually hooked me on the story. The core idea of the title sometimes felt a bit lost in at all.

This book was quite excellent, and I could see myself recommending it a fair bit in the future. It is as close to a work of "pure fiction" as I have read in recent times, and reflecting on it brings to mind the aspects of Murakami and Marquez that I most appreciated. Perhaps the story's only shortcoming is that it takes too few risks - the book is not overly surprising, and could have certainly done with a stronger, more driving plot. It also has an ending that, while not weak, does not amaze the way one might expect given the buildup. In spite of all of this, the book gets full marks because it effectively conveys "wonder" - something that books are often hard pressed to do. It keeps you turning the pages more out of a growing desire to understand more and to watch the characters develop than to understand where the plot is going - the kind of book that you wish could go on forever (or, perhaps, be reality).

Overall highly recommended to fiction buffs, those who like old New York, or fans of "classic" literary excellence. ( )

I wanted to give this four stars because it was really well written. However, I could not because it was a bit too angsty for my taste. ( )

A very unique book. I loved the fairy/folk tale feel of the book and learned much about these tales in Jewish and Middle Eastern culture. Yet the book was so much more than a magical story; it was about finding your place in this world and the importance of free will. I loved Chava and her journey to find her humanity. ( )

I loved this book. Wecker is a master of nuance and the telling detail.

I completely fell in love with the flawed, heart-achingly complex characters of Chava and Ahmed. Wecker's beautiful writing made all the characters deliciously fascinating, and the setting was so vivid, every time I set the book down, I felt disoriented. I honestly feel like I have been living in the old Jewish and Syrian neighborhoods of turn of the century New York.

I hated for it to end, but it did. And it ended in a way that, unlike so many recent books, did not fizzle or disappoint. Five stars.
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