Title: Djinn

Author: Craig DiLouie

Release date: June 16^th, 2023

Earlier this year (maybe end of last year?), I read and devoured Craig’s phenomenal ‘Episode Thirteen.’ I’ll admit, going into that one, I was hesitant for the simple reason that I simply can’t process/enjoy epistolary storytelling. But, you know what? It rocked. It hit every note perfectly and is easily going on my year end best-of 2023 list.

Now, if we take a step back, I LOVED Craig’s ‘Suffer the Children,’ but was a bit uneven on his ‘The Children of Red Peak’ novel. Still, his writing is beyond amazing, and with two wins and one draw, I was intrigued when he announced a new novel, titled ‘Djinn.’

But then I read the synopsis. And, while it had me very, very intrigued, I found myself in the same situation I was in with ‘Episode Thirteen.’ This time – military fiction.

I’ve never been a huge military entertainment person. TV shows, movies, books, I’ve greatly enjoyed a handful of them over the years, but for the most part, it’s something I struggle with. One big aspect is the majority of it does come out of the US, which means we get a lot of the RAH-RAH military slog. I just don’t care for the over-the-top ‘Top Gun’-esque hooo-rah that coats the military part like a blanket of bravado.

But – this was Craig – an accomplished military fiction author in his own right AND a dual citizen of the US and Canada. So, I was excited to see what he brought to the table with this one, hoping that maybe his steady hand and deft prose would help me overcome my pre-existing dislike of military fiction.

What I liked: The novel follows Holly, a journalist and military brat, who heads to Afghanistan as the US pulls its troops from the country and chaos erupts. She doesn’t care. She’s there with her own mission – to find out what happened to her father AND discover the truth of why he was there. She’s heard rumors and has followed the leads, which all indicate he was the leader of a mysterious unit – Unit X – otherwise known as Witch Doctors.

I’ll admit – I was slowed many, many times having to head over to Google and search different things. I even resorted to contacting Craig to ask about a few things, because I was completely captivated.

Holly is a fascinating character – one needing to run headlong into the worst areas in the world all in the hopes of finding the truth – but she was also completely scared and over her head for the majority of the book.

The two members of her security detail were perfectly executed, and it also allowed for some really solid moments of information dumps to the reader, as well as sharing the reality of war AND the reality of those who’ve fought and have survived.

Craig does a stellar job of telling the story that gets us to where Unit X was based out of, and I have to admit, I would’ve been happy to have it stay that way. BUT, once we get to the base, the shit hits the fan and the supernatural elements that are introduced were phenomenal and completely ramped this up to a whole other level.

The ending was poignant, summarizing the reality of Holly’s world and where she sat in comparison to where she’d began the journey and it still allowed room for Craig to philosophize on the Afghan reality going forward.

What I didn’t like: While it absolutely worked, I still was dismayed that the climatic battle was over and done within a short time. It made sense, and flowed really well, especially considering some prior setbacks in the story, but I also want MORE for the final battle!

Why you should buy this: DiLouie has done it again. Seriously, this one zips along from start to finish and reaches the pinnacle of what I want in a gritty, dirty, in-enemy-territory, supernatural fiction. This was cinematic and layered with so much emotion that it made for a very exciting novel.

Loved this one, and DiLouie has now had me enjoy two books in two different styles I typically never enjoy. Well done, sir!

5/5