The Fire Wish

Gr 9 Up—In this fresh new twist in the fantasy genre, Lough places a decidedly human spin on the jinni (aka genie) myth, the diabolical creatures of Arabic lore. Zayele, a human princess from Baghdad, forces a wish upon Najwa, a jinni, and the consequences are dangerous and life-altering. The wish causes the teens to switch places and they must contend with the very different worlds to which they are transported. Both main characters are distinctly developed, and even when the switch occurs, they maintain their disparate identities. Lough's stylistic prose is simple and accessible; she employs many elements of imagery and figurative language in easy-to-understand ways that will appeal to younger teens and reluctant readers. A tense and mysterious mood pervades this book, but the pacing picks up too rapidly in the latter part of the novel. The world-building falters, and many teens will be discouraged and confused by the lack of development of background information and the novel's internal mythology. The use of occasional deus ex machina methods also disappoints. An uneven debut.—Amanda C. Buschmann, Atascocita Middle School, Humble, TX