June YA Pick: The House of Djinn

I first read Shabanu: Daughter of The Wind, by Suzanne Fisher Staples, quite a few years ago, and I have read it many, many times since then. It is easily one of the best YA books I have ever read - definitely in the top 5. It is the story of a fairly modern-day Pakistani girl coming of age in the desert, in a family that loves her and fears for her future. It is an excellent book. I also really enjoyed its sequel, Haveli, though not nearly as much as Shabanu. Years went by. No third book. Staples wrote other fine books, and I lost hope that she would continue writing about Shabanu and Mumtaz. But she did write a third book! The House of Djinn takes up the story when Mumtaz is a young woman and must learn that her mother is still alive, having feigned her death to protect them all from the scheming Nazir. Mumtaz must deal with a future she never imagined was waiting for her, and with conflicting ideas about love and duty. Also, there is a whiff of djinn, which was sort of odd, as the other books did not really have anything supernatural in them. Like Haveli, this book was no Shabanu, but it was a good book and I was thrilled to read the continuation of Shabanu's story and the story of Mumtaz. I highly recommend it. This book ended in such a way as to lead me to believe that there could very well be another book coming...more so than did Haveli. I hope so!