This is a romantic fantasy. Akshay, warrior prince of the earth djinns goes to Earth to relax after a hard battle with the water djinns. Maya, princess of the water djinns, travels to Earth to hopefully find a someone to father the child her family is pressing her to have.

Shay and Maya meet in a country bar, not realizing who the other is. After a steamy one-night stand, Maya is injured protecting Shay from an assassin. Between misunderstandings, meddling family members and lurking assassins, Shay and Maya fight to find a future together.

This was a fun, fast, read. The warring Djinns with their different cultures were interesting. Maya was a strong, funny protagonist. Shay was suitably noble and manly. The issue of the roles of women in the different Djinn societies was a neat addition to the story. There were some minor characters who were intriguing and made me think more books in this series were likely. Some explicit, but not excessive, sexual content. ( )

A Tale of Two Djinns by Mina Khan

A Tale of Two Djinns by Mina Khan is a dramatic and romantically infused work that will have readers glued to the pages until the work is spent. This tale is light and lilting, yet intense and flowing like torrent floodwaters that flash with no forewarning. It conveys the connections between environment and being through prejudice, thoughtfulness, emotional turmoil and love. One can see numerous ports of call for Khan’s inspiration, yet nothing about the tale feels old or over-used.

The perspective moves back and forth between the two main characters, Akshay and Maya. Both of royal blood, he is strong, protective, and vigilant; she shares every one of those traits, matching him as a warrior as well. The characters are strong, vivid, and energy-filled. Readers will find the landscape and emotions just as clear and viable as each character with the work.

Written in third person, the tale maintains an even and steady rhythm, which can catch even the well-read reader off guard during the sharp curves. Lies and hidden truths abound, yet even with the steady supply, readers will not see the biggest twist coming. Well-written and concise, Khan’s work evolves through a plot paced like a thoroughbred horse. It does not stumble in any instance and streams toward its climactic encounter as if moving to conquer a new world. Readers will happily surrender. ( )

Link to book: Amazon

Book Description: *** Fifty percent of every purchase is donated to UNICEF in memory of Mina’s father***Akshay, warrior prince of the earth djinns, earns the title of Crown Prince at a high cost when he loses his best friend in a battle against ancient enemies, the water djinns. Heartsick, he escapes to Earth to mourn.

Nothing gets the biological clock ticking (and elders lecturing) like almost dying in battle, so Maya, princess of the water djinns, travels to Earth for some no-strings-attached sex to fulfill her duty and produce an heir. But the beautiful and tough warrior gets more than she bargained for when she meets Shay.

Their not-so-simple one-night stand is interrupted by assassins and the world, as they know it, is changed forever. As Maya and Shay pull together to survive, both are determined to have their happily-ever-after and bring peace to their worlds — warring families, shadow assassins, and nosy busybodies be damned.

Authors Note: Growing up in Bangladesh, I have seen the poorest of the poor. Education and work training bring opportunities, which lead to a better life. To honor my parents, I’m passing forward the gift of education with your help through UNICEF’s Schools for Asia, which will be working in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. I hope together we will make a difference.Thank you for your support, and I hope you enjoy the story!

**I received a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased and honest review**

Review: 5 stars

General: A magical, hot and unique Romeo and Juliet. Granted it does start a bit confusing, revealing information after it should be, that only lasts for about the first five pages. From then on this book is fantastic. Centering on Djinn it views them much differently than traditional media have by combining genie and djinn. Purely Djinn the characters in this book are at war and their elemental powers are what define them.

The whole concept of the book is water Djinn Maya must become pregnant to appease her royal family. By mistake she sleeps with and falls for the Crown Prince of their enemy, the earth djinn. Every page after these discoveries are made is filled with heat and intrigue as Maya learns the new world and the new man.

The story was beautifully written, starting with a battle into the love scenes and then the betrayal and finally conclusion. Every step of the way I wanted to read to see whether the two Djinn would find out the truth in each other, and how it would change their kingdoms.

Characters: Maya- I loved Maya almost from the getgo. She is everything women wish to be. Beautiful, fierce and of course a princess. Her attitude towards Akashay as their predicament unfolds was so truthful and easy to find yourself on her side and hoping for the best to come.

Akashay- Another awesome male hero. He is exactly what is needed- a strong, stubborn male that puts the needs of his people above his own, until love finds him. I never once didn’t want Akashay to come out on top from his heartbreak in the opening pages to the end I was routing for him. ( )

Full Review posted at The Book Pushers:

http://thebookpushers.com/2012/07/03/review-a-tale-of-two-djinns-by-mina-khan/


I am always drawn to books which feature Djinns because they are one of my favourite supernatural beings and it is interesting to see the different takes some authors have on them. With A Tale of Two Djinns by Mina Khan, the Djinns are divided into different elemental groups such as water or earth. Maya, who is a princess and a witch of the Water Djinn, is also one of the powerful warriors for her tribe. However after a difficult battle with the Earth Djinn, Maya was injured defending her lands, and while she is recuperating she is pressured by her family to take a break as well as to find a man so she could beget an heir.

Unbeknownst to Maya, who goes for some R and R at a cowboy dive bar on earth to look for some fun and a potential father for her baby. The candidate she’s drawn to is her enemy, Akshay who is the heir to the Earth Djinn. She had fought with him a few days before but is totally unaware that he is the enemy and a Royal Earth Djinn at that! They are instantly attracted to each other and share a very steamy night together but things go downhill when they are attacked by an Air Djinn and Maya gets injured in the fight and Shay takes her to his lands to recover. But she then realises she’s hooked up with an Earth Djinn and a Royal one at that and is in danger of her real identity being discovered.

This is really cute and enjoyable novella, with an exciting and fast paced opening battle scene. The world-building with different types of Djinns linked with elements was imaginative and established very well and I loved the rich descriptions of the setting and how the magic worked. I also loved the magical elements linked to each different type of Djinn and it was a great take on these mythical beings.

I also liked the differences between each elemental Djinn societies – With Maya’s tribe, women have equality and can become warriors while Akshay’s family women are relegated to being wives and mothers and are coddled. Although the Earth Djinn’s lands are facing a huge drought and one of the reasons why they are in a war with the Water Djinns is due to access to water.

The romance between Maya and Shay was also engaging and the love scenes sizzled with sensual tension. However, I did wish there was more time expanding the love story because I felt it was pretty rushed because it was a matter of days that they fell in love. I couldn’t really believe they would have such strong feelings for each other especially since they both come from opposing backgrounds and there was the true bond/mated trope which wasn’t really explored enough for me. I know this is a novella so there was time constraints but I do wish the book was longer because it would have made the romance much more stronger for me.

Nonetheless both main characters were fleshed out and likeable and the premise and setting really made the story for me although I wished there was more time in the Djinn world. And I would have liked more on Maya’s witch’s ability because again due to the shortness of the story, there wasn’t much of an explanation on why it was so important and different to other Djinns and how that linked to her bond with Shay especially towards the end. But I hope there is a full book set in this world because it was vivid and vibrant and I loved the tone and the setting in the Djinn realms.

A Tale of Two Djinns romance was a bit rushed to my liking but the rich world-building and setting made up for that. With two appealing lead characters and sensual and imaginative love scenes, this was a lovely, quick and enjoyable read and I think this is a really promising series.

I give A Tale of Two Djinns a C ( )