L-J Baker
Adijan, a poor messenger girl in an Arabian Nights fantasy world, wishes she could build a world-spanning business empire. Shalimar, her wife, wishes Adijan would spend more time at home. Their landlord wishes Adijan would pay the rent. Adijan's brother-in-law wishes she would get trampled by a herd of camels so that he could marry his sister Shalimar to someone affluent and influential. And of all the wishes in the world, Adijan wishes the genie she's saddled with would grant her wishes instead of treating her with disdain.
Be careful what you wish for in a world of genies, sorcerers, and flying carpets.
Calling L-J Baker's books fantasies may be a mistake because people who don't like that genre will miss a terrific reading experience if they don't read her books. Although there's often an aspect of fairy tales in her stories, at their hearts they are adventure books. Adijan and Her Genie is about a hero on a quest told with a touch of The Arabian Nights.
Though there is the touch of fantasy, one of the strengths of the story is that it seems totally plausible. Many of the escape scenes would fit just as easily into a Mission Impossible setting or Bourne movie. The greatest strength however is the way Baker deals with character development . . . At heart, Adijan and Her Genie is an adventure story with plenty of crises, triumphs and near disasters, but it's also an encouraging lesson in how a person can change, improve and come to live up to her true potential. This is one of those books that can be read to just enjoy a tale, but also has something to teach in the process.
-- Lynne Pierce, lesfic_unbound
