The following novel was used in the creation of this study guide: Clark, P. Djélí. A Master of Djinn. Tor. 2021. First Edition. Hardback.

The novel opens as an ancient mystic al-Jahiz burns alive the Brotherhood that has been trying to retrieve his wisdom.

In another city, a Ministry agent Fatma saves two boys from a Djinn before she is called to Giza. There, she meets Aasim and her new unwanted partner Hadia as they investigate the deaths of the Brotherhood and its leader, Lord Worthington. Then, Fatma meets with her lost love Siti who takes her to a priestess named Merira. There, they learn from another Djinn that the magic that killed the Brotherhood is that of an Ifrit.

As Fatma continues her investigation, she and Siti attend a speech given by a mysterious man in a golden mask that Lord Worthington’s daughter Abigail saw leaving the mansion. He announces himself as al-Jahiz when Fatma is attacked by someone who can make clones of himself. She escapes with Siti’s help and regroups with Hadia in the Ministry’s library. There, they learn more about al-Jahiz’ past when Inspector Aasim invites them to the masked man’s arrest. However, things go poorly when Fatma tries to out the man as a fraud, only for it to backfire when he takes off the mask. The crowd attacks as Fatma, Hadia, and Siti chase down the masked man. However, he manages to summon an Ifrit and escape, promising to reveal the Ministry’s secrets.

Eventually, Fatma and Hadia are able to get an audience with Alexander Worthington where they learn that he and his father were estranged. Abigail gives the agents Archibald’s notebook which leads them to a Djinn named Siwa who sold relics. However, when Fatma asks about Alexander’s potential involvement in a strange money transfer for al-Jahiz’s blade, Siwa begins to scream and cuts his own tongue before the women manage to run.

Unfortunately, Fatma and Hadia return to a Ministry under attack by the masked man. Although they are able to save the other workers, the masked man escapes with pieces of the Clock of Worlds, terrifying Fatma.

As the Ministry shifts away from investigating Alexander, Fatma is sent to watch over the dignitaries during the peace summit. However, the imposter arrives and stirs up the animosity between the various countries which leads to a brawl. Fatma and Siti chase after the imposter, only for him to turn SIti on Fatma, revealing that Siti is actually part djinn. Fatma stops her by calling the name of the goddess and attacks the imposter in time to see his face ripple before he escapes.

After Fatma and Siti reconnect, Fatma and Hadia learn from Dr. Hoda that the imposter is using a complex illusion that relies on the cognition of the user. Then, Zagros manages to send them to a bookseller named Rami and ask about The One Thousand and One Nights. Once there, Rami reveals that there is a strong source of magic that removes all knowledge of the powerful Seal of Sulayman that was fashioned into a ring capable of controlling the djinn.

It is then revealed that the angels are the ones who created the spell at the request of the djinn, but the djinn cannot speak of the ring just as humans cannot remember it. They tell Fatma and Hadia to return the ring, claiming that the imposter stole it from them. The djinn that Fatma asks to remove the spell, however, believes that the angels allowed the ring to be stolen for reasons unknown. Finally, Fatma confronts Siwa and he gives her a book, hoping she can deduce what he cannot say from it.

Believing that Alexander is the imposter, Fatma, Hadia, and the police force head to the Worthington estate to arrest him. However, Fatma manages to deduce that the culprit is actually Abigail who planted clues to make it look like Alexander was responsible. Abigail summons a metal djinn with the intention of awakening the Nine Lords to act as her generals. While Abigail is able to summon and force the Ifrit king under her control, Ahmed bites her hand off, taking the ring with it. Eventually, Fatma is able to use the ring to send the Nine Lords away, though the djinn Abigail controlled wipes her mind of all memories of herself, leaving her in a comatose state.

In the Epilogue, Fatma enjoys a meal with many agents, Hadia, and Siti as Abigail works with the police to uncover the rest of Abigail’s crimes. Everything is returning to normal as Abigail's co-conspirators face charges for their crimes. Fatma receives a message from Ahmed who says he is going to the temple of Sobek for the rest of his days to protect humanity from the ring he took at Fatma's request.