The City of Brass was a very conflicting read for me. Initially I was hooked, and intrigued by both POV characters (Nahri, Ali), as well as Dara. Although soon after introductions, the plot seemed to gradually take a backseat to world building. This, combined with jumps in time within the story, worsened the already semi-uneasy pacing. Prior to their arrival to Daevabad, I was very annoyed with both Dara and Nahri, and confused by their seemingly forced romance. I had put the book down a number of times already, and considered dropping it for good. I'm glad that I didn't, as soon afterwards the plot picked up substantially. Ali grew on me quite a bit more after his meeting with Nahri; his chapters becoming the highlight of the read. I was also mostly enthralled with Nahri again, although frustrated that she almost became a secondary character in much of her own story. Excited to see what role she takes on in the following books, as I was a big fan of the independent, resourceful thief we met in Cairo.

Ultimately City of Brass was a worthy read, if not bogged down a bit by it's faults. I felt the action scenes throughout were really well done, as were the court politics (if not a bit confusing); not to mention the city of Daevabad itself (hell, the whole setting) was absolutely captivating as it was described. I'm willing to forgive the pacing issues and clumsy, forced dialogue at parts as this was Chakraborty's debut novel. The ending really 'sealed' the deal for me, and I will be continuing the series as soon as I can!