The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan is an other-worldly, evocative and wonderfully atmospheric story. It follows the arrival of Sana Malik and her father as new tenants in the once grand Akbar Manzil. At its height the mansion was the grandest house in South Africa and home to Akbar Ali Khan and his family. Over a hundred years later it is a shadow of its former self. And behind its crumbling façade and damp-ridden walls lives an assortment of bickering tenants.
One new arrival makes an impression
At fifteen, quiet and watchful Sana views love in a unique way as she tries to find her place in the world. The house fearfully watches Sana explore. As does the grief-stricken djinn, a spirit in mourning. It still grieves for Meena Begum. A young woman, whose arrival at Akbar Manzil over a century ago triggered a series of events the house and djinn want to forget. But Sana’s determined curiosity is stirred and the djinn gradually allow her to uncover the house’s dark history. And at the same time, the Malik family start to have a profound effect on the current residents.
A story of two worlds set a century apart
The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is a beautiful story with its richly descriptive language transporting you to both modern day and early twentieth-century Durban. The tangled web of love, longing and loss are placed under the microscope. As are complicated family relationships, prejudices, jealousy and events that drive people to do wonderful and terrible things in the name of love.
Shubnum Khan has created a self-contained world within the crumbling walls of Akbar Manzil. Its wonderful eclectic group of tenants each have their own stories that are skilfully teased out. And then we are propelled back to the house in its full glory, where bigotry and festering envy build to a devastating climax.
The verdict
The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is a fantastic novel. This is without doubt one of the best I’ve read in 2025. Highly recommended. Five stars.