Jimmy and the Djinn

Jimmy, 13, amiable, lazy but short of cash applies for a cleaning job offering ‘excellent remuneration’. He and his two friends hope to buy a boat. He is accepted. His winning qualifications are that he is: a) small, b) isn’t a Saracen and c) can’t whistle. His place of work is Monkshall, a grim and perplexing medieval complex that exists in a London square that isn’t on the A-Z map. Monkshall is not what it seems. Nor are its inhabitants. It is a prison for Djinn captured by a fanatical sect of warrior monks in the First Crusade. The undead crusaders and Djinn live on within its walls, their battle lines separated by a great net of prayer, enchantments, sentient architecture and alchemically created mechanical devices. There is a history of violence, most notably the Great Chimney War where Djinn, due to the negligence of juvenile cleaning staff, were enraged and strengthened by casual whistling to break their chains and attempted to escape through the highly complex system of chimneys and secret passages. The Djinn were subdued and re-imprisoned after prolonged chimney conflict by the Crusader Knight Grand Master Gilbert de Gris. Jimmy wants money – and the pay is exceptional although the working conditions are frequently bizarre, and increasingly, nightmarish. Things really begin to go wrong when Jimmy’s co-cleaner and friend, Beryl, decides to become a nun and is selected to be a sacrificial victim on the annual Feast of Lights. In a bid to rescue her Jimmy must release the Great Djinn, Sakhar, and extract three wishes. This is a great deal more difficult than he had imagined and Monkshall is engulfed in war. So is some of London. The ending is slightly enigmatic.

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