The Balloon Thief

When Khadija's father arranges a match, she leaps at a chance
to escape - a hot air balloon fighting its ropes for the sky. Soon,
she is flying over the desert sands of her world, swept up in
an adventure of black magic, jinn and revolution beyond her wildest
dreams ...

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The year's must-read YA fantasy – ancient djinn,
an epic adventure, and one girl's courage to seek her own destiny
...
Burn the flame. Seek the night.


'Highly relevant yet utterly original, I was utterly entranced
by this world of jinn, peris and hot air balloons that ache
for the skies.' LAUREN JAMES, author of THE QUIET
AT THE END OF THE WORLD


For Khadija, the only escape from her father’s arranged
betrothal is the sky.


When she spots a rogue hot air balloon fighting against its ropes,
she leaps at the chance for adventure. Khadija soon finds an
unlikely ally in a poor glassmaker’s apprentice, Jacob.



But Jacob is a hāri, and Khadija a Ghadaean. The hāri
are oppressed and restless – their infamous terrorist group,
the Hāreef, have a new fearsome leader. And the ruling Ghadaeans
are brutal in their repression.


Soon, a deadly revolution threatens their friendship and their
world. The Hāreef use forbidden magic, summoning jinn –
wicked spirits made of fire – to enact their revenge, forcing
Jacob and Khadija to choose what kind of a world they want
to save …





A commercial, thrilling and uplifting fantasy adventure
following sixteen-year-old Khadija, who flees her home in a stolen
hot air balloon to escape an arranged marriage


The debut novel from enthralling new talent, twenty-four-year-old
Aneesa Marufu, which draws on the author’s South
Asian heritage

Explores racism, misogyny and discrimination in a highly
original fantasy universe

Perfect for fans of Noughts + Crosses, We
Hunt the Flame and Rebel of the Sands