A Master of Djinn: A Novel

An early 20th century version Egypt has magic as part of its society. A murder occurs, and a woman detective is put on the case. She is also given a partner to work with her on the case, much to her chagrin. (However, she reluctantly agrees to work with her, realizing there are not many females that get the opportunity.) 

The society seems similar to our modern society. Concerns of westernization, gender equity and LGBTIA rights are all issues that come in to play in this "magical society". The big difference is the magic (and "fake magic") that are part of this society.

There are a number of topics of colonialism, slavery, and magic involved as the Djinn have their magical powers, yet are somewhat subservient. The British people in Egypt end up being troublemakers among a society that has come at peace with the magical presence.

Underneath all this magic and political commentary, there is a detective story. They do manage to uncover the source of the murder. There are plenty of twists and turns in the case (many involving the supernatural.)

Uncanny Valley: A Memoir

A liberal arts graduate is working at a New York City publishing company. She ends up stumbling into a tech startup that is trying to disrupt the book industry. The company is much less regimented than publishing and is more focussed on "tech" than books. (Other employees are not very interested in her "book club".) Things don't work out for her there. However, she does catch the tech bug and ends up moving to San Francisco to take a new job. She bombs the interview, but ends up acing a practice LSAT to get the job.

At her new job, she is at the bottom of the hierarchy in support. She is also one of the few women women there. She eventually adapts to the culture, enjoying the millennial perks, but struggling as somebody different. She gets a nice job at github, explores various hedonistic San Francisco activities and eventually leaves the bay area.

The book is an interesting view into the techy world and the "mono-cultural" that exists. The author differentiates herself as being a non-techy female in a world of white techy males. However, she does seem to fit right in with the culture. The focus on the surface hides many other aspects that are excluded. There are plenty of white males that are not present in the culture. There is a great challenge in bringing them in also.