A review by biblio_creep
The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty

5.0

Book Review | THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL-SIRAFI by SHANNON CHAKRABORTY 
 
5/5 ⭐’s | PUB DATE:  7 March 2023 
 
Read if you're looking for: 
  • A fantasy pirate novel set in the Muslim world (Oman, Yemen, Somalia
  • Swashbuckling, seafaring, poisoning, & explosions
  • A middle-aged, POC, female main character
  • Magic & sea monsters
  • An accidental marriage to a demon
  • A fun & endearing cast of characters
  • Transgender representation

If you told me that a fantasy, pirate story would be one of my favorite books of the year so far, I wouldn’t have believed you, but Chakraborty hit it out of the park with this one! Amina al-Sirafi is a middle-aged & retired pirate living a fairly quiet life with her mother and daughter, when a rich woman shows up at her door to convince her to find the woman’s supposedly kidnapped granddaughter. From there, the action begins and doesn’t stop until the very end. Amina is a funny and strong main character. Amina gathers her former crew, gets her ship back, and sets out on an adventure that is full of magic and monsters. 

I loved the setting of this book, and you can tell that Chakraborty did a ton of research to get the historical time period and the middle eastern setting to be convincing. The main character, and several others, are Muslim, and most of the characters are people of color. There is also queer and transgender representation as well. Chakraborty’s writing is engrossing and easy to get absorbed in, and the characters are so fun and endearing. Because I cared about the characters, the stakes were high and the story was suspenseful. The book does take quite a large turn into the fantastical in the second half of the book. I saw that some reviewers thought that it was a bit over the top, but I loved it! The book ends in such a way to set things up for the rest of the series, and I can’t wait until Chakraborty writes the rest of these! I will pick them up as soon as they come out, and will read their previous series as well.
 
CW:  Violence, Death, Gore, Alcohol, Torture, Body horror, Transphobia, Slavery, Rape