The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi book review

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty
Series: Amina al-Sirafi #1
Published by HarperVoyager on March 2, 2023
Pages: 496
Goodreads

Shannon Chakraborty, the bestselling author of The City of Brass, spins a new trilogy of magic and mayhem on the high seas in this tale of pirates and sorcerers, forbidden artifacts and ancient mysteries, in one woman’s determined quest to seize a final chance at glory—and write her own legend.
Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean’s most notorious pirates, she’s survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands, and one actual demon to retire peacefully with her family to a life of piety, motherhood, and absolutely nothing that hints of the supernatural.
But when she’s tracked down by the obscenely wealthy mother of a former crewman, she’s offered a job no bandit could refuse: retrieve her comrade’s kidnapped daughter for a kingly sum. The chance to have one last adventure with her crew, do right by an old friend, and win a fortune that will secure her family’s future forever? It seems like such an obvious choice that it must be God’s will.
Yet the deeper Amina dives, the more it becomes alarmingly clear there’s more to this job, and the girl’s disappearance, than she was led to believe. For there’s always risk in wanting to become a legend, to seize one last chance at glory, to savor just a bit more power…and the price might be your very soul.

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi was my only five star read in March. I recommend that anyone looking for a fantasy surrounding a female pirate and a fantastic crew of characters to pick this one up. It is brilliantly written and has some really great scenes throughout. I think this might actually make my favourites of the year.

Plot of The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi

There is such a rich plot running all the way through The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi, with not only a thrilling journey but also so much mythology. We follow Amina who has hidden herself away from the world fearing the enemies she made in her younger years with her child. The peace she has found is disrupted when a woman offering her more riches than she could imagine begs her to find her missing granddaughter. What happens next is a series of fantastical events that leads her and her crew deep into the unknown.

I think what this book does really well is the perfect melding of both the believable elements of the story and the unbelievable. Watching the crew function together in normal everyday circumstances and then to be seamlessly thrown into a world of magic and the unexplainable was some of the best parts of the writing. I loved not knowing exactly what was going to happen next and where it was going to end up going. There was so much to unpack in this book that I’m actually excited to do a reread and see what else comes around with a second reading.

Also the ending was brilliantly handled and I don’t think it could have been done any better. There was nothing I would have changed which is saying a lot. Usually I have issues with how predictable everything ends up being but with The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi I felt as though it was done really well and everything was tied up nicely.

Characters in The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi

The characters in The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi definitely add a whole new level to the storyline and mythology. I for one love the fact that Amina is older than your average heroine, seeing her struggle with different ailments that come with age and also the knowledge that comes with having a vast amount of experience. The way she handles the different personalities in her crew but cares for each of them separately and in different ways. I love the way she interacts with each of them and how wholesome some of the moments we witness are. She is such a phenomenal character as a whole and I genuinely loved her more as the book went on!

The crew is the other main love of the story, they are the perfect mismatch bunch of people and I adore each and everyone of them for different reasons. The old mapmaker, Majed who has retired and started a family of their own with his grumpy personality but thirst for adventure. Dalila and her insane poison knowledge and complete lack of concern for her safety when experimenting. Last but not least Tinbu and his steadfastness, the way he knows the ship inside and out and his loyalty for Amina.

The characters are so wonderful in this book, even the elusive Falco as the villain casts a brilliant shadow over the rest of the story. It was so interesting to see relationships grow and especially as they all a little on the older side and having that maturity made all of it more the interesting to read and watch.

Bad Bits

• That the sequel is nowhere near ready to be released!

Good Bits

• Fantastic older main character with a brilliant crew
• Well written mythology and world building
• Great villain and tension building
• Never knowing quite what was going to happen

Who would like The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi?

Readers who loved Legends & Lattes or Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Fairies. I think this is a solid fantasy read, and is perfect for an older reader or someone wanting to transition from YA to adult fantasy!

Have you read this one? What was your thoughts? Let me know in the comments!