Shannon Chakraborty's The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi was without a doubt the most fun book I've read this year! I love the narrative style, and Amina telling her story to her scribe. The banter added to the fun and allowed for quick building of personality. This story wastes no time jumping into the intrigue and has hints of backstory that leave you wondering and seeking more.
Amina is a unique character who is self-confident and recognizes her significance in her world, but she doesn’t let that lead her to make overconfident decisions. Typically, I believe we tend to see one of the other: a cocky, fallible heroine or a reluctant heroine who does not believe in her abilities. Amina al-Sirafi is a breath of fresh air that I look forward to getting to know over the course of this series.
There were so many themes that added depth to this story and that, in my opinion, are often missing from many novels. Chakraborty not only shows the reader the lost and neglected relationships, but also what it looks like to successfully repair those relationships. I found it moving and meaningful to read those over the course of the book.
Some of the more fun aspects were the “getting the gang back together” moments, Raksh being such a himbo husband with an unintentional (?) sense of humor, and the connections to the Daevabad Trilogy. Those connections were like Easter eggs to those readers that spent time with that series.
I loved this book, I cannot wait to read more from this series, and Ms. Chakraborty can do no wrong in my eyes! Lastly, PROTECT JAMAL AT ALL COSTS!!!

the adventures of Amina Al-sirafi gave to me everything I wanted in the moment. It's an amazing story, with brilliant characters and an espectacular prose. It made me fell in love with fantasy books all of over again.

For every mother who loves her children deeply but also yearns for adventure and a sense of purpose outside of motherhood, this book is for you. May you find your inner “nakhudha.”

This is the first nautical/fantasy themed book I’ve read. I honestly wasn’t sure how I would like this sub-genre but I thoroughly enjoyed it. This book is well paced, has a great cast of characters and had me laughing out loud a few times. I’m excited to read more from S.A. Chakraborty.

There is so much mythological and cultural goodness in this one that I would have probably given it a 5-star rating just for that, and the added glory that is nuanced writing and fascinating characters make me want to give it extra love.
Amina al-Sirafi once traveled the seas as a feared pirate captain. Legends of her adventures are exaggerated and slightly ridiculous at times because no man wants to admit that a woman can accomplish what she did. But she's retired to raise her daughter in peace and safety and is constantly convincing herself that that's all she desires. Until a wealthy and snotty woman comes to her house to demand that she help find her granddaughter, the daughter of a former shipmate of Amina's whose death played a big part in her retirement. Amina's refusal earns a threat against her family that she's not willing to risk, so off she goes to retrieve her former mates and ship in what she's hoping will be a quick trip to recover a wayward kidnapped girl. Thus begins a series of fantastical adventures that bring all the magic and mysteries of a long-lost time and place to the page.
The characters are as interesting as the locales they visit, and that's before getting into all the great mythological beings that so naturally inhabit the world Chakraborty brings to life. It's a classic pirate adventure in the most perfect sense with the added bang of magic and myths.
I highly recommend giving this one the chance to charm you as much as it did me.

Excited and happy thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the fantastic read!

A stunning Muslim medieval fantasy novel about a middle-aged pirate who returns to her old life to save a kidnapped teen, go up against a Frank obsessed with the supernatural, and protect her own young daughter from the threats of an overprotective grandmother. It was a really fun read and I loved how much motherhood inspired and impacted Amina even as she continued her adventures as a fierce pirate captain.

"...are not all mothers capable of being monsters when it comes to their children?"

Shannon Chakraborty has done it again with creating an enriching world centuries in the past that delves into the folklore and culture of the seas in the regions around Africa, WANA, and southern Asia. The Daevabad trilogy will always hold a special place in my heart, but it was beyond refreshing to see Shannon take on a different time period with a new cast of characters. She's pushing the boundaries of fantasy by spearheading this new trilogy with a middle aged mother, something that brings pure joy to my heart. I can see myself in ten to twenty years rereading this book, if I choose to have children or even not, merely because I'll be the same age as Amina al-Sirafi. We like to say that women are more than just motherhood, but a lot of time that sentiment doesn't hold out in fantasy books. Well, Shannon proves that 110% wrong.

Amina al-Sirafi is a prickly, protective, thrice married mother who is currently retired from her old life on the seas as a famous explorer/ pirate, but she's forced to return to her old ways when a forceful client, a grandmother, threatens Amina into searching for the client's kidnapped granddaughter. And ot be perfectly honest, all hell breaks lose from then on. From prison breaks to magical islands, Amina is pulled through the ringer trying to finish this job and return to her daughter. While this book is very much adventurous and epic in scope, the heart of it lies with the relationship between a mother and daughter. Their connection underscores so much of this book that in many ways nobody could fault Amina for any of her antics because they all come back to getting back home. This was my favorite aspect to this book. Although, the humor and wit were a extremely close second! It wouldn't be a Shannon Chakraborty book without some chaotic sass/ jokes.

I remember hearing somewhere, possibly on Shannon's social media pages, that this book would have a distant connection to the Daevabad trilogy, but I never thought it would be in this manner. Amina is as human as they come besides her accidental demonic husband, who so happens to be the father of her daughter. She's not used to magic or even the idea of magical creatures/ beings. So when she washes up on an island of pure magic and sees daevas for the first time, I quite frankly howled with laughter as said daevas dashed back into the sea to possibly return back home to Daevabad. It was just such a wonderful cameo even if the individuals weren't anyone we knew. Albeit, there is a character from The City of Brass within this book, and I'm very intrigued to see if they continue to be a driving force of this trilogy. In many ways The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi did a lot of set up for the next two books in the trilogy, which is one of my only real gripes because it muddled the pacing and focus of the story, kinda like whiplash. I believe once the second book releases I'm simply going to perish because Amina has such a deeper connection to the magical side of this world than ever before. Plus, Shannon has a particular talent for writing iconic second books in trilogies because The Kingdom of Copper is pure perfection/ still my favorite book by her.

Anyway, I loved the crew with my whole heart. I'm so happy that Shannon continues to write such diverse casts of characters with the best dynamics and chemistry. Religion is a very complicated reality to books with historical settings, especially in a time period like this, but Shannon puts the pedal to the medal by having a multi-faith crew. While I cannot speak on the Muslim representation, Dalila is a Christian, and I found her conversation with Amina after stumbling upon a terrible sight to be one of the more profound scenes within the novel. It just made me happy to see these crew members respect one another's faith, especially in a time now-a-days when religion is such a testy point of conversation. Furthermore, I'm hoping that the crew can make some journeys further out into the Indian Ocean like Asia because my whole heart wants Majed to check off his bucket list dream of visiting it. I have a feeling we'll definitely explore more , so my fingers are crossed in excitement.

Overall, The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi is definitely worth a read through, and I'm super excited to see people see the mini cameos and slight connections to her debut series. These adventures are only gonna get more chaotic and rough as the series progresses, but I think Amina has a good foundational support system with her found family on the sea as well as her blood family back on land.

Thank you to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I'm still reading this - got approved for the ARC just before the book was actually released! - and I am absolutely in love with it. I can't wait for my physical copy to arrive so I can pore over the map, but from the first paragraph, I was drawn in and already found myself amused by and wanting to know more about the titular Amina. I also really enjoyed how it seemed like an actual transcription of an oral story, and the moments where you got reminded that this is Amina telling her story to Jamal, a scribe. I can't wait to see where the rest of this story goes!!

The best pirate story I have ever read! I was blown away by this read. It was intriguing, entertaining, and adventurous!! It was full of history and magic. It was very unique. The characters each brought something special. I can’t wait for the next in the series!! Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to read in exchange for a review.

"If the criminal past didn’t alert you, I have not always been a very good Muslim. Drinking and missing prayer were among my lesser sins, and if I tried to straighten myself up every year when Ramadan rolled around—a new life of piety easy to imagine while dazed with thirst and caught up in the communal joy of taraweeh—I typically lapsed into my usual behavior by the time the month of Shawwal had ended."

I think this particular quote (not to mention references to God and the Quran) made me fall in love with Amina al-Sirafi. No lie.

Personally, I really liked how I understood all of the references to Islam and how it was a fact of life in this world, instead of being seen and treated as an Other. (Similar to Ms. Marvel in that sense.)

This novel was such a breath of fresh air amongst the typical "teenage chosen one with dead parents" fantasy novels that I always read. Amina is a middle-aged mother with a young child, not the adventurous youthful pirate that she used to be. She has chronic knee pain, a lifetime of regrets, an estranged husband with secrets of his own, and a particular set of skills that make her very unique.

The novel is set during Amina's retirement, years after her notorious run as the female nakhuda in the Indian Ocean. In the beginning, I was afraid that her new adventures might be toned down, only because the MC kept mentioning that she wasn't at the prime of her life anymore.

But clearly she was wrong, and Shannon Chakraborty had a lot more in store for her.

This novel is the typical hero's journey, with trials and tribulations, and setting forth into the mysterious and dangerous unknown with a return to the known world at the end. There's magic and mystical items and an evil wizard. Oh, and a giant sea creature. And a magic island that's (literally) otherworldly. Our MC goes through physical and psychological changes. Yet, the setting and the environment is much different than the typical fantasy adventure novel.

The author conducted a lot of research to make the places and characters sound realistic and based in fact, which is pretty cool tbh. Imo, it's so much more exhaustive than creating a fantasy world from scratch.

And it all works out quite well. As a reader, you can feel yourself being immersed in the environment. I feel like I've traveled back in time to a place I've never been to before, with places like Aden, Socotra, and the Indian Ocean in general acting as secondary characters themselves.

I loved this novel to the point where it took me forever to finish it. I didn't want the story to end so I stretched it out until publish day.

I can't wait to read about Amina's next adventures!

Thank you to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for this arc.

Shannon Chakraborty has done it again! As a huge Daevabad trilogy fan, I was super excited to hear that Shannon Chakraborty had another epic fantasy with Muslim characters up her sleeve. The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi is a swash-buckling adventure with charming characters, comedic + witty moments, and of course enchanting magic. I loved following Amina and her crew and I highly recommend this fantasy novel for anyone who was a fan of the ensemble cast and sweeping fantasy adventure in the Daevabad trilogy.

If you have not read anyting by SAC - you really are doing yourself an injustice! The City of Brass is one of my all time favorite series!

This book brings all the things I love about her trilogy but included a fresh plot. Everything was perfect and I need a physical copy of this book immediately!

This book is a wonderfully action-packed swashbuckling tale with lady pirates, high-sea adventure, magic, monsters, humor, and well-written characters. It's got a pulp flavor to it without being cheesy. I loved it!

4,5⭐ rounded up

I thought this was a usual adventure kind of fantasy where the MC was in their prime age, peak career, and I was surprised that Amina had already retired at the beginning of the book.

Yes, Amina was the greatest female nakhuda, but that’s in the past. Now she had a daughter and only wanted a quiet life. She did her best to hide her past because with a great name, came great enemies too.
But on one humid and sunny day, a wealthy woman wanted to hire her. Longing for her ship, the sea, and tempted by the payment, she agreed to the job.

First thing that I love about this book is that most of the characters are Muslims. I’ve read some fantasy books written by Muslim authors but their books usually didn’t bring up any religious aspect. Not this book, though. And being a Muslim myself I noticed that the narration is RICH with Islamic terms (of course most of them translated into English).

The cast of characters are RIVETING. They are old, even for an adult fantasy standard. A nice reminder that your life isn’t going to end by the age of 40, especially for women. I love their dynamics which consist of 50% hilarious banter, 25% arguing (affectionate), and 25% teasing their old body. Literally one of the best found families I’ve ever read. The humor in their dialogues are TOP TIER.

The plot is SO bizarre, far from my initial thought about regular sea adventure, maybe conquering some lands, etc. The story started off with some mysteries that slowly unpacked along the way, since Amina had a whole lotta adventures before her retirement. It involves magical beings, supernatural powers, a psychotic sorcerer, and a mythical object.

And the best thing is the perfect fucking loop. See, In this book, Amina was relaying her story to a scholar scribe, exactly in her voice, to keep record of her adventures. I didn’t even think about this narrative concept until I got to the closing chapter. I think my jaw dropped for at least a full minute. Utterly genius.

I don’t give this full 5 stars because the writing, beside the dialogues, wasn’t exactly my favorite. I noticed an excessive amount of -ly adverbs to emphasize things, and a lot of vocabs were unfamiliar to me (non-native). But overall, it was great. Can’t wait for Amina’s next adventure!!

Loved the book and loved the unique female lead. Overall five stars for the book and can’t wait to read more

Shannon Chakraborty has done it again in this new series! Absolutely devoured this novel! The characters, adventures, histories, and myths were incredibly immersive and engaging.

Check me out on Instagram as @books_boards_and_brews

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi
Written by Shannon Chakraborty
Read by Lameece Issaq and Amin El Gamal
Book 55/200
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Format: E-Book
Pages: 496
Published: 2023
Rating: 9.5/10

"For this scribe has read a great many of these accounts and taken away another lesson: that to be a woman is to have your story misremembered. Discarded. Twisted."

This ARC was provided by NetGalley and Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review.

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi is a fun swashbuckling adventure that definitely fits into my love of pirate fantasy and heists. Amina is a former pirate, called back to the sea when she's presented an offer too tantalizing to turn down. TAoAS is exciting, humorous, and engrossing in no small part to Chakraborty's great characters. Amina in particular is impossible not to love, especially with her narrating her story. The asides and comments throughout are pretty funny and really add to the tale. It is clear that Chakraborty had a lot of fun writing this character.

This book concern's itself mostly with a women's part in history. Chakraborty discusses this in the intro, saying that the stories of women are often changed by those (mostly men) who write history, and often come to an end to fit whatever narrative. By putting this in an older Amina's voice, Chakraborty wonderfully subverts this and makes a very empowering book.

I am very excited to read more of this series and I definitely need to read the The Daevabad Trilogy.

Thanks to NetGalley, Harper Voyager, and Shannon Chakraborty for the ARC.

A fully immersive, historical fantasy book about priates and the sea? Yes! A middle aged female protagonist who is as badass as they come? YES.

The author really knows how to tell an incredible story. Amina isn't the perfect character, she has her flaws. But I love my badass characters being imperfect. It makes them more relatable and real.

The magic, the creatures. The fantasy mixed with a historical back drop. Gah!
I'm so excited to read this series and can't wait for more!

Amina Al-Sirafi used to be a smuggler. She is forced out of retirement to return a former shipmate’s daughter to Aden; the grandmother offers a reward almost too good to be true. One by one, Amina gathers her old crew back together for one last score. During the journey she is torn between her love of sailing and raising her daughter in rural Yemen.

And there is magic!

Takes place in medieval Yemen, making full use of the cosmopolitan Islamic world setting, Chakraborty paints an intriguing, beguiling life of sailors on the Indian Ocean. Diverse cast, including queer and gender-nonconforming characters without any effort or fanfare or drama. I also loved how the hero is an older woman.

The story has a satisfying ending even as it sets up possible sequels. I definitely want to visit this world again.

What fun this was! My quibbles here are that I wish we'd had a little more character development and the pacing dragged a bit at times, but otherwise, I loved the authorial voice, the world building, and the romping plot. This is the first in a series that I see myself continuing on when it's all out and I can binge it in one big, delightful gulp. Definitely lives up the pre-pub hype

This was so much fun and amazing! It's very Sinbad, but with Chakraborty's flair. I love Amina as a character and her entire crew. I can see that we are going to go places in this series. Can't wait to read the next book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an eARC of the book in exchange for my personal opinions.