I cannot begin to tell you how much I enjoyed this book. This year I’ve been pretty focused on YA fantasy, but I finally decided to jump back to adult with book… and I was swept away.

I loved that the main character was an older woman who was a hardened and badass pirate but also a loving and dedicated mother. She was hard and soft and loving and fierce. I loved that the world was rooted in real places with beautiful and mystical magic. This book was lush and exciting, yet took the time to have serious and intimate moments.

This book was everything I wanted and more in a fantasy.

And thank you so much Harper Voyager for this gorgeous finished copy. I absolutely loved it.

I was so happy to have gotten the audiobook from Netgalley and the publisher! The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi was one of my most anticipated releases this year. I enjoyed this book more than I thought I was going to, which says a lot. This story is fast paced, full of action, adventure and magic. I really enjoyed the themes of family, both kin and found family. Amina is an amazing bad ass, I loved how witty the banter was. I am so excited to see where this series goes.

The Adventures of Amina Al-Siraafi is a high seas adventure of greatest proportions. Retired smuggler/pirate captain Amina Al-Siraafi is blackmailed into taking up her mantle once again and delving into a wild adventure to rescue the daughter of one of her old friends who died while serving in her crew. Along the way she discovers this mission is more than she bargained for, and finds a whole new respect for magic.

This was one of my most anticipated books as I’m sure it was a lot of your guys as well and I came out of it surprised with a certain comparison for another book and that is Kings of the Wyld. This gave me major kings of the wyld vibes which is one of my all time favorite books

This is the story of a woman who is probably in her like 30’s or 40’s and she used to be a legendary pirate captain and something really bad happened so she put her piracy ways behind her. She’s given her ship into the care of someone else who is a trusted confidant and she is living in hiding with daughter, mother and brother. And because they are in hiding, they are struggling for money. One day a woman who is the mother of a former crewmate offers them an unbelieveable amount of money to find her missing granddaughter who she believes was kidnapped. If Amina is able to find her whereabouts she gets paid or if she gets her back safely, she’s offered this huge treasure trove pretty much. So as the reader, the whole your reading, you’re just rooting for these characters because this money would guarantee stability and comfort for not only Amina but also her family and her future family forever and you know, it’s also the promise of one last grand adventure so she has to get her old crew back together and go on this quest.

So that’s the little tease for the plot and I had a really fun time with this. This is my first book by this author, I never picked up city of brass no matter how many times I said I was going to read it, it still sits on my shelf unread but this gave me an idea and I am impressed. I loved the writing, the way characters were written and even dialogue. it was so fluid and easy, the story itself was fun. It definitely had it’s slower moments but I know to appreciate that sorts of stuff as a fantasy reader, I love build up. And the way Chakraborty wrote atmosphere here really set the scene with such a light hand. Nothing ever felt heavy like some adult fantasies can. I could picture things so vividly and the setting came to life perfectly. I gave this 5 out of 5 stars and I highly recommend if you are new to this author or you love this author and just haven’t picked this up yet, then for you I definitely recommend.

📚Review: The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi 🏴‍☠️

By: Shannon Chakraborty
Published: February 28, 2023

After a life lived at sea as one of the most notorious pirates, Amina Al-Sarafi should be content with her retirement and quiet time with her family. However, when the mother of one of her former crewman tracks Amina down and offers her a job no former bandit could refuse, retrieve the kidnapped daughter of her former crew for a king’s ransom, Amina is pulled back to the sea and a life of adventure. Yet as Amina and her reunited crew venture deeper into this mission, it’s becoming all the more evident there’s supernatural forces at play and this job may cost them more than their lives in the end.

Eek - everyone needs to pick this one ASAP, it’s incredible! 🥰

Let’s start with the characters - what a group of complex, sassy, and hilarious characters, whose dynamics strike you and make you fall in love with them.

Next, the story - what a fun adventure that builds on itself as we move through the mission in a way Chakraborty has mastered. In particular, I loved the way the supernatural world we saw so much of with the Daevabad trilogy bleed into Amina’s world and story. I also loved the conversational tone and breaks in storytelling to provide background context that makes this book even richer.

This book is clever, heartwarming, funny, and written in a way that pulls you in immediately and are left wanting the next part of Amina + CO’s story immediately.

I was very fortunate to receive a finished copy and audiobook of The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty. If you’re familiar with The Daevabad Trilogy, you’ll find the same passioned writing with sharpened skills. This book feels even more polished and the character of the legendary Amina al-Sirafi feels entirely unique. We often seen authors dive into a pattern of making their main characters across different books have the same attributes and voice, but Chakraborty does not fall prey to that. The whole vibe of this novel is very different from Daevabad for me.

Amina is a character that contains multitudes. She is a beloved and attentive mother, a great friend, a respected captain, a feared opponent, and an all-around fierce woman. She is such a vibrant character and I absolutely loved following her. She’s a modern, progressive woman who still holds certain practices of her culture close. She’s capable of despicable things while also keeping some moralistic values.

I enjoyed the way the book was set up, with interludes from historians, plus back and forth conversation between Amina and her scribe. When I listened to the audiobook, the exchanges with the scribe and Amina always made me laugh. The narrators do a great performance and really capture it as conversational interruption from the main story. Amina and the scribe always sound fondly exasperated with one another.

The humor continues throughout much of the novel. Even when it gets serious, there are threads of humor that would make me laugh out loud and smile to myself. The book wraps up quite nicely but always sets us up to look forward to the second installment. I’m already looking forward to it!

Thanks to Harper Voyager and Harper Audio for the review copies in exchange for an honest review.

I CANNOT SHOUT ABOUT The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi LOUD ENOUGH. IT WAS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. This rollicking magical adventure is set in the Middle East, during the Middle Ages. Amina al-Sirafi is a notorious pirate, but for the past decade, she’s been retired, instead focusing on raising her daughter and avoiding drama of all kinds.

But a wealthy woman approaches her with an offer she can’t refuse—find her granddaughter who had been taken by a foreign sorcerer. The daughter of a former crewman, Amina feels responsible, and the enormous reward doesn’t hurt either.

The job quickly becomes much more complicated than Amina could have anticipated. Thankfully she gets the old crew back together, and reunited, they may have just the SLIMMEST chance of surviving and making it back home.

This book is a VIBE. I loved it. The audiobook narration was OUT OF THIS WORLD. It’s such a complex story—it’s part adventure, part travelogue, part heist, part romance, part history., part fantasy. It’s a rich, textured tale—one that I won’t quickly forget. I seriously need everyone to read this book so we can squeal about it together.

An enormous thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for my advance audiobook.

This was a beautiful story told between the lines of history and fantasy. I was a bit intimidated going into this as it had many historical elements, but the author really sets you up for success and comfort in reading this by giving you an overview of what to expect, and what history is woven into the story. 

I absolutely loved this high seas fantasy adventure, and it was more of a heist book (compared to Sinbad and Oceans 11) It was an easy-paced story that didn't info dump on you but rather unfolded as each part took place. My personal preference was it may have been a little too slow for me, but nothing felt like it dragged. This was fantastic storytelling at it's finest, and I found all of the characters charming amongst their high seas tales. 

Each chapter is told from the main character Amina Al-Sirafi point of view, but some chapters were told by a scribe. He jumps in to recount some history or knowledge you should know, this was a welcome break to hear more about the story. Amina sometimes set up the chapters as well, and occasionally was talking "off camera" to him, making jokes or asking if she should even share that part of the story, I loved the humor. 

What to like: 
Easy to digest world building
Diverse and loveable characters
Fierce female lead
LOL moments
Magic, Pirates, Witches, Demons... the whole shabang! 

I did this as an audiobook and I loved the narrator. She was very animated and I never got lost as to which character was talking.

When I found out this book was about a badass mother who has retired from her past pirate life but is returning to the sea after being offered something she can't refuse I RAN to get my hands on this book! After reading the first few pages I knew this was going to be a five star book.

I thought the epic pirate story might be good on audio and I'm SO happy I choose to read this via audio. The book is told in a narrator style so the audio worked really well with this type of story. The narrator's were FANTASTIC they really brought the characters to life.

I absolutely loved this story I haven't had this much fun reading a book in a long time! Everything in this book worked for me the plot, the characters, and the setting everything HIT!! As an older woman and a mother this book really resonated with me and left me feeling inspired! I loved this historical fantasy world and want more books from it!

Overall this was incredible and I highly recommend it especially the audio!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the audio ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love the minimalist full cast production of the audiobook and how impactful it was when character revelations were made. The longer I sit with this book, the more it becomes a favorite of mine.

I have been STRUGGLING to read, listen to audiobooks or generally anything bookish all year, but I started this on audio and was pulled in by the feminist story featuring a strong female lead. If you're in need of an escape, this fantasy about a legendary lady pirate who is pulled out of retirement when she’s made an offer she can’t refuse to find a kidnapped girl may be just what you need to make you feel like you've sailed a thousand miles into a fantastical ocean. I don't even have children and felt the struggle of a mother who deeply loves and is separated from her child for the sake of building a better life and future for her. What kept me entertained and on this journey were the delightful characters, but the star of the show was the VOICE. It was a fantasy historical narrative with a nod and wink to the reader--delightful and entertaining in ever way. Finally, and very importantly, while I am not an own voices reviewer, the way this book treats gender identity and queer characters is exemplary in both its compassionate acceptance and care with characters identity.

A fantastic narrator for an EPIC adventure! Amina and her crew are a beguiling mix of "The Pirates of the Caribbean" meets L.A. Meyers' "Bloody Jack" and middle eastern mysticism. There are pirates, an evil sorcerer, Alice in Wonderland-esque strange creatures, supernatural beings, hidden treasure, daring rescues and high seas adventure galore! The pacing was perfect, even with all the flashbacks to explain backstory.

Riveting. Perfect for making the miles turn into minutes on a long road trip. I fell in love with the whole crew, even the rotten ones (I'm rooting for redemption!). I'm glad to hear this will be a trilogy, though it could also be read as a standalone. I have no idea how to spell anyone's name, since I listened to the book, but it was a wonderful listen.

I would rate it PG13. There is foul language. references to sex (nothing explicit), a transgender character and some intense fight scenes/violence.

I loved everything about this book.

I was lucky enough to receive both an ebook advanced copy and an audio advanced copy and while the writing was wonderful and witty, the narration from the audio raises this to a whole other level!

Amina’s voice is wonderful. She is strong and cares fiercely for everyone in her charge. She shows that life doesn’t end after motherhood and is a much needed female representation that adventure doesn’t cease with age.

The cast of characters were hilarious from a poison master, a map maker, a cute cat, and numerous tribes of fantastical creatures I could not get enough of this book.

I cannot wait for the next installment as there are still some questions I have, mostly about our demon friend. 👀👀👀

I highly recommend this book to fantasy lovers and if you can, listen on audio and prepare to laugh!

Thank you so much to the publisher for an advanced copy!

I’m going to be honest; I had a hard time getting into this one initially. Whether it was the prose or the setting or the characters themselves, something about this book didn’t immediately grab me. But once I connected with it, I was all the way in. The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi is one of the most fun pirate adventures I’ve ever embarked upon, and is hands-down the best I’ve read that is set in our own world.

Amina is a middle-aged retired pirate captain who just wants to raise her daughter in peace. But when an offer she can’t refuse for a multitude of reasons quite literally barges through her front door, she finds herself getting the band back together for one last job. Throughout the book Amina struggles mightily with her sense of responsibility, to her daughter and her crew and her faith, and how those various responsibilities are often at odds. I found this struggle fascinating and compelling, and it lent Amina a lot of additional depth.

Not that she needs any help with being an insanely compelling character. Amina herself is larger-than-life in every way. She loves her daughter fervently, and would do anything to keep her safe. This felt like a very unique motivation for a pirate captain. Amina’s Islamic faith is also central to who she is as a person. Throughout the book she wrestles with the morality of piracy, as well as her wandering eye for men, because of that faith. Anytime a character’s faith is at the core of their being, I am flooded with empathy for and camaraderie with them, whether it’s the same faith as my own or one that the world sees as opposing what I believe. I loved the faith element to Amina, and to the story as I whole. It introduced me to a mythology and place to which I have little exposure, and I loved every minute of it.

The entire cast is utterly delightful, brimming with personality and flair while all being radically different from one another. But those differences can’t temper their obvious affection for one another, and for the less-than-honest life of piracy they all tried to leave behind. I love that this is an older cast, and that they have weathered much together. I also love that they don’t all share the same faith. There are Christians and Hindus and Muslims all aboard one ship, and they all respect one another’s faiths. I found this coexistence incredibly heartening.

There is an incredibly strong sense of place to this story, as well. Chakraborty does an excellent job shaping her world within the confines of the one we know, while also blowing a metaphysical hole in it and expanding into a spiritual realm. I’ve read embarrassingly few books set around the Indian Ocean and Arab peninsula, but that’s going to change after having read The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi. None of the other books I’ve read with a similar setting have captivated me so fully.

I mentioned that religion is a large presence in this book. That presence is not only felt in the characters, but in the story being told. Myth suffuses the story, and we see faith and spiritual artifacts being wielded as weapons. That element of the story delighted me to no end. I was fascinated by every piece of myth, by every holy weapon, but every creature and monster of lore. Amina’s pirate crew being set against such things made them the underdog, and who doesn’t love to root for an underdog?

I ended up loving this book so much, and I’m afraid that would not have been the case without the aid of the audiobook. Tandem reading the physical while listening to the audio is my favorite way to read, because it makes for an incredibly immersive experience. It is that immersion that won me over to Amina’s story. The audiobook for this is incredibly well done. Both narrators were great but Lameece Issaq, who reads the majority of the book from Amina’s perspective, did a truly brilliant job. I would highly recommend this story in any format, but most especially in audio.

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi lives up to its glorious cover. Amina is the weathered female pirate captain I never knew I needed in my life. She is brash and wily and dogged and, above all, faithful. I love her so much. While this is a standalone, I would love to see more stories featuring Amina and her crew, whether those adventures are in their past or their future. It might have taken my a little while to warm up to this story, but it won me over heart and soul by the final pages.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

Ahhhh Amina, I love you. A 40-something “retired” lady pirate captain with an aching knee on a quest to save her family would have been enough for me, but go ahead and add in a crew of loyal, grumbly characters, a literal demon estranged husband and Chakraborty’s signature humor and cleverness and you have a favorite book of the year for me. I reread Daevabad last fall and loved it even more than on my first go round, so it took me a second to adjust to this world and how different it was, but I was hooked by the mischief, mayhem, betrayal and heart on the high seas. The audiobook absolutely brought this story to life, and the narrator did a FANTASTIC job! The pacing is so great, and it gave me a little bit of Pirates of the Caribbean, a little Ocean’s 11, and a whole lot of fun. Can’t wait for more adventures!

Too many "get out of jail free cards"... I know deus ex machina and I know "add as many twists as possible for the Netflix version" and I feel like this story falls aggressively in the latter. Good prose doesn't do it for me when there's no risk.

Ending sets up sequels well, and while the trans character seems forced, the ending is believable and well done.

Thank you Harper Collins Audio and NetGalley for the advanced electronic audio review copy of this wonderful book. I e been waiting for this book ever since it was announced and Shannon Chakraborty didn’t disappoint. Such an amazing start to a new series! Loved the world building, loved the characters, adored the adventures, and can hardly wait for volume 2. Fantastic read; highly recommend!

This was an amazing story! Not only that, the audiobook was fantastic. I loved the spirit the narrator put into the characters and the voices were not just distinct, but they were spot on. I would HIGHLY recommend this audiobook.

I received an audio galley of this book from Netgalley. This does not affect the objectivity of my review.

Amina Al-Sirafi is a retired pirate. Her reputation is of a fearsome adventurer, but she’s long been in hiding, protecting her mother and daughter from her enemies. When her past catches up with her, she sets sail once more to help find the daughter of an old friend.

Let me just say I absolutely loved this book! I expected to enjoy it, but it exceeded my high expectations.

Let’s start with the characters. Al-Sirafi is a progressive Muslim woman and I loved that representation. I related to her fierceness and desire for adventure. Her companions and supporting characters are excellent too. Each one felt different, but they all meshed so well together. I especially enjoyed the demon husband.

I also liked the plot. I enjoyed the incorporation of Middle Eastern culture. We see Jinns and other magical creatures come to life in the story. It really added a nice layer to things.

And the point of conflict (or really multiple points of conflict) kept things interesting. I was at the edge of my seat waiting to see if Al-Sirafi would pull off her biggest miracle yet.

I also really appreciated the diversity and representation in this book. Our main character is a Muslim woman, but we also have Christian characters. The crew comes from Yemen, Iraq, Somalia, and India. We even have positive discussions of gender identity within this story. All is treated in such a positive way.

And the audiobook on this one….It was sooo good! The narrator was amazing and I loved the style of the narration. It was like listening to an interview. I definitely would recommend the audio format.

All in all, whether you listen to this or read this, I suspect most people will enjoy this book. If you want a badass female pirate, a motley crew, and tons of adventure, this is your book.

Firstly thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for providing me with an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I discovered over the past year that I really like pirate stories, so this book was really high on my list of anticipated releases. I wasn’t disappointed. This was a fun, high seas adventure with a bad ass female MC. Amina is an over 40 Muslim mother, who also happens to be a notorious pirate who used to captain her own ship. I loved that she wasn’t the normal teenage or twenty-something protagonist. The story was fast-paced, and filled with adventure and peril. The world building was great. Even though it’s technically set in our world, it felt like a fantasy world. This was a great start to what is sure to be a fun series!