by Shannon Chakraborty
Harper Voyager, 2023. 482 pages. Fantasy
After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean's most notorious pirates, Amina al-Sirafi has survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands, and one actual demon, and has retired 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? Such an obvious choice 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.
If you're looking for an excellent combination of adventure on the high seas and a hint of magic, look no further. The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi is a great new take on the genre, featuring a middle-aged Muslim-Indian woman who is also a pirate. The magical adventures Amina and her crew encounter add an otherworldly quality to this story that pulls the reader in and keeps them wondering what will happen next. While this makes for a fun, escapist read, I also appreciated that one theme of the book was the juxtaposition between Amina's love for her daughter and desire to protect her family and the pull of her former life of adventuring.
I listened to this book in audiobook format, and I loved the excellent narration. The book is told in a conversational style, as Amina tells a scribe her life story. There are asides by the scribe and by Amina as they argue whether Amina's tale is entirely true. This is the first book in a planned trilogy, and I can't wait to see where Amina will travel next.
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