Book Review: The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty

Go read this book. There, that’s all you need to know. Shoo, go and get it.

I loved this one to bits. The book is well written, the characters are fun, and the plot seizes you. Okay, there was one part I didn’t like at the end (the part about transformation because it felt like it didn’t belong in the book—the tone was off,) but otherwise, the book was executed so well that I had a blast. The writing made me see the book unfold in front of my eyes like a movie.

The book is about Amina al-Sirafi, an infamous pirate drawn out of her retirement to track down and rescue a runaway girl for her former crewman’s mother. She has to get her crew together to sail across the Indian Ocean to hunt down a Hun, who has the girl. Amina has to protect her family, her daughter, from her past. So, the stages are high and set, and if Amina fails, she will lose her daughter. Now, the reader just has to cruise along to see how Amina and her crew of misfits will get the quest done. The crew comprises a poisoner, a demon, another pirate captain, and a mapper sailing on a beautiful ship Amina has to liberate from the port authority with a bang.

The book is written as a first-person account. It occasionally breaks the fourth wall and addresses the reader. It’s all done very well. But the best part of the book is the massive research Shannon Chakraborty has done to make the story come alive. The research shows everywhere: the setting, the characters, the myths, the items, the clothing, and how people act with each other. The book transports you into a different time and culture with such an ease that you know you are in good storyteller hands. The book reminds me of Arabian Nights: Tales of 1,001 Nights. A book I read as a child. The Adventures of Amina al-Siraf is a fun tale, masterfully composing history and great action storytelling.

Thank you for reading, and have an adventurous day ❤