Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty

58 reviews

laguerrelewis's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Chakraborty conjures a truly epic tale of adventure, weaving a tale that feels both fresh and wistfully nostalgic. Amina Al-Sirafi is a pirate worthy of legend, she and her crew are an utter delight to follow through this mystical tale of thievery, seafairing, magic artifacts, and good old-fashioned swashbuckling. For all the grandiosity, this story’s greatest strength is its emotional heart. The fears and hopes and loves of Amina Al-Sirafi are so palpable, you cannot help but empathize with her and want to see her succeed. What a wonderful read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement and Religious bigotry

Minor: Deadnaming and Dysphoria

sunnydale's review against another edition

adventurous funny informative inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

what a delightful read. the world was so rich, i immediately wanted to learn more about the historical context, and fortunately the author provided a bibliography! the audiobook is very well-produced, with two voice actors, sound effects in the "present-day" chapters, and adjustments made to address listeners instead of readers. 

i love that the protagonist's faith is central to her character, and we're also able to see how it's developed throughout her life. her faith is sometimes messy, sometimes self-contradicting, but she also never doubts her core beliefs, and she's a more authentic character because of it.

irrelevant to the quality of the book, i noticed that "midnight" is the author's favorite adjective for anything dark. "midnight beach," "midnight ocean," "midnight fabric," etc. it felt like a scavenger hunt trying to find the word in each chapter, lol.

i would recommend this to fans of fantasy, especially those who are looking for non-western fantasy settings. i definitely recommend the audiobook, although you might want a print or ebook copy for the helpful bibliography.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cursing, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Murder, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Sexual violence, Slavery, Transphobia, Islamophobia, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Violence and sexual content are at a PG-13 rating. There is a lot of swearing. The cat is fine.

kappafrog's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny informative mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

The historical setting was 10/10. I loved how rich the details were and how immersed I felt in the world of the 12th century Indian Ocean. Amina was also a great protagonist, very complex and easy to root for. The choice of setting and characters was exciting and refreshing.

The book got too violent for my tastes at times. Some of the plot armour the main characters had got pretty convoluted. Still, I look forward to seeing more in this series.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Genocide, Slavery, Torture, Transphobia, Vomit, Islamophobia, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Dysphoria, and War

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Pregnancy

j_squaredd's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Violence, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Sexual content, Slavery, Transphobia, Vomit, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, and War

torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Transphobia

Minor: Deadnaming

kylieqrada's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

S.A. Chakraborty's adult debut featuring a bad-ass pirate mom and magical elements? Yes pleaseeeeeeee. I loved this so much. Makes me want to re-read the Daevabad trilogy immediately.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, and Violence

Moderate: Body horror, Cursing, and Alcohol

Minor: Slavery, Transphobia, and Religious bigotry

drlove2018's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Deadnaming, Misogyny, Slavery, Transphobia, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, and Alcohol

haylzno's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

The easiest 5 starts I've ever given! 

This is peak pirate fantasy - filled to the brim with adventure, mystical and celestial beings, found family, and raging sarcasm. 

This will easily be a top 5 read for 2023 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, and War

beautifulpaxielreads's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi is a book that does that rare thing -  it lives up to the promise of its title.  And then some.

*slow claps for Shannon Chakraborty*

Seriously, where do I begin with how good this was? It brings together superb character development (and diverse characters!), well-paced action scenes with a real sense of danger, impressive historical detail (with a bibliography to back it up!), and interestingly incorporated fantasy. Oh, and it's a trilogy, so there's more of the same to come (hopefully).

The title character, Amina, practically leaps off the page. She's incredibly complex and defies stereotypes.  She doesn't suffer fools (and anyone who thinks she cannot be a pirate captain because of her gender) and has a fierce instinct to protect those she loves, including her beloved only child, daughter Marjana. 

I also thought that the villain was realistically and compellingly written.

I can't wait to see what Chakraborty has in store for us next.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Sexism, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Sexual content, Slavery, and Transphobia

boglord's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Classism

Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Deadnaming, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Dysphoria