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A review by sincostami
The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty
4.0
Probably ~4.5
This was so so fun and the biggest problem this book has is that the sequel is not out and I am enraged by this.
I’m so impressed by how the stakes remain high and the characters remain compelling despite the fact that the tone is so jokey and unserious. Actually, it’s super refreshing to have a book that doesn’t take itself so seriously, and the narrative felt simultaneously like a more detached, oral-storytelling-with-exaggerations-for-the-audience-around-a-fire vibe and also a super engrossing, in-the-moment-action novel, which I’m convinced she has to have achieved by magic because I’ve never seen it done so well.
Also, she NEVER misses with her descriptions, I want to eat everything in this world, even the non edible stuff, because it’s so… vibrant? Everything feels so alive and rich and I lovelovelove it.
The only thing stopping the five stars is that I was slightly detached from the side crew, who felt a tiny bit like… cartoon characters? Archetypes, maybe?? In a very good way which absolutely fits the tone of the story, just that it was a tad distancing for me, perhaps also since there is a hugeee number of characters on the page at any given point (which is fair, because I suppose pirate ships need people).
I also think the research that went into this is INSANE, that further reading had me reeling (this is a sea pun). It definitely shows though, and I love the fact that it’s so believable minus the mythology. In fact, it’s so believable that it almost makes the mythology seem real. There’s also a lot of religion in this book, which is awesome because she blends it so organically into the characters’ lives, which just makes it so much more realistic and enjoyable.
Perhaps one (small) issue I do have with the uniqueness of the tone and voice is that it does seem to detract a little from some very dark moments, and I wonder if it takes away a little of the emotional impact? The action is very engaging, but I think maybe some of the darker scenes would have hit a little harder had they not been so sarcastic. I think it’s definitely a case of pros outweighing cons tone wise, though.
This was so so fun and the biggest problem this book has is that the sequel is not out and I am enraged by this.
I’m so impressed by how the stakes remain high and the characters remain compelling despite the fact that the tone is so jokey and unserious. Actually, it’s super refreshing to have a book that doesn’t take itself so seriously, and the narrative felt simultaneously like a more detached, oral-storytelling-with-exaggerations-for-the-audience-around-a-fire vibe and also a super engrossing, in-the-moment-action novel, which I’m convinced she has to have achieved by magic because I’ve never seen it done so well.
Also, she NEVER misses with her descriptions, I want to eat everything in this world, even the non edible stuff, because it’s so… vibrant? Everything feels so alive and rich and I lovelovelove it.
The only thing stopping the five stars is that I was slightly detached from the side crew, who felt a tiny bit like… cartoon characters? Archetypes, maybe?? In a very good way which absolutely fits the tone of the story, just that it was a tad distancing for me, perhaps also since there is a hugeee number of characters on the page at any given point (which is fair, because I suppose pirate ships need people).
I also think the research that went into this is INSANE, that further reading had me reeling (this is a sea pun). It definitely shows though, and I love the fact that it’s so believable minus the mythology. In fact, it’s so believable that it almost makes the mythology seem real. There’s also a lot of religion in this book, which is awesome because she blends it so organically into the characters’ lives, which just makes it so much more realistic and enjoyable.
Perhaps one (small) issue I do have with the uniqueness of the tone and voice is that it does seem to detract a little from some very dark moments, and I wonder if it takes away a little of the emotional impact? The action is very engaging, but I think maybe some of the darker scenes would have hit a little harder had they not been so sarcastic. I think it’s definitely a case of pros outweighing cons tone wise, though.