I was thoroughly charmed by this book — an adventure-filled, magical story of a pirate queen who became a legend. It took an era that I know nothing about — the seafaring cultures of the 12th century Indian Ocean, especially focused on Oman, Yemen, and Somalia, as filtered through the 1001 Nights, and gave it a contemporary twist by focusing on the glorious Amina al-Sarafi. She’s a Muslim former pirate who has retired to raise her daughter, but gets pulled into One Last Heist by being offered an eye-popping sum of money to go rescue the kidnapped child of one of her former crew. An early chapter in which she successfully defends two idiots who are looking for treasure from an angry sea demon sets the tone for later encounters with creatures more and more magical. Amina has a live-and-let-live attitude toward her queer crew members, which is refreshing. The …
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Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the …
Legendary Pirate Queen
5 stars
I was thoroughly charmed by this book — an adventure-filled, magical story of a pirate queen who became a legend. It took an era that I know nothing about — the seafaring cultures of the 12th century Indian Ocean, especially focused on Oman, Yemen, and Somalia, as filtered through the 1001 Nights, and gave it a contemporary twist by focusing on the glorious Amina al-Sarafi. She’s a Muslim former pirate who has retired to raise her daughter, but gets pulled into One Last Heist by being offered an eye-popping sum of money to go rescue the kidnapped child of one of her former crew. An early chapter in which she successfully defends two idiots who are looking for treasure from an angry sea demon sets the tone for later encounters with creatures more and more magical. Amina has a live-and-let-live attitude toward her queer crew members, which is refreshing. The first in a planned trilogy.
plinytheolder finished reading The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty
The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty
Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean’s most notorious pirates, …
plinytheolder finished reading The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins are not cats.
Nor do they have tails.
But they are most assuredly dead.
Nebula …
plinytheolder finished reading The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #4)
The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #4)
You'd think you would be allowed to relax over Christmas, but not in the world of the Thursday Murder Club. …
plinytheolder started reading The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #4)
The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #4)
You'd think you would be allowed to relax over Christmas, but not in the world of the Thursday Murder Club. …
plinytheolder finished reading The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman
plinytheolder finished reading The Christmas Appeal by Janice Hallett
plinytheolder finished reading The Appeal by Janice Hallett
plinytheolder finished reading The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #2)
The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #2)
plinytheolder rated The Thursday Murder Club: 5 stars
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #1)
Welcome to... THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB
In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room …
plinytheolder finished reading The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #1)
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman (The Thursday Murder Club, #1)
Welcome to... THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB
In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room …
plinytheolder reviewed Gate Sinister by Tansy Rayner Roberts
Cute gaslamp fantasy novella
5 stars
I liked one of Tansy Rayner Roberts other fantasy series, so I gave this — the first in a series — a go, and it was good! It’s a gaslamp fantasy novella — obviously inspired by Jane Austen and other regency romances, but in an alternate 1870s Britannia, a couple centuries after Queen Elizabeth won a war against the Queen of the Fairies.
There’s a second volume out now, and two more due out this year or next.
