The Tapestry of Fate

Amina al-Sirafi #2

by S.A. Chakraborty, Lameece Issaq (Narrator), Amin El Gamal (Narrator)

THE EPIC, ACTION-PACKED SEQUEL TO THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL-SIRAFI FROM SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR SHANNON CHAKRABORTY

Set sail into the second adventure of Amina al-Sirafi as her quest to track down magical artifacts brings her to the island lair of a sorceress whose woven enchantments are impossible to flee…

Amina al-Sirafi thinks she’s struck gold. Tasked with hunting down magical artifacts for the council of immortal peris, she can savour the occasional adventure on the high seas with her cherished criminal companions while still returning home to raise her beloved daughter.

But when Raksh, the spirit of discord with whom she is reluctantly wed, provokes the council’s wrath, Amina is charged with a seemingly impossible steal a spindle capable of rewriting fate from a mysterious sorceress on an island no one can escape.

Forced to leave her daughter, Amina finds her mission almost immediately thrown into peril. But deadly storms, an erratic poison mistress, and old enemies are the least of her worries. For the peris’ story is unravelling, hinting at a far deadlier game whose rules Amina must swiftly puzzle out. A game that sets her against an adversary more cunning and powerful than she has ever faced.

A game that not everyone on her crew wants her to win.

Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, Pirates, Adult, Adventure

Audible Audio

First published May 12, 2026

About the author

Shannon Chakraborty is the critically acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author of The Daevabad Trilogy and The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi. Her work has been translated into over a dozen languages and nominated for the Hugo, Locus, World Fantasy, Crawford, and Astounding awards. You can find her online at www.sachakraborty.com or on Instagram at @SAChakrabooks.

Reviews

[idkwhatimreading]

wHY in tHe naMe of Santa's PanTs woULd anyBOdy giVe ThIs a freaking ONE STAR BEFORE IT HAS EVEN BEEN RELEASED ?????

Oh, come on. Surely you can do better than that.

[Tori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leaving me hanging with that ending is actually CRIMINAL, and now I'm not sure what to do with myself until book 3. I wouldn't say this is better than book 1 (maybe it just has to sit with me a little bit), but it's such a great read nonetheless. I've read all of Chakraborty's work, and I truly think she's in a league of her own with the way she skillfully blends adventure, quests, setting, and rich history. There could be fifty books in this series, and I'd read them all. Loved every minute I spent with this sequel.

[Jess Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

SHANNON OMFG

What a writer. WHEW

[Dana Al-Basha | دانة الباشا]

[Thursday, March 16, 2023] When is book two coming again?! I just finished the first one and I need this one. *gulp*

[Ginni Ghaziri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have fallen in love with this writer. I've been living in the middle East for the last 48 years. Married a muslim, travelled throughout the Persian gulf as a musician, experienced the Syrian, Lebanese Iraq wars and still I live here in Beirut war hung the South burn again.. I'm an avid reader and very picky. Shannon don't stop writing you have touched my soul.

[Samantha (ladybug.books) · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

The Tapestry of Fate returns to infamous pirate Amina al-Sirafi and her crew as they embark on a quest to capture their next transgression: a spindle capable of rewriting fate. I loved following the crew of the Marawati on their latest adventure. With a rich setting and emotional character arcs, this second installment really packed a punch.

Faced with deadly storms, a magical island, and a queen straight from legend, Amina finds herself pushed to her limits and questioning who she can trust. The isolated kingdom had a haunted paradise atmosphere that kept me on the edge of my seat.

Shannon Chakraborty crafts some incredibly compelling, morally complex female characters in this series. Through these characters, we explore vengeance, power, safety, and family. I loved seeing an older, female villain with a complex history. The interlude chapters provide fascinating insight into her history with this story's transgression. I also love how we get to see Amina and her friends grapple with the consequences of their return to a life at sea. Amina, in particular, is balancing a lot of conflicting responsibilities. There are no easy answers on this adventure, and Shannon Chakraborty brilliantly captures the emotional weight of the characters' decisions.

I do think that the story drags a bit in the middle. Though I could only guess at the specific details, the nature of the hidden truths was fairly obvious. All of the "I wonder what's going on here" time started to feel a bit repetitive. I feel like Dalila and Amina have the same conversation ten times. I was just waiting for it to get to the reveals I knew were coming.

I am going to need book three IMMEDIATELY! That ending was not nice, Shannon!!

Links to my TikTok | Instagram | Bindery Books

[Larissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like 2.5 stars but rounded up. Sadly this one was a disappointment for me - which is unfortunate as it was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. I gave the first book in this series 4.5 stars and have eagerly been awaiting the sequel for three years. Unfortunately, I found The Tapestry of Fate to be far more slow-paced than its predecessor, and really it was not compelling until the very end.

I found this book lacking in terms of the relationship between Amina and her crew/the found family aspects. Instead, the book focuses largely on Amina (who felt frankly like a very watered down version of the character we met in the first book) and Dalila. While their relationship was interesting to begin with, their interactions in this story were SO frustrating and repetitive to read about. The miscommunication between them was very annoying and constant. The miscommunication trope is by far my least favorite thing to read about, and this is what really dampened my enjoyment of the book.

I still do not like the interludes (my only critique of the first novel), and found them even more frustrating in this book. They really do seem like a medium for info-dumping and completely took me out of the narrative.

Chakraborty's writing is still very evocative in terms of atmosphere and I enjoyed reading about the fantasy setting. This story ends on a pretty nasty cliffhanger, and I cannot wait to see where the series is heading. I feel like it definitely will return to the magic of the first. Despite this book seeming to really suffer from second book syndrome, I still have hope it will conclude well and return as one of my favorites.

[MagretFume · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found it a bit darker than the first one, but it has all of the same qualities and I loved it just as much. 
Now I need a third one please! 

[Elle (ellexamines on TT & Substack)]

Feel like pure shit just want her back

[Ashlyn · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

Just know that if I ever happened upon a bewitched spindle capable of rewriting fate…oh baby, it would be unequivocally OVER for the tyrannical monsters of the world. I’d weave ruin and reckoning into every thread of their depraved destinies, until the fruit of their looms were soiled beyond repair. I might even ctrl+alt+delete the very tapestry of their existence seven generations forward and back.

Anyway, onto the book: I'm giving it 3.75 stars after much debate.

I should preface this review by saying The Tapestry of Fate was one of my top 5 most anticipated releases of 2026. Unfortunately, it didn't come anywhere close to being one of my top 5 favorite reads of the year (so far). In other words, I had sky-high expectations and ultimately walked away somewhat disappointed, though I still enjoyed it and think it's a good book.

The premise had me drooling: An enchanted spindle that feeds off the rage of those it possesses and rewrites the fate of their enemies to exact ruthless retribution? Sold. A treasure hunt shrouded in mystery and ancient lore set on an eerie paradisiacal island, with a found family that completely stole my heart in book one? Give it to me now.

In theory, you should’ve seen me floating past your window on cloud nine while reading this. But you didn't because I struggled with its execution on several fronts:

The pacing of the first half of the book felt like a slog through a bog.

Slow…and, dare I say, slightly dull?

I found the early world-building dense to the point of feeling cluttered.

There were stretches where so many rich descriptors were stacked atop one another that I’d completely lose sight of the noun they were describing. Thankfully, this improved as the story progressed.

The entire narrative carries a melancholic note.

Normally, I wouldn't take issue with this, but here, it felt so pervasive that it sort of sucked the joy out of the high seas adventure for me.

Where was all the mischief and mayhem we've come to expect from Amina Al-Sirafi, the baddest to ever sail the seven seas?

I'd liken the feeling to a girls’ night out where none of the girls actually want to be out, and it's painfully obvious.

The first book buzzes with the thrill of 'eating the forbidden fruit' because Amina is gradually lured back to piracy despite her promise to leave that lifestyle behind. And that felt exciting! But the novelty seems to have completely worn off in this book, and now pillaging and plundering feels more like a chore to her.

She realizes early on that she's ‘too old and sentimental’ for life on the high seas (her words, not mine), and that she'd rather be home with her daughter. I don't begrudge her any of this, but her sullen energy eventually became contagious and I found myself feeling exhausted while reading about it.

I simply wasn't in the mood for party pooper pirates.

The first few chapters could’ve been an email.

They recap the crew's retrieval of a second transgression, a magical mortar that has absolutely no bearing on the subsequent plot. It felt like filler just to check one more transgression off the list.

Raksh felt like a shell of himself.

He was one of my favorites in the last book, and this time around, his characterization felt watered down. It left me craving more of his magnetic, funny, and mischievous side.

I feel like I could write a dissertation on patience and perseverance after getting through the first 5 interludes.

Of which there are 10. Perhaps this was entirely reader incompetence (which frankly wouldn't surprise me), but for the longest time, I genuinely had no idea who's POV I was reading, what was happening, or how it was at all relevant to the main plot. It was frustrating to be pulled out of the central narrative and thrust into complete confusion, especially when the pacing was already shaky.

In the end, it all came together and I now understand why Shannon included these chapters, but I'm still not convinced the execution worked for me.

I loved Dalila as a supporting character in book one, but didn't love having her become so central to the narrative here.

I'm completely empathetic toward her struggles, but she was near-insufferable for much of the book (prickly, stubborn, morose, and had piss poor communication), and it just wasn't that enjoyable to read.

All that aside, there was still a lot to like.

Once the story reached Lab’s island, the atmosphere felt like floating through a mystical oasis with a 104-degree fever.

And I was totally into it. I can't think of a better ambiance for a summer read.

Every page hums with this trippy, breathless sort of suspense. You're in awe of the idyllic paradise surrounding you, but you can't ignore the nagging suspicion that what you're seeing may be an illusion due to unseen supernatural forces, or the curious illness draining Amina's sanity and physical strength.

You're left wondering: is it all a mirage? Maybe it's magic? Maybe it's Maybelline?

We don't know for most of the story, and that uncertainty adds a delicious layer of unease.

The world is expansive.

We travel through a series of captivating landscapes, all with a vibrant Middle Eastern atmosphere: Jamal’s eclectic home in Baghdad, teeming with ancient artifacts and forgotten knowledge; a floating city home to the world’s most notorious criminals; and finally, a lush tropical paradise fragrant with jasmine, sandalwood, and oud, brimming with brilliant textiles, exotic fruit, rare blooms, and dense jungles.

The spindle’s lore–and the gravity of choices Amina and crew must make surrounding it–invites a fascinating contemplation on the interplay between fate and free will.

Are aspects of our lives preordained by some ineffable force? If so, how might that reshape our understanding of agency and control?

If someone handed you the power to control destiny, would you take it, knowing every decision could ripple across history in ways you'd likely never be able predict?

I love books that open up these sorts of philosophical debates. Perhaps my favorite line of the book tackles this tension when Raksh says, "Fate means nothing to me, Amina. I want someone who rips apart the story laid out for them and writes their own.”

As a recovering control freak, I resonated deeply with Amina’s arc.

She's spent her life asserting her freedom to choose her own path, yet she denies her family that same freedom by trying to isolate them from every possible danger.

"You cannot cloister those you care for behind the highest walls in hopes of keeping them safe—not without also becoming their jailer.”

In many ways, this feels like another thread in the novel's central conversation about fate vs. free will. No matter how desperately Amina tries to control her family's future, they'll always have the right to choose differently. And Marjana makes a cheeky decision that forces Amina to remember this in spectacular fashion, which I loved.

The novel's core message also lands beautifully: resentment and revenge are ultimately cannibalistic.

In the process of destroying others, you inevitably wind up destroying yourself.

I’ve had centuries’ worth of vengeance poured into my soul and seen it destroy every person it touched, every person who hungered for it. I . . .I don’t want that.”

For all of its goodness, I'm still planning to continue the series:

The ending introduces an unexpected twist that opens an entirely new can of worms, and I'm excited to see where book three takes it.

I want more Marjana in the next book. More Tinbu. More reckless abandon. And…perhaps a fresh love interest for Amina?

I fully admire and respect her devotion to her faith, and I'll be 3000% fine if this never comes to pass. However…the heathen in me can't help but hope Shannon eventually frees our good sis Amina from the shackles of her many toxic exes and estranged husband in favor of a new and exciting romance.

Regardless, I'm looking forward to the next installment and will be praying it’s released before the turn of the century.

[Lukasz · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5 but I'll round it up.

The Tapestry of Fate was easily one of my most anticipated books of 2026. I loved The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi, but sequels are difficult. Especially sequels to books built almost entirely on charm, chemistry, and an awesome adventure featuring people addicted to making terrible decisions. Sometimes the magic disappears the second everyone comes back for round two.

Not here.

This is, imo, a masterclass in writing a sequel. The stakes are higher, the story gets darker, the world expands naturally, and yet it still feels like its own complete adventure. Also, the ending caught me off guard. Shannon Chakraborty clearly looked at readers peacefully enjoying closure and decided that was unacceptable.

The story sends Amina after another magical artifact, this time a spindle capable of rewriting fate itself. You know, the sort of thing nobody should touch under any circumstances, but, naturally, everyone immediately sails toward it. The island at the center of the story is eerie, dangerous, full of strange magic and shifting loyalties. The deeper Amina gets into the mission, the clearer it becomes that the peris are hiding far more than they admitted.

This book is noticeably darker than the first one too. There are some genuinely brutal scenes here, more violence, more heartbreak, and more tension between the characters. Amina’s relationship with her daughter gets more complicated - Marjana is older now, smarter, and increasingly tired of being lied to about her mother’s life and her own heritage. Fair enough. If your mother keeps disappearing on magical pirate missions while refusing to explain anything, eventually you start asking questions.

Amina and Dalila's friendship is the main focus of the story. It's crazy how deeply these two women care about each other while also being stubborn enough to make everything infinitely harder than necessary. So, we get lots of emotional scenes between them, but also demons, sorceresses, sea monsters, and people getting stabbed at alarming speed.

It's worth noting that even when things get darker, it never becomes emotionally miserable. There’s heartbreak, yes, but this is still fundamentally a story about adventure, friendship, found family, and larger-than-life characters doing wildly reckless things for reasons that usually make emotional sense at the time.

And the characters really are the magic here. Amina remains one of the most entertaining protagonists in fantasy right now. Brave, stubborn, overprotective, occasionally very wrong, but always compelling. Raksh continues to cause chaos like an immortal being who genuinely wakes up every morning asking himself how to make today everyone else’s problem.

Shannon Chakraborty somehow managed to make the world feel bigger while keeping the story personal, which isn’t easy in epic fantasy sequels. The Tapestry of Fate feels richer, darker, and more confident than the first novel without losing the warmth and sense of adventure that made me love the series in the first place.

Now I just need book three immediately. Which, judging by that ending, is probably exactly what Chakraborty wanted.

[❁lilith❁ · Rating 4 out of 5]

people gaslighting my goat amina for 600 pages straight

[Nils | nilsreviewsit · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The men were killed and the women and children enslaved.
There are very few phrases both duller and more horrific. Because it is a fate so frequent to the pages of history, that unparalleled distance which separates our lives from the back-trodden past. that it becomes almost commonplace. We shudder and move on, marking the fates of the monarchs and kingdoms affected. Perhaps a famous scholar will bear mention, the strategies of generals and hand-wringing of politicians. They will step into the record, they will often escape. It will be those who cannot flee, whether by lack of means or because they have nowhere to go, who are left behind.”

The Tapestry of Fate by Shannon Chakraborty was a highly anticipated sequel for me and it did not disappoint.

We once again set sail with Amina into a perilous quest across the Persian Gulf to find a fabled island and retrieve a magical artefact of disastrous power and this story arc just swept me away entirely. In doing so we enter a tale of myth, the testing of friendships and a rather devastating shipwreck.

There’s themes of motherhood, injustices, the cost of violence and loss. There’s even special attention paid to the cultural significance of embroidery and the role of stories in shaping myths. Chakraborty weaves a richly depicted historical world and a strong female character to lead us through some thrilling adventures. Every page of this book was a sheer delight.

[h o l l i s · Rating 2 out of 5]

In a reversal of my (very fresh! literally yesterday!) experience with the first instalment, which I was happy to chip away at for a few days, I found myself devouring this one in less than twenty-four hours. But not for the reason you might think. No, I wanted to get through this because it felt.. endless. Slog-esque. And was not a fun time.

There are plot reasons that explain away, or are the reason for, most of these things. But that doesn't change the experience.

For a lot of this story, because of the aforementioned reasons, the band is broken up. And the fun dynamic, rife with history and complexity, of those who are still together? Well, it's toxic and frustrating and so painfully obvious to the reader why and yet the characters (well, basically just Amina) just.. don't pick up on any of it. So that added a level of arg to the whole experience. Plus, because of where the crew is, it all just ends up feeling like swimming through soup. Slow and oppressive. And to some degree that is how it should be but again the combination of it all.. I just wanted an end.

And boy did we get one. It's very much in line with what you would expect of an adventure like this and I'm rather tickled we will be seeing it play out. But I'm sure there is much (so much) angst and drama awaiting us in book three. I'll be going into that with slightly lowered expectations but I do hope the trilogy wraps on a high.

There is so much I do enjoy from this world, the vibrancy of the history being the main one, and the mash up of the fantastical is very well done; but where the first book kept me guessing, kept me interested, this one was just too.. tedious and predictable. At least in the broad strokes. Depending on when said finale comes out, I may have to revisit this one, so here's hoping -- if it comes to that! -- it does better on reread.

2.5 stars

** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. **

---

This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again, I’m BEGGING you to STOP reading whatever mediocre romantasy book the algorithms recommended ad nauseam and to pick up a book like THIS! Not only does this swashbuckling story have all of the adventure, action, and intrigue you could want in a high fantasy epic, it’s also got its own lurid, sensual, and forbidding romance—but, with ACTUAL thoughtful commentary on power, misogyny, and systemic inequality.

This is such a SMART book—and it’s so clear how much research Chakraborty invested into it (and all of her works).

I really appreciate how this sequel built upon and complicated the relationships from the first as well as how it expanded this rich, textured world. Chakraborty blends Islamic folklore, culture, and history so well, sprinkling in her own style and critique throughout. I really love a story with a point of view.

More, I love how this series broadens the perspective on the Muslim world—which is, often, simplified or vilified by western media and storytelling.

The characters in this story are like real people—some are bad or sneaky or criminal while others are good or just or kind. Most are a bit of both. It’s very humanizing.

Further, we get to see this sensual—though often rocky—relationship between Amina and Raksh grow on the page.

They don’t have a typical relationship dynamic for the genre (being estranged spouses, let’s say) but they’re also rather well-matched. Problematic, yes. But, often because they BOTH love adventure, taking risks, making gambles, and “toeing the line” all-around so very much.

To me, it’s just nice to see a mature romantic relationship represented here as well as one between two Muslim-coded characters that isn’t abusive or virulently racist. It’s just complicated—because all people across cultures can have complicated dalliances. We can all be messy. Now, THAT’S an important message.

Anyway.

The second book was just really enjoyable. I also appreciated some queerness being injected into this series. Centering textiles in this story also added some rich, interesting dimension to the world. We got even more compelling female characters as well. More insight into the preternatural beings who walk amongst humans, too. And, a DEVASTATING note that we ended on.

Consider me waiting with rapt impatience for the next book in this all-around charming series~

[leila]

GIVE IT TO ME SHANNON 🙏🙏🙏

[Lance · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars. Unexpectedly funny and rich in atmosphere and adventure, The Tapestry of Fate was a delightful if slightly dark jaunt back into the adventures of the iconic Amina al-Sirafi.

[✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ (former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well that was disappointing as fish. Super extra short review to come and stuff.

· Book 1: The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi ★★★★★

[Ray · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

Not as good as the first one. Dragged on and was kind of boring at points. Still will continue though cuz i love amina. 3.75

[Andi · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | 5 stars

This was perfection to me. The Amina al-Sirafi trilogy is officially marked safe from the sophomore slump ✔️

It was SO good to be back with Amina and the crew of the Marawati. This story picks right up where the The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi ended and the first couple of chapters do a great job of orienting the reader back in the world.

Like all Chakraborty's books, Tapestry is vibrant, adventurous, imaginative, and emotionally devastating. I really loved how this book focused on the character of Amina and let us see into more of who she is: her hopes, dreams, fears, triumphs. I especially enjoyed how this installation of their escapades put Amina and Delila's friendship under a microscope in a way that felt earnest and raw, despite the fantastical setting.

The worldbuilding is so expansive, and it somehow continues to grow throughout the story. The structure of Amina telling Jamal her story and Jamal telling us as the reader put me slap-bang in the middle of everything that was going on and hugely elevated the reading experience for me.

Chakraborty's writing is witty, precise, and immersive.

The ending left me reeling. I still have a pit in my stomach 😭

Thank you so much to Harper Voyager for the finished copy! All thoughts are my own.

[Sean Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tapestry of Fate doubles down on everything that made The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi spectacular: more drama, more magic, more tension, more character-driven storytelling. Chakraborty is at the top of her game, and I'll be counting down the days until book #3 hits the stands.

[Azanta (azantareads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

notoriously clever Amina al-Sirafi really gets tested and pushed to her absolute boundaries in this book, my poor pirate captain 😭 despite the heavy themes of tyranny, this was still filled with Shannon's trademark tongue-in-cheek writing style, found family (❤️), and so, so much on motherhood and the things our mothers will do to flip the world upside down for their children. THAT ENDING? honestly those two words are actually triggering to me now please what the heck do i do now.

[aarthi 🗡️🐉]

i will give up my future firstborn to have this in my hands rn

[Laura (crofteereader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

It feels so well-researched. The world and seas are vast. But the story itself does Chakraborty’s skill and knowledge a disservice because, after the first 1/3, there’s very little movement, exploration, or change. Our cast (the crew of the Mawarati) is cut down to just two characters - and even they spend most of their time either apart or at odds.

There’s also a major tonal shift after the first Transgression they find (which was honestly so distinctly separate from the story that it should have just been a bonus short story and not part of the main plot at all; the only payoff for it is at the very end when an act of clever thievery from that first round is mentioned).

It frustrates me how much this book succumbed to sequel syndrome. I hope book 3 is a bit more adventurous and Chakraborty gets to flex a bit more. She has both the research and the writing skill to back an ambitious adventure.

{Thank you HarperVoyager for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review; all thoughts are my own}

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

Ależ to był fun!! Absolutnie rewelacyjne przygodowe fantasy któremu niczego nie brakuje, jestem w miłości

[Noha Badawi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chakraborty, you evil genius! To be totally honest, after the Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi, I was a little worried I'd be indifferent about more quests with Amina and her crew. Boy was I wrong. This hooked me from the very first words and I just couldn't put it down. I devoured the story and loved every second. The last bit had me in a chokehold though and I was literally shouting at the audiobook because WHAT DO YOU MEAN!! Insanity at its finest, cliffhanger masterpiece and now I shall be in pain until the next instalment is released. Why?

[Maryam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Chakraborty's storytelling; the way this book ended with such a cliffhanger makes me need the next book ASAP :(

[jabulisile (chaotic.pagesofjae) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ten years. TEN YEARS?!!! This is so diabolical I don’t even have the words to process the implications

[amie · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

Absolutely CRIMINAL cliffhanger

10… /10

[alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 shannon chakraborty could write the odyssey but homer could not write the amina al-sirafi trilogy