Play Book Tag discussion

Ten years after retiring from sea-smuggling, Amina al-Sirafi is enjoying life with her daughter, constantly fixing their home, and trying to ignore the call of the sea. But when a former crewmate’s mother shows up with a job offer - to find her missing granddaughter - it seems like too good a chance to pass up. Convinced the job will be quick (and well paid), Amina rounds up her former crew and sets off after the missing girl. However, as they delve deeper into the job, it becomes increasingly clear that nothing is as it seems and danger lurks behind every wave.

Having read City of Brass, also by Chakraborty, I had high hopes for this book. Unfortunately, it was just okay. The writing was sometimes clunky, with poor transitions and a very simple narrative voice. The plot was mostly interesting, and moved along at a good pace. However, there were a few problems that got solved just a bit too easily and cleanly; by the end of the novel the main character hadn’t lost anything. As for the main character, Amina, I was intrigued by an mc that was a middle-aged mother. And while her motherhood was a huge motivator in the beginning, it only really affected the plot and character choices a few times throughout the rest of the novel. The whole concept of a middle-aged mother as an mc just ended up not being that huge of a factor in her characterization, which was disappointing.


Overall, I don’t regret reading this, but wouldn’t read it again and won’t continue with the newer books when they come out.