This sequel to The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi picks up the story with kinda-ex-pirate Amina and her crew on a quest to track down a dangerous magical artifact for the peris (air spirits) with whom Amina struck a bargain in the first book. This time it's a spindle that can alter the threads of fate, said to be in the hands of a witch on an island in the Persian Gulf shrouded by supernatural seas, where ships run aground no matter how skilled the sailors are, and nobody ever comes back.
I loved the first book in this series so I was eagerly awaiting the sequel, and it didn't disappoint. It's another seafaring adventure, this time with a slightly darker tone. It's less episodic than the first book, mostly dealing with this island and the mystery of the witch, her origins, and the suspiciously idyllic society she's created around her with the descendants of shipwrecked sailors who are all so very happy here... but can't actually leave. It's also less of an ensemble piece, with most of Amina's crew sidelined for much of the story. Instead it focuses more tightly on Amina's complicated friendship with the prickly alchemist Dalila, who's only pretending to be seduced into the witch's inner circle so she can steal the spindle... right? There's also more development of Amina's relationship with her semi-estranged husband, who is not only a self-involved jerk and annoyingly hot, but also a literal chaos demon.
With all of these relationships, I really like how the bonds of magic intertwine with bonds of emotion. It's not just, oh, this magical effect is a metaphor for how the character is tempted into something that's not good for them. It's that magic is happening and mundane interpersonal and emotional stuff is also happening, and it feels really cohesive and convincing to me.
I did think there was a bit of a structural hiccup towards the end where the reader learns the truth of what's going on too early, making it feel like it takes too long for Amina to figure it out. But that's a minor issue in a book I otherwise totally enjoyed. I had to tear through it at breakneck speed because I couldn't renew it from the library (someone else was waiting) and that was not a hardship for me at all!
I loved the first book in this series so I was eagerly awaiting the sequel, and it didn't disappoint. It's another seafaring adventure, this time with a slightly darker tone. It's less episodic than the first book, mostly dealing with this island and the mystery of the witch, her origins, and the suspiciously idyllic society she's created around her with the descendants of shipwrecked sailors who are all so very happy here... but can't actually leave. It's also less of an ensemble piece, with most of Amina's crew sidelined for much of the story. Instead it focuses more tightly on Amina's complicated friendship with the prickly alchemist Dalila, who's only pretending to be seduced into the witch's inner circle so she can steal the spindle... right? There's also more development of Amina's relationship with her semi-estranged husband, who is not only a self-involved jerk and annoyingly hot, but also a literal chaos demon.
With all of these relationships, I really like how the bonds of magic intertwine with bonds of emotion. It's not just, oh, this magical effect is a metaphor for how the character is tempted into something that's not good for them. It's that magic is happening and mundane interpersonal and emotional stuff is also happening, and it feels really cohesive and convincing to me.
I did think there was a bit of a structural hiccup towards the end where the reader learns the truth of what's going on too early, making it feel like it takes too long for Amina to figure it out. But that's a minor issue in a book I otherwise totally enjoyed. I had to tear through it at breakneck speed because I couldn't renew it from the library (someone else was waiting) and that was not a hardship for me at all!
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