The Best Book I Read This Month: The Adventures of Amina Al-Sarafi by Shannon Chakraborty

The best book I read this month was a pirate adventure reminiscent of the legend of Sinbad the Sailor. The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty follows a Amina al-Sirafi as she and her crew sail the Indian Ocean trying to right a wrong. It’s a rollicking adventure, and I enjoyed every word.

At the start of the story, al-Sirafi has retired from the pirate life and is literally trying to keep a roof over her head. She lives in a remote area of Oman with her mother and her daughter. Despite her struggles, she is content with the life she has chosen. Then the mother of a former crew member comes to her in crisis: the crew member’s daughter has been kidnapped. Won’t al-Sirafi save her? The mother, who has vast wealth, promises to reward al-Sirafi with a life-changing amount of money if she succeeds. Al-Sirafi has no choice but to accept the challenge.

Amina al-Sirafi gets the band back together, as the saying goes, and they set off to rescue the damsel in distress. Along the way, they encounter abusive local authorities, demons, sea monsters, magic, and a damsel who is not quite as distressed as they were led to believe.

I loved Amina al-Sirafi as a main character and narrator. Her voice captivated me from the beginning, a perfect mix of snark and self-awareness. Her crew and their voyages are a testament to the vibrancy and diversity of the Indian Ocean region during Europe’s Middle Ages (when this story takes place).

I read that this book is part of a trilogy. The ending certainly left open the opportunity for sequels. I hope that it is the first in a series, because I can’t wait to read about al-Sirafi and crew’s next adventures.

The Best Book I Read This Month: The Labyrinth of the Spirits by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

The best book I read this month was the last in a cherished series by Spanish author Carlos Ruiz Zafón. The Labyrinth of the Spirits closes out Zafón’s Cemetery of Forgotten Books quartet, and it did not disappoint.

The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series is set in Barcelona at various points in history. Books—the writing of them, the reading of them, the preservation of them—is a key part of every story. The other thread that connects the books is the Sempere family, which owns a bookstore in the Spanish city. The Semperes start in the background of Labyrinth of the Spirits, which follows a woman named Alicia Gris as she pursues the truth about the disappearance of a government minister. Her search eventually leads to the Semperes’ bookstore.

What I loved most about Labyrinth was the way it tied together the three previous books in the series, which were each set in different times and focused on different characters. That made for a sweeping epic, by far the longest book in the series, and I was swept away. It had the same adventurous spirit as Shadow of the Wind, the spirit that made me fall in love with the Cemetery of Forgotten Books.

Labyrinth of the Spirits has a vast cast of characters, and at times, I struggled to keep track of them. Having read the previous books in the series helped, though. I strongly recommend reading the first three books before this one. You don’t have to read them in any particular order, but since I’m partial to it, I suggest starting where Zafón started: with The Shadow of the Wind.

The Best Book I Read This Month: The Witch and the Tsar by Oleysa Salnikova Gilmore

The best book I read this month was a magical tale, a retelling of the Russian legend of Baba Yaga. Olesysa Salnikova Gilmore’s The Witch and the Tsar transplants Baba Yaga to Russia during the rule of Ivan the Terrible, where the witch and the tsar are first allies and then enemies.

The story is infused with magic and the supernatural side by side with history. It even includes my favorite figure in Russian folklore, Koschei the Deathless. We learn Yaga’s story—past and present—as she fights to save Russia from a supernatural threat that has consumed the tsar. It is an interesting take on Ivan’s madness and blood-thirst.

But the story is about more than death. It is about love too: love of country, love of family, romantic love, platonic love, filial love.

I enjoyed this book. I found Yaga a sympathetic character, not the boogeyman she’s often portrayed as, and her love story, compelling. I especially loved being immersed in Russian mythology. I discovered new legends and new figures that I want to read more about. I am eager for Gilmore’s next book.

Countdown to the Cover

#5 Hodd by Adam Thorpe

This was my least favorite of the Robin Hood retellings, for a couple of reasons. First, Robin Hood appears in less than 30% of the book, which really tells the life story of the narrator—a boy called Much. (It’s not a happy story.) Second, this Robin Hood is over the top evil—cruel, violent, selfish, delusional. There isn’t even a seed of the “steal from the rich and give to the poor” tradition, yet we’re supposed to believe the people of Nottingham hail this evil Robin Hood as a hero.

#4 Nottingham by Nathan Makaryk

Nottingham by Nathan Makaryk is a sweeping epic that begins in the Holy Land during the Third Crusade and ends in Sherwood Forest. It has a cast of thousands—or rather, it felt that way—and I had a hard time keeping track of some of them. There were two aspects of this story that I really liked. One, that there is no single Robin Hood. Instead, Robin Hood is a persona created to win the support and loyalty of the local residents. At different parts of the story, different characters assume the persona. Second, there are no moral absolutes in the story. The Robin Hoods are not always good or right. The sheriff is not always bad or wrong. I found this sheriff to be one of the more sympathetic ones I’ve encountered in Robin Hood lore, a man torn between a rock (the king) and a hard place (the people). Having said all that, I did struggle with this one. I found it be plodding, and between that pace and the massive number of characters, I sometimes struggled to stay engaged.

#3 The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley

I enjoyed this traditional take on Robin Hood. It has the expected cast of characters—main and supporting—and the expected plot lines. The Robin Hood character seemed rather passive. He hid in his cave for much of the book, letting the others do all the work. He didn’t get involved in anything until near the end. But this book is meant for a younger audience and had I read it at a younger age (and without my writer experience), I might not have noticed or cared about that.

#2 Travelers Along the Way by Aminah Mae Safi

I adored this book. Of all the retellings I read, this one did the best job of capturing the humor of the Robin Hood legend. It also was the most imaginative of the retellings. Set during the Third Crusade, Travelers Along the Way imagines Robin Hood as a young Muslim woman defending the Holy Land against the Christian invasion. The Merry “Men,” who are mostly young women, are a diverse group: Robin Hood’s warrior sister, a Mongolian horsewoman, an Andalusian Jew, a chaplain, and a spy. It was a fun read. (And yes, it feels weird to say that about a book set during such a brutal event in history.)

#1 Hood by Stephen Lawhead

This was the first Robin Hood retelling I ever read-decades ago-and it is still my favorite. This one is the first in a trilogy that transplants Robin Hood to 11th century Wales, where Robin Hood and his Merry Men are Welsh freedom fighters resisting the Norman invasion. It is depth; it has humor; it has danger and adventure.