The Blue Fairy's Bookshelf

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi Shannon Chakraborty, 2023 Premise: Many have heard of the exploits of the pirate Amina Al-Sirafi. Few know that she retired years ago to raise her daughter, and fewer know that she still misses the sea, as she barely admits it to herself. When a former shipmate's family asks for help (then uses bribes and threats to compel her), she'll have no choice but to regain her ship and her crew, but they've never faced anything like this before.  Middle-aged mom goes on an adventure? Sign me up for this book.  More seriously, I was very quickly drawn into the world and the characters. Medieval-era Muslim seafarers in the Indian Ocean already makes for a colorful and intriguing setting, and as each character was introduced, their backstories added more dimensions and nuances. The blending of different mythologies and religions was especially fun. Amina knows the rules about some kinds of supernatural things, but her Islamic background doesn't hel...

Adrift in Starlight Mindi Briar, 2002 Premise : Tai is a good enough courtesan that they can be somewhat discriminating with their clients. However, a famous actor's money is too much to turn down, even though the request - seduce the man's standoffish fiance - seems shady. For better or worse, professorial Aisha checks boxes Tai didn't know they had. And that's before they end up fleeing the planet together.  Aww, this was adorable. A gender-neutral courtesan flirts with an asexual xeno-archeologist/historian in a universe out of some brightly-colored sci-fi fever dream. Add in a scattering of other fun characters, telepathic alien creatures of a few different types, and multiple unexpected settings, and you've got a super fun romp. Both Tai and Aisha were great to get to know, and I empathized easily with both their problems and hesitations about each other and the solutions. (Because there are solutions. This is a romance, and Aisha is asexual, not aromantic. Als...