Title: Pirate Academy – New Kid on Deck

Written by: Justin Somper

Illustrated by: Teo Skaffa

Published by: Uclan Publishing

Another exciting pirate adventure aimed at middle grade. This book is set in 2507 when the ocean levels have risen and there is a golden age of piracy led by the Pirate Federation. The characters’ names, the names of the year groups and the names of their parents’ ships add to the authentic feel of the setting.

Pirate Academy – New Kid on Deck is written from a multi-point-of-view with different chapters jumping from Jacoby’s, Jasmine’s and the new kid Neo’s viewpoints. I enjoyed being able to delve into the thoughts, actions and motivations of the different characters in this way, as it added a greater insight into the children’s characters and beliefs and provided useful backstory. Teo Skaffa’s illustrations also help to bring the story to life. It is the sort of book you can imagine being a big screen movie.

We join our main protagonists Jasmine and Jacoby at one of the nine prestigious Pirate Academies where the world’s greatest pirate captains send their children to train for ten years to become pirate captains themselves. Jasmine’s parents have gone missing and Jacoby is in danger of being expelled. When one of their classmates is whisked away by his parents and Neo mysteriously arrives at the school unusual things begin to happen. At first nobody trusts Neo but he soon proves himself and the big reveal at the end about who he really is was sensational. In fact, I loved the duplicity of some of the characters so you never know who to trust in true pirate fashion.

Excellently written, intense action adventure that keeps you turning the pages with the unpredictable twists and turns.