Piratica: Being a Daring Tale of a Singular Girl's Adventure Upon the High Seas

Young Artemesia, the daughter of a pirate queen, gets more than she bargained for when she escapes from a finishing school and commands her mother's old crew to take to the open seas.

Starred Review. Grade 6-9–This rollicking tale features 16-year-old Artemesia Fitz-Willoughby, alias Art Blastside, who seeks to recapture her deceased mother's piratical lifestyle. A blow to the head awakens in Art memories of storms at sea, a deadly cannon shot, sword fights, distant lands, and stolen riches. Escaping the school chosen by her unsympathetic, detached father, the teen heads for Lundon and adventure. Undaunted by the discovery that her vivid seafaring recollections were stage performances, that her infamous mother, nicknamed Piratica, was not a pirate but an actress, Art seeks to turn fantasy into reality. Through guile and bravado, she hijacks a seaworthy galleon; inspires devotion and toil among her mother's motley crew of actors; demonstrates instinctive skill for sailing, swordplay, and parley; and pursues the rumor of buried treasure. With melodramatic flair, heroes and rogues are introduced and the plot twists and turns. Handsome Felix Phoenix, fleeing mistaken identity as a highway robber, joins the crew and tantalizes Art with his inscrutable, aloof behavior. Little Goldie Girl, pirate captain of the Enemy, is her cutlass-wielding nemesis. Ultimately, the wit and antics of her thespian crew save Art from the hangman's noose. The lively, whimsical narration is filled with a concoction of puns, 18th-century British references and spellings, and a smattering of modern slang. Presented in three acts with multiple scenes, Piratica is a refreshing, tongue-in-cheek, tangled tale that will entice readers who crave adventure and fantasy.–Gerry Larson, Durham School of the Arts, NC
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Gr. 6-10. Set in an alternate world akin to the nineteenth century, Lee's latest novel depends heavily on contrivance, beginning with the first scene: 16-year-old Art bumps her head and suddenly remembers her forgotten childhood, including her mother, a famous pirate. She knows her mother is dead, but she's determined to find the ship crew she remembers. She succeeds, but she's in for a metaphorical head thump. Her mother wasn't a real pirate; she only played one in a long-running stage show. Nonetheless, Art still thirsts for sea life, and she convinces the old stage crew to apply their skills to an authentic ship and try pirate life on real open seas. Perilous treasure hunts, near-death escapes, and a hint of romance ensue. Lee's plot often stretches credibility, and the setting in a "closely parallel world" seems unnecessary. But readers able to overlook the blatant plot manipulations will enjoy a thrilling adventure, which, like Celia Rees' Pirates [BKL D 15 03], lets girls control the main. Find more pirate titles in Ilene Cooper's Read-alikes column "Ship Ahoy" [BKL S 1 04]. Gillian Engberg
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