Steel – Carrie Vaughn (2012)
On a family vacation to the Bahamas after a disappointing competition Jill finds the tip of a broken sword.
When Jill topples out of a tour boat into the ocean, she scrambles out of the water directly onto a pirate ship.
Stranded in the past, surrounded by strangers, forced to sign on as crew, Jill quickly finds out that a pirate’s life is bloody and brief.
Desperate to undo the dark magic that brought her there Jill forms a plan, which is not really a plan, just a vague idea, and the reader struggles to keep up with her.
I did enjoy having a story where the female heroine does not get overly distracted by a boy, but where she also kicks butt.
I did however find it very difficult to get into Jill’s head. To me, it felt scattered and her touted plan was not really a plan so much as a vague idea with no thought to the very likely outcome.
I find it hard to imagine being depressed for weeks (while on vacation in the Bahamas) about losing a match when you are Olympic calibre, but then again, I’ve never been an Olympic calibre athlete.
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Tegen Books, 2012 304 pages ISBN: 9780061956508
Suggested Reading Level: Ages 12-15
Vaughn, C. (2012). Steel. New York: Tegen.
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