Publishers Weekly
04/08/2024
Sidonie May Jones, 12, enjoys spending time in the graveyard where her mother is buried. There, she works on her map of Fathom, the pirate-obsessed, seaside town she calls home. While exploring the graveyard’s oldest corners, she discovers a long-hidden headstone for Ezekiel “Bones” Kittow, an 18th-century pirate whose ghost she inadvertently frees from his captivity inside a nearby mausoleum. Now haunted by Bones and his parrot, Sid is the only one who can help the wayward spirit take care of his unfinished business and move on to the afterlife. But Bones is being hunted by Old Scratch, his former captor. Worse, if Sid and her best friend Zen don’t solve the riddle surrounding Bones’s lost treasure, he’ll be doomed to become a mindless wraith. This upbeat piece by McLachlan (the Land of Roar series), the first in a series, boasts ghost pirates, puzzles, and buried treasure galore. It’s a lively nautical adventure and a celebration of owning one’s weirdness, standing up to peer pressure, and sticking by friends when the going gets tough. Sid reads as white; Zen is Black. Ages 8–12. Agent: Julia Churchill, A.M. Heath Literary. (July)
From the Publisher
"This upbeat piece by McLachlan (the Land of Roar series), the first in a series, boasts ghost pirates, puzzles, and buried treasure galore. It’s a lively nautical adventure and a celebration of owning one’s weirdness, standing up to peer pressure, and sticking by friends when the going gets tough." — Publishers Weekly
"McLachlan infuses both the supernatural adventure and Sid’s emotional evolution with a charming earnestness. A series opener—big on heart and short on horror—that offers fun ghostly escapades." — Kirkus Reviews
"Delightfully illustrated. [A] rollicking adventure." — Booklist
Praise for The Land of Roar: "McLachlan does an excellent job of establishing the sibling tension before introducing the fantasy elements, and Rose’s desire to grow up and fit in feels as familiar and accessible as Arthur’s yearning to remain a child. This narrative’s sheer inventiveness marks it as distinct. The text and Mantle’s illustrations go wild with creativity. A sweet adventure and a paean to imagination and childhood innocence." — Kirkus Reviews
"Mantle's whimsical black-and-white illustrations enhance this playful, Peter Pan–like tale of sibling rivalry and affection. A series starter with heart." — Booklist
Kirkus Reviews
2024-04-20
Young amateur cartographer Sid Jones accidentally releases a centuries-old pirate ghost from the cemetery in her English seaside town of Fathom.
Sid can see and hear the boisterous pirate Capt. Ezekiel “Bones” Kittow and his impish macaw, Elizabeth—but no one else can, not even her best friend, a boy named Zennor Moyo. After an understandable period of disbelief and frustration, Sid teams up with Bones to solve the mystery of his missing treasure so that he and his crew can escape their ghostly limbo and pass on. Though Sid draws Zen into the historical puzzle of Bones’ pirate booty, she’s been growing self-conscious about hanging out with her proudly oddball friend and drawing more attention from their classmates; she’s already been called weird, after all, and having a ghost as a constant companion, even a secret one, doesn’t help. The overall tone is one of whimsy more than menace. McLachlan infuses both the supernatural adventure and Sid’s emotional evolution with a charming earnestness, especially as Sid grows bolder and more comfortable with her magical talents. Stylized black-and-white illustrations depict Sid as a white waif with large, round glasses and Zen as an energetic Black boy with short twists; Bones receives a loving visual treatment that includes voluminous hair, a tricorn hat, and a beard entangled with seaweed.
A series opener—big on heart and short on horror—that offers fun ghostly escapades. (map) (Paranormal. 8-12)
