Vampirates: Tide of Terror, by Justin Somper, is the 2nd installment in the Vampirates series.
After the events in Demons of the Ocean, twins Connor and Grace Tempest have been living aboard the pirate ship The Diablo. But when a good friend of Connor is killed during a raid, Grace begins to think about how to keep her brother out of harm’s way. Grace convinces Connor to spend a week at the Pirate Academy, hoping he’ll choose to stay there instead of The Diablo. As it turns out, Connor quickly becomes enamored with the academy and it seems they want him there as well. Meanwhile, Grace longs to be back aboard the Vampirate ship and see her friend Lorcan again. But are Connor and Grace placing their trust in the wrong people?
This book should have been called “Vampirates: Pirate Academy,” as most of the story took place there. And the “Tide of Terror” was a seemingly small subplot. The rogue Vampirates are teaming together, and are truly evil and dangerous. This gives the most tension in the story. But the intrigue at the Pirate Academy leads to some interesting results as well. Grace is able to communicate with her friends aboard the Vampirate ship, but spends most of the book longing to get back.
This sequel was definitely not as exciting as its predecessor. But it was extremely fun, and easy to read. This swashbuckler will leave readers reaching immediately for the next in the series, Vampirates: Blood Captain. This fantasy series for middle readers is a true gem.
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