This was one of those nice surprises. Had to read it-- vampire books are huge in middle school, and how did the world go for so long without putting vampires and pirates together? It's just fun to say!
When their lighthouse keeper father passes away, Grace and Connor don't like the plans being made for their care, so they take a boat and set out to sea. When a storm hits, Connor is rescued by pirates, and Grace by the vampire ship that their father had sung about in a sea shanty. This stretched my credulity a bit, especially when Grace finds out that she is going to be a "donor" for her ship (you work out the details!), but I was greatly interested in how the siblings would manage to reunite. I was concerned that this title would seem too young for the fans of Darren Shan's Cirque du Freak, but I was wrong. There is enough action, adventure and mystery to keep students engrossed and begging for the next installment. Great covers help, although it would have been nice to have the main title in little bigger letters! This appeals to fantasy fans and vampire fiction lovers alike. My students do not want to have to wait for next year to read Blood Captain.
Mr. Somper has a very nice web site at http://www.vampirates.co.uk/ if you would like to learn more.
:-) I liked the first two books. I have book three on hold for me. Liked the combination of pirates and vampires and thought these books were well done, as far as juvenile literature goes, anyway.
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