What do you think?
Unlocking Blackbeard's Skeletons
Let's go back 300 years . . .
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in another
time and place? To walk in the shoes of those who have
gone before us and discover secrets of the past? Well, pull up a
chair and get ready. You are about to set sail on an adventure.
Feel the wind in your hair as you slip back in time to colonial
Bath Town, the first town in what would later be known as
North Carolina. The year is 1718 and the notorious pirate, Captain
Blackbeard, is lurking nearby. No one knows this year will
go down in history, but the tides are changing. Everyone has a
story to tell, and Blackbeard is no exception. What skeletons
will we unlock? Only time will tell . . .
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in another
time and place? To walk in the shoes of those who have
gone before us and discover secrets of the past? Well, pull up a
chair and get ready. You are about to set sail on an adventure.
Feel the wind in your hair as you slip back in time to colonial
Bath Town, the first town in what would later be known as
North Carolina. The year is 1718 and the notorious pirate, Captain
Blackbeard, is lurking nearby. No one knows this year will
go down in history, but the tides are changing. Everyone has a
story to tell, and Blackbeard is no exception. What skeletons
will we unlock? Only time will tell . . .
428 pages, Paperback
Published June 15, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 9, 2023
This work of historical fiction delivers on its promise to tell you more about what it was like to be a pirate (or any person) living in eastern North Carolina in the early 1700s. The story is told from the perspective of female protagonist Lizzie, a christian teenager who eventually learns she is the daughter of famed pirate Blackbeard. She spends more than three months with him and his crew, and it changes her life. The story is interesting, but...
You really need to be a pirate or history enthusiast to trudge through this. Researching a historical fiction book is hard, and writing a compelling story is harder. Unfortunately, this book hits you with a fire hose of facts and details that overwhelm the reading experience, and along with the novice writing style will make most people want to put this down after the first fifty pages. That's a shame, because there is a lot of potential to the story. The story is actually quite good. It just gets buried in the all of the detail and stylistic mistakes (show versus tell, misuse of dialogue tags, overt proselytizing, etc.).
Extra credit to the author for writing a book about pirates without a single cuss word, and for having someone do a spotless job copy editing the text. The typesetting and layout of the book are exceptional. But overall, this book stands out as a missed opportunity - it needed to go through at least two more rounds of review and constructive criticism before being considered for publication. Do we really need to know the details of how to dip tallow candles, make lye soap, or who used to live in the house 3 doors away from where the action is occurring? Do so may sentences need to start with an -ing phrase? I'd speculate that the story could have been told effectively with 100 less pages of text.
Anyway, I finished the book, liked the story, and learned something about pirates and eastern North Carolina along the way, so I guess that means the book worked: my time wasn't wasted. I just feel bad for the missed opportunity by the author - this could have been a home run for people who are hungry for fact-based pirate stories.
You really need to be a pirate or history enthusiast to trudge through this. Researching a historical fiction book is hard, and writing a compelling story is harder. Unfortunately, this book hits you with a fire hose of facts and details that overwhelm the reading experience, and along with the novice writing style will make most people want to put this down after the first fifty pages. That's a shame, because there is a lot of potential to the story. The story is actually quite good. It just gets buried in the all of the detail and stylistic mistakes (show versus tell, misuse of dialogue tags, overt proselytizing, etc.).
Extra credit to the author for writing a book about pirates without a single cuss word, and for having someone do a spotless job copy editing the text. The typesetting and layout of the book are exceptional. But overall, this book stands out as a missed opportunity - it needed to go through at least two more rounds of review and constructive criticism before being considered for publication. Do we really need to know the details of how to dip tallow candles, make lye soap, or who used to live in the house 3 doors away from where the action is occurring? Do so may sentences need to start with an -ing phrase? I'd speculate that the story could have been told effectively with 100 less pages of text.
Anyway, I finished the book, liked the story, and learned something about pirates and eastern North Carolina along the way, so I guess that means the book worked: my time wasn't wasted. I just feel bad for the missed opportunity by the author - this could have been a home run for people who are hungry for fact-based pirate stories.
July 26, 2026
Great book, well written with a very engaging storyline.
Author kept to historical accuracy so I even learned a few things while being entertained by an adventure. I haven’t stayed up late to finish a book in a long time, but this one I did! Thoroughly enjoyed it and has me looking for more pirate stories. At times the details of happenings at home and additional people/places were tedious to get through as they didn’t add to the plot, but it didn’t take away from anything either. I am glad it was written in a way that makes it an appropriate book for young adult readers so I can pass it along to some students.
The book left off with a few questions that were never answered, leaving me to wonder if there will be a follow up novel. I would sure be excited if there is.
Spoilers below!
One thing that I wish was made clear in the book was why did Blackbeard not take Lizzie and Jake home the second he was able to on his first visit to Bath? There was no explanation other than that Blackbeard said she needed to stay with the ship. I came up with a couple of my own explanations, but I wish it was made clear in the book.
The ending was disappointing only in the way that we didn’t learn of JJ’s fate or whether or not Jake stayed in Bath and eventually married Lizzie. Again, perhaps this was intentional to leave as a beginning for a follow up novel.
Thank you Robin Reams for the excellent work!
Author kept to historical accuracy so I even learned a few things while being entertained by an adventure. I haven’t stayed up late to finish a book in a long time, but this one I did! Thoroughly enjoyed it and has me looking for more pirate stories. At times the details of happenings at home and additional people/places were tedious to get through as they didn’t add to the plot, but it didn’t take away from anything either. I am glad it was written in a way that makes it an appropriate book for young adult readers so I can pass it along to some students.
The book left off with a few questions that were never answered, leaving me to wonder if there will be a follow up novel. I would sure be excited if there is.
Spoilers below!
One thing that I wish was made clear in the book was why did Blackbeard not take Lizzie and Jake home the second he was able to on his first visit to Bath? There was no explanation other than that Blackbeard said she needed to stay with the ship. I came up with a couple of my own explanations, but I wish it was made clear in the book.
The ending was disappointing only in the way that we didn’t learn of JJ’s fate or whether or not Jake stayed in Bath and eventually married Lizzie. Again, perhaps this was intentional to leave as a beginning for a follow up novel.
Thank you Robin Reams for the excellent work!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 2, 2023
This book was adventure, suspense and history all wrapped up in a perfect young female protagonists point of view. I love this book and it broke my reading slump!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews