Race to the Bottom of the Sea

Starred review from September 11, 2017
The tidal pull of Eager’s swashbuckling pirate adventure has its source in 11-year-old Fidelia Quail. The daughter of acclaimed marine biologists, Fidelia takes an active role in her parents’ work, even inventing the research submarine they employ to explore the ocean depths. After the
perilous and unpredictable “Undertow,” a deadly current, destroys the submersible while her parents are cataloguing sharks, a grief-stricken and guilt-ridden Fidelia moves in with her Aunt Julia, a librarian. Tension escalates when Merrick the Monstrous, captain of the Jewel, kidnaps Fidelia in order to retrieve treasure from the ocean floor with her not-yet-completed creation, “the Water-Eater.” Pitting Merrick against a corrupt admiral, Eager (Hour of the Bees) makes the complicated pirate (who “spoke like a man with nothing to lose”) both threatening and sympathetic, giving him a romantic past. Set in a world that combines futuristic and historical elements to intriguing effect (Fidelia wears a pinafore, but knows her way around “Hydro-Scanners” and other tech), this is an exciting maritime adventure with a strong, layered heroine. Ages 8–12. Agent: Sarah Davies, Greenhouse Literary.

September 1, 2017

Gr 4-6-Fidelia is still mourning the death of her marine scientist parents when she is kidnapped by pirate Merrick the Monstrous. Fidelia, a shark enthusiast and brilliant inventor, must complete her underwater breathing device, the Water-Eater, or die retrieving Merrick's treasure from deep in the sea. Fidelia is just one of many strong female characters, including her "librarian supreme" Aunt Julia and the pirate Bloody Elle. This adventure is full of action, humor, and amusing details: Fidelia's steampunk contraptions, a pirate ship candy stash, and lively dialogue (at one point, Merrick's navy nemesis calls him a "dung-munching varmint."). The tale makes an effective read-aloud, though some of the more violent scenes may not appeal to younger readers; more than one character points a gun at Fidelia, and pirates are stabbed in the neck and thrown overboard. A thread of grief adds depth to the book as Fidelia learns, from her careful observations of both sea and human life, that death is a natural component. VERDICT More than just another lively pirate adventure, this novel celebrates science, invention, and the pursuit of knowledge while sensitively exploring loss.-Lisa Goldstein, Brooklyn Public Library

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2017
Sometimes a hearty dose of escapism is exactly what's needed for trying times.Fidelia Quail, a white 11-year-old in a pinafore with "a knack for inventing," is happily assisting with her marine biologist parents' shark research when they drown in a storm. Fidelia feels responsible--she'd built the submarine that Dr. and Dr. Quail were in when the storm struck their beloved Arborley Island. But it was the Undertow, a well-known ocean current, that was to blame. Within days, Fidelia's life is upended when she's kidnapped by a pirate named Merrick the Monstrous, a man with "skin so pale it was almost lavender." The captain and his crew, a woman with "white-blond hair" called Bloody Elle and "dark-skinned" Cheapshot Charlie, believe that she can retrieve their sunken treasure. Onboard a battle-worn ship called the Jewel with only a knapsack full of sweets, Fidelia tackles her situation head-on. She tweaks another of her inventions, a filtration system she calls a "Water-Eater," to survive the dive. This fantastical tale, set in an indeterminate time and place, is chock-full of humor and swaggering pirate adventure. There's romance, too, as Merrick turns out to be a pirate with a heart of gold and a secret past with Fidelia's aunt Julia. An old-fashioned, rip-roaring adventure featuring a smart, independent girl. (Fiction. 9-13)

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Starred review from August 1, 2017
Grades 4-7 *Starred Review* Hoist your sails for an unforgettable high-seas adventure in Eagar's second novel, which swaps the magic realism of Hour of the Bees (2016) for science and piracy. Eleven-year-old Fidelia Quail is a shark-obsessed inventor, predilections heartily encouraged by her marine scientist parents. Her life verges on idyllic until a storm triggered by the Undertowa deadly shift in ocean currentstakes the lives of the Drs. Quail. Heartbroken, Fidelia prepares to move in with her librarian aunt, but while packing, she is kidnapped by the most notorious pirate on the nine seas: Merrick the Monstrous. Knowing the Quails' reputation for aquatic exploration, he makes off with Fidelia, who he needs to retrieve a precious treasure from the seafloor. She's terrified, yes, but her curiosity and scientific reasoning soon kick in, and she realizes that there's more to Merrick and this quest than meets the eye. Instantly immersive, Eagar's novel never lags or loses heart, and it's irresistibly baited with a cursed treasure hoard, danger, and candy. Flashback chapters fill in important backstory on Merrick, and readers will adore Fidelia for the passionate and clever heroine she is. Refreshingly, women are as likely to captain a ship as plunder it in this fictional world, a small but enriching detail. Earnest and exciting, this swashbuckling voyage of self-discovery sparkles even when threatened by the stormiest seas.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2018
After her marine-biologist parents are killed, Fidelia is kidnapped by Merrick the Monstrous, a pirate who needs her diving skills to retrieve his treasure from a sharks territory. Fidelias grief fits somewhat strangely with the high-flying adventure; nevertheless, the seagoing exploits are first-rate, and Merrick is a charismatic, credibly flawed swashbuckler whose doomed romance will grab reader sympathies once its revealed.

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)