Kittiwake Stormhaven and the Pirate's Portolano by Victoria Williamson

I think this might be my favourite of Victoria's books so far. It's definitely the most fun with high speed chases on the ocean, hideaways in an old astronomy tower, giant food cooked by the quirkiest chef I've ever heard of and an extremely mischievous monkey.

This is a wonderfully intriguing world of huge city ships and pirate vessels, on a globe completely covered by the sea. Though it does make me wonder if this could be in our future!

Kitti spends her days getting into trouble with her monkey Caboodle and best friend (and stowaway) Scally. But all she really wants is her family back, which seems alternately impossible and just in reach. She is constantly trying to find out what happened to her sister, and her father who went in search.

There is a very satisfying ending, but it is definitely seems open for a sequel. I'm hoping it will be soon!

Book Summary

A daring mission, a sister turned pirate and a sea full of secrets…

In a world of water where land is a legend, 11-year-old Kittiwake Stormhaven dreams of adventure aboard the Amazon Princess. When a vital mission takes the ship into dangerous waters, Kittiwake discovers shocking news - her long-lost sister, Petrel, is now a feared pirate queen.

Kittiwake must outsmart pirates, outmanoeuvre storms and face ghostly captains to save her ship, her mischievous monkey Caboodle and her friends. But in a high-stakes showdown, family loyalty collides with survival, and Kittiwake learns the ocean hides more secrets than she ever imagined.

Kittiwake Stormhaven is a fast-paced, sea-swept adventure filled with daring rescues, thrilling discoveries and the magic of friendship.

Author Bio

Victoria Williamson is an award-winning author from Glasgow, Scotland, who loved reading books and writing adventure stories from an early age. After studying Physics at the University of Glasgow, she set out on her own real-life adventures, which included teaching maths and science in Cameroon, training teachers in Malawi, teaching English in China and working with children with additional support needs in the UK.

Her previous novels include The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle, The Boy with the Butterfly Mind, Hag Storm, War of the Wind, The Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams, Norah’s Ark, The Whistlers in the Dark, Feast of Ashes, and Skyfleet: March of the Mutabugs. Her books have won the RED Book Award 2024, YA-aldi Glasgow Secondary School Libraries Book Award 2023 and the Bolton Children’s Fiction Award 2020/2021, and have been short-listed and long-listed for numerous other awards. War of the Wind and Norah’s Ark were also both nominated for the 2024 Yoto Carnegie Medals.

Victoria writes and edits Key Stage 2 books for the education company Twinkl. She spends the rest of her time writing novels and visiting schools, libraries and literary festivals to give author talks and run creative writing workshops. Her latest novel, Kittiwake Stormhaven and the Pirate’s Portolano, channels her love of pirates and swashbuckling adventure to create a steampunk world set on the seven seas, and is illustrated by the very talented James Brown.

You can find out more about Victoria’s books, school visits and free resources for schools on her website

I made The Perfect Storm cocktail to go with this book. Fill a glass with ice, add 60ml of spiced rum and a squeeze of lime juice, then top up with ginger beer.

Check out my posts on some of Victoria's previous books:

Eerie Exhibits

Skyfleet: March of the Mutabugs

Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams

War of the Wind

The Entrepreneur's Almanack by Robin Bennett

Robin Bennett doesn't fail to amuse. While there weren't as many laughs as in The Good Snooze Guide of Great Britain, he's still managed to turn even a business book into something humorous and light. This time he's telling the story of his success, via quite a few setbacks and leaps of faith.

I particularly liked all the vitally useful dates for businesses such as 6th Feb National Work Naked Day, 9th June Donald Duck Day and 5th December International Ninja Day. I also now have my new favourite word - dipsomaniac 🍸 

Book Summary

This third in a series of short yearbooks celebrates the underrated art of entrepreneurship and a key aspect of the same: namely, success in business has more to do with intangibles than we care to admit.

The guesswork and the gut, divine providence, even dumb luck are all players and should be welcomed round the table, not ignored at the fringes.

The Entrepreneur’s Almanack is the cosmic crutch you never knew you needed in business, but shouldn’t be without.

Author Bio 

When Robin grew up he thought he wanted to be a cavalry officer until everyone else realised that putting him in charge of a tank was a very bad idea. He then became an assistant gravedigger in London. After that he had a career frantically starting businesses (everything from dog-sitting to cigars, tuition to translation)… until finally settling down to write improbable stories to keep his children from killing each other on long car journeys. Robin writes business books for adults, too.

I found the perfect cocktail for this book, the Bennett Cocktail! Who knew the author had his own cocktail 😁 45ml gin, 15ml lemon juice, 15ml sugar syrup and 2 dashes of orange bitters. Just shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.