Content levels
Positive tags
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Synopsis
Sixteen-year-old Jill has fought in dozens of fencing tournaments, but she has never held a sharpened blade. When she finds a corroded sword piece on a Caribbean beach, she is instantly intrigued and pockets it as her own personal treasure. The broken tip holds secrets, though, and it transports Jill through time to the deck of a pirate ship. Stranded in the past and surrounded by strangers, she is forced to sign on as crew. But a pirate's life is bloody and brief, and as Jill learns about the dark magic that brought her there, she forms a desperate scheme to get home—one that risks everything in a duel to the death with a villainous pirate captain. Time travel, swordplay, and romance combine in an original high-seas adventure from *New York Times* bestseller Carrie Vaughn.
Is Steel appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 13 and up.
A YA time-travel adventure with sword fighting and pirate battles that includes on-page violence with blood and life-threatening situations. The 'duel to the death' and pirate life themes involve meaningful consequences.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, no sexual content, and mild language. Content notes include death, violence, and blood.
Who'll love this
Teens will love the fast-paced pirate adventure with time travel, sword fights, and a modern fencer forced to survive on a real pirate ship.