Published By: Macmillan Children’s Books
Pages: 256
Released On: 17/09/2026
Reading Age: 9-11
Sim, Jeopardy, and Nelson are supposed to be in Tudor London. Thanks to Uncle Emmett, however, they’re in the right time, but the wrong place: aboard the ship of infamous privateer and explorer Sir Francis Drake, setting sail to raid Cádiz. Trapped, Sim and his friends must navigate explosive sea battles and a mysterious masked mercenary before they can attempt to return to London and their mission to save Sim’s father.
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Books for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I LOVE this series. The installments already include:
Hunt For the Golden Scarab (my favourite so far)
The Legend of Viking Thunder
The Impossible Gladiator
They can be read perfectly fine as standalone novels but personally I think you get a bit more enjoyment out of reading it as a series.
This was such a riot. Like the others, this is a mixture of entertainment and history. I don’t know much about Francis Drake and the Spanish Armada (I’ve realised through reading this series that I know very little about anything) so I don’t know how correct it is but it feels so rooted in truth and it was fascinating.
The characters really get a chance to shine here, particularly Nelson, Sim’s friend. His role has been increasing with each instalment and it’s here he really stands out and I loved him. Uncle Emmett is as haphazard and chaotic and useless as usual and yet I can’t find it in myself to hate him.
It’s paced well. It’s closer to fast-paced than slow, but it never feels rushed and I read it in a few hours – I am aware I have a faster reading speed than most children but even so I think it’ll still be a quick read for anyone. It may be aimed at 9-11 year olds, but this 33 year old loves it and would recommend it to children and adults alike. I can see the series being really helpful in schools, particularly in history lessons.
The character are fascinating – adults and kids, goodies and baddies – and some of the side characters get to be explored a bit more in this one. The travelling and historical element feels so real and rooted in research, the adventures are tense and exciting, the emotions felt just right. I can’t say a negative thing about it, just a lot of synonyms for ‘awesome’.
It was so enjoyable and so much fun, just as I expected. This series can only go on so long but I for one would read it forever.
Books By Your Bedside 