LitPick Review
In the book, Ghost Ship, by Dietlof Reiche, the main character, Vicky, is an average twelve year old living in a town that has two main attractions; the bay and the Ye Olde Seashell Room. The bay is special because half of it recedes every day to expose mudflats, while the other half remains filled. The Seashell Room is special because its walls are all covered in seashells and it contains the head of a figure head that was part of a ship named the Storm Goddess, which sank to the bottom of the ocean with many dark secrets. Now, out of nowhere, the bay dries up and the Storm Goddess appears. With each one of these strange events, Vicki discovers many shocking revelations. As Vicki learns more, the regular world becomes stranger by the minute. Questions arise: why won't the mayor, the captain of the Storm Goddess' ancestor, sell the Seashell Room to Vicki's father, the quartermaster of the Storm Goddess' ancestor? Who is Belper? Why did the Storm Goddess reappear? And finally, what happened to its infamous gold? And what happened on the Storm Goddess the day it sank?
Opinion:
I had mixed feelings about this book. Although I thought the book had a great plot and thrilling plot twists, I felt the writing was missing something. In the end, every little fact worked out for the protagonists, which I found unbelievable and improbable. The writing was dull, the character descriptions a little weak, and the character's actions sometimes did not fit their limited descriptions. Although it was translated, I find it an excuse to say it was a poor translation. In the end, I found the book compelling, but the writing dull and simple, and you need two halves to make a perfect whole.
