Common Sense Media Review
By Carrie R. Wheadon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Exciting high-seas magical, mythical adventure.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
In CURSE OF THE FORGOTTEN CITY: EMBLEM ISLAND, BOOK 2, a girl named Vesper washes ashore in Tor's village with a stab wound in her side and a warning: The pirates are coming for you. They already kidnapped the inhabitants of her underwater city in search of a magic pearl that would help them take control of all the seas. They will search Tor's village next and take them all prisoner. Tor and his friends Engle and Melda teleport with Vesper back to the Night Witch's castle to see if they can find something to stop the pirates. With Vesper's special ability to shrink, enlarge, and locate enchanted objects they find a snowflake and a model ship and head back to the village. Vesper enlarges the snowflake in front of the pirate fleet and freezes them in place, then she enlarges the ship in the harbor. The foursome climb aboard and rush to find the magic pearl before the pirate fleet thaws in two weeks' time. They take a book with them full of warnings about the treacherous sea. One of the obvious ones is Never trust a pirate, which is exactly what they have to do when they find a man named Captain Forecastle who may know where the pearl is.
Is It Any Good?
Though, like the first in the series, this sequel could use more polish, once this high-seas magical adventure sets sail it's loads of excitement and fun for fantasy fans. The opening is thrilling when a mysterious girl, who stays quite mysterious through most of the story, washes up on the beach, bleeding. You have readers' attention, and an immediate call for a quest once the pirates arrive. What's missing is the time to reassert the relationships between the main characters and their personalities. They get lost here, especially if you're not reading the books back to back.
But on board the ship that's all forgotten when the full platters of enchanted food come out just by wishing them there. This is one sweet magical ride, once Tor learns how to use his powers from the Night Witch to control it. From here the adventures and magical items to search for pile up as time to save Tor's village grows short. Sea monsters give chase, ghost-pirates attack on the full moon, islands full of cursed riches appear, and sea ports hold cunning female assassins and a famous mermaid's secrets. Like the first book, Curse of the Night Witch, Curse of the Forgotten City splices in cautionary tales from a book of myths, this one all about the sea. It adds a mystical layer to the storytelling and a layer of nail-biting anticipation when Tor and friends meet these often-dangerous characters of legend on their travels. Here's hoping the next in the series continues on the same magical path.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about seafaring stories like Curse of the Forgotten City. How many nautical tales have you read? Why do you think there's so much mystery and mythology about the sea? How does the author use that to make the story exciting?
If Tor seeks answers on his quest, why is a woman called the Truthteller one of the scariest beings he encounters on the sea? How does this story and quest tales like it use prophecy and the idea of fate to create problems for characters?
Will you read the next Emblem Island tale? Where do you think Tor, Engle, and Melda will go next now that they've conquered the sea?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic , Fairy Tales ) , Adventures , Family Stories ( Siblings ) , Friendship , Animals ( Ocean Creatures ) , Pirates
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Sourcebooks for Young Readers
- Publication date : June 8, 2021
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 12
- Number of pages : 352
- Available on : Nook, Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 29, 2025
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