CAPITANA

An aspiring pirate hunter sails in pursuit of an infamous pirate; her quest takes her further than she could ever imagine.

Seventeen-year-old Ximena Reale is a promising young candidate at La Academia de los Cazadores, a feat she’s achieved against the odds posed by her stained last name: Five years ago, her parents were hanged on La Academia’s gallows as pirates. The apparent resurrection of Gasparilla—history’s most notorious (and long-dead) pirate—brings the opportunity to prove herself once and for all. Armed with her unwavering commitment to the Law of the Luzan Empire, Ximena chases vengeance, honor, and a Cazodoro cloak of her own. She’s in competition with Dante de León, an arrogant and infuriatingly handsome classmate. The journey tests not only her skill and bravery but her faith in the Law itself. James delivers her fast-paced and convincing debut narrative in an accomplished third-person voice. She layers her prose with Spanish vocabulary, immersing readers in the cadences of the Luzan Empire and trusting those unfamiliar with the language to navigate by context. The story resounds with messages of the harm done by imperialism, bringing readers along as Ximena learns to question authority, consider new perspectives, and seek alternatives to violence. Budding romance and soaring stakes keep the tension simmering through the last page and marvelously tee up the second book in this duology. The characters are cued as Latine.

A shimmering, piratical fantasy with real-world teeth.