Pirate Academy: New Kid on Deck

From Justin Somper, award-winning author of the Vampirates series, comes a new swashbuckling fantasy adventure series.

Welcome to Pirate Academy! The year is 2507 and a new dawn of piracy has begun. Jacoby Blunt and Jasmine Peacock are students at the elite Pirate Academy. But this is no ordinary pirate school: lessons range from Knots Class and Sailing to Combat Workshop. The teachers are all pirate legends, and the pressure is always on.

When a mysterious new kid arrives with a terrible secret, Jacoby and Jasmine's training is put to the test. Suddenly the dangers are no longer simply out on the oceans but right here, amongst them. In the face of real peril, Jacoby, Jasmine, and the students of Barracuda class must battle against a ruthless and seemingly unstoppable new enemy--before time runs out and all their lives are at stake.

Author: Justin Somper
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Published: 02/17/2026
Pages: 224
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.40lbs
Size: 8.10h x 5.40w x 0.70d
ISBN: 9798217050420
Audience: Ages 9-12


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 12/15/2025

About the Author

Justin Somper is the award-winning author of ten books for middle-grade and teen readers, including the Vampirates series, which has been published in thirty-five countries and twenty-five languages, as well as Allies & Assassins and its sequel, A Conspiracy of Princes. A Brit by birth, Justin relocated to Perth, Western Australia, with his Aussie husband, PJ, in 2022. Here, Justin has been writing the Pirate Academy adventures--in between refreshing dips in the Indian Ocean, inspiring visits to lighthouses, and long-overdue sailing lessons. Learn more at justinsomper.com.

Teo Skaffa has lived in many places but currently lives in an abandoned school building in the outskirts of the city of Groningen in the north of the Netherlands. Besides making art, he likes the color pink, synthesizers, and making music with outdated technology under the name A Ghost in the Woods. He does NOT like room-temperature watermelon. He likes drawing creepy-cute atmospheric scenes and characters, and is grateful that he's able to make a living by drawing, especially since he's not particularly good at anything else.