Cruise Ship Kid: Thief at Sea

About this book

10-year-old Silver lives on a cruise ship. She has four restaurants, a cinema, nine shops, three swimming pools, and hundreds of passengers – but no friend her age. 

It’s tricky when your mum is the Deputy Cruise Director and the other kids are only there on holiday. Silver's friends with The Gang, but they’re all over 80. So when Yana arrives onboard with her rich uncle and his girlfriend, Silver hopes they might become friends... even if Yana thinks her clothes are rubbish and her northern accent sounds weird. 

When Yana’s relatives’ expensive watches go missing, it’s Silver’s chance to prove she’s best friend material. But investigating passengers leads her into a lot of trouble... 

This is an engaging and funny read, where Silver often talks directly to the reader, asking our thoughts or running a quiz (jelly hat or mash potato socks?)

We can see the mistakes that Silver makes in trying to get a BFF (like changing everything about herself), yet this is done with a light touch. As is the theme of treating everyone – even staff! – as human beings. The cruise ship setting is unusually glamorous too. 

Though it’s a chunky book, the many brilliant illustrations mean it’s a pacy read.