The Defiant
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- $18.99
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
An absorbing, breakneck debut YA novel set on the high seas.
On a field trip to see famed privateer Francisco Ventana's once-sunken ship, the Defiant, six kids from San Francisco's Greenly School—a last-chance refuge for orphans, troublemakers, and misfits—find themselves stranded at the center of a storm unlike any other. By the time the clouds have cleared, and the strange pink flashes have faded from the sky, the Defiant is out on the open sea, San Francisco ablaze behind it. What follows is an adventure that will change the classmates' lives forever—a journey across a dangerous ocean in search of a new home, with only their instincts and each other to rely on. Can they master the ship? Can they work together, and defend themselves against the unexpected adversaries they encounter on the way? Will they ever find land? You'll have to join their voyage to find out.
A remarkable debut in the tradition of Gulliver's Travels and Lord of the Flies, The Defiant creates a world that's all its own—thrilling and wholly original, filled with strange energies and superstitious survivors, and dozens of moments you won't soon forget.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In an unsettling, fablelike debut, six schoolmates, who have little reason to like one another, must work together to survive after they are stranded aboard a centuries-old sailing ship as it drifts aimlessly at sea. Their journey takes a surreal turn when each island they encounter turns out to be populated by other groups of castaway children, each community pursuing a particular obsession. Whether the society is overly focused on democracy, dedicated to technology, or consumed by paranoia, each suffers from an imbalance of priorities that makes it unviable, even dangerous. But as the makeshift crew of the Defiant valiantly searches for safe harbor, they discover much about their own talents and strengths. Quint creates an intriguing satire on the excesses of civilization, as well as a tense adventure in its own right, but the underlying message is hard to glean. The lack of answers regarding the instigating disaster and other paranormal happenings further muddy the narrative. Padula's stylized illustrations portray the characters as almost deformed exaggerations, an unflattering aesthetic, yet one suited to the haunting, puzzling story surrounding them. Ages 8 12.
