Twelve-year-old Vicki is spending the summer working as a part-time waitress in her father’s restaurant, Ye Olde Seashell Room. The local eatery is a tourist attraction because of its seashell covered walls and a 230-year-old figurehead that washed ashore centuries before when its ship, the Storm Goddess, went down.

When the owner of the restaurant, the town’s pompous, greedy mayor, has the figurehead restored, Vicki discovers a secret inside the head—a picture of the Storm Goddess depicting a man hanging from the yardarm. At nearly the same time, the sea in the bay disappears, leaving only mudflats. Could the two be connected?

Vicki is determined to find out what happened aboard the Storm Goddess before it was lost at sea. Helping her is a young boy named Peter, who is vacationing with his parents. Fortunately, one of Vicki’s ancestors was the quartermaster aboard the ship and left a log. When she begins reading the journal, another bizarre occurrence happens . . .

In the middle of the almost circular bay, with her keel embedded deep in the mud and her masts jutting skyward, lay a sailing ship.

An oceangoing, eighteenth-century square-rigger under full sail.

The name inscribed on the bow? Storm Goddess. The townspeople are stunned. Is it a miracle (as the mayor believes), or some malevolent force at work?

Strange things begin to happen at night aboard the ship. Men could be heard fighting. Shots are fired.

There is only one person who can solve the mystery and set things right—Vicki. Will she have the courage to do so?

The plot is fast paced and thoroughly engrossing. Students looking for a riveting read will enjoy this one.

Reviewed by the teachers at Education Oasis.