Firstly, I want to quote myself from when I reviewed the first Sky Pirates book; "This is so cute and I can't help loving Echo!". It still stands... and man does she like adventure! Trouble follows her like a shadow, and she's too nosey for her own good, but if that isn't a lot of the reasons I loved her, then I don't know what is! Hah.

I had such a good time reading this book - and have since listened to some of the audiobook. I'd highly reccommend it too ^_^

Get your cutlasses and tricornes ready as Echo and the Sky Pirates are back!

Having been reunited with her mother Indigo Lil, the captain of the Black Sky Wolves, Echo is desperate to prove to her that she is a proper sky pirate. But no matter how hard she tries, things just don't seem to go her way.

When Lil gets summoned to attend the Seven Skies Alliance meeting, Echo and her best friend Horace sneak out and follow her mother to the gathering. Here, they learn about the Cutlass of Calinthe that gives its owner leadership over the other pirate clans. As the race to find it starts, Echo, Gilbert (Echo's pet lizard) and Horace suddenly find themselves in unexpected trouble...

It's quite unlike me to skip book one of a series but I just couldn't resist picking up 'Sky Pirates: The Dragon's Gold'. Luckily, one does not need to know the first part inside out in order to be able to follow the story. Alex English has cleverly woven the most important events form the previous book so that the reader understands what's what and who's who. (Having said that, I'll definitely be getting hold of 'Sky Pirates: Echo Quickthorn and the Great Beyond'.)

This book is a roarsome adventure full of unexpected twists and turns. It was very refreshing to read a story with surprises at every corner. I found the characters really enjoyable (the librarian was by far my favourite) and really liked the fact that Echo stayed very consistent throughout the story. I was also pleasantly surprised with the ending. 'Sky Pirates: The Dragon's Gold' is a rip-roaring adventure brimming with underwater libraries, jelly beans and marshmallamas. I really hope that Echo and the crew will be back soon!

The brilliant illustrations are by Mark Chambers.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this. I appologise for not reading prior to release.

I enjoyed this follow up and am excited to see what comes next. I did enjoy this and also recommend the audiobook.

Brilliant second installment in a hugely imaginative fantasy-come-steampunk adventure series.

An impulsive heroine and her faithful friend set off on a voyage of courage and wonder, filled with dragons and sky pirates. Pretty much everything a children's story should be.☁️🏴‍☠️🐉☁️

Me and my son loved this adventure! We have been waiting for another book to be published but I saw this one and I am so glad we chose to read it.
Full of treasure and pirates and dragons you can not really go wrong!
If you like Cressida cowell you will enjoy this book.

Echo Quickthorn has been reunited with her mother Indigo Lil, captain of the pirates the Black Sky Wolves, but having been brought up in a palace with no knowledge of the world beyond the city, she desperately wants to earn her place as a valued member of the crew. She has a sword, called Stinger, but until she and Horace, who has come to visit, have had lessons in fighting, she is not allowed to use it. When Lil is invited to a meeting of the pirate clans, Echo overhears her mother and the first mate talking and begins to worry her mum is heading into a trap, so she – and Horace – accompanied by her pet lizard Gilbert, take the Cloudcatcher and follow her…
This is an often funny, fast paced adventure full of magic and excitement, with memorable, larger than life characters, some of them quite menacing! It is a celebration of family, friendship and resourcefulness with an unexpected ending. Thoroughly enjoyable!

Thankyou to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me an e-arc of this book. i read the first book last year and was very happy to be accepted for the sequel. Full of adventure, a gripping plot and fantastic characters, Sky Pirates did not let me down.

This is another great book from Alex English. I really enjoyed being back in Echo’s world and loved finding out more about the different bands of sky-pirates.
After finding her long-lost pirate mother, Indigo Lil, in the first book, Echo is now living aboard the infamous Black Sky Wolves’ airship and awaiting the arrival of her best friend, adventure adverse Horace. It’s not long after his arrival that their next adventure begins. After intercepting a message meant for Lil inviting her to a secret meeting of the Alliance of the Seven Skies, Echo drags Horace along but things quickly go wrong. With the sky-pirates now racing to find the dragon’s gold, Horace is taken hostage by the vicious Thunder Sharks. Can Echo save her friend and the find the treasure for the Black Sky Wolves before it’s too late?
This is an action-packed sequel full of vivid world-building and, once again, I found myself wishing I had my very own pet lizard like Gilbert. It is perfect for Year 4+ and I know my class will thoroughly enjoy the latest adventure in the series.

Though I hadn’t read the first in the series, this works well on its own.
A fun adventure, striking just the right balance between excitement and terror, and one that you can’t help but get caught up in.
Our main character, Echo, is pleased to be a Sky Pirate though she feels she has something to prove. When she hears her mother is planning to take part in the Sky Pirate meeting, Echo is scared of what could happen so she follows her and ends up having a thrilling adventure of her own.
It seems that Echo’s friendship with Horace is quite established and I liked the way they balanced one another out. From a daring air trip to being kidnapped by pirates, forced to head to an underwater library to find a map then straight into the dragon’s lair where they are tasked with guarding three precious dragon’s eggs…the adventure is well-paced.
Thankfully, you never sense things will end badly though they are not without risk. This has certainly made me think I should go back and read our introduction to Echo.
Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for giving me the chance toreador this in advance of publication.

In 2020, Alex English delivered a debut book that was one of my favourite reads of the year so I was very excited for the sequel.

Echo is loving life aboard the Scarlet Margaret. Reunited with her mum, Lil, she spend her days searching for treasure, exploring the skies and learning what it takes to become a true sky pirate.

When Lil is summoned to a meeting of the Seven Skies Alliance, a worried Echo, along with best friend Horace, finds herself on a spying mission that quickly presents itself with the perfect opportunity for Echo to prove her abilities as a sky pirate. Legendary treasure lies deep in the heart of a dragon’s lair and the first sky pirate crew to find it will rule over the Seven Skies. But does Echo have what it takes to find the treasure before the rival pirate clans…

Skulduggery in the skies, underwater libraries, pirates behaving badly, fabulous contraptions and exploding mechanical birds. This is Echo’s biggest adventure yet and it makes for a brilliant read that had me racing through the pages desperate to find out what would happen next. It was a great deal of fun to be back with Echo, Gilbert and Horace and it didn’t take long for me to be swept back into their world and journeying through fantastical lands of ice, volcanoes, dragons and my favourite of all…marshmallows. Who wouldn’t want to visit a land where marshmallows grow instead of flowers, marshmallamas roam freely and the local tavern serves marshmallarmalade on toast and marshmallama milkshakes!

Like all the best adventures, peril, danger and close scrapes are never far away whether it be from rival private crews or having to face-off with a dragon. Echo has a knack of always getting herself into a pickle. Her plans often go wrong and things always seem to go from bad to worse yet I never lost faith that she would find a way to fix everything. Flawed, fearless and desperate to prove herself, Echo is easy to root for and accompanied by her trusty lizard sidekick Gilbert and nervy yet loyal friend Horace, the trio are the perfect team.

Bags of excitement and full of friendship and heart, this fast-paced, swashbuckling story is a fresh and original pirate adventure that will have readers wanting to fly away to uncharted lands in their own airship. Loved it!

Recommended for 8+.

With thanks to Alex English and Simon & Schuster for the advanced reader copy that was received through NetGalley.

After the excitement of the first Sky Pirates book last year, we were thrilled to receive an advance copy of the second book in this fantastic series!!
Echo has now reunited with her mum Lil… leader of the Black Sky Wolves… an airborne pirate ship crew and one of 7 powerful sky-pirate clans, but having grown up in the protected city of Lockfort most of her life, how was Echo going to prove herself as a true Black Sky Wolf when she can’t even find buried treasure! 
Echo’s BFF Horace has thankfully come to stay. Where Echo is cunning, great with gadgets, daring and bold, Horace is an explorer and professor-in-training... a perfect friendship combination to solve the mystery of the whereabouts of the dragon’s gold! The dragon’s gold must be found before any other sky-pirate clan, as whoever holds the Cutlass of Calinthe rules the sky!!
With dragons, marshmallama milkshakes, inventions, and phosphorescent lichen, this has been a brilliant read and we can’t wait for the next instalment!
For fans of The Strangeworlds Travel Agency, The Clock of Stars, The Nightsilver Promise.
- Review by Nicci

I really enjoyed Sky Pirates: Echo Quickthorn and the Great Beyond, so I was pleased to receive an ARC of Sky Pirates: The Dragon’s Gold, which is book 2 in the series.

It was great fun to return to the world of Echo, and to see Gilbert (possibly my favourite character) again. In this book, Echo is feeling somewhat inadequate, and like the other sky pirates aboard her mother’s airship don’t really think she’s a proper sky pirate. In trying to prove she is, she gets herself (along with Gilbert and Horace) into all sorts of entertaining trouble!

This story is full of adventure among the clouds (not to mention under the sea, and on the ground). As well as the excitement, there’s the theme of friends working together. And, of course, a dragon!

The writing flows really well, and I love the illustrations - especially the chapter headers, which show an airship. They come across well, even on my kindle.

Overall, this was a fun adventure, with well-loved characters, in an exciting alternate world. I recommend it for children and adults.

I was given a free copy of this book, my opinions are my own.

Following the adventures of the first book in which Echo Quickthorn, alongside friend Prince Horace, is reunited with her mother sky pirate Indigo Lil, Echo is off on another journey. She and Horace follow her mother to a meeting of the Alliance of the Seven Skies and soon find out that the death of a famous pirate has led to the discovery of a legendary cutlass that marks the leader of all Sky Pirate clans. It’s a race against the other clans to find the cutlass, save Horace from the dangerous Thunder Sharks and maybe find some dragon’s gold!

I absolutely adored the first story about Echo Quickthorn – an intriguing almost mystery story with heaps of adventure and magical fun (it gave me real Brightstorm vibes which I loved!) – and the second was also fantastic and filled with swashbuckling fun. I’ve read a few stories about pirates recently and adventures at sea are always great as the pirates are never quite trustworthy enough! There was real peril for Echo and Horace with some dastardly pirate clans plotting kidnap and backstabbing one another. Sky Pirates 2 was a quick page turner that will leave readers expecting and wanting more from this series!

Echo continues to be a likeable protagonist and readers will feel for her as she tries to find her place amongst the sky pirates. Having lived in a city most of her life, she struggles to fit in and desperately wants to be seen as a real pirate and allowed her own sword! Echo is fierce and daring and young girls and boys alike will want to have adventures like her. Her impulsivity is in contrast to the bookish Horace who she drags alongside her. Horace is an incredibly loyal friend to Echo and it’s lovely to see this dynamic continue between the two. As well as the two main characters, the cast of pirates were fantastically realised with a great many fascinating captains and ship mates to enjoy. And who could forget Gilbert, Echo’s lizard companion? I do love an animal sidekick and Gilbert had a very important role to play towards the end of the story.

Sky Pirates, lizard sidekicks, dragons? Definitely 4 out of 5 stars to this fantastic sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Children’s UK for providing an e-book review copy.

Sky Pirates: The Dragon’s Gold is a fast-paced and unpredictable adventure, where we rejoin Echo and crew for the second book in the Sky Pirates series. This time Echo finds herself inadvertently on the hunt for a dragon’s lair. She must journey through underwater libraries and marshmallow islands in order to get there. Will Echo be able to save her friends and find the Dragonlands? Or will this be adventure land her in hot water?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book: it was engaging, imaginative and perfectly paced for young readers. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

This latest Sky Pirates adventure gets an enthusiastic thumbs up from my 11 year old grandson. He found it as engaging and interesting as the first adventure in this series and was pleased once again to encounter his favourite characters from the first book. There is plenty of detail on the book so no detailed synopsis here. Suffice to say that this enthusiastic young reader devoured the book in almost record time and was happy to pick out some key scenes in the adventure of the young heroes that he had found especially exciting. His opinion of the writing is best described in his words ‘it was as if you were there alongside the main characters’. He certainly thought it was well worth buying and would recommend it to others of a similar age who like reading about adventures that take place in interesting and imagined settings.

the second in a fantastic swashbuckling series that continues the story of the young Echo as she tries to prove herself a worthy pirate in her mother's crew. When the leader of all seven pirate clans dies, there is a race to find a magical cutlass and Echo is determined to help her mother win, but all of the other clan chiefs want to win, by fair means or foul; in fact they would prefer the latter, as it would show how strong they are. A terrifically fast paced and exciting adventure that is going to build on the success of the first in the series.

It only took a few moments for me to be transported back to the Great Beyond and the exciting world of Echo and the Sky Pirates!

When we left Echo at the end of book one, she had just found her mother and was starting a whole new life. Now her days are filled with searching for treasure, exploring a world she never knew existed and learning how to be a proper sky pirate. Some things are going well while others are a complete disaster! Will she ever be good enough? It’s such a relief when her good friend, Horace, comes to visit. Surely, he’ll be able to help.

Then Echo’s mother, Lil, is summoned to a meeting of the Seven Skies Alliance – the leaders of all the different pirate crews. Echo decides she’ll go along and prove that she really has what it takes to be a true pirate.

Hidden away at the meeting, Echo and Horace overhear secret clues to a hidden treasure. This is her chance – she will find the treasure before any of the other pirates! What follows is an exciting series of mishaps, discovery and danger. Proper piratey peril, daring rescues and having to think on their feet combine to create a story bursting with adventure. Add in all the brilliant mechanical inventions, crazy modes of transportation and threatening creatures and readers will be on the edge of their seats, completely carried away to a world where pirates reign supreme!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Children’s for this brilliant story!

Echo is enjoying life with her mum Indigo Lil and the other Black Sky Wolves. Horace is back in Lockfort but comes to visit in the early stages of the book. Echo is keen to prove herself to her mum and is full of pride when she is taken to get her first cutlass, only to be disappointed by what she receives. Determined to prove to Lil that she is the same as the others, she intercepts a message that arrives for Lil, summoning her to a meeting of the Seven Skies Alliance, a meeting of different pirate crews. Echo passes the message on but also decides that she (and Horace) will sneak along to find out what is happening. What they overhear leads them on a perilous race against the other pirate crews to find the treasure they all seek. But can she make it in time?
Sky Pirates: Echo Quickthorn and the Great Beyond is a wonderful book and one I have great affection for as it was the book I chose to read to my Year 6 bubble class last year when we returned to school after lockdown 1. They were utterly gripped and often used to ask me to read to them whilst they ate lunch! It was both my love of the book as well as their reaction that lead me to use it as our Year 6 novel study at the beginning of this year and has been as big a hit with this Year 6 as last year.

With that in mind, it was with great excitement that I began reading Sky Pirates: The Dragon's Gold and, I have to say, it was just wonderful to be back with Echo, Gilbert and Horace once again. At the start of the book, it is clear that Echo is happy to finally feel she is where she belongs and she seems settled; however, it quickly becomes apparent that she still has some insecurities that she worries about: why does her mum seem distant at times? Why has she been given her own cutlass yet? Why does she feel that she's not as good as the others? It is these concerns that lead her towards this new adventure and it's here that we see Echo at her best: she is headstrong and determined, fearless (most of the time!) and is driven by her desire to prove herself. Her friendship with Horace has clearly grown, as has Horace (to an extent), although he still prefers to play it safe - much to Echo's frustration! It's great to read the two characters together and to see the way they compliment each other.

I think the adventure in this book is even better than in book 1! The perilous journey, the kidnappings, not to mention the inventions (the mechanical parrot, the invisible Aethernets and the most wonderful library) and the daring-do are in full flow. It's a gripping read that you won't want to put down, with themes of friendship, family and loyalty appearing strongly from the start.

With illustrations from Mark Chambers again enhancing the story, this is a must-buy book that will keep you enthralled this August when it's released.

What an amazing chapter book! A gripping pirate adventure for confident readers in Key Stage Two.
This is the second in the series although this can be a stand alone book.

Echo is a young sky pirate, desperate to prove herself to her mum, the captain of the Black Sky Wolves. When she over hears her mums intention to attend a dangerous meeting with the six other pirate crews (the alliance of the Seven Skies) Echo follows her with her friend Horace.

She soon finds herself on a frightening adventure to find a treasure map and then a dragon, encountering different tribes of rival pirates along the way. Can she find the cutlass and the gold before the others and safely return to her ship?

I loved this imaginative adventure and couldn't stop turning the pages! There were some really clever ideas. I loved the mechanical parrot that delivered messages and then self destructed and the invisible Aethernets (woven by aether spiders from the Caves of Cape Cinnamo) that were used to catch clouds to power the ship.

Echo and Horace are both great characters and I was willing them on their quest. This was a brilliantly written book: full of friendship and humour mixed with excitement and trepidation. A great read. My daughter is seven and I know she will love this. I've just bought her the first in the series to read too. There are some fantastic black and white illustrations throughout the book which really capture some of the best moments in the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for this eARC. This book will be published on 5th August.

Echo is back in another exciting adventure but this time she has a home and her mother with her. Becoming a Black Sky wolf is Echo’ dream come true and she is learning plenty while living on the sky ship. Still feeling like she needs to prove something, she looks for any opportunity to shine! .
Horace is visiting and while he would love a relaxing holiday, Echo convinces him that they need to follow Lil to a meeting with the other sky pirate captains. Unfortunately for Echo and Horace, they get trapped on an ice mountain belonging to the rebel Sharks crew. How will they get back to the Scarlet Margaret?

This adventure is full of dastardly pirates, thrilling action scenes and plenty of moments where Echo needs to prove herself. Horace, ever the voice of reason, tries to talk Echo out of some of her more dangerous ideas and he really gets to her, makes her think about her actions andtheir safety.

It was so great to be back with familiar characters and to see where they are and what they are up to since the first book. This book ends in such a way that I can only hope there is a third still to come. I do hope Horace stays involved as well as Gilbert!

I love the feeling of home and Echo’s very real uncertainty over her belonging and connection to her mother. This is still a very new relationship for them both and it felt so real as the reader. Horace is so funny and the perfect balance for Echo’s impetuousness. Brilliantly written, I read solidly for hours, not wanting my adventure to end!