No updates in a while and I'm sorry because there was much to do with me getting busy and then going to Japan and having to make up school work. ((That was the worst part)) And then I had a bunch of concerts and extra rehearsals and missed a lot more school than I wanted to.
I've been trying to finish this book since before I went to Japan in the beginning of March, but after we came back, I've been sleeping at midnight or later ((It's all been studies. I'm never going on a week long trip in high school!)), so there's always no time to read. ((Because I get super grumpy when I'm tired and sleep deprived.)) But now that things have cleared up a little bit, I feel better and now I was able to finish it.
The cover-
It's almost November and the horses are coming out of the water again. The pull of the sea is stronger than ever and every man who will enter the race can feel it. Control the beast or be eaten by your vessel.
Puck Connolly is your average girl in a not so average place. Ever since her parents died, she and her brothers have been desperately trying to feed themselves, knowing that one day the little money their eldest brother earns will be used up. When Mr. Malvern, a monopolizing businessman brings her the grave news that she and her brothers haven't been able to pay their tax money, Puck takes it on herself to join the Scorpio Races in hopes that she can pay off the owed money. But the only problem is that she is the first girl to ever join a sport that was "made for men". And her mount is a land pony that was originally her mother's.
Sean Kendrick is the head trainer at the Malvern Yard, where he trains the horses that give Mr. Malvern his power and wealth. Every year he has ridden on his water horse, Corr and succeeded in winning the races and the ultimate prize money. But he has grown sick of Malvern and his son's taunts and wants more than anything to leave the yard and be forever with Corr.
Unforeseen circumstances bring Puck and Sean together where they have to fight for what they love and have to give up everything just to get it back. But they have until November. And that's when the races begin and everything changes.
My thoughts-
It's a very interesting plot. I'd never heard of the water horses in legends before. But then again, Maggie Stiefvater has also written Shiver, which was praised for its very unorthodox portrayal of the werewolf love story that has become a fad in young adult literature. This is definitely one of the lesser popular legends that she brought to light in a very intriguing way.
I honestly pictured the races the way we have the World Cup and those kinds of tournaments. Where a few racers would go against each other at a time and then the best would all be compiled into tournament rounds where only two would remain. But this format was the way traditional horse racing is, just a little less controlled because they're riding wild beasts that will eat their jockeys if they feel threatened.
I have to say something about the horrible things that Mutt Malvern did at the end of the book. I hate animal cruelty and what he did was worse than cruelty. He sliced a water horse's legs so that it could never run again. And then he was going to do the same thing to Corr. Thank god Sean got there just in time to stop him. He would've been heartbroken if Corr could never run again. It sent shivers down my back because I am very much against animal cruelty and hate to see examples of it in literature. If I were in that book, I'd have given him a beating so that he could never walk again. Maybe slice his hamstrings or something really painful and cruel like that (cue maniacal laughter). And I'm not even that big into horses. If you do anything horrible to a cat, you're going to die a very slow and painful death at my hands.
One thing I found awfully weird was that throughout the book, there was no sense of what day it was. The book starts in September and ends when the Scorpio Races do, but it wasn't long before it was the day before the race. Because I had this World Cup format in mind and when I realized that the races were all the way at the end, it took a while for it to register in my brain. I thought that there were going to be preliminary races and then the finals would be the actual Scorpio Races. It would've been helpful to know what day it was, or at least what month. There were brief mentions of it, but I found myself losing track of the time there was until the race.
Recommended for ages 12-14
Some disturbing scenes and some violence, although no too graphic. Mentions of animal abuse.
((I'm now reading Da Vinci Code and it's such a good book! I've barely gotten quarter way through it and I'm hooked. Review of it soon when I get the time to write it.))
I've been trying to finish this book since before I went to Japan in the beginning of March, but after we came back, I've been sleeping at midnight or later ((It's all been studies. I'm never going on a week long trip in high school!)), so there's always no time to read. ((Because I get super grumpy when I'm tired and sleep deprived.)) But now that things have cleared up a little bit, I feel better and now I was able to finish it.
The cover-
It's almost November and the horses are coming out of the water again. The pull of the sea is stronger than ever and every man who will enter the race can feel it. Control the beast or be eaten by your vessel.
Puck Connolly is your average girl in a not so average place. Ever since her parents died, she and her brothers have been desperately trying to feed themselves, knowing that one day the little money their eldest brother earns will be used up. When Mr. Malvern, a monopolizing businessman brings her the grave news that she and her brothers haven't been able to pay their tax money, Puck takes it on herself to join the Scorpio Races in hopes that she can pay off the owed money. But the only problem is that she is the first girl to ever join a sport that was "made for men". And her mount is a land pony that was originally her mother's.
Sean Kendrick is the head trainer at the Malvern Yard, where he trains the horses that give Mr. Malvern his power and wealth. Every year he has ridden on his water horse, Corr and succeeded in winning the races and the ultimate prize money. But he has grown sick of Malvern and his son's taunts and wants more than anything to leave the yard and be forever with Corr.
Unforeseen circumstances bring Puck and Sean together where they have to fight for what they love and have to give up everything just to get it back. But they have until November. And that's when the races begin and everything changes.
My thoughts-
It's a very interesting plot. I'd never heard of the water horses in legends before. But then again, Maggie Stiefvater has also written Shiver, which was praised for its very unorthodox portrayal of the werewolf love story that has become a fad in young adult literature. This is definitely one of the lesser popular legends that she brought to light in a very intriguing way.
I honestly pictured the races the way we have the World Cup and those kinds of tournaments. Where a few racers would go against each other at a time and then the best would all be compiled into tournament rounds where only two would remain. But this format was the way traditional horse racing is, just a little less controlled because they're riding wild beasts that will eat their jockeys if they feel threatened.
I have to say something about the horrible things that Mutt Malvern did at the end of the book. I hate animal cruelty and what he did was worse than cruelty. He sliced a water horse's legs so that it could never run again. And then he was going to do the same thing to Corr. Thank god Sean got there just in time to stop him. He would've been heartbroken if Corr could never run again. It sent shivers down my back because I am very much against animal cruelty and hate to see examples of it in literature. If I were in that book, I'd have given him a beating so that he could never walk again. Maybe slice his hamstrings or something really painful and cruel like that (cue maniacal laughter). And I'm not even that big into horses. If you do anything horrible to a cat, you're going to die a very slow and painful death at my hands.
One thing I found awfully weird was that throughout the book, there was no sense of what day it was. The book starts in September and ends when the Scorpio Races do, but it wasn't long before it was the day before the race. Because I had this World Cup format in mind and when I realized that the races were all the way at the end, it took a while for it to register in my brain. I thought that there were going to be preliminary races and then the finals would be the actual Scorpio Races. It would've been helpful to know what day it was, or at least what month. There were brief mentions of it, but I found myself losing track of the time there was until the race.
Recommended for ages 12-14
Some disturbing scenes and some violence, although no too graphic. Mentions of animal abuse.
((I'm now reading Da Vinci Code and it's such a good book! I've barely gotten quarter way through it and I'm hooked. Review of it soon when I get the time to write it.))
