My horse book reading has been a little slow of late. Now this is by no means because of a lack of books to read! I’ve just found most of my reading time has been attributed to my children and their school books, or them reading to me! That said, I have recently finished Lily and the Unicorn King by Kate Gordon.

This fantasy book follows the lives of three girls in New Zealand. Lily, Sasha and Chloe are all horse crazy young girls. They spend as much of their time as possible riding their horses. All three are working toward qualifying for an upcoming show jumping championship.

An unexpected beach visit results in Lily stumbling across the most incredible sight: unicorns. Even more surprising, it seems that Lily has an incredible connection with the Unicorn King. Lily is amazed to find these mystical creatures are in trouble, being pursued by an evil witch.

Lily is bursting to share her discovery with her friends. When she does, the three girls find they are desperate to help these majestic creatures. And so starts an incredible, unexpected journey for the three.

Lily, Sasha and Chloe find their days as busy as ever, but at night they are sneaking out to spend time with the unicorns and plotting a way to save them. Lily and the Unicorn King is an interesting, entertaining the read. The mythical aspect is lovely and the cover illustration gorgeous. An added bonus is inclusion of some of the Maori language and traditional medicine from Lily’s grandmother. This story is bound to engage young horse fans.

Author: Kate Gordon
Fiction – middle grade, fantasy
In My Library? It is as an ebook.

So I’ve had the chance to read another of Cora Marie Colt’s racing romance books. This was an early copy of her upcoming release Moonlight, Mares and Murder. This racing into romance novella introduces us to Sharon Benner.  She is a racehorse trainer who finds her world suddenly turned upside down. Detective Winterbane turns up in her stable to let her know that one of her horses’ owners has been murdered.

As the detective starts to question Sharon, she is dismayed to find that she’s being treated as a suspect. Just who does this detective think he is? What’s further alarming is Sharon’s immediate attraction to Robert Winterbane. The racehorse trainer knows she needs to ignore the attraction, especially when Robert’s ignorance of racing and animals rights questions leave her seething.

Robert knows very little about the racing industry, but when he comes to inform racehorse trainer Sharon Benner about the death of a client, he finds he wants to know a lot more. Just what is it about this woman that has drawn him in so completely?

As he works to solve this murder case, Robert finds himself working hard to prove Sharon’s innocence as quickly as he can. After all, it wouldn’t do well to fall for a suspect, would it? Moonlight, Mares and Murder is a sweet romance that explores the thoroughbred industry and highlights how well these equine athletes are treated. The murder has an interesting twist to it and the story ends well. This latest racing into romance novella from Cora is due to be released March 1. Why not pre-order your copy now?

Author: Cora Marie Colt
Fiction – adult contemporary romance, novella
In My Library? It is as an ebook.

Back in 2020, I connected with turf writer Mark Shrager. I thought the job title was an interesting one and asked him about it. This led to the opportunity to profile Mark on Equus Education. As a thank you, he sent me a copy of his latest book – a biography of female jockey Diane Crump. Thanks Mark!

It has taken me awhile to create the time to read it, but this biography has been well worth it. Diane opened many doors for female race riders back in the late sixties and seventies. Her passion for horses and riding as well as a hard headed determination helped her to pave the way for other women to break into the industry. And if you ask Diane, she’ll say that God played a large role in that, too.

Diane Crump by Mark Shrager

Shrager has done a great job of exploring Diane’s early love of horses and her ability to save and secure her first horse.  And then there was the long road ahead of her to get into race riding. He looks at the prejudice women had to battle, the sexist comments and downright refusal of males to ride in races with women at first. But he also explores what really was Diane’s dream – the time when a female riding in a race would be considered normal.

Along this journey, Diane got to be the first female to win a stakes race in the US and the first to ride in the Kentucky Derby.  Although maybe less notable, there were many other firsts. Diane Crump is an interesting and motivational read. For those who want to learn a little of the race history of female jockeys in the United States and the utter determination of someone to live their dream, then I encourage you to read this book.

Author: Mark Shrager
Non Fiction – biography
In my library? That it is, thanks for the copy, Mark!