I downloaded Secret Heart recently when searching for free horse related books on Amazon.  This story focuses on single mother Layla, her son Mason and the man who is the father of her child, Nate.

Layla has grown up in a family that takes whatever they can get.  They are lazy and willing to work the system to get ‘paid’ so that they can live the luxurious life they desire.  Desperate to get out from under this stigma of her family, Layla works hard to provide for her son and keep her run down rental in working order. She is happy to fly under the radar with two close friends – her baby sitter and the grandmother of her son.

Nate has been living a fast life on the rodeo circuit, a well known bull rider.  But one bad ride brings all he has achieved crashing down around him.  Suddenly he has no riding career and a damaged body.  On top of this, he loses his land, his horses and his nerve for riding bulls.  Nate returns to the town of Three Rivers with his tail between his legs and no idea what to do now.

Running into Layla reminds him of the time they’d had before he went off on the rodeo circuit.  Layla is desperate to keep the fact that she has a son away from Nate.  This gets harder as she finally agrees to a date with the bull rider and finds that there is potential for future dates.

Secret Heart was an entertaining read about two people investing in each other in spite of thinking they don’t have a lot to offer.  Horses featured lightly but not to the extent that I would have liked.  That said, the book was an enjoyable read.

Author – Amity Lassiter
Fiction – Western Romance for Adults
In my library – a digital copy.

I was recently approached by Sherie from Equi-Spa about a post on Equus Education. She was kind enough to answer some questions about her horse business/career.

What is it exactly that you do?
We create and manufacture premium, spa quality, non toxic, botanical, horse care and grooming products. I, Sherie Vermeer, founded Equi-Spa, LLC in 2008. I was the Iowa state entrepreneur of the year and I won a grant from the government to help me setup and market this business.

In this field of work, is it possible to be a full time professional and earning a liveable income?
Yes, we have been doing this for 15 years and the business has grown slowly through word of mouth.  Lately we have upgraded the website and are working hard to focus our marketing through social media and various forms of digital marketing.

What are the general steps taken to be employed in such a role?
In 2003 I had 2 pregnant mares.  At the same time West Nile Virus was migrating from east to west leaving dead horses, dogs and people it its wake.  Desperate to protect my family, I bought strong DEET products and sprayed them on everyone including myself.  Especially sprayed my mares so kind of a double dose for me as I had sprayed myself then sprayed them well.  I got DEET poisoning from this.  I became very ill and also a bit panicky as I realized that I had sprayed a dangerous chemical on my pregnant mares!!!

I had been certified in Aromatherapy by Aveda Corp over 10 years prior. So I started looking for chem-free products to protect my family and horses.  I searched and searched the Internet and could find nothing but citronella. That was not good enough.  So I decided to make a non-toxic spray based in Aromatherapy.  There were a lot of rejects but I finally settled on a formula.  Peppermint was key because Bugs HATE it, Catnip for mosquitoes, and other essential oils to address as many hot weather pests as possible.

My Flagship product Peppermint Summer Protection was born!  I then tried it on my horses; they were calmer, they were fly free.  I decided to start a website… at that time they were pretty simple and primitive.  Within days I got my first order!  My husband brought me flowers to celebrate!  I decided to make all my own products and settled on the name Equi-Spa as it completely defined what I was doing.  Over the years I have added product to fill a void or create a solution, from tangled manes to addressing a disease called sweet itch.   I looked for other places to market my products and found a couple of mail order companies were eager to try them.   I also went to horse shows and horse fairs, set up a booth and people came.  They were drawn by the amazing aromas of the products.  It became a very busy life.

I was gone every weekend.  Since I was doing all the blending, filling and packaging myself I was exhausted. I finally decided a couple of years ago to just focus on an online presence.  I upgraded my website several times and found people who are much better at that and marketing than I so I can concentrate on making Equi-Spa products.

Favourite horse memory?
Gosh so many!  One of my most recent favorite memories was adopting Missy, a retired racehorse and former broodmare.  You can read Missy’s story.  She has been awesome and brave.  She came injured from the trailer ride from California, but is progressing along with her recovery.  In the process we have formed a strong bond. A close second is the day my dressage horse Francesca and I competed in her first show and won the class with a 71.25%.

Future goals?
We would like to grow and expand Equi-Spa.  Become a global brand and also become an ambassador for adopting the many Off The Track Thoroughbreds who find themselves needing a new home at the end of their career.  They still have so much to give and are amazing horses.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
The best thing about my profession is the ability to provide a means of helping people with their horses. People are drawn to Equi-Spa because of the amazing aromatherapy benefits, or because they want a chemical free life for themselves and their animals.  Also we have been able to bring relief to many horses with our products.  We help people find solutions to many common horse related care and health issues.

I can’t say that I was familiar with the Serenity Stables series by Wendy Nickel.  But if you’re going to start a series, a prequel is a great place to start, surely!  So it’s lucky I downloaded Pammy’s Story recently on Kindle! This is a great introduction to a horse series.

Pammy has a horse rescue property.  The reader is introduced to this older woman who has quite a history behind her.  Through the prequel the reader learns that horses have been a consistent in Pammy’s life, even if men and other people haven’t been.  There is one horse that started it all, a beautiful mare named Serenity.  In this prequel, Pammy mourns the loss of her beautiful equine friend.

Like many horse people, Pammy starts her day before sunup.  In this story there are two geldings on her doorstep quite literally, seeking their food.  Although this is an endearing trait, Pammy knows they should be safely secured in their paddock.

A simple trip down the driveway to inspect their large paddocks shows Pammy the item of concern – a bottom gate completely off its hinges.  Through a simple task of returning two geldings to their paddock and also feeding the other equines on the rescue property, the reader learns much about Pammy’s desire to make life better – for horses and people alike.

Many people cause harm to horses and other animals through sheer ignorance.  Partner this with pride as well as a desperate desire to keep animals that aren’t really affordable for some people, and you find a difficult client for welfare workers.  Pammy is battling this in particular with one woman who insists on keeping more horses than she can afford to look after.

And so starts the focus of this series as the prequel ends with Pammy starting a journey toward a woman whom she hopes to convince to relinquish her many struggling horses.  Pammy’s Story is an interesting introduction that has left me curious to read the series.

Author – Wendy Nickel
Fiction – horse rescue
In my library – it is as an eBook!