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Thoroughbred #45
Star's Chance
At last, Wonder's Star has begun to recover from the illness that halted his promising racing career so suddenly. The vet says he'll be back on the track in no time. But Christina Reese is convinced the colt has lost his spirit. She can't seem to communicate with him like she used to. Christina needs help. When Lyssa Hynde offers to work her magic with Star, Christina takes the colt to Lyssa's ranch in Montana to rehabilitate. But Montana is worlds away from the track, and Christina and Star are lost there. Will Christina and Star learn to take risks and trust each other again?
176 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 28, 2024
The whole horse whisperer thing officially got out of hand in the 1990s, and inevitably infected the already preposterous Thoroughbred series. There is no magic to communicating with horses. You need to be patient, quiet and humble. It's sad that those qualities in anyone working with horses was seen as magical or somehow on a genius level back in 2001, when this dumb book was published.
Star is treated badly in this book. Yes, he's a fictional horse, but he's still treated badly. He's just survived a devastating mystery illness. And now Christina, instead of being thrilled that her horse is going to live, rushes him right back into training.
Geez, no wonder Star is cranky.
Would this happen in real life? No. Star had already proven himself as one of the nation's best two year olds. Really, that's all a top Thoroughbred needs to do before he's retired to stud. Now, 1977 Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew caught a terrible viral infection while he was three, but he was allowed months off before he started training again.
So, what's Christina's plan for getting him better? Shipping Star off to Montana so Lyssa can work her woo-woo on him. Then, after going through all of this trouble, Christina doesn't want to follow Lyssa's advice. Until finally she does, and Star magically is better.
What.
The.
Actual.
FUCK?
This was written by Alice Leonhardt, who wrote way back when Christina was only riding Sterling. She wrote a few decent books in the series, so she really should've known better.
I have no idea why the series had this love fest for Lyssa, an intermittent character. She was annoying as hell. She even got her own book, book 56, Hoofprints in the Snow. Her story arc was never completed when the series ended.
In the real world, Star would've probably colicked or got shipping fever after arriving in Montana, and may have died. I just hope nobody with a horse takes the medical advice given in these books seriously.
I understand that this is aimed at 12 year olds who know nothing about horses, but it is beyond frustrating to read books that give a false impression of racing, horse health, or horses in general. This series started so promisingly.
I see this book got 85 five star ratings. Did they read the same book I did? Did real people give the ratings?
If this is the first book in the Thoroughbred series you've picked up, put it back down. You need to, at the very least, read from book 36, Without Wonder, to have any clue as to what's going on. Any background given is scanty, at best.
Star is treated badly in this book. Yes, he's a fictional horse, but he's still treated badly. He's just survived a devastating mystery illness. And now Christina, instead of being thrilled that her horse is going to live, rushes him right back into training.
Geez, no wonder Star is cranky.
Would this happen in real life? No. Star had already proven himself as one of the nation's best two year olds. Really, that's all a top Thoroughbred needs to do before he's retired to stud. Now, 1977 Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew caught a terrible viral infection while he was three, but he was allowed months off before he started training again.
So, what's Christina's plan for getting him better? Shipping Star off to Montana so Lyssa can work her woo-woo on him. Then, after going through all of this trouble, Christina doesn't want to follow Lyssa's advice. Until finally she does, and Star magically is better.
What.
The.
Actual.
FUCK?
This was written by Alice Leonhardt, who wrote way back when Christina was only riding Sterling. She wrote a few decent books in the series, so she really should've known better.
I have no idea why the series had this love fest for Lyssa, an intermittent character. She was annoying as hell. She even got her own book, book 56, Hoofprints in the Snow. Her story arc was never completed when the series ended.
In the real world, Star would've probably colicked or got shipping fever after arriving in Montana, and may have died. I just hope nobody with a horse takes the medical advice given in these books seriously.
I understand that this is aimed at 12 year olds who know nothing about horses, but it is beyond frustrating to read books that give a false impression of racing, horse health, or horses in general. This series started so promisingly.
I see this book got 85 five star ratings. Did they read the same book I did? Did real people give the ratings?
If this is the first book in the Thoroughbred series you've picked up, put it back down. You need to, at the very least, read from book 36, Without Wonder, to have any clue as to what's going on. Any background given is scanty, at best.
November 2, 2014
Reread.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews