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The A Circuit #3
Off Course: An A Circuit Novel (The A Circuit) by Georgina Bloomberg
Equestrians Tommi, Kate, and Zara are expected to perform at every horse show big or small. So with the biggest show of the season just weeks away, they should be in prep mode. But that's easier said than done. Kate and Zara are both dealing with boy drama. And a road trip steals Tommi's focus. Then there's the issue of a new blog on the circuit-is someone from Pelham Lane Stables feeding gossip to the press? The drama explodes at annoying tag-along Summer's sweet sixteen bash. This addictive series is perfect for fans growing out of Canterwood Crest and anyone who enjoys the elite world of super privileged teens in series like Pretty Little Liars.
Mass Market Paperback
First published November 13, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
January 19, 2013
This series is my guilty pleasure! This installment didn't have nearly enough horses, alas.
May 23, 2013
Fun, silly read. I enjoy the horse scenes more than the characters, who are a bit flat. After 3 volumes, Kate is definitely getting on my nerves.
November 21, 2018
DNF.
I've tried, really. But until around page 100 there's absolutely NOTHING that makes me care about the main character or their (trivial, petty, i-don't-get-it-and-i-don't-care-either) problems. The story stays shallow and painful to read.
I've tried, really. But until around page 100 there's absolutely NOTHING that makes me care about the main character or their (trivial, petty, i-don't-get-it-and-i-don't-care-either) problems. The story stays shallow and painful to read.
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May 3, 2025Back on my trashy horse show novels 🙃
May 23, 2016
This wasn't the best book in the series (both book 1 and 2 were 4.5 stars).
This mostly had to do with Kate. Kate truly ruined the book for me. Why? Well let me list the reasons:
-The way she treated Fitz. He was so sweet to her, he did his best to make her happy, and all she did was be an ungrateful bitch. She constantly complained about him, about how he wouldn't let her do her work (because gee, girl, maybe he cares about you and worries that you might overwork, and come on, what is so wrong with taking off a few hours in the morning instead of working from 6am).
And not only that, OH DEAR LORD if Fitz did so much as touch her, or try to kiss her. She would instantly pull back, and practically look at Fitz as if he was a rapist. She even locked the door when she was staying with him (in a separate room, because Fitz is so nice). Why did she lock it? Because they started kissing and of course kissing leads to more, and she immediately overreacted.
I do wonder, did she have a bad past of sexual stuff? There are no hints to it, but it does seem like it a bit.
Also I hated how she judged Fitz and his past with other girls. He is doing his best, and all she is thinking about is how much girls he went by. Not even caring that Fitz is truly showing he cares about her, and only her now. Give the guy some love girl, or just move off.
-Her overworking. Really, that girl is just so stuck in work, and doesn't care that even Jamie thinks she is doing it too much. She is just a working student, she doesn't need to be around 24/7/365. Even Jamie thinks this, as he has banned her during some days.
But oh no, this girl only thinks of working.
-The eating and how she reacting when her friends were worried.
You barely eat, you move around your food instead of eating it, you lose weight, you are practically underweight (if I have to believe the descriptions, which I do). But oh NO, if someone who is you friend tries to help you out. Tries to make you eat. You will immediately overreact and act like a total bitch. Bah. Ungrateful urgh...
*And yes I know her home situation isn't the easiest, she is having a bad time there, and tries to run away from it. But that doesn't excuse her from the crap she pulls in this book (and also the previous one).
Phew, that feels better.
Now we still have Tommie, who I normally love, but who I didn't like that much in this book. OMG your boyfriend (or something like that) fails on his DJ thing, and doesn't even notice. Immediately you are embarrassed about him and you go on to other guys, ignoring your guy, not talking to him, and then you do that when you finally see him. Bah, this is not how you treat a guy.
It is just not nice. It is just not kind. How would you feel if he did that kind of stuff to you?
But I was also happy for her and her horse. I can't wait to see how this thing will continue in the next book.
Zara was actually the one I quite liked in this book, sure I am still annoyed with how she treats her horses (not riding them and leaving it to others) or her boys (discarding them left and right), but for some reason her POV was way more fun this time. I was also interested in seeing how she would solve that Stacie situation, and loved how she tried not to make anyone find out. :D
There are also enough horse parts, and those I truly loved. I just wish there were more of it. These guys are like the A circuit, the juniors, yet I barely see them win or participate. I don't even have the feeling they always take training seriously.
So this book is full of drama, full of horses, and boy trouble. It was quite interesting, but I was just so frustrated with Kate that I couldn't enjoy it fully.
I do hope the next book is better. I will be sad when the series is over though, but I guess I can start another horse series then (or continue with the ones I still need to finish). :)
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
This mostly had to do with Kate. Kate truly ruined the book for me. Why? Well let me list the reasons:
-The way she treated Fitz. He was so sweet to her, he did his best to make her happy, and all she did was be an ungrateful bitch. She constantly complained about him, about how he wouldn't let her do her work (because gee, girl, maybe he cares about you and worries that you might overwork, and come on, what is so wrong with taking off a few hours in the morning instead of working from 6am).
And not only that, OH DEAR LORD if Fitz did so much as touch her, or try to kiss her. She would instantly pull back, and practically look at Fitz as if he was a rapist. She even locked the door when she was staying with him (in a separate room, because Fitz is so nice). Why did she lock it? Because they started kissing and of course kissing leads to more, and she immediately overreacted.
I do wonder, did she have a bad past of sexual stuff? There are no hints to it, but it does seem like it a bit.
Also I hated how she judged Fitz and his past with other girls. He is doing his best, and all she is thinking about is how much girls he went by. Not even caring that Fitz is truly showing he cares about her, and only her now. Give the guy some love girl, or just move off.
-Her overworking. Really, that girl is just so stuck in work, and doesn't care that even Jamie thinks she is doing it too much. She is just a working student, she doesn't need to be around 24/7/365. Even Jamie thinks this, as he has banned her during some days.
But oh no, this girl only thinks of working.
-The eating and how she reacting when her friends were worried.
You barely eat, you move around your food instead of eating it, you lose weight, you are practically underweight (if I have to believe the descriptions, which I do). But oh NO, if someone who is you friend tries to help you out. Tries to make you eat. You will immediately overreact and act like a total bitch. Bah. Ungrateful urgh...
*And yes I know her home situation isn't the easiest, she is having a bad time there, and tries to run away from it. But that doesn't excuse her from the crap she pulls in this book (and also the previous one).
Phew, that feels better.
Now we still have Tommie, who I normally love, but who I didn't like that much in this book. OMG your boyfriend (or something like that) fails on his DJ thing, and doesn't even notice. Immediately you are embarrassed about him and you go on to other guys, ignoring your guy, not talking to him, and then you do that when you finally see him. Bah, this is not how you treat a guy.
It is just not nice. It is just not kind. How would you feel if he did that kind of stuff to you?
But I was also happy for her and her horse. I can't wait to see how this thing will continue in the next book.
Zara was actually the one I quite liked in this book, sure I am still annoyed with how she treats her horses (not riding them and leaving it to others) or her boys (discarding them left and right), but for some reason her POV was way more fun this time. I was also interested in seeing how she would solve that Stacie situation, and loved how she tried not to make anyone find out. :D
There are also enough horse parts, and those I truly loved. I just wish there were more of it. These guys are like the A circuit, the juniors, yet I barely see them win or participate. I don't even have the feeling they always take training seriously.
So this book is full of drama, full of horses, and boy trouble. It was quite interesting, but I was just so frustrated with Kate that I couldn't enjoy it fully.
I do hope the next book is better. I will be sad when the series is over though, but I guess I can start another horse series then (or continue with the ones I still need to finish). :)
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
September 3, 2017
Maybe it's because I'm tired of reading textbooks, but this series is seriously growing on me. The drama is juicy, the girls are growing as people, and the horses just keep coming. Fingers crossed the series continues after book 4,
March 19, 2013
Well, Not a terrible book, but it needed something more,
January 24, 2026
Not enough horses.
August 12, 2024
3.5
I wanted more horse/show/barn content. This book felt like it was focusing more on the interpersonal relationships of the characters.
I wanted more horse/show/barn content. This book felt like it was focusing more on the interpersonal relationships of the characters.
February 24, 2021
A solid like 4.2 stars it was good. It was a quick, fast paced read and I really enjoyed it. I love horses so this book was very good and interesting. I also liked how it tackled the reality of not feeling like you fit in with family, eating disorders, OCD, and other things people are struggling with. I know that there are people in this world who struggle with these things so I think that is what makes this book so real. Well anyway this is the end of this very short review, hopefully you enjoyed reading this review while I write it sitting in math class. Thank you. *bows
October 7, 2016
I’d always been into horses and growing up, I never got any opportunity to ride horses since it was usually relatively expensive either for a simple lesson or a trail ride. So for me, equestrian is basically a rich person’s sport. Horses are incredibly expensive and lessons and board and overall training and basic care cost a fortune. So picking up a series devoted to the A circuit was a like reading about something I had always wanted to do since I was young.
However, I do have relatively mixed feelings about this book because some of the characters really stood out to me while others simply irked and annoyed me to no end. Out of the three main characters, Tommi, Zara and Kate, I think Tommi was most relatable to me despite the fact that she’s essentially a billionaire’s daughter but I think her priorities, personality and character resonated most with me. She’s responsible, punctual and seems to have a good head on her shoulders. Of course, she’s still a teenager and therefore makes irresponsible decisions at times but at the end of the day, you can clearly tell what is important to her and how she will still make things work. Plus, there was this one scene with her and Zara where she promised to pick Zara up to drive down for this show and even though she went to bed late and was out partying, she still managed to drive from the Hamptons to Zara’s place on time because horsemanship was important to her whereas Zara was also partying the night before and completely forgot that Tommi was coming to pick her up and slept in. I feel like that example clearly personifies me as a person as well. I take my responsibilities seriously and if I say I will do or be somewhere, I’ll do/be there. I just wish there was more information on the ending about her and her potential buy/sell horses in a professional manner.
Zara kind of annoyed me in the first book because she was portrayed as this wild child and was not responsible whatsoever. She didn’t care that a lot of choices she made directly impacted those around her and in a negative way too. She was always tardy for her lessons, she was reckless and caused a huge accident at the stable, etc. However, I think she changed the most throughout the series. By the end of the last book, you can tell how much she had grown as a person overall. She cared a lot more about horses and riding and took her duties more seriously. I definitely liked her by the end of the books.
The one person that I was just okay with in the beginning and later just downright annoyed me was Kate. I found her timid, meek, incredibly uptight and way too stressed out for me. She was basically OCD but in terms of her responsibilities rather than cleanliness. Not sure if you guys have noticed but I have this tendency to dislike weak characters and she was by far one of the weakest I have encountered. She would take on all these responsibilities even while knowing that she can’t possibly juggle riding, working, and dealing with school, homework and exams. But she’ll try to take it all on and then it started to detriment her health which caused her to outright faint in front of everyone while riding and freaked everyone out. At the end of the day, it wasn’t only detrimental to herself but to everyone around her. Her friends had to literally remind her at every meal if she ate or slept enough. I honestly can’t handle people like her. She was also incredibly wishy-washy – she couldn’t make any tough decisions to save her life and she would put it off until either someone else made the decision for her or if circumstances forced the decision on her. And it pissed me off because when it happened and it wasn’t something she was particularly happy about, she would immediately cry and feel sorry for herself. Even with small decisions like putting off some time to grab food with her boyfriend, she would go back and forth between a simple yes or a simple no and once she made the decision, the chances of her being talked out of it was incredibly high. It was honestly so irritating.
However, despite my annoyance with Kate, the other two, Zara and Tommi, and the story itself made me persevere. Honestly, I really did like reading about all the shows and the lessons and the horses themselves. I found it incredibly interesting but I wish it was more of a two person’s POV rather than three. Perhaps that would have made things a little better overall.
Click here to view entire review: http://holedupinabook.blogspot.com/20...
However, I do have relatively mixed feelings about this book because some of the characters really stood out to me while others simply irked and annoyed me to no end. Out of the three main characters, Tommi, Zara and Kate, I think Tommi was most relatable to me despite the fact that she’s essentially a billionaire’s daughter but I think her priorities, personality and character resonated most with me. She’s responsible, punctual and seems to have a good head on her shoulders. Of course, she’s still a teenager and therefore makes irresponsible decisions at times but at the end of the day, you can clearly tell what is important to her and how she will still make things work. Plus, there was this one scene with her and Zara where she promised to pick Zara up to drive down for this show and even though she went to bed late and was out partying, she still managed to drive from the Hamptons to Zara’s place on time because horsemanship was important to her whereas Zara was also partying the night before and completely forgot that Tommi was coming to pick her up and slept in. I feel like that example clearly personifies me as a person as well. I take my responsibilities seriously and if I say I will do or be somewhere, I’ll do/be there. I just wish there was more information on the ending about her and her potential buy/sell horses in a professional manner.
Zara kind of annoyed me in the first book because she was portrayed as this wild child and was not responsible whatsoever. She didn’t care that a lot of choices she made directly impacted those around her and in a negative way too. She was always tardy for her lessons, she was reckless and caused a huge accident at the stable, etc. However, I think she changed the most throughout the series. By the end of the last book, you can tell how much she had grown as a person overall. She cared a lot more about horses and riding and took her duties more seriously. I definitely liked her by the end of the books.
The one person that I was just okay with in the beginning and later just downright annoyed me was Kate. I found her timid, meek, incredibly uptight and way too stressed out for me. She was basically OCD but in terms of her responsibilities rather than cleanliness. Not sure if you guys have noticed but I have this tendency to dislike weak characters and she was by far one of the weakest I have encountered. She would take on all these responsibilities even while knowing that she can’t possibly juggle riding, working, and dealing with school, homework and exams. But she’ll try to take it all on and then it started to detriment her health which caused her to outright faint in front of everyone while riding and freaked everyone out. At the end of the day, it wasn’t only detrimental to herself but to everyone around her. Her friends had to literally remind her at every meal if she ate or slept enough. I honestly can’t handle people like her. She was also incredibly wishy-washy – she couldn’t make any tough decisions to save her life and she would put it off until either someone else made the decision for her or if circumstances forced the decision on her. And it pissed me off because when it happened and it wasn’t something she was particularly happy about, she would immediately cry and feel sorry for herself. Even with small decisions like putting off some time to grab food with her boyfriend, she would go back and forth between a simple yes or a simple no and once she made the decision, the chances of her being talked out of it was incredibly high. It was honestly so irritating.
However, despite my annoyance with Kate, the other two, Zara and Tommi, and the story itself made me persevere. Honestly, I really did like reading about all the shows and the lessons and the horses themselves. I found it incredibly interesting but I wish it was more of a two person’s POV rather than three. Perhaps that would have made things a little better overall.
Click here to view entire review: http://holedupinabook.blogspot.com/20...
February 5, 2016
Have you ever wanted to experience what other people do out of school on their free time or when their bored. Well if you have ever felt that need I think that you should take the time to read one of the books I recently read. Recently I have read the book “Off Course, A Circit Novel By: Georgina Bloomberg & Catherine Hapka.” In my complete honest opinion I think that this book was super good. It took a while to complete but in the end you will not regret reading it. If you are looking for an interesting book and you are into animals you should take the time and read this it is all about horses and life of an equestrian. The book mostly takes place in the barn and it also explains what all you have to do when you own horses and how much trouble they could possibly cause on humans. It also explains that equesterians concentrate on their horses and their horse shows more then their personal life. They are focused on winning and competing against their opposing team. Reading this book makes you realize what it is like to live the life of an equesterian, and living the life of having famous parents. I would encourage any age group that could read to read this. I think that this book could inspire people on horses and living life with having horses famous parents, and taking riding lessons. It gets out of the people that live in the city understand what happens with the people with horses or animals and they get to kind of like experience a different lifestyle by reading it.
February 25, 2013
I have read the previous books and they were all ok, but this one wasn't as good. The appeal of the series to me is the riding and showing aspect and yes some of the horse people drama, but this book was way more about teenage drama than anything and there are a few snippets of riding and showing here and there. I know the target audience for these books is mostly junior riders, and they might like the teen drama and emotions, but honestly I was pretty annoyed and bored with most of it. Georgina Bloomberg is a pro rider and could offer so much to the horse aspect of these books but instead they seem to be going more into teen drama than anything. Hopefully the next books in the series will focus back on the real purpose of the series - the riding and showing on the A circuit.
March 13, 2015
I personally really liked these books,Because I can relate to them because I ride horses and have rode warm blood hunter horses.
Off course is about the adventures of 3 girls named Kate,Tommi,Zara who ride in the "A" circuit and about the drama that comes with it,horses thinking about there futures,guys and much more.This is the second to the last book and and its about Kate and Fitz relationship horse shows Tommi trying to sell Legs her Young jumper.
I recommend this book to horse people because if you don't ride horse you wouldn't know really what they are talking about. I enjoyed the this book and the ones before them
Off course is about the adventures of 3 girls named Kate,Tommi,Zara who ride in the "A" circuit and about the drama that comes with it,horses thinking about there futures,guys and much more.This is the second to the last book and and its about Kate and Fitz relationship horse shows Tommi trying to sell Legs her Young jumper.
I recommend this book to horse people because if you don't ride horse you wouldn't know really what they are talking about. I enjoyed the this book and the ones before them
May 25, 2013
I enjoyed the first two books in this series tremendously. I may be an adult now, but when I was the age of the primary characters in this series, I rode and showed out of a barn that was exactly like Pelham Lane. I can put the faces of people I rode with right into the characters since there are so many similarities. That being said, the focus of this book shifted from the horses, barn and shows to the personal lives of the characters away from the barn. For me, this doesn't hold my interest and detracts from the reasons I read the series in the first place.
April 27, 2016
The third book in this series and the second to last book. As I loved all the other books I love this one too. Fitz and Kate's relationship is in the balance here and who knows what will happen when the drama of a show barn starts to hurt Kate. Then a new blog starts up about all the top East Coast show barns and Pelham Lane is one of them. Will this blog spill some secrets that should be kept? I recommend this to the anyone who has read the other books in the series as this is not a stand alone novel.
November 24, 2012
I really enjoyed this next installment in the A Circuit series. I love reading about the different lives and adventures of Tommi, Kate, and Zara. I thought the author really developed the characters more in this book and placed them in believable situations. I'd definitely recommend this to my horsey friends and can't wait for the next book!
November 26, 2012
Bought and read in one day! I love Kate (tommi and Zara too but kate mostly)! It great as a horse rider to have another horse series to read after "outgrowing" Canterwood Crest books. A must read for teen horse lovers!
March 13, 2014
I don't get it. Georgina Bloomberg took a genius idea and completely slaughtered it with lame characters. I was completely annoyed by it, and yet continued to read because I am an amateur rider myself.
August 2, 2013
Fun, entertaining fluff... but the "mystery" of the book is about as non mysterious as you can get. I hope they don't drag that story line too far into the next one!
December 29, 2012
So this series started out pretty cool for a teen book and then this book just epically failed at life. I hope the next one picks it up because this book sucked.
November 17, 2013
too girly and not enough on the horses..
Definitely not like GG/It Girl
Definitely not like GG/It Girl
August 2, 2013
Good book
January 28, 2014
This book was fine but nothing really happened. There was too much teenage angst and not enough about horses!
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews