Secretariat Reborn: A Novel (1)

Christian Roberts #1

by Susan Klaus

Christian Roberts, lanky, blond, and twenty-five-years-old, rents out small sailboats on Sarasota Bay. His peaceful life is shattered when he accepts a thoroughbred colt from his estranged, dying father, an Ocala horse trainer.
When Christian promises his father that he'll race the colt, he's plunged into the underworld of horse racing. To navigate his way he naively hires Ed Price, a heartless Miami trainer. And when his colt shows potential -- a surprising resemblance to Secretariat -- a dubious wealthy sheik wants to buy him, but Christian vows to keep his promise to his father. With a sizable debt still owed on the horse, Christian is forced to take out a loan, his only recourse, Vince, a New York mobster. If the money is not repaid on time, Christian's life and that of Allie, his colt's trainer, are threatened. To add to his rollercoaster of troubles, he faces fraud charges since his father illegally registered the colt, and he is being stalked by a psychotic ex-girlfriend.

Genres: Fiction, Suspense, Romance, Animals, Mystery

280 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2013

Reviews

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secretariat Reborn is an excellent mix of action, adventure,and romance. Klaus gives the reader a look into the some of the more seamy side or the horse racing world. Thoroughly enjoyable!

[Tricia M.S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion I could use a single word to discribe my thoughts of the books. I would like to use the wordInrigue by the following defination:

in·trigue. •an intriguing; secret or underhanded plotting
•a secret or underhanded plot or scheme;

Yup, that would be the word alright. I got a fresh look at the seedy side of horse racing and what happens behind the scenes. We see the turmoil of broken relationships between a dying father and an estranged son. The main Character, Christian - agrees to take on his dying father’s 2 year old colt, Glade Hunter; as a last request. Christian faces many challenges that includes a crazy ex-girlfriend, mobsters, and seedy characters behind the scenes of the race track.

This story had me in it’s grips from beginning to end with it’s intrigue, mystery and unexpected twist greet you with every turn of the page. You can see the story develop around Christian as he makes some hard decisions and their consequences play out. I was so impressed with the story that I finished it in one sitting in one evening. This book has everything thing that I love in a good book and highly recommend it to any one who loves a good horse-themed mystery. I think that Susan can become the next Dick Francis. She definitely seems to know what she is writing about and is well versed in her research. I look forward to see more books in the future from Susan.

I read this book via NetGallery as an ARC for the exchange of my honest opinion. I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

[PopcornReads - MkNoah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review & Giveaway: There is something about the way racehorses move that takes my breath away and watching Secretariat was like watching poetry in motion. So when I saw Secretariat Reborn by Susan Klaus, I knew I had to read it. I mentioned on the home page that Susan is an award-winning author. I want to clarify that. She won an award for an unpublished manuscript which Tor will publish in 2014. If it’s as well-written as Secretariat Reborn, it will do well.

Although it’s a horse racing thriller a la Dick Francis, Secretariat Reborn is actually a story about fathers and sons, and about staying true to who you are. It’s also a story about second chances. We’re delighted to host a giveaway for two copies of this fun read, so be sure to enter below the giveaway at http://popcornreads.com/?p=6673.

[Bonnie Comm ternes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't wait to read this book! If I don't get this book in October it will definitely be on my Christmas list. I'm sure there will be a book signing in Portland, Oregon and I plan on being there.

[Teresa Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secretariat Reborn is Orphan Black for horses. Throw in a taste of the Sopranos and Why Women Kill to get a sizzling summer read from Susan Klaus. Christian Roberts inherits two colts from his estranged, dying father, one of which is a newly cloned version of Secretariat, the greatest racehorse of all time. Christian falls into the underworld of thoroughbred racing, crooked trainers, and gangster loan sharks. And, to spice things up, even more, don’t forget the underhanded Arabian sheik and Christian’s psycho-ex-girlfriend. Secretariat Reborn is a quick summer read with adventure, romance, the excitement and beauty of horse racing, and lush Florida scenery. And then, there’s a hurricane. Klaus brings it all together to a happy conclusion. I liked Allie, a strong female character, a horse trainer with a bit of badassery on the side. Read it in the shade while sipping a cold drink. I received this book as part of an author sponsored raffle.

[Michael Sisti · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a novel that tells you all you want to know about horses and racing, by a thoroughbred author. Susan Klaus takes you on a galloping ride through the paddocks and tracks, as well as the boardrooms and bedrooms of the characters. And the finale is anything but a photo finish. So, stop mucking the stalls and read this thriller. It’s great!

[Houlahan houlahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty lightweight horse tale. I like horse books but a lot of them lack heft. This one is readable enough.
Best parts were the descriptions of the actual races, and the vast beauty of the Florida wilderness.

[Belinda Fry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book.

[Karen Proctor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and fun read with the local flair of Sarasota.

[Bea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I LOVE horse racing books. I started reading Dick Francis while I was teenager so as soon I saw the title, I knew I had to read this one. I barely even read the blurb and I always read the blurb, lol. Unfortunately, with Dick Francis as the standard, the book had some high expectations to meet. I enjoyed the book but I didn't love it. Much of the story is over the top and there are stereotypes that I had trouble accepting. There were also a plethora of typos and some grammatical errors; since this was an ARC, I'm hoping that they were found and fixed before the book went to print.

As I said, I barely read the blurb which ended up being a good thing as the blurb is misleading. It has events out of order and mixes up two different horses. I would have been very confused reading the book if I'd read the blurb. I really hate when books have misleading blurbs; the blurb helps set my expectations for the book so when the blurb is wrong it messes with my enjoyment of the book.

The blurb, happily, does not reveal a huge spoiler though one review I skimmed after I finished the book did and didn't give a warning, argh! The spoiler explains Mystery's resemblance to Secretariat, who died October 4th, 1989 and why Christian's father is so certain the colt will be a champion. I was excited by the spoiler and anxious to see where Klaus went with it. Sadly, for most of the book she did little with it. Late in the book Christian starts to have doubts about the ethics of what he's doing but Klaus doesn't go into any depth with it. I'd hoped the legal and ethical ramifications would play a larger role than they did.

Christian ends up borrowing money from the mob to pay for the colt who is Secretariat Reborn and when he can't pay, he gets roped into their illegal activities. I was very disappointed at Klaus's description of them as it was painfully stereotypical though she did a little better with fleshing them out:

...she stopped at a table with two middleaged, (sic) dark-haired men in black silk suits. One man with thick curly hair was huge, three times Christian's girth and easily twice his weight. The other guy was of average build with a pencil-thin mustache and receding hairline. Their dark hair and eyes and olive-colored skin suggested they might be Italians. With their looks and dress, they stood out in the room of lightly clothed dies like two crows among a flock of parakeets..."Nice meetin' ya," the big guy said with a Brooklyn accent.


The mobsters are somewhat developed as the story goes and particularly Vince get better fleshed out as the story goes though there's little depth and few surprises.

The ex-girlfriend is also a stereotype - the bitchy, selfish, slutty woman who can't possible be his true love because, well, she's bitchy and slutty. And she goes nuts when she and Christian break up. She was cartoonish from the beginning and was never fleshed out. Nothing she does is unexpected, it's all by the numbers. By contrast, the woman who is his true love is petite, blonde, (Kate is tall and brunette), compassionate, caring, thoughtful and honest. Now, those are good characteristics to have but why can't the bitchy woman who enjoys sex be someone's true love? Why was Kate needed in the story at all? Christian could have been single when the story started, and the torment Kate provided was mostly unnecessary drama. The story could have moved along without it.

Klaus keeps the story moving along quickly and despite the often over-the-top events and the poorly drawn characters, the story kept me interested. I was curious to see how Christian handled things and where Klaus would go with her story. I enjoyed the racing details and seeing a different side of Florida than beaches, Disney World, and glamor. Klaus has a knack for spinning a story; I enjoyed "Secretariat Reborn" despite its problems.

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an adult novel set around American racetracks.

When Christian Roberts' parents divorced he went to live in Florida with his mother, and now he runs a boat hire firm. But his dying father wants Christian to take on a promising colt and race him - although Christian knows nothing about Thoroughbreds. It's a steep learning curve for the young man. He's obliged to drive with the colt to Miami, stable him on a racetrack and engage a trainer.

SECRETARIAT REBORN might be an optimistic title for Glade Hunter, but Christian's father has a secret. The young man has to register as an owner and amasses paperwork fast. The party girl he's dating dislikes the amount of time taken up with horses, as opposed to being a stylish horse owner, and Christian, who lives on his yacht, starts rethinking his life. Hardworking Hispanic men seem to be the backbone of the training industry, and as a one-horse owner, Christian doesn't get much time from his trainer compared to wealthy Middle Eastern clients. But he's made friends with Glade Hunter, and trusts his father's lifetime of experience. Then the colt's first race comes up - and it may be Christian's last.

This is a marvellous tale for those who want to see behind the scenes, like Borden Deal's 'Bluegrass' letting us in on the Kentucky stud farm circle. Susan Klaus packs in so many scams and callous acts that we feel disgusted, but her upright characters such as a lady trainer called Allie, are equally revolted at the mistreatment of horses, owners and paying public. The author has worked out how a deception could be carried off so that the great Secretariat could be reborn, with the aid of cloning.

I thought that there was enough going on without adding the layer of a psycho ex-girlfriend. There's plenty of background about Florida's wildlife and landscape, with boats and fishing a way of life for Christopher. This rounds off the book well and fills in the time that it takes for a racehorse to grow and be trained. SECRETARIAT REBORN is a galloping read and sure to be a winner.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Horse Racing, Drug Smuggling, Murder, and Romance

Christian's father is dying. Although Christian has been estranged from his father since his parents' divorce, his father, a small time horse trainer, begs Christian to come see him at his small Thoroughbred farm outside Ocala, Florida. Although down on his luck, his father has a special colt. He wants to give the colt to Christian on the understanding that the colt will be trained and race, hopefully making them a lot of money.

The trainer Christian's father selects swindles him out of the horse, but there's another horse, a clone of Secretariat. His father believes this horse will be one of the greatest racehorses ever, but a great deal of money is owed on him, not to mention that because he is a clone he's not eligible to race, but that can be overcome by falsifying his breeding. To buy the colt, Christian becomes involved with the a group of mobsters who loan him the money to buy the colt. When he can't pay, they coerce him into helping them with drug smuggling off the Florida coast.

Action is the key element in this novel. From Thoroughbred racing to drug smuggling to romance gone bad, the action carries the story. If you enjoy an action filled book. This is one for you. Unfortunately, the action is sometimes a bit extreme. I had trouble with the drug smuggling and psychotic ex-girlfriend, but the horse racing is well done. The author apparently has a good knowledge of the Thoroughbred world and the horse industry centered around Ocala.

The characters are the weakest part of the book. From the horse trainers, to the drug lords, to the girlfriends, they are stereotypes. This may not matter if action is what you seek, but it will bother anyone who expects a character driven novel.

I reviewed this book for Net Galley.

[Margaret Wilkening · Rating 3 out of 5]

What would happen if Texas A&M scientists (whoop!) unknowingly cloned one of the most incredible racehorses that has ever taken the track? As the title indicates, that is the premise Susan Klaus explores in her novel Secretariat Reborn. Beach bum Christian Roberts reconnects with his dying father, a horse trainer, who leaves him a colt who not only carries Secretariat’s blood line, but his exact DNA. Christian wrestles with learning the racing world, finding financing to pay for the clone, and honoring his father’s last wish with the a living ethical dilemma.

I was able to read a preview copy of Secretariat Reborn as a netgalley download and found some aspects of the plot, such as Christian’s psycho girlfriend and his involvement with local mobsters, carried the action over the top at times, but the story was engaging and kept me reading. Kraus was most authentic in her writing about horses and racing, and in her natural descriptions of rural Florida life that most of us don’t know is hidden behind the beaches and Disney of the Sunshine State. However, the relationships and situations are a bit forced and it was hard to fall into a rhythm of the story. Kraus worked enough action into the end of the novel to make a good ending and overall it was a good debut novel.

[Scott Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great story - very interesting and creative with some clever plot twists, plus lots of action. If you're looking for a good, entertaining read, this is a great choice.

The story starts off gradually and continuously builds until you're racing to finish one chapter and get to the next. The basic premise of Christian racing his horse to fulfill the promise to his father ties the story together well, upon which there are lots of creative twists to increase the tension and keep you guessing about how the story will end.

The story made me feel immersed in the "real" Florida, from the marinas and sailing clubs all the way to run down bars in the middle of small inland towns. The author definitely seems to know this territory along with all the intricacies of rearing and racing horses.

There's not much that's not to like in this book. Sometimes the scenes unfold so quickly, I wish they were longer and more detailed just to provide a little more time to savor the excitement. But the story is so engrossing and progresses so quickly that it's easy to set aside my pangs for more details to find out what happens next.

And even when I thought I knew what would happen next, things change. That's a great story.

[Kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

What if? This beautifully written novel of horse racing meets science, kept me asking that very question. This action-packed novel not only holds your attention but also gives you an incredible history of horse-racing and the ins and outs of it as if you were standing in the grandstands knowing all that there is to gain and lose at this high-stakes sport. You’ll deeply realize the intricacies of horse racing, breeding, their care, and you'll get a true appreciation for these beautiful animals, even if you had no prior knowledge. But this book also shares the love for the once small beach town turned affluent mini-city of Sarasota, Florida and its neighboring country town of Myakka.
Klaus’s thoughtful characters portray the diverse crowd that exists today in Sarasota; ranging from the social climber Kate, the mobster Vince, and country loving Allie, and Christian who is somewhere in between---an ethical and handsome protagonist whose education and background from his parents and his love of all things Florida gives him a deep appreciation for what Florida offers both for its the country life and the coastal one.
A must read! Hold on!

[Jane Blanchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secretariat Reborn by Susan Klaus is a complex story with many underlying themes: horses, Thoroughbred racing, gambling, mobsters, romance, stalking, and sailing. Ms Klaus is a great storyteller. Her main character, Christian Roberts leads a relaxing life renting sailboats and dating one of the most beautiful woman on the Sarasota scene. When his dying father bequeaths him with a horse and extracts a promise from Christian to race it, Chris's life becomes complex. Unable to meet his girlfriend's demands, Chris ends the relationship. Unable to fund the racing cost, he gets involved with the mob.

But this heartthrob is not just a pretty face. He is resourceful, a quick-learner, and a good guy with a weakness for women and horses. He is comfortable talking with Florida Crackers as well as the most elite. You will want to keep turning the pages to see if and how he resolves his horse racing problems, his involvement with the mob, and his being stalked by his ex girlfriend.

I enjoyed the suspense, the fast pace, and learning a little about Florida, horses, and horse racing without it becoming pedantic. Secretariat Reborn by Susan Klaus is a light, enjoyable read.

[Marymichele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book from a first reads giveaway.

I will admit that it took me a while to get started on this book. It was labeled as a suspense book, and that is typically not a genre that I read a lot of. However, I loved this book! I thought the plotline was unique and refreshing. I loved that the main character put himself in front of everyone that he cares about, but also found a partner that was willing to do the same.

I did like that there was nonstop action, but it wasn't the type that made me angry enough that I had to stop reading. I never wanted to put the book down. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone, and in fact I already have a couple of friends in mind that I will be suggesting this book to.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Secretariat Reborn by Susan Klaus is an intriguing story of horse racing, gangsters, drug smuggling, and romance. The protagonist, Christian Roberts, heeds his dying father’s last wish and accepts a thoroughbred and promises to race him. Christian is thrown into the good and the evil side of horse racing. Strapped for funds, Christian accepts a loan from Vince, a New York mobster. To further complicate his life, he is being stalked by his psychotic ex-girlfriend.

This is a fast paced story that takes many twists and turns as Christian tries to fulfill his father’s dream. He must battle the underworld dealings of drug smuggling, a crooked horse trainer, and his own personal demons that haunt him as he strives to do the right thing. Highly recommended.

[Margaret Sholders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here is a book set in my backyard. I used to work with Standardbreds at the track but the premise works the same. Susan must work with horses as all the horse action is true. That made me pleased with the story. This book has it all. There is racing with wins and losses. A broken family comes together for a dying father. Not to mention laboratories, mobsters and the we popular crazy ex girlfriend. It was difficult to put down. I am a sucker for anything equine and this story was perfect. Thank you Susan. If you like horses you have to read this one!:

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just finished reading -Secretariat Reborn- a book by Susan Klaus that I won on Good Reads. This book kept me entertained from start to finish. The main characters were realistic and I found myself rooting for good vs. evil. The book was filled with surprises along the way. Instead of just being a book about horse racing, it is about the average people who work behind the scenes to make it all happen.

[Cathy French · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it. This book could have been portrayed with a pretensive curve but it wasn't making it an easy read. There are a lot of terms in regards to horse racing and with boating that couldvne made it hard to get through but the author did a fabulous job of writing it for the everyman not just people in those circles. I would definitely read more of her works after my experience with this story. Putting this on my shelf and am sure I'll reread it again in the future.

[Elizabeth Calder · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a first book, Susan did quite well. Her factual references regarding the horse world were well researched and realistic. She took the time to develop characters that are quite common in the horse world. It took a little while to get into the swing of things but she managed to write a contagious plot and keep the reader interested. Normally I would have said the Kate character might be a little over the top but then again, it wrapped up the ending nicely.

[Charlie Watt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Susan Klaus has written a winner. "Secretariat Reborn" is tightly written, and includes plenty of intriguing plot twists and complex well-developed characters. Intrigue, romance, and adventure are interwoven into a realistic "what if" story that is difficult to put down. Could there be a movie deal in the future?

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

A fantastic read for any horse enthusiast! Secretariat was a racing wonder, watching him running is just awe inspiring. Quite imaginative to create a story about cloning the wonder horse. Throw in the shady side of the racing industry and you have an entertaining reading experience.

Definitely recommend!

[Bradenton Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story was very entertaining and uplifting. It was a very enjoyable read. I'm looking forward to the next book. My mom, Lois, also read it and she stayed up all night until it was finished. She couldn't put it down.

[Mark Mathes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Susan Klaus is one of the best storytellers in Florida and beyond. She knows and loves horses, as we can read between the lines. This is a plausible "what if" story that the author examines. She develops characters, human and equine, who are real and believable. Waiting for the next book!

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite four stars. Loved the plot with the horse but could have done without the crazy ex. She added nothing to the story. Full review on Booklikes.

[Julie Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fabulous!!

[Maryann Burchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I was intrigued by the idea of cloning a famous horse and the action and plot kept me enthralled throughout the entire book. I'm looking forward to reading her next book!

[Janny]

Race horse story written by a track insider, no frills fun read for the beach or a plane trip.