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Rutshire Chronicles #1
Riders
From the queen of the British bestseller lists comes the classic hit every Englishwoman remembers with a sigh -- Riders, the steamy, scandalous tale of sexual and equestrian competition within the heroic world of international show jumping. Welcome to a world of cutthroat competition populated by fearless athletes, wealthy sponsors, and beautiful starlets and set against the glorious Cotswold countryside and the playgrounds of the world. Within this arena we meet the brooding gypsy Jake Lovell, under whose magic hands the most difficult horse or woman becomes biddable, who is driven by his hatred of Rupert Campbell-Black, the handsome and supremely confident star of the show ring. They steal each other's horses and love each other's women as they push themselves and their mounts to impossible extremes, until their feud erupts, with devastating consequences, at the Los Angeles Olympics.
912 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1985
1953 people are currently reading
12150 people want to read
About the author
Jilly Cooper
91 books866 followersDame Jilly Cooper, OBE (born February 21, 1937) was an English author. She started her career as a journalist and wrote numerous works of non-fiction before writing several romance novels, the first of which appeared in 1975. She was most famous for writing the six blockbuster novels the Rutshire Chronicles.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,020 reviews
May 25, 2011
Well, well, well, what a lovely surprise.
I picked up this book on the recommendation of last month's Goodreads newsletter, which said Riders was a solid summer read. British. Bawdy. Lots of cavorting around the English countryside. What's not to like? Then I went to my local Barnes & Noble, found the only copy in stock and was instantly dismayed by the book's heft (more than 900 pages!) and its ridiculous cover art depicting a huge close up of tight, white riding pants stretched taut over a voluptuous woman's ass, cupped by a man's hand. I purchased the book, bravely but in shame, unable to meet the eyes of the sales clerk behind the register. My Anglophelia's been starving, however, and I had to feed it: Goodreads was right -- this is the perfect summer read.
This is a fun book. Fun and dirty and silly and full of memorable characters. I thought the beginning was a bit slow going -- it took me about 75 pages to really get into it. Just wait until you meet Rupert Campbell-Black -- one of the biggest assholes to ever grace a page, but still a funny and sexy as hell motherfucker. Ridiculous. The cast of characters rivals War and Peace in number.
You want to get lost in something? You want a long, happy distraction? Read Riders. It's so much fun. I'll miss it.
I picked up this book on the recommendation of last month's Goodreads newsletter, which said Riders was a solid summer read. British. Bawdy. Lots of cavorting around the English countryside. What's not to like? Then I went to my local Barnes & Noble, found the only copy in stock and was instantly dismayed by the book's heft (more than 900 pages!) and its ridiculous cover art depicting a huge close up of tight, white riding pants stretched taut over a voluptuous woman's ass, cupped by a man's hand. I purchased the book, bravely but in shame, unable to meet the eyes of the sales clerk behind the register. My Anglophelia's been starving, however, and I had to feed it: Goodreads was right -- this is the perfect summer read.
This is a fun book. Fun and dirty and silly and full of memorable characters. I thought the beginning was a bit slow going -- it took me about 75 pages to really get into it. Just wait until you meet Rupert Campbell-Black -- one of the biggest assholes to ever grace a page, but still a funny and sexy as hell motherfucker. Ridiculous. The cast of characters rivals War and Peace in number.
You want to get lost in something? You want a long, happy distraction? Read Riders. It's so much fun. I'll miss it.
July 30, 2017
Original thoughts:
I read this in my teens in the 80s and loved it. Rampant Rupert stole my innocence, but it was beautiful Billy who stole my heart!
Today's thoughts:
25+ years later, I couldn't wait to meet Billy again as I buddy-read this book with my good friend Jemidar, but discovered that what the teenage heart and the 40-something heart want are two different things. Billy just didn't do it for me this time round, and even worse, he actually began to annoy me. Gutted that a teenage crush came to such a sudden end :-(
On the plus side, this 40-something heart was very happy to get reacquainted with Dino. I liked him as a teen, but now, mmm mmmm. The heart doesn't break, it just moves on ;-p But the real star of the whole show for me this time was feisty adorable Fen, who took on the boys and won. Go 'Fiona' ;-)
The book itself was just as much fun as I remembered it to be, with sex, scandal and skulduggery all served up with large dollops of wit, one-liners and downright silliness. 4 stars then, 4 stars now.
I read this in my teens in the 80s and loved it. Rampant Rupert stole my innocence, but it was beautiful Billy who stole my heart!
Today's thoughts:
25+ years later, I couldn't wait to meet Billy again as I buddy-read this book with my good friend Jemidar, but discovered that what the teenage heart and the 40-something heart want are two different things. Billy just didn't do it for me this time round, and even worse, he actually began to annoy me. Gutted that a teenage crush came to such a sudden end :-(
On the plus side, this 40-something heart was very happy to get reacquainted with Dino. I liked him as a teen, but now, mmm mmmm. The heart doesn't break, it just moves on ;-p But the real star of the whole show for me this time was feisty adorable Fen, who took on the boys and won. Go 'Fiona' ;-)
The book itself was just as much fun as I remembered it to be, with sex, scandal and skulduggery all served up with large dollops of wit, one-liners and downright silliness. 4 stars then, 4 stars now.
October 10, 2025
A total bin fire of a novel! And, like a bin fire, hard to look away from. Though the pong it sends up is something else.
I picked up Riders as a lockdown read, out of nostalgia. On holiday years ago I read Polo and enjoyed it as a fun page-turner. I remember that I found the central romance quite sweet, and I love anything to do with horses. The right wing culture of the posh yet good-natured and animal-loving polo players didn't feel like the main point of the novel, more a daft byproduct of the mis-en-scene.
Riders is the earlier book and maybe Cooper's editor reined her in a bit after this was published, I don't know. Throughout the book the reader is encouraged to root for a psychopathic narcissist who rapes and controls his wife, racially abuses everyone who isn't an English toff, uses hate-filled slurs against gay men and women, and bullies everyone else. Oh and he beats his horses, which Jilly does frown upon - before presenting him as a romantic hero again on the next page. In interviews she sets up this creation, Rupert Campbell Black, as a bastard, but a ravishingly sexy one who must be indulged.
Other characters are almost as bad. A seemingly affable showjumper beats his wife (or 'blacks her eye' as Cooper puts it, casually). Another showjumper that we are invited to admire refers to a woman's vagina as 'a loose box'. Epithets for Italians and Travellers are standard fare for the characters. It almost reads like an intentional parody of bigotry, but then our breathless author reports that hero Rupert Campbell Black simply must waltz off for a dinner date with Generalissmo Franco. After a while I realised that Cooper must really like fascists.
Sadly, Cooper also appears to hate other women. It's fascinating to to read her describe an adult woman as sluttish, or as 'heaving her eleven-stone bulk' around. Her women characters are either 'fat' and therefore worthy of derision; starving themselves to please a chauvinistic man; or so gorgeously thin that men are obsessed by their 'fragile' looks. One hero, the affable wifebeater, seduces a sixteen year old who is revealed to be a beauty - once she loses weight. What makes it breathtaking is that the reader is meant to be overjoyed at this development.
I was totally gripped by Riders. It is terrible, but weirdly educational too. Given that the UK class system valorises the cauterisation of feeling, how could there be a sexier man than Rupert Campbell Black? He's like the British Empire made sentient. A psychopath whose inability to feel anything - except vicious pleasure at Owning Things (women, horses, titles, land, status) - make him the natural hero of Cooper's amoral universe.
I picked up Riders as a lockdown read, out of nostalgia. On holiday years ago I read Polo and enjoyed it as a fun page-turner. I remember that I found the central romance quite sweet, and I love anything to do with horses. The right wing culture of the posh yet good-natured and animal-loving polo players didn't feel like the main point of the novel, more a daft byproduct of the mis-en-scene.
Riders is the earlier book and maybe Cooper's editor reined her in a bit after this was published, I don't know. Throughout the book the reader is encouraged to root for a psychopathic narcissist who rapes and controls his wife, racially abuses everyone who isn't an English toff, uses hate-filled slurs against gay men and women, and bullies everyone else. Oh and he beats his horses, which Jilly does frown upon - before presenting him as a romantic hero again on the next page. In interviews she sets up this creation, Rupert Campbell Black, as a bastard, but a ravishingly sexy one who must be indulged.
Other characters are almost as bad. A seemingly affable showjumper beats his wife (or 'blacks her eye' as Cooper puts it, casually). Another showjumper that we are invited to admire refers to a woman's vagina as 'a loose box'. Epithets for Italians and Travellers are standard fare for the characters. It almost reads like an intentional parody of bigotry, but then our breathless author reports that hero Rupert Campbell Black simply must waltz off for a dinner date with Generalissmo Franco. After a while I realised that Cooper must really like fascists.
Sadly, Cooper also appears to hate other women. It's fascinating to to read her describe an adult woman as sluttish, or as 'heaving her eleven-stone bulk' around. Her women characters are either 'fat' and therefore worthy of derision; starving themselves to please a chauvinistic man; or so gorgeously thin that men are obsessed by their 'fragile' looks. One hero, the affable wifebeater, seduces a sixteen year old who is revealed to be a beauty - once she loses weight. What makes it breathtaking is that the reader is meant to be overjoyed at this development.
I was totally gripped by Riders. It is terrible, but weirdly educational too. Given that the UK class system valorises the cauterisation of feeling, how could there be a sexier man than Rupert Campbell Black? He's like the British Empire made sentient. A psychopath whose inability to feel anything - except vicious pleasure at Owning Things (women, horses, titles, land, status) - make him the natural hero of Cooper's amoral universe.
August 4, 2015
Drama, drama, drama,,, but, oh, so much fun! I was in the mood to read something light and a lil bit scandalous. This novel fit that bill perfectly. It won't win any literary awards but, oh, it was so enjoyable. In addition to being highly entertaining... I,actually, learned a great deal about show jumping. Highly recommend if your looking for a sexy, fast paced, compulsively addicting read.
January 19, 2010
I'm pretty sure the blurb on the cover of my copy read "Sex and horses--it just doesn't get any better" or something like that, and I suppose that's really the best review. But the progress of the book into and out of my life is also a testament to its effects on readers:
A paperback copy of Riders was loaned to me by the director of a school where I worked. She'd bought it while traveling in England and made me swear I would give it back, as she wasn't sure she could easily get another copy stateside (this was the 80's, before eBay, etc. made it easy to get British books).
I am an ethical person who lives in fear of negative book karma and would never steal a book, much less steal from the person who signed my paychecks. But I did. In fact, I moved away with her copy of Riders to another state, a state with more horses, no less.
My punishment was swift; my dog Toby spent a pleasant afternoon chewing the spines off of two very pricey library books, incurring me a $200 fine. Well worth it, I thought as I wrote out a check to the library; I'd surely had my $200 of enjoyment out of Riders, and while the Layman's Parallel Bible and Barbara Tuchman's Through a Distant Mirror were goners, I still had the book that really mattered.
Seven years later, I hesitantly loaned Riders to my riding instructor. She loved horses and jumping, but her true love was a former nun--I wasn't sure the antics of Rupert Campbell-Black et al wouldn't either offend her or leave her yawning and thinking of me as either overly puerile or conflicted in a Freudian way. My fears were unfounded--I never saw the book again because she loved it, and just kept "accidentally" not returning it to me... until someone finally stole it from her.
So, yes, five stars for Riders.
A paperback copy of Riders was loaned to me by the director of a school where I worked. She'd bought it while traveling in England and made me swear I would give it back, as she wasn't sure she could easily get another copy stateside (this was the 80's, before eBay, etc. made it easy to get British books).
I am an ethical person who lives in fear of negative book karma and would never steal a book, much less steal from the person who signed my paychecks. But I did. In fact, I moved away with her copy of Riders to another state, a state with more horses, no less.
My punishment was swift; my dog Toby spent a pleasant afternoon chewing the spines off of two very pricey library books, incurring me a $200 fine. Well worth it, I thought as I wrote out a check to the library; I'd surely had my $200 of enjoyment out of Riders, and while the Layman's Parallel Bible and Barbara Tuchman's Through a Distant Mirror were goners, I still had the book that really mattered.
Seven years later, I hesitantly loaned Riders to my riding instructor. She loved horses and jumping, but her true love was a former nun--I wasn't sure the antics of Rupert Campbell-Black et al wouldn't either offend her or leave her yawning and thinking of me as either overly puerile or conflicted in a Freudian way. My fears were unfounded--I never saw the book again because she loved it, and just kept "accidentally" not returning it to me... until someone finally stole it from her.
So, yes, five stars for Riders.
Read
October 15, 2024Ugh. I'm giving up. I thought I could go out of my comfort zone and read this, but I thought wrong. Kudos to everyone for the fabulous reviews, though.
July 9, 2014
Is that not the raunchiest cover art you've ever seen? I had to do an inter-library request to get this book (for some reason, my well-stocked urban library system doesn't have a copy of Cooper's classic literary masterpiece), and when I asked the peppy blonde girl behind the counter to retrieve it for me, she came back waving it proudly, asking, “Is this it?!”
How I responded: “Uh, yep. That's the one. Suuuuuuper scandalous.”
How I wanted to respond: “DUDE! Could you maybe NOT call the entire library's attention to the fact that not only am I checking out a book with a hand cupping an ass on it, but I went out of my way to order said ass-cupping book from another state?!”
Now, I'm no prude. I volunteer at the library every week, processing hold requests and shelving, so I know for a fact other people have checked out far more appalling books than Riders. And that's one of the many things I love about libraries—it's all there, freely available, without judgment or eyebrow-raising. Are you a thirteen-year-old girl curious about your changing body? Are you a frat guy in your early twenties looking for instructions for brewing your own beer? Are you a middle-aged professional woman who can't wait to read the Fifty Shades trilogy? Are you pregnant with your first child and wondering what natural childbirth is like? (Pro tip from someone who knows: don't ever open a book written by a midwife. There will be pictures. Actual photographs, from which you will never recover.) Come one, come all, because the library's got all the answers and it's totally free. I still can't quite get over that.
So no, I'm not ashamed to request a romance novel set in the world of competitive show jumping from the library. I just don't really need Barbie's little sister Skipper parading it around like she's on QVC.
Despite the potential embarrassment you may suffer in acquiring this book, it's worth the risk. I know very little about horses and was actually unaware that such a sport as show jumping existed, but Cooper's book focuses equally on a second topic that is, shall we say, familiar to us all. Published in 1985 and set firmly in the '70s, Cooper's characters flounce their way from the stables to the ring to the bedroom and back again.
Cooper follows the interconnected lives of several competitive show jumpers. First is Rupert Campbell-Black, the dark and swarthy hunk who rides both his horses and his women hard. Billy Lloyd-Foxe is Rupert's best friend and partner in crime, a simple man of simple pleasures. Then there's Jake Lovell, the boy who comes from nothing but has such a gift for horse handling that he may be able to make a name for himself. Of course, Rupert and Jake have a fierce rivalry that stretches beyond the bounds of their sport and into their personal lives. If you thought only girls could be catty and jealous, these men will surprise you when their claws come out.
At just over 900 pages, the book may strain your attention span. Around page 300 I felt the plot (yes, there kind of is one) lagging and didn't know if I would make it, but it picked back up and the last half was way more interesting. Just when you think someone can't possibly make one more terrible, self-destructive choice, they do. And it's awesome.
If you enjoy the occasional soap opera, if you love sexual drama and catfights, if your summer just isn't complete without a big, sprawling, trashy novel, put in your library request for Riders now. Hopefully your library clerk will be more discreet than mine was.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
How I responded: “Uh, yep. That's the one. Suuuuuuper scandalous.”
How I wanted to respond: “DUDE! Could you maybe NOT call the entire library's attention to the fact that not only am I checking out a book with a hand cupping an ass on it, but I went out of my way to order said ass-cupping book from another state?!”
Now, I'm no prude. I volunteer at the library every week, processing hold requests and shelving, so I know for a fact other people have checked out far more appalling books than Riders. And that's one of the many things I love about libraries—it's all there, freely available, without judgment or eyebrow-raising. Are you a thirteen-year-old girl curious about your changing body? Are you a frat guy in your early twenties looking for instructions for brewing your own beer? Are you a middle-aged professional woman who can't wait to read the Fifty Shades trilogy? Are you pregnant with your first child and wondering what natural childbirth is like? (Pro tip from someone who knows: don't ever open a book written by a midwife. There will be pictures. Actual photographs, from which you will never recover.) Come one, come all, because the library's got all the answers and it's totally free. I still can't quite get over that.
So no, I'm not ashamed to request a romance novel set in the world of competitive show jumping from the library. I just don't really need Barbie's little sister Skipper parading it around like she's on QVC.
Despite the potential embarrassment you may suffer in acquiring this book, it's worth the risk. I know very little about horses and was actually unaware that such a sport as show jumping existed, but Cooper's book focuses equally on a second topic that is, shall we say, familiar to us all. Published in 1985 and set firmly in the '70s, Cooper's characters flounce their way from the stables to the ring to the bedroom and back again.
Cooper follows the interconnected lives of several competitive show jumpers. First is Rupert Campbell-Black, the dark and swarthy hunk who rides both his horses and his women hard. Billy Lloyd-Foxe is Rupert's best friend and partner in crime, a simple man of simple pleasures. Then there's Jake Lovell, the boy who comes from nothing but has such a gift for horse handling that he may be able to make a name for himself. Of course, Rupert and Jake have a fierce rivalry that stretches beyond the bounds of their sport and into their personal lives. If you thought only girls could be catty and jealous, these men will surprise you when their claws come out.
At just over 900 pages, the book may strain your attention span. Around page 300 I felt the plot (yes, there kind of is one) lagging and didn't know if I would make it, but it picked back up and the last half was way more interesting. Just when you think someone can't possibly make one more terrible, self-destructive choice, they do. And it's awesome.
If you enjoy the occasional soap opera, if you love sexual drama and catfights, if your summer just isn't complete without a big, sprawling, trashy novel, put in your library request for Riders now. Hopefully your library clerk will be more discreet than mine was.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
April 25, 2024
rating: 4.5
as someone who grew up reading misty of chincoteague, saddle club, and heartland, i desperately wanted an adult equestrian story with gossip girl-esque drama, and riders delivered satisfactorily (and then some).
this helped me live out my unfulfilled event dreams. set to the countryside outside london, riders follows the lives of several event jumpers who rise to acclaim and fame, as well as the interpersonal web of comraderie, competition, and infidelities stringing them together across the continents.
i loved rooting for fen, she’s such a spitfire. rupert is the blueprint for chuck bass, and i’d argue he makes chuck's antics look like child's play. delightfully unlikable yet undeniably charismatic, his enigma brings much entertainment to readers. he can be quite awful but his quips never failed to get a chuckle out of me.
a fan favorite i frankly can’t understand is billy. so many reviews rave for him as a sweetheart, but i think he’s a bit of a pushover. he stands by while rupert does sometimes atrocious things and (spoiler) . while deplorable, at least rupert has a backbone whereas billy rides off his money and never puts his foot down. blegh.
jake i feel lukewarm about. i definitely sympathized but then greatly disliked some of his choices, but i found in the end i was really hoping for things to end ok for him.
at an intimidating 900+ page count, this was actually an incredibly fast read. i wouldn’t have guessed it was more than 500 pages if i hadn’t checked. it’s not necessarily fast-paced but i was quite engaged with all the characters’ journeys. it’s firmly british, set in late 1970s - early 1980s england, so it was fun discovering & figuring out new terms & phrases, as well as looking up cultural & historical contexts & references.
it was written in the mid 1980s, so there are outdated terms used and some situations that may offend / aren’t really to be used anymore.
overall, i really enjoyed this and i’m intrigued to continue the series (though i hear this is the raunchiest of them, so i might be let down lol).
as someone who grew up reading misty of chincoteague, saddle club, and heartland, i desperately wanted an adult equestrian story with gossip girl-esque drama, and riders delivered satisfactorily (and then some).
this helped me live out my unfulfilled event dreams. set to the countryside outside london, riders follows the lives of several event jumpers who rise to acclaim and fame, as well as the interpersonal web of comraderie, competition, and infidelities stringing them together across the continents.
i loved rooting for fen, she’s such a spitfire. rupert is the blueprint for chuck bass, and i’d argue he makes chuck's antics look like child's play. delightfully unlikable yet undeniably charismatic, his enigma brings much entertainment to readers. he can be quite awful but his quips never failed to get a chuckle out of me.
a fan favorite i frankly can’t understand is billy. so many reviews rave for him as a sweetheart, but i think he’s a bit of a pushover. he stands by while rupert does sometimes atrocious things and (spoiler) . while deplorable, at least rupert has a backbone whereas billy rides off his money and never puts his foot down. blegh.
jake i feel lukewarm about. i definitely sympathized but then greatly disliked some of his choices, but i found in the end i was really hoping for things to end ok for him.
at an intimidating 900+ page count, this was actually an incredibly fast read. i wouldn’t have guessed it was more than 500 pages if i hadn’t checked. it’s not necessarily fast-paced but i was quite engaged with all the characters’ journeys. it’s firmly british, set in late 1970s - early 1980s england, so it was fun discovering & figuring out new terms & phrases, as well as looking up cultural & historical contexts & references.
it was written in the mid 1980s, so there are outdated terms used and some situations that may offend / aren’t really to be used anymore.
overall, i really enjoyed this and i’m intrigued to continue the series (though i hear this is the raunchiest of them, so i might be let down lol).
December 19, 2025
Another reread of this still amazing book. 2025.
This must be the tenth time at least that I've read this novel since my teens and it never disappoints or get's old - I'd hit a bit of a reading slump so picked this up as a tonic and it worked an absolute treat. I'm now going to move on to the rest of the saga- next up Rivals.
Riders is just simply a glorious romp set around show jumping, with some perfect characters (Rupert Campbell-Black, now a fictional icon, is still JUST as brilliant no matter how many times you "meet" him), this book is funny, sexy, exciting and SUCH a marvellous reading experience that I'm sure that before I'm done with life I shall have read it a few more times.
Following our cast through the ups and downs of local shows, national shows, international shows and culminating in a spot on perfect finale at the Olympics, it is entirely compelling, the intricacies of the love lives and riding lives of everyone you meet being so beautifully done.
I adore this series and always will.
Happy Reading Folks!
This must be the tenth time at least that I've read this novel since my teens and it never disappoints or get's old - I'd hit a bit of a reading slump so picked this up as a tonic and it worked an absolute treat. I'm now going to move on to the rest of the saga- next up Rivals.
Riders is just simply a glorious romp set around show jumping, with some perfect characters (Rupert Campbell-Black, now a fictional icon, is still JUST as brilliant no matter how many times you "meet" him), this book is funny, sexy, exciting and SUCH a marvellous reading experience that I'm sure that before I'm done with life I shall have read it a few more times.
Following our cast through the ups and downs of local shows, national shows, international shows and culminating in a spot on perfect finale at the Olympics, it is entirely compelling, the intricacies of the love lives and riding lives of everyone you meet being so beautifully done.
I adore this series and always will.
Happy Reading Folks!
December 19, 2015
I actually found the book boring? The same thing happens again and again. Rupert has affairs, his wife Helen is a drag, Tory is fat, Billy is a kind fool, Jake doesn't realize he loves his wife until its almost too late, shows, shows, shows......blah blah blah
October 18, 2019
https://clavie.co/2019/10/16/book-rev...
Some could argue that the book is a product of its time. However, I don’t think that’s sufficient. This reads as a: racist, sexist, homophobic, classist soap opera with horses.
The plot meandered so much I had no sense of where it was going or which characters would be the final focus.
And there is a rape scene. It is never acknowledged as such. It was extremely upsetting, not just because of the content but because of the flippant way it was handled and also because of the absolutely natural way it developed from the atrocious attitudes towards men, women, and relationships throughout the entire book.
I had to give this a rating sadly.
August 22, 2017
I can't do it anymore.
This is the worst book that has ever been written.
EVER.
This is the worst book that has ever been written.
EVER.
![Profile Image for laurel [the suspected bibliophile].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1645808644i%2F7494844._UX200_CR0%2C6%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
July 26, 2024
I bought this on a whim after seeing several reviews saying that it was a classic British romance.
Not just a classic British romance, but THE classic British romance of the 80s and 90s. Tawdry. Dramatic. Horses. Men. Lust. This was the book that wetted the knickers of all British mums and sparked the sexual awakening of their daughters. It was THE ultimate summer reading experience.
It's also a doorstopper at over 900 pages.
Of course, it lingered on my kindle for two years, until I was looking for an Olympics themed read and this sparked my interest.
Oh. My. Goodness.
THIS BOOK.
It's a fucking beast that nevertheless kept me riveted for the five days it took to get through. I talked about this book to my friends. I talked about this book to my coworkers. I talked about this book to random people on the internet.
The first thing (or the 15th, whatever) I have to mention is that this is not a good book. It is very much a product of the 1980s. In addition to the things described as bad (sexual assault, statutory rape, animal abuse, animal death, drinking and drug use, suicide attempt) there are the things that it's rather neutral and kinda positive about (aggressive fatphobia, casual racism, the use of the g-slur to describe a Romani character, rampant misogyny, homophobia). Nevertheless, it was addictive as fuck and I hate myself for it.
To be very general: this is more-or-less a book about the long rivalry of two men, Jake Lovell and Rupert Campbell-Black, who are show-jumper extraordinaires. On the one hand, you have Rupert Campbell-Black, born to privilege, who rides women as rough and hard as he rides his horses. On the other, Jake Lovell, a half-Romani orphan and the surly underdog of the story. Rupert is the villain of the story, but you often can't tell whether the author wanted to hate him or fuck him. Regardless, the man should be in jail.
Then there is an entire supporting cast of characters: Helen Macauley the activist turned abused socialite without a spine, Tory Maxwell the literal backbone and unsung hero of the entire fucking story, Billy Lloyd-Foxe who is Rupert's bestie and a guy you just kinda root for even though he makes real bad decisions, Janey the journalist who is NOT a girls' girl, Fen Maxwell the plucky and kinda-spoilt teenage heroine, Malise Gorden the long-suffering chef d'equip of the British jumping team, and a bunch of other people I don't really care about aside from Dino who is literally the only truly good man in this entire book. #ProtectDinoAtAllCosts
Of course I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the HORSES, because this is a Horse Book. High drama of the richy-riche and whatnot, but also HORSES.*
The main horses you care for belong to Billy, Jake, Fen and Dino (who doesn't get a POV), because these people actually care about their animals. Mostly, though, you care about Jake's horses, because he loves them more than people and there are some heart-stopping moments with both Sailor and Macauley (the horse not the woman, although there are some heart-stopping moments with Helen too).
Anywho, the book starts in 1970 and culminates during the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics (and a little after), and all I can say is that if you want a SAGA about horses and rich people and underdogs, WHICH YOU DO, then you've got to read this.
Will I delve into the other books in the series? Eh, probably not, because they all seem to feature Rupert and I hate him.
Is this the best book I've read all year? Oh hell no.
Is this the book I'm going to be telling all the people about? YOU BET YOUR FUCKING ASS I WILL
*Technically this *is* a romance because it does end in an HEA but like, in the loosest sense of the definition in today's terminology.
Not just a classic British romance, but THE classic British romance of the 80s and 90s. Tawdry. Dramatic. Horses. Men. Lust. This was the book that wetted the knickers of all British mums and sparked the sexual awakening of their daughters. It was THE ultimate summer reading experience.
It's also a doorstopper at over 900 pages.
Of course, it lingered on my kindle for two years, until I was looking for an Olympics themed read and this sparked my interest.
Oh. My. Goodness.
THIS BOOK.
It's a fucking beast that nevertheless kept me riveted for the five days it took to get through. I talked about this book to my friends. I talked about this book to my coworkers. I talked about this book to random people on the internet.
The first thing (or the 15th, whatever) I have to mention is that this is not a good book. It is very much a product of the 1980s. In addition to the things described as bad (sexual assault, statutory rape, animal abuse, animal death, drinking and drug use, suicide attempt) there are the things that it's rather neutral and kinda positive about (aggressive fatphobia, casual racism, the use of the g-slur to describe a Romani character, rampant misogyny, homophobia). Nevertheless, it was addictive as fuck and I hate myself for it.
To be very general: this is more-or-less a book about the long rivalry of two men, Jake Lovell and Rupert Campbell-Black, who are show-jumper extraordinaires. On the one hand, you have Rupert Campbell-Black, born to privilege, who rides women as rough and hard as he rides his horses. On the other, Jake Lovell, a half-Romani orphan and the surly underdog of the story. Rupert is the villain of the story, but you often can't tell whether the author wanted to hate him or fuck him. Regardless, the man should be in jail.
Then there is an entire supporting cast of characters: Helen Macauley the activist turned abused socialite without a spine, Tory Maxwell the literal backbone and unsung hero of the entire fucking story, Billy Lloyd-Foxe who is Rupert's bestie and a guy you just kinda root for even though he makes real bad decisions, Janey the journalist who is NOT a girls' girl, Fen Maxwell the plucky and kinda-spoilt teenage heroine, Malise Gorden the long-suffering chef d'equip of the British jumping team, and a bunch of other people I don't really care about aside from Dino who is literally the only truly good man in this entire book. #ProtectDinoAtAllCosts
Of course I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the HORSES, because this is a Horse Book. High drama of the richy-riche and whatnot, but also HORSES.*
The main horses you care for belong to Billy, Jake, Fen and Dino (who doesn't get a POV), because these people actually care about their animals. Mostly, though, you care about Jake's horses, because he loves them more than people and there are some heart-stopping moments with both Sailor and Macauley (the horse not the woman, although there are some heart-stopping moments with Helen too).
Anywho, the book starts in 1970 and culminates during the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics (and a little after), and all I can say is that if you want a SAGA about horses and rich people and underdogs, WHICH YOU DO, then you've got to read this.
Will I delve into the other books in the series? Eh, probably not, because they all seem to feature Rupert and I hate him.
Is this the best book I've read all year? Oh hell no.
Is this the book I'm going to be telling all the people about? YOU BET YOUR FUCKING ASS I WILL
*Technically this *is* a romance because it does end in an HEA but like, in the loosest sense of the definition in today's terminology.
June 16, 2018
Struggled to finish it. Skipped a lot. I "get" that this is a book of its time, but surely it must have been awful then too? I think the crowning insult is when one character nearly dies - but it's alright because she loses a lot of weight. Not for me.
June 30, 2019
Set in the idyllic Cotswolds countryside, Riders follows lives of international show-jumpers and their friends, family, lovers - and animals: Jake Lovell, gypsy-born, a brilliant horseman seeking revenge for years of bullying at the hands of his nemesis - the devastatingly handsome but roguish Rupert Campbell-Black. This story is about their ambitions of competing at the Olympics.
It’s fast paced and exciting and I really enjoyed all the showjumping references as I did when I was a horse mad teenager. The characters are likeable and well constructed. I shall look forward to rereading all of Jilly Cooper’s Rutshire chronicles.
It’s fast paced and exciting and I really enjoyed all the showjumping references as I did when I was a horse mad teenager. The characters are likeable and well constructed. I shall look forward to rereading all of Jilly Cooper’s Rutshire chronicles.
January 25, 2021
It’s very sexy, then I cried over a horse
top book club pick
🌟🌟🌟🌟
top book club pick
🌟🌟🌟🌟
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November 21, 2025A doorstopper filled with drunken bed-hopping and show-jumping among the British horsey set in the 70s and 80s.
Anthropologically and culturally interesting, and page-turning, but also horrifying. Maybe it’s the disconnect between the cover blurbs describing it as joyful, mischievous, and sexy on the one hand, and on the other hand the rampant misogyny, dash of homophobia and racism, and honestly a lot of really quite bad sex (main character Rupert Campbell-Black is given the nickname of Campbell-Black and Decker by one of his conquests, which…actually isn’t all that flattering, but sums up male sexuality in this time/place/book, I guess - lots of mindless drilling away, in addition to some marital rape, and some slavering over teenage girls, too). Oh, and outside the bedroom there’s also some animal abuse, so there’s that. Anyway, it was readable, but with kind of a horrified fascination. I did quite enjoy the show-jumping, described with the loving over-attention to detail that I appreciate about watching a baseball game.
Anthropologically and culturally interesting, and page-turning, but also horrifying. Maybe it’s the disconnect between the cover blurbs describing it as joyful, mischievous, and sexy on the one hand, and on the other hand the rampant misogyny, dash of homophobia and racism, and honestly a lot of really quite bad sex (main character Rupert Campbell-Black is given the nickname of Campbell-Black and Decker by one of his conquests, which…actually isn’t all that flattering, but sums up male sexuality in this time/place/book, I guess - lots of mindless drilling away, in addition to some marital rape, and some slavering over teenage girls, too). Oh, and outside the bedroom there’s also some animal abuse, so there’s that. Anyway, it was readable, but with kind of a horrified fascination. I did quite enjoy the show-jumping, described with the loving over-attention to detail that I appreciate about watching a baseball game.
November 8, 2021
awful
The way the author portrays women is just astounding and insulting. As a woman herself I don’t understand how she could do that. I would not recommend anyone subject themselves to this book. I have never read anything worse.
The way the author portrays women is just astounding and insulting. As a woman herself I don’t understand how she could do that. I would not recommend anyone subject themselves to this book. I have never read anything worse.
July 16, 2010
Well, this is certainly no Pride and Prejudice! This is Cooper's debut book; a naughty romp through the elite world of show-jumping from local shows to the very top of the sport - the World Championships and the Olympics. Our main characters are Jake Lovell, a Gypsy underdog, and the first showing of Rupert Campbell-Black (who will appear in future books by Jilly Cooper), the good-looking rogue of the horsy set who jumps in and out of beds with no thought to the consequences.
There are masses of other characters that people the pages of this huge tome. Despite this, they are characterised simply and well, with distinctive traits and values. Unfortunately, it is hard to be sure who to root for! In the beginning we are firmly behind Jake - his tough start in the sport, his sympathetic treatment of horses, and his courageous win of the World Championship in the face of almost-impossible odds ensure that we feel certain he is the hero of the piece. We cheer when he finds Macauley, a horse that Rupert mistreats, and then uses this horse to beat Rupert in the Championship. We adore his family of Tory and Fen and his two adorable children. However, key events in the book lead us to firmly throw our weight behind Rupert - despite all his many, many faults. We find the behaviour of Jake and Helen - Rupert's wife - abominable.
My least favourite character is definitely Helen. I dislike her mismanagement of Rupert, her neurosis, her brittle perfection, her inability to stand up for herself. I think she is weak and end up believing she deserves everything she gets! I love Billy - he is one of the few characters who, despite flaws, is consistently a person to have sympathy for.
The book is long and rambling and could do with a little more structure, although Cooper's research is excellently done. It follows a now tried and tested formula of taking a gossipy approach to relationships and sex, but we should remember that Jilly was one of the first to tread this path. Riders was a genuinely naughty book when it was first released, with swear words and steamy sex scenes that are now included in books as a matter of course.
Certainly Jilly Cooper's writing is not to all tastes - her books are often considered lowbrow trash, only suitable for holiday reading. I, however, adore her books. I love the doorstop bulk of them, where you can really become invested in the characters and the story. I especially enjoy the fact that the horses and dogs are as big characters as the people themselves - in this book Sailor, Macauley, Revenge, Desdemona, Badger include some of those animals who simply leap from the page.
Altogether I would recommend this book to horse lovers who have no issues with a naughty slant; readers of "chick lit" and people who want a slyly funny and very good-natured read. Extremely enjoyable.
There are masses of other characters that people the pages of this huge tome. Despite this, they are characterised simply and well, with distinctive traits and values. Unfortunately, it is hard to be sure who to root for! In the beginning we are firmly behind Jake - his tough start in the sport, his sympathetic treatment of horses, and his courageous win of the World Championship in the face of almost-impossible odds ensure that we feel certain he is the hero of the piece. We cheer when he finds Macauley, a horse that Rupert mistreats, and then uses this horse to beat Rupert in the Championship. We adore his family of Tory and Fen and his two adorable children. However, key events in the book lead us to firmly throw our weight behind Rupert - despite all his many, many faults. We find the behaviour of Jake and Helen - Rupert's wife - abominable.
My least favourite character is definitely Helen. I dislike her mismanagement of Rupert, her neurosis, her brittle perfection, her inability to stand up for herself. I think she is weak and end up believing she deserves everything she gets! I love Billy - he is one of the few characters who, despite flaws, is consistently a person to have sympathy for.
The book is long and rambling and could do with a little more structure, although Cooper's research is excellently done. It follows a now tried and tested formula of taking a gossipy approach to relationships and sex, but we should remember that Jilly was one of the first to tread this path. Riders was a genuinely naughty book when it was first released, with swear words and steamy sex scenes that are now included in books as a matter of course.
Certainly Jilly Cooper's writing is not to all tastes - her books are often considered lowbrow trash, only suitable for holiday reading. I, however, adore her books. I love the doorstop bulk of them, where you can really become invested in the characters and the story. I especially enjoy the fact that the horses and dogs are as big characters as the people themselves - in this book Sailor, Macauley, Revenge, Desdemona, Badger include some of those animals who simply leap from the page.
Altogether I would recommend this book to horse lovers who have no issues with a naughty slant; readers of "chick lit" and people who want a slyly funny and very good-natured read. Extremely enjoyable.
May 15, 2020
I ..... guys this book just wasn't for me I think. It let me down on all fronts - The two main male characters are horrible, the ladies just enter horrible situations with these horrible men because they think they can fix them or something. This book has quite some graphic animal abuse in it - and all the characters know this one dude is abusing his horses but no one even remotely tries to stop him and they tolerate it because 1) he is hot 2) he is a "good" rider (imo good riders don't abuse the horses they ride on but idk). The writing style was a bit odd for me - you basically get multiple POV characters but there is no indication of switching - you are just randomly moved to another persons perspective and it takes a little bit to adjust to that (its also not limited to a few characters - like during one scene involving 5 characters you get all of their thoughts on the event - even if they aren't relevant to the story at all).
And then my biggest let down is surprisingly the romance part - don't get me wrong I'm not a huge romance reader, but I wanted to give it a shot - I was a little nervous because of how "steamy" this book claims it is - but like - apart from characters being horny for each other there is no steam to be seen in this book - everything is fade to black. Like if I was just expecting it to be a romance it would've been fine but noooo it had to be a "steamy romance" and there is no such thing in this book.
I will say I did skim read the second half of the book because I was just so done with it i really hated the ending, I feel like Helen went from being so interesting to just being the worst character and I had no sympathy for either her or Jake and .
At least I tried, I haven't sworn of the romance genre forever - but it will be a long while before I try again.
And then my biggest let down is surprisingly the romance part - don't get me wrong I'm not a huge romance reader, but I wanted to give it a shot - I was a little nervous because of how "steamy" this book claims it is - but like - apart from characters being horny for each other there is no steam to be seen in this book - everything is fade to black. Like if I was just expecting it to be a romance it would've been fine but noooo it had to be a "steamy romance" and there is no such thing in this book.
I will say I did skim read the second half of the book because I was just so done with it i really hated the ending, I feel like Helen went from being so interesting to just being the worst character and I had no sympathy for either her or Jake and .
At least I tried, I haven't sworn of the romance genre forever - but it will be a long while before I try again.
June 1, 2023
Complete trash. SO OUTDATED. A product of its time. Glad I’m not a woman in the 1970s/80s. BUT I still love it. Such a comfort read. Can’t believe my Mum first gave me this to read when I was 13. I’ve never read a book with so many mention of a woman’s ‘bush’ before…
July 9, 2015
I got tricked into reading this by an article in The Telegraph claiming that it was far superior erotic fiction than 50 shades. In that case, 50 shades, which I haven't read, must be the most unutterable shite on planet earth.
February 28, 2016
No means no. Clearly from a different era, wherein spousal abuse and assault were considered different matters.
July 13, 2023
This bonkers book started out fun but ended up by giving me a rage aneurysm. Should come with trigger warnings for misogyny and fatphobia.
February 16, 2023
Ok, first of all, I went into this book fully anticipating that something of this genre from 1985 would be dated and problematic. I mean, look at that cover! But I'd heard it's a classic, and sometimes I just want to read something trashy, so I braced myself and dug in...
So I get started and yeah, there's some casual misogyny, and lots of the word "gyspy" and its stereotypes. Yikes. But I can handle it, right? It was 1985! And anyway, I am LOVING the show jumping scenes! As a former horse girl myself, this took me back to the days when I read absolutely every book with a horse on its cover that I could get my hands on.
The horse scenes grabbed me early and did not prepare me for everything that would come later.
I keep going and meet the large cast of characters, and... Woof. The character who comes closest to "likeable" is probably Tory, but sadly, Tory is Fat. And once the story gets rolling, Tory disappears into the background, only popping in here and there for the rest of the book to remind the reader that she is Fat.
Other women in the story include Helen, whose main character trait is that she's Beautiful, and Fen, whose character arc is that she becomes Beautiful.
All the other female characters are just sluts we should look down upon, except for Janey, who is also a slut, BUT she's fun about it! (Janey gets punched in the face by her husband in a brief aside, but don't worry about it. We'll never mention it again)
Then we have Rupert. My God. Every woman (and I mean EVERY woman) Rupert meets is seduced by this "charming scoundrel," but he's a fucking sociopath. No one is attractive enough to get away with this kind of behavior, not even in a romance novel.
It just gets worse and worse; I can’t believe I hung in there for all 919 pages. Even the writing about the horse shows gets redundant and boring (If I had to read the term "crashing over fences" one more time...), and THEN HOLY SHIT - Two (three, really) of our main characters literally rape another, and it's never spoken of again.
Everyone is a nightmare, except for Tory, who becomes the doormat-iest doormat to ever doormat, because she's Fat. (Don't you ever, ever forget that Tory is Fat!)
I also kept waiting for the humor that was promised - All the blurbs on the cover praise the book and Jilly Cooper for being so funny, but I just couldn't find it. I thought perhaps the jokes were only apparent to Brits in the 1980s, and I was just too far removed to pick up on any cultural or timely satire... But no, I think the humor stems from such rip-roaringly HILARIOUS observations as "women have pubic hair," "Mexican man is named Jesus," and "lesbians exist."
So I get started and yeah, there's some casual misogyny, and lots of the word "gyspy" and its stereotypes. Yikes. But I can handle it, right? It was 1985! And anyway, I am LOVING the show jumping scenes! As a former horse girl myself, this took me back to the days when I read absolutely every book with a horse on its cover that I could get my hands on.
The horse scenes grabbed me early and did not prepare me for everything that would come later.
I keep going and meet the large cast of characters, and... Woof. The character who comes closest to "likeable" is probably Tory, but sadly, Tory is Fat. And once the story gets rolling, Tory disappears into the background, only popping in here and there for the rest of the book to remind the reader that she is Fat.
Other women in the story include Helen, whose main character trait is that she's Beautiful, and Fen, whose character arc is that she becomes Beautiful.
All the other female characters are just sluts we should look down upon, except for Janey, who is also a slut, BUT she's fun about it! (Janey gets punched in the face by her husband in a brief aside, but don't worry about it. We'll never mention it again)
Then we have Rupert. My God. Every woman (and I mean EVERY woman) Rupert meets is seduced by this "charming scoundrel," but he's a fucking sociopath. No one is attractive enough to get away with this kind of behavior, not even in a romance novel.
It just gets worse and worse; I can’t believe I hung in there for all 919 pages. Even the writing about the horse shows gets redundant and boring (If I had to read the term "crashing over fences" one more time...), and THEN HOLY SHIT - Two (three, really) of our main characters literally rape another, and it's never spoken of again.
Everyone is a nightmare, except for Tory, who becomes the doormat-iest doormat to ever doormat, because she's Fat. (Don't you ever, ever forget that Tory is Fat!)
I also kept waiting for the humor that was promised - All the blurbs on the cover praise the book and Jilly Cooper for being so funny, but I just couldn't find it. I thought perhaps the jokes were only apparent to Brits in the 1980s, and I was just too far removed to pick up on any cultural or timely satire... But no, I think the humor stems from such rip-roaringly HILARIOUS observations as "women have pubic hair," "Mexican man is named Jesus," and "lesbians exist."
March 15, 2012
Ho ho. So much to enjoy about Jilly Cooper's Riders - the definitive bonkbuster from the 1980s.
I read Riders for the first time in the summer of 1995 because I wanted to be a writer, and I wanted to read as many different types of blockbuster novels as possible. I felt embarrassed to read it, to be honest. I had assumed that Jilly Cooper books were written mainly for girls, rather than boys. Maybe they are.
Another reason why I didn't expect to like the book is that it's about showjumping, which has never really got me going. But I just loved this book. I've re-read it numerous times, always in the summer, and it still feels exciting, fresh, funny and pacey. Some books really draw you into their world. They make you want to be part of it. And they make you want to be able to write something that is as entertaining and engaging. For me, this book is one of them. Always makes me want to have a drink, too.
The characters are very memorable. They may be larger than life, but they do feel real, presumably drawn from Jilly Cooper's social circle. They all have aspirations, wit, motivations, fears, ambitions, victories and setbacks. Even if you don't like showjumping, the setting is exciting. Like any sport, in order to succeed, the sportsmen and women have to make many sacrifices and dedicate their lives to a pursuit of excellence. Rider's captures all the exciting ingredients of that world, showing people living their lives to the full, in order to reap big rewards. And that sums up the essence of the book. It's a distillation of people living life full throttle. I might have to go off and read it now. Probably with bottles of wine, or an enormous whisky.
I read Riders for the first time in the summer of 1995 because I wanted to be a writer, and I wanted to read as many different types of blockbuster novels as possible. I felt embarrassed to read it, to be honest. I had assumed that Jilly Cooper books were written mainly for girls, rather than boys. Maybe they are.
Another reason why I didn't expect to like the book is that it's about showjumping, which has never really got me going. But I just loved this book. I've re-read it numerous times, always in the summer, and it still feels exciting, fresh, funny and pacey. Some books really draw you into their world. They make you want to be part of it. And they make you want to be able to write something that is as entertaining and engaging. For me, this book is one of them. Always makes me want to have a drink, too.
The characters are very memorable. They may be larger than life, but they do feel real, presumably drawn from Jilly Cooper's social circle. They all have aspirations, wit, motivations, fears, ambitions, victories and setbacks. Even if you don't like showjumping, the setting is exciting. Like any sport, in order to succeed, the sportsmen and women have to make many sacrifices and dedicate their lives to a pursuit of excellence. Rider's captures all the exciting ingredients of that world, showing people living their lives to the full, in order to reap big rewards. And that sums up the essence of the book. It's a distillation of people living life full throttle. I might have to go off and read it now. Probably with bottles of wine, or an enormous whisky.
November 3, 2023
Deeply enjoyable trash, in the mode of Valley of the Dolls or The Best of Everything or The Group. (Spock: "Ah, the giants.") Full of terrible people being terrible, gross period-typical attitudes, more eating disorders than you can swallow, and also a lot of annoying POV-hopping. That said -- and despite the fact that this is somehow 900 pages long -- I was pretty consistently captivated. The writing is breezy, and Cooper takes more care with character development than I would have thought. Plus the show jumping scenes are genuinely exciting -- I got so into it I ended up watching some competition highlights on YouTube.
The one thing that would prevent me from recommending this book as pure trash fun to anyone in the mood is that, about 3/4ths of the way through, there's a gang rape scene. Neither the author nor the characters seem to fully recognize it as such -- it's painted as bad, but not that bad. To modern/my sensibilities, it was shocking and horrific, and I had to take an extended break afterward. Yet, the characters' (non)reactions unfortunately do feel in keeping with the way they've been presented in the previous 600 or so pages. Oof.
A fascinating, if occasionally repellant, product of its time.
The one thing that would prevent me from recommending this book as pure trash fun to anyone in the mood is that, about 3/4ths of the way through, there's a gang rape scene. Neither the author nor the characters seem to fully recognize it as such -- it's painted as bad, but not that bad. To modern/my sensibilities, it was shocking and horrific, and I had to take an extended break afterward. Yet, the characters' (non)reactions unfortunately do feel in keeping with the way they've been presented in the previous 600 or so pages. Oof.
A fascinating, if occasionally repellant, product of its time.
December 24, 2014
Jilly Cooper is my guilty pleasure. I have all her books but this was my first. I was drawn into the fabulous world she created immediately and still love re-visiting it and all the wonderful characters periodically - especially during long hot summer holidays. Nobody writes like Jilly - many have tried but she is simply the best at what she does.
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January 19, 2025ridiculous, incorrigible fun! the only characters who aren't awful are dino ferranti, ivor and macaulay the horse, and even they have their moments. this book is the reason the phrase "of its time" was invented and aside from everything else i can't believe how much this little freak country was into competitive horse riding in the 80s
June 4, 2025
ok so even though so many parts of this were shockingly outdated and outrageous I have never read a 900 page book faster in my life and I NEED MORE
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