It's all about friendship, fun and a passion for horses the Miller household is thrown into chaos when Ash's baby brother is born and Ash finds herself at the bottom of the pecking order for the first time in her life. the baby is cute, but very noisy! Ash finds solace at Shady trails Riding Ranch. It's every horse-mad kid's fantasy and Ash lands her first real job there. But as Shady trails grows, Shady Creek Riding Club starts to lose members, which is worrying for Becky, whose father runs the club. She presents Ash with an it's Shady trails or their friendship. Just when Ash is convinced that she and Becky will never rekindle their relationship, Becky arrives with devastating news. Her sister Rachael has sold the beloved Appaloosa mare Cassata and wants to use the money to buy an old car. the friends put aside their differences and determine to bring Cassata home - whatever the cost. Ages 8-12
This is a great series for any horse loving oerson. Yes, they are written for a younger audience (10-12) however they are light, comical, polite and quite fun to read. They don't have the drama and constant inappropriate language or themes of drugs, sex and makeup they way most books written for teens do. They are genuinely clean and easy to read, with well - developed stories.
I could see this book being a little confusing for two groups of people - those who don't know anything about horses, and those who have not read the rest of this series. Some of the back stories were only really mentioned in the previous books, and not explained in this one, so it would be hard to just pick up at book four of the series and get into it they way I have from starting at book 1.
Overall I am thoroughly enjoying this series. Each book only takes a few hours to read and they are quite well written. The characters are real and intriguing. It's a great series and is highly recommended for anyone, of any age, who is horse crazy.