Lara at Athenry Castle

Hoofbeats: Lara and the Gray Mare #3

by Kathleen Duey

Nine-year-old Lara is the daughter of the r?-the leader of her cattle-raising clan. While she spends her days tending to the cattle, her heart lies with her beloved gray mare. When Lara goes to the highlands to set the cattle out to graze, she finds the mare in the process of a difficult birth. Lara vows to take care of the foal as a dying promise to the gray mare, and with the help of a childless milk-cow, she cares for the spindly-legged filly. But just when she is confident that the foal can survive, a rival clan captures them both, and throws Lara's life into turmoil. When the filly is eventually given to a titled baron in the castle town of Athenry, Lara, determined to stay with the horse no matter what, goes along. Together, she and her beloved horse face seemingly insurmountable challenges, but all along Lara keeps two things in mind. One day, she will manage to flee, and will set off in search of the family that she was taken from. And she will not leave without her silver mare.

Genres: Horses, Historical Fiction, Childrens, Animals, Historical, Middle Grade

144 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Kathleen Duey grew up in Colorado. She loved riding her horses, hiking, being in the mountains. Reading was always important to her. Writing became a fascination early in her life. In the fourth grade, Kathleen began writing stories and told everyone who would listen that she was going to be an author. Then she did nothing about it until she was 35 years old. Writing was her passion and her dream-come-true.

from: fantasticfiction.co.uk

Kathleen died of cardiac arrest at her home in Fallbrook, California. She was 69. She had struggled with dementia in her latter years which prevented her from completing her Skin Hunger trilogy.

https://web.archive.org/web/202101052...

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 3 has Lara disguising herself as a boy so she can get to her beloved horse. I think she should republish the whole series as novel. It took me, a slow reader about an hour to read this. Lara is great. on to book 4.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kathleen Duey stuns in the third book of her Hoofbeats series, providing by far the most exciting and adventurous book of the series. Though it just can’t take the place of the first book, Lara and the Gray Mare, as the favorite in my heart, Lara at Athenry Castle is close to perfect and objectively probably the best in the series.

Desperate to reunite with her beloved filly Dannsair, Lara O’Marchach disguises herself as a boy named Trian and ventures into the vast city of Athenry, eventually being taken in by a kind weaver named Brigit. After months of fruitless attempts, Lara finally manages to get a job as a workhand in the stables of the Baron of Athenry, who owns and plans to use Dannsair in a grand race against the Irish clans. Lara secretly trains Dannsair and eventually is chosen to represent the Baron in the upcoming race, with the promise of being given ownership of Dannsair if she can win the race.

Lara’s adventures are always interesting to me, as someone intrigued by both horses and medieval Ireland, but Lara at Athenry Castle is a particular accomplishment for Duey. In 128 pages, she brings about immense character development, a swiftly-moving plot, and a huge dose of genuine emotion. Lara’s struggle with disguising herself as a boy (especially as she has to learn not to cry in front of others) is compelling and believable, and her determination and work ethic only grow as she adjusts to a new environment and the fact that she can depend only on herself for survival.

I also love the use of new characters to spice up the story a bit. Brigit is a wonderful mentor and friend to Lara, and the stablemaster (along with the Norman boys) are interesting foils (and eventual enemies) to her. Of course, the relationship between Lara and Dannsair drives the storyline as always, but I like that Duey steps beyond the horse-girl narrative to show the broader historical scope of Athenry. The horse race is easily the most exciting scene in the whole series, and the twist with the betrayal of the stablemaster and baron is appropriately frustrating. The setting is unforgettable and vivid, and the ending — with Lara dyeing Dannsair to hide her, escaping through the gates “disguised” as a girl in Brigit’s beloved wedding dress — is nothing short of masterful for a book of this genre.

Lara at Athenry Castle may not be a book of the highest complexity or thematic significance, but it’s a refreshing turn of events in the Hoofbeats series and is very charming in its own way.

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like this is where I stopped in this series...I don't think I ever finished the series for some reason -_-'

[Skyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was more interesting than the first two, but still way too much explanation.

[Evelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was really happy. I liked that the filly ran fast.