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Taos Lightning
Fifteen-year-old Evan Kendrick has traveled from New Mexico Territory to Galveston with his father, Edward, who will be competing in a horse race that's offering a $3,000 prize to the winner. But a terrible accident seriously injures Evan's drunken father, forcing Evan to saddle up instead.This is no ordinary race. Running from Texas to New England, its course is eighteen hundred miles--maybe even longer--and Evan will be riding a barely half-broke mustang stallion that he and his father caught. He'll be competing against all breeds of horses, ridden by professionals and amateurs from across the world.Although Evan has learned a lot about horses from his father, Edward has also taught his son that horses are good for nothing--"You ride one to death, you get another and do the same."Luckily, but somewhat reluctantly, the race's chief veterinarian, Patrick Jack, takes Evan under his wing. But a horse doctor can teach a hot-headed teenager only so much.For six weeks, Evan Kendrick will learn a lot about horses, riding, friendship, life--and himself. He'll form alliances with two of his competitors, a Negro Seminole Indian scout named Dindie Remo and a hard-drinking young woman, Arena Lancaster, whose life has been harder than even young Evan's. Evan will make enemies, too. He'll see new country, and he'll discover what America can offer, both good and bad. But to win this race--to even survive it--Evan will have to put his trust in a tough stallion the color of trader's whiskey: a mustang named Taos Lightning.
- GenresWesterns
318 pages, Hardcover
First published June 5, 2018
54 people are currently reading
47 people want to read
About the author
Johnny D. Boggs
106 books83 followersJohnny D. Boggs is a Spur- and Wrangler Award-winning author of the American West and frontier. Born in 1962, Boggs grew up on a farm near Timmonsville, South Carolina, around the old stamping grounds of Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion (chronicled in his frontier novel The Despoilers). He knew he wanted to be a writer at an early age. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico with his wife, Lisa Smith; son, Jack Smith Boggs; and basset hound, June.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
July 30, 2018
Ahoy there me mateys! Though this log’s focus is on sci-fi, fantasy, and young adult, this Captain does have broader reading tastes. So occasionally I will share some novels that I enjoyed that are off the charts (a non sci-fi, fantasy, or young adult novel), as it were.
This be a western audiobook that I borrowed from a local library. Westerns are not me thing, unless they are stories about the relationships between horses and rider. Horses were me first love before the sea stole me heart. Some of me favourite books as a kid were the Black Stallion series, black beauty, Marguerite Henry’s horse books, and of course the western, smokey the cowhorse by Will James which won the 1927 Newbery Medal.
So when I read the blurb for this book, it made me feel nostalgic and I thought I would give it a shot. This book follows 15 year old Evan Kendrick. His father has entered an 1800 mile horse race with a prize purse of $3000. Their horse is Taos Lightning, a half-broke mustang stallion. Days before the race is scheduled to take place, Evan’s father is gravely injured and cannot ride. Evan will have to take his place and attempt to win the race. The stakes are high and if they don’t win, father and son will lose everything.
Now the horse race in this was super cool in concept and execution. The race is set to be run from Texas to New England. However, no one except the race organizers know the route. The race is run in stages. When the rider gets to the next check point they receive the location of the next stop and a map of possible trails. Also they are only allowed to ride 10 hours a day because of animal right’s groups like the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Railroads, ferries, and telegraphs all play a part in the execution of the race. I loved the blending of old technology (the horse) and the newer technology. The race was sponsored by the newspapers to sell papers. This race was odd because there wasn’t a ton of excitement about the race itself as only the last couple of days would really determine the winner. The story was more about Evan’s growth and experiences.
The other two main characters besides Evan were Arena Lancaster, an 18 year old girl who likes her drink, and Dindie Remo, a Negro Seminole Indian scout. Evan also gets help along the way from a veterinarian, named Patrick Jack. I enjoyed all of these characters and their impacts on the story.
While I thought the story was fun and the audio narration by Michael Crouch was pleasant, the story did have some issues. The story was hard to get into and the accident with the father was particularly confusing. I thought that overall the story really didn’t start to coalesce until the race started. Plus there was a plot hole involving the dad. If the dad was going to ride the race and they had no money, who was going to take care of Evan while the dad rode for 45 days or more? Also the subplot with the father was resolved abruptly and used basically as a plot point for some angst in the middle of the race.
Also while Evan was a wonderful character that I did cheer on, he would not have survived without the help of the vet and Arena and Dindie. I get that kind-hearted people would want to help a 15 year old in over his head. But better and more experienced riders where taken out all the time and yet this 15 year old greenhorn keeps going. Actually it was also a little unbelievable that the 18 year old girl did so well too. The excuse for them being in the race was that their presence helped sell papers. I could buy that. But not that the two would do so well for so long especially while making silly mistakes along the way.
Additionally the ending was abrupt and unsatisfactory. The author decided to have some of the riders tamper with the race in ridiculous ways that would certainly have been found out and have disqualified them. And the actual ending of the race was silly. Ridiculous even. Then the book has a throwaway line about friendship and just stopped. No resolution at all. I would have at least liked an epilogue about what happened to Evan, Arena, and Dindie after the race. The author had all these crazy things happen and the reader doesn’t get any explanation of the consequences.
So this ended up being just a fun yet okay read for me. I don’t know if I would recommend it. I am glad I read it but I also be glad that I borrowed this one.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordp...
This be a western audiobook that I borrowed from a local library. Westerns are not me thing, unless they are stories about the relationships between horses and rider. Horses were me first love before the sea stole me heart. Some of me favourite books as a kid were the Black Stallion series, black beauty, Marguerite Henry’s horse books, and of course the western, smokey the cowhorse by Will James which won the 1927 Newbery Medal.
So when I read the blurb for this book, it made me feel nostalgic and I thought I would give it a shot. This book follows 15 year old Evan Kendrick. His father has entered an 1800 mile horse race with a prize purse of $3000. Their horse is Taos Lightning, a half-broke mustang stallion. Days before the race is scheduled to take place, Evan’s father is gravely injured and cannot ride. Evan will have to take his place and attempt to win the race. The stakes are high and if they don’t win, father and son will lose everything.
Now the horse race in this was super cool in concept and execution. The race is set to be run from Texas to New England. However, no one except the race organizers know the route. The race is run in stages. When the rider gets to the next check point they receive the location of the next stop and a map of possible trails. Also they are only allowed to ride 10 hours a day because of animal right’s groups like the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Railroads, ferries, and telegraphs all play a part in the execution of the race. I loved the blending of old technology (the horse) and the newer technology. The race was sponsored by the newspapers to sell papers. This race was odd because there wasn’t a ton of excitement about the race itself as only the last couple of days would really determine the winner. The story was more about Evan’s growth and experiences.
The other two main characters besides Evan were Arena Lancaster, an 18 year old girl who likes her drink, and Dindie Remo, a Negro Seminole Indian scout. Evan also gets help along the way from a veterinarian, named Patrick Jack. I enjoyed all of these characters and their impacts on the story.
While I thought the story was fun and the audio narration by Michael Crouch was pleasant, the story did have some issues. The story was hard to get into and the accident with the father was particularly confusing. I thought that overall the story really didn’t start to coalesce until the race started. Plus there was a plot hole involving the dad. If the dad was going to ride the race and they had no money, who was going to take care of Evan while the dad rode for 45 days or more? Also the subplot with the father was resolved abruptly and used basically as a plot point for some angst in the middle of the race.
Also while Evan was a wonderful character that I did cheer on, he would not have survived without the help of the vet and Arena and Dindie. I get that kind-hearted people would want to help a 15 year old in over his head. But better and more experienced riders where taken out all the time and yet this 15 year old greenhorn keeps going. Actually it was also a little unbelievable that the 18 year old girl did so well too. The excuse for them being in the race was that their presence helped sell papers. I could buy that. But not that the two would do so well for so long especially while making silly mistakes along the way.
Additionally the ending was abrupt and unsatisfactory. The author decided to have some of the riders tamper with the race in ridiculous ways that would certainly have been found out and have disqualified them. And the actual ending of the race was silly. Ridiculous even. Then the book has a throwaway line about friendship and just stopped. No resolution at all. I would have at least liked an epilogue about what happened to Evan, Arena, and Dindie after the race. The author had all these crazy things happen and the reader doesn’t get any explanation of the consequences.
So this ended up being just a fun yet okay read for me. I don’t know if I would recommend it. I am glad I read it but I also be glad that I borrowed this one.
Check out me other reviews at https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordp...
July 18, 2020
A great coming-of-age take by a great author
Another nomination for awards as Boggs congers a great story from an oft rumored horse race, where being fast wasn't as important as endurance. Boggs also shows the importance of picking good friends and shunning those who mean you harm.
Another nomination for awards as Boggs congers a great story from an oft rumored horse race, where being fast wasn't as important as endurance. Boggs also shows the importance of picking good friends and shunning those who mean you harm.
January 3, 2022
I’m sure this is a fantastic book for YA, but I was expecting something more. I’m not even going to bother finishing this book. It’s cliche, inaccurate, and predictable unfortunately:
A boy has to stand in for his father, who had a bad accident and can’t ride, to participate in a horse race in order to keep the family farm…
Including the boy, a ragtag bunch of underdogs who likely wouldn’t have been allowed in the race in real life, gets together to form their own posse.
The lead female character is a blond, spunky equestrian who has a crush on the main character and has a little attitude. The racist bullies in the beginning immediately go straight to cat-calling her and telling her to ditch her friends for some “fun.” Gag.
That’s as far as I got. I think I can anticipate how the rest of this story goes.
A boy has to stand in for his father, who had a bad accident and can’t ride, to participate in a horse race in order to keep the family farm…
Including the boy, a ragtag bunch of underdogs who likely wouldn’t have been allowed in the race in real life, gets together to form their own posse.
The lead female character is a blond, spunky equestrian who has a crush on the main character and has a little attitude. The racist bullies in the beginning immediately go straight to cat-calling her and telling her to ditch her friends for some “fun.” Gag.
That’s as far as I got. I think I can anticipate how the rest of this story goes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 27, 2022
This is another good book from author J D Boggs. It is about a fictional horse endurance race from
Texas to New England as sponsored by a publisher to attract new readers. At first I did not think this could be interesting, however, the author proved me wrong. The manuscript moved quickly, had execlent characters, described the conditions met on such a race and had a twist ending that I liked.
Texas to New England as sponsored by a publisher to attract new readers. At first I did not think this could be interesting, however, the author proved me wrong. The manuscript moved quickly, had execlent characters, described the conditions met on such a race and had a twist ending that I liked.
July 22, 2020
What a race!
This is a story about a boy becoming a man and the lessons he learns along the way. Compassion, friendship, gratitude, honesty, faithfulness, and grit all play a part in this heart wrenching race.
This is a story about a boy becoming a man and the lessons he learns along the way. Compassion, friendship, gratitude, honesty, faithfulness, and grit all play a part in this heart wrenching race.
October 23, 2018
Good book, I had to guess as to who actually won the race, and the outcome of some of the characters, but other than than it was a good read.
August 2, 2020
Great story and gret read. 5 stars if ending had been different.
August 8, 2020
Easy read
This was a wonderful easy to read book. I liked the ending because it allowed me to speculate and form my own opinion as to how it really ended.
This was a wonderful easy to read book. I liked the ending because it allowed me to speculate and form my own opinion as to how it really ended.
December 6, 2020
Fun, fast paced with likeable characters and a good story line.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews