Azarão, a proud Lusitano Stallion, pressed deep into the shadows of his stall. The battle between self-preservation and thousands of years of domestication raged behind his coal-black eyes. The scars of his torment were not visible to the untrained eye. His black satin coat reflected the remaining shards of light that filtered through bars that separated him from his tormentor. His muscular physique gave no clue of his mistreatment. Perhaps the cruelest of all was the daily attempt to unravel the last strand of his now fragile spirit. Heather Collins watched as the veterinarian drew the poison from the vile, a final act that would end the torment of this magnificent creature. She turned to gaze into the soul of this once loyal and willingly compliant performer. Heather could see the shattered heart that had been betrayed by those the dark horse must trust for his survival. Reflections of herself stared back at her as if she understood his torment. Scorned by her peers, her passion had become her prison. Perhaps she should seek the same dart that would end the great stallion’s suffering. She heard the faint sound of the dart sliding into the chamber and the snap of the bolt against it. A final act of defiance streaked across her mind. Heather turned to the man holding the rifle. “No.”
Azarao: The Dark horse (Austin Family Farm Book 1)
Azarao is a horse that had been so abused that he had forgotten that not all humans will hurt him, there are some who care for him. Right now though , he needs someone who can get through his walls of terror, or they will just put him down before he hurts someone. There is only one trainer who could work miracles and bring him back to the horse he once was. Heather was the only one who wanted the job. Her new student Abbi seem just as drawn to Azarao as Heather and she just might be his salvation. This is a great 👍 read.!!!!
This is extremely high quality reading, and an excellent way e stArting a new series. Can't wait until the next book is here. Thanks for SHARING this with all of us. MEt vanderheydte.
Love horses, read this book, the author obviously knows and loves the too. Takes you to a world you may know nothing about yet you will live it with them.
I love "horsey" books, and I really wanted to love this one. However, I found the plot and characters to be flimsy. The actual horse- and riding-related storylines were interesting, but I just didn't like how everything turned out so perfect storybook ending. For example, the high costs of training and showing horses is a big theme at the beginning of the book, but then - oh, how wonderful! - not just one but TWO characters turn out to be - what a stroke of luck! - secretly wealthy so they just go around and buy horses, a farm, a new barn, etc. that everyone needs. Not to mention that every central character ends up with a love interest, even the youngest. This seemed particularly far-fetched when the older man, Pop, was the only one not paired up so - another stroke of unrealistic luck! - while at a cafe for dinner the group realizes they need a cook and - well, Cora was right there cooking in the diner, so she leaves the diner and joins the Austins as Pop's significant other. Other unbelievable plot twists: Mom is a b#*% so she gets packed off to a clinic far, far away. The brats who are mean to the protagonist are summarily ejected from the barn. If only life was truly that neat and clean. I was also distracted by the poor editing; at times, I'd have to go back and try to figure out who was saying what because the punctuation was so poor or nonexistent. I also couldn't figure out whether this was a young adult novel or not? So many horse books are intended for younger audiences, but the love scenes between Heather and Cole seemed a little steamy for that age group?? Just my opinion. Yeah, I'll probably read the next book in the series anyway.
I liked a lot about this book. The author begins to introduce a strong cast of characters with a teen reining phenom who want to exchange disciplines to Eventing, her father who is also a champion western rider and western horse breeder, a disgraced ex-olympian rider turned trainer and other staff working at an equestrian barn.
Very promising characters and premise.
The only thing that kept me from giving it 5 stars was the condensed nature of the story development. Instead of developing deep relationships over months, the heroine Abbi changes lives and long established barn culture in a matter of days.
While I will definitely read the next book in the series I wondered why more significant time wasn't spent developing the relationships of the characters.
Story line is ok...but...punctuation is terrible as if no one edited this book. Characters waffle between believable and stilted. The 18 year old character comes across as 12. The author is in love with the phrase "2 part harmony" and the word giggle. The book title is about a horse but the horse takes 2nd or 3rd place in the book. There was enough interest to keep me going about 2/3 the way but then I gave up. Dialogue is mostly good but to much giggling and often gets wooden. I suggest the author find an editor to hire.
Loved this story even if it was leaving the western life behind to create a new lifestyle! Can't wait to read the next book and hope her mother will straighten out!