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Canterwood Crest #9
City Secrets
Sasha and Heather have a rocky friendship, to say the least. But it’s Heather who Sasha must turn to when she and her best friend, Paige, have a huge fight right before Fall Break. The problem? Sasha was supposed to spend the vacation with Paige in New York City. And since Heather also lives in Manhattan…The solution may not be pretty, but Sasha doesn’t have much choice. Can she and Heather put aside their differences and enjoy their time away from school?
272 pages, Paperback
First published June 21, 2010
42 people are currently reading
860 people want to read
About the author
Jessica Burkhart
135 books628 followersJessica Burkhart is the author of the best-selling Canterwood Crest series which has sold over 1.6 million copies in multiple languages. She has also written the Unicorn Magic series, the YA novel Wild Hearts, and edited a YA anthology--Life Inside My Mind.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews
November 21, 2019
No one mentions, when you become a dad - particularly a father to a daughter - that you will necessarily need to show interest in girly things. Well, my daughter is a fanatical fan of Canterwood Crest having read the first 8 volumes in her native French. We were on vacation when she “needed” the 9th one, so Amazon Kindle came to our rescue and I plunged into reading the book out loud to her in English. It must be noted that my daughter has been doing horse riding and competitive jumping for about two years (she is 8) and is nuts about horses. I was expecting far more about horses and less about tween love, but got more of the latter than the former. The protagonist, 15 year old Sasha Silver spends a school break away from sports academy Canterwood Crest with a fabulously rich previous adversary, Heather Fox. We are treated to meticulous details on every item of outer clothing and brand of makeup that Sasha used during her stay on Park Avenue in NYC. It is this blatant commercialism that made me remove a star from my daughter’s 5 star rating. That being said, given the target audience, the story was well-adapted to the intrigues of first loves and mini-betrayals as one would expect from tween soap opera loosely based on the theme of horse riding. The morals are relatively good (other than the brand name dropping) and I would not hesitate to allow my daughter to continue reading the whole series.
June 25, 2021
I had to skip book 8 because I couldn’t find it anywhere. The good thing about these books is that it isn’t too difficult to figure out what you’ve missed if you miss a book or two. I was able to piece together that Sasha and Paige had a huge fight just before break because Paige thought Sasha was jealous of her and her boyfriend. Like Sasha would be after all the boy drama she’s been caught up in recently anyways, but that’s beside the point. Sasha didn’t want to spend her break with Paige in Manhattan anymore, but since her trip to New York had been planned for so long her parents had planned their own vacation. This left her with only one other option, to spend it with Heather in Manhattan.
In book 7, Heather was being considerably nicer to Sasha, while still keeping up her reputation. I’m so glad that this nicer version of Heather is still around. It seems that Heather and Sasha have created a friendship since book 7. It’s still quite rocky though, and Sasha tries really hard to not upset Heather. It helps that this is Heather’s home turf, and is more desperate for companionship, even if that comes in Sasha: her slightly annoying and embarrassing tourist guest.
We get to learn more about Heather’s childhood, her horrible parents, and her life, which explains a lot about why Heather is the way she is. Jessica Burkhart has created some great layers to her original antagonist. I really don’t envy Heather. For example, I would never want to have dinner with the Fox family. I’d totally mess it up and then have a hole burned through me by Mrs. Fox’s glare.
I have never been to New York before, so I was just as excited as Sasha was that most of the book was spent exploring places in New York. It was refreshing for Sasha to be just having some fun with her old nemesis, without any boy drama going on. A bit of drama resurfaces and some new drama occurs with Heather’s old friends, but that’s it. There wasn’t as much riding in this story but I was actually okay with that. The time that was spent at the barns was really nice and different. Limitless was a really awesome horse, and as much as I love Charm it was nice to have Sasha work with another incredible horse.
I found it really cool that Heather takes Sasha to real places in New York, many of which were places I’d never heard of before. Places such as the Shake Shack, Butter, Dylan’s Candy Bar. Of course, Heather took her to more famous places I have heard of, such as Rockefeller Center and Central Park. Sasha’s excitement and wonder was infectious, and I had a really good time on Heather & Sasha’s New York adventure.
In book 7, Heather was being considerably nicer to Sasha, while still keeping up her reputation. I’m so glad that this nicer version of Heather is still around. It seems that Heather and Sasha have created a friendship since book 7. It’s still quite rocky though, and Sasha tries really hard to not upset Heather. It helps that this is Heather’s home turf, and is more desperate for companionship, even if that comes in Sasha: her slightly annoying and embarrassing tourist guest.
We get to learn more about Heather’s childhood, her horrible parents, and her life, which explains a lot about why Heather is the way she is. Jessica Burkhart has created some great layers to her original antagonist. I really don’t envy Heather. For example, I would never want to have dinner with the Fox family. I’d totally mess it up and then have a hole burned through me by Mrs. Fox’s glare.
I have never been to New York before, so I was just as excited as Sasha was that most of the book was spent exploring places in New York. It was refreshing for Sasha to be just having some fun with her old nemesis, without any boy drama going on. A bit of drama resurfaces and some new drama occurs with Heather’s old friends, but that’s it. There wasn’t as much riding in this story but I was actually okay with that. The time that was spent at the barns was really nice and different. Limitless was a really awesome horse, and as much as I love Charm it was nice to have Sasha work with another incredible horse.
I found it really cool that Heather takes Sasha to real places in New York, many of which were places I’d never heard of before. Places such as the Shake Shack, Butter, Dylan’s Candy Bar. Of course, Heather took her to more famous places I have heard of, such as Rockefeller Center and Central Park. Sasha’s excitement and wonder was infectious, and I had a really good time on Heather & Sasha’s New York adventure.
November 1, 2010
Canterwood Crest- City Secrects
was full of drama, shopping, schooling show prep and Heather Fox.
Afetr the Homecomming dance at Canterwood Sasha's BFF and roomie, Paige, a sweet, 13 year old pro chef who has her own channel on TeenCooking, went off at Sasha at homecomming and changed Sashas decision on staying with her over Spring break, which left this invitation open to Heather Fox. Also a teen of the big apple.
Heather and Sasha were not always frieds..
From day one Sasha and Heather were enemys until they both joined YENT (Youth Equestrian Nations Team) and figured out how much they have in common.
After a break spent with Heather they begin to help each other and do fun things like, riding, spa trips and tours of some of the best places in New York City.
But heres the catch- Heather "helps" Sasha with her boy problems, aka Jacob. By hacking into to Sashas e-mail account and pretending to be her by e-mailing Jacob, all break long.
After Sasha finds out shes devistated, but happy, because Heather said everything Sasha couldnt say. And she said it right there, in those e-mails.
I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH! CWC books are one of my favorites, every page is filled with fun and drama, but even better horses.
Hats off the Jessica Burkheart (the author).
was full of drama, shopping, schooling show prep and Heather Fox.
Afetr the Homecomming dance at Canterwood Sasha's BFF and roomie, Paige, a sweet, 13 year old pro chef who has her own channel on TeenCooking, went off at Sasha at homecomming and changed Sashas decision on staying with her over Spring break, which left this invitation open to Heather Fox. Also a teen of the big apple.
Heather and Sasha were not always frieds..
From day one Sasha and Heather were enemys until they both joined YENT (Youth Equestrian Nations Team) and figured out how much they have in common.
After a break spent with Heather they begin to help each other and do fun things like, riding, spa trips and tours of some of the best places in New York City.
But heres the catch- Heather "helps" Sasha with her boy problems, aka Jacob. By hacking into to Sashas e-mail account and pretending to be her by e-mailing Jacob, all break long.
After Sasha finds out shes devistated, but happy, because Heather said everything Sasha couldnt say. And she said it right there, in those e-mails.
I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH! CWC books are one of my favorites, every page is filled with fun and drama, but even better horses.
Hats off the Jessica Burkheart (the author).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 9, 2012
This book was completely worthless. No plot whatsoever, and the characters were so flat and stupid. Totally unrealistic and tacky.
Ok, I've only read books 1 and 9. Now, you'd think that after missing 7 books that I'd be completely confused, because all the plot turns through the previous books would change everything. Like if you read Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins without reading Catching Fire, you would be completely confused because the plot changes so much.
Well, it didn't in CC. Even after missing so many books, it felt like nothing changed. It felt like I was reading the second book, instead of the ninth.
This is very, very bad, because that means that through the last 7 books, there was hardly any plot.
In City Secrets, we follow Sasha on her trip to New York city with Heather.
There was no plot. Here's exactly how the book goes:
Sasha fangirls over Heather's awesome house.
They go shopping.
They train.
They get a mani-pedi.
They visit Heather's dad's work.
The train.
They go to a spa.
That's all that happens in the book. What does this have to do with anything? It was so boring. You might as well have just called the book A Tour of New York City Lead by Stupid Immature Characters
The characters are so unrealistic in this series. They're only 12, but the author frequently mentions Sasha's obsession with lipgloss and boys. Sasha wears concealer, foundation, blush, and lipgloss.
In all my life, I've known 1 12 year old to wear so much makeup. And everyone hates her.
With all the boys and makeup, the characters seem like they'd be at least 14, but they were so immature they might as well have been ten.
Here's an actual quote from the book:
"Is that safe?" I asked. "We just gave someone our purses. My new lipgloss is in there!"
Well, Sasha, since you're in a super expensive department store, I'm pretty sure that EVERYONE will target your $5 lipgloss. They won't target anything silly like your money, or Heather's credit card or anything.
Sasha is such a doormat. Heather's still mean and snotty. She looks down on Sasha like she's some sort of idiot, and Sasha does NOTHING about it. No one ever takes Heather down or stands up to her. This made me so angry after a while. None of the characters were strong or had their own opinions.
Sasha is still the perfect little rider. In most horse books involving boarding schools, the main character struggles to fit in to the high standards. Obviously Sasha never makes a mistake.
Also, this is meant to be a horse book. They train two times, and the training is so boring. Nothing happens at all.
This book was a boring, unrealistic, tacky book. I didn't enjoy it at all, and was bored out of my mind while we got a tour of NYC. However, this book is popular among younger readers, and while I'm only 15, I prefer more complex books with an actual plot.
There are much better books which follow the horsey-boarding school storyline.
1/5 stars.
Ok, I've only read books 1 and 9. Now, you'd think that after missing 7 books that I'd be completely confused, because all the plot turns through the previous books would change everything. Like if you read Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins without reading Catching Fire, you would be completely confused because the plot changes so much.
Well, it didn't in CC. Even after missing so many books, it felt like nothing changed. It felt like I was reading the second book, instead of the ninth.
This is very, very bad, because that means that through the last 7 books, there was hardly any plot.
In City Secrets, we follow Sasha on her trip to New York city with Heather.
There was no plot. Here's exactly how the book goes:
Sasha fangirls over Heather's awesome house.
They go shopping.
They train.
They get a mani-pedi.
They visit Heather's dad's work.
The train.
They go to a spa.
That's all that happens in the book. What does this have to do with anything? It was so boring. You might as well have just called the book A Tour of New York City Lead by Stupid Immature Characters
The characters are so unrealistic in this series. They're only 12, but the author frequently mentions Sasha's obsession with lipgloss and boys. Sasha wears concealer, foundation, blush, and lipgloss.
In all my life, I've known 1 12 year old to wear so much makeup. And everyone hates her.
With all the boys and makeup, the characters seem like they'd be at least 14, but they were so immature they might as well have been ten.
Here's an actual quote from the book:
"Is that safe?" I asked. "We just gave someone our purses. My new lipgloss is in there!"
Well, Sasha, since you're in a super expensive department store, I'm pretty sure that EVERYONE will target your $5 lipgloss. They won't target anything silly like your money, or Heather's credit card or anything.
Sasha is such a doormat. Heather's still mean and snotty. She looks down on Sasha like she's some sort of idiot, and Sasha does NOTHING about it. No one ever takes Heather down or stands up to her. This made me so angry after a while. None of the characters were strong or had their own opinions.
Sasha is still the perfect little rider. In most horse books involving boarding schools, the main character struggles to fit in to the high standards. Obviously Sasha never makes a mistake.
Also, this is meant to be a horse book. They train two times, and the training is so boring. Nothing happens at all.
This book was a boring, unrealistic, tacky book. I didn't enjoy it at all, and was bored out of my mind while we got a tour of NYC. However, this book is popular among younger readers, and while I'm only 15, I prefer more complex books with an actual plot.
There are much better books which follow the horsey-boarding school storyline.
1/5 stars.
April 11, 2023
could have been gayer
April 19, 2022
I can't finish it I'm just not invested and quite annoyed with the direction this story is going. Maybe I'll see what the rest is like and maybe I'll like it more
September 13, 2010
...er....not my favorite Canterwood book. Kind of an interesting one, but definitely not my favorite. MORE RIDING! ...Less underage consumerism, please.
March 21, 2024
“The girl would jump stone walls, gallop her horse at top speed across a pasture, and deal with her crazy dad. But a boy? Terrified.”
A well deserved break from Canterwood’s crazy academic expectations during fall break. But there truly is no such thing as a break for Sasha and Heather. And although their week of fun just ended, it seems to just be getting started…
A well deserved break from Canterwood’s crazy academic expectations during fall break. But there truly is no such thing as a break for Sasha and Heather. And although their week of fun just ended, it seems to just be getting started…
Read
December 9, 2025Heather <3
Fave of the series 🙂↕️ in an alternate universe, Sasha and Heather are lovers
Fave of the series 🙂↕️ in an alternate universe, Sasha and Heather are lovers
Read
February 15, 2024Callie OUT. Heather IN (mean girl redemption arc! set in the wonderous city of New York!). This one has it all.
July 26, 2022
I used to really enjoy this series, but after book three, all the books seemed like fillers. This was probably the worst out of all of them. There was no point in writing it at all- there was no plot. You can hardly call it a horse book either as there are very few training sessions, but they are all very boring and repetitive.
Throughout the series, there has been a lot of friction between Sasha and Heather, and in this book, they were in NYC together. I really don't get the point of this book at all. Like I said, there is no plot! This is what happens-
- Sasha fangirls over Heather's house
-They get a train
-They get pampered
-They train
-Spa day
-Big Secret (hardly- spoiler is at the bottom.)
What does any of this have to do with Canterwood? This book isn't even set there! Tbh, the boarding school is more like Fantasy Crest because of Sasha and her 'friends' fantasys over boys. This is so pathetic! Who cares about boys when you are at an elite riding academy and have a horse to train and care for? The horses in these books are hardly mentioned, yet on every cover the students are dressed in fancy riding clothes.
I don't get Burkharts equestrian knowledge either. OK, so in the very first book, Sasha is 12/13 and says she has owned Charm for three years. She then says he needs a firm hand and he bucks when his girth is too tight. If she had owned him for three years, that would make her 9/10 when she first got him. Charm would have been 5 (now eight). Even a competent 9/10 year old wouldn't be able to handle a 5 year old Belgian/Thoroughbred who bucks and needs a firm hand. On the cover, Charm looks about 16hh or more. There is no way a 9/10 year old can mount or handle that much horse.
BIG SECRET SPOILER- Sasha gets mad at Heather as she is messaging Jacob behind Sasha's back. (I mean, big deal ammi right?)
Throughout the series, there has been a lot of friction between Sasha and Heather, and in this book, they were in NYC together. I really don't get the point of this book at all. Like I said, there is no plot! This is what happens-
- Sasha fangirls over Heather's house
-They get a train
-They get pampered
-They train
-Spa day
-Big Secret (hardly- spoiler is at the bottom.)
What does any of this have to do with Canterwood? This book isn't even set there! Tbh, the boarding school is more like Fantasy Crest because of Sasha and her 'friends' fantasys over boys. This is so pathetic! Who cares about boys when you are at an elite riding academy and have a horse to train and care for? The horses in these books are hardly mentioned, yet on every cover the students are dressed in fancy riding clothes.
I don't get Burkharts equestrian knowledge either. OK, so in the very first book, Sasha is 12/13 and says she has owned Charm for three years. She then says he needs a firm hand and he bucks when his girth is too tight. If she had owned him for three years, that would make her 9/10 when she first got him. Charm would have been 5 (now eight). Even a competent 9/10 year old wouldn't be able to handle a 5 year old Belgian/Thoroughbred who bucks and needs a firm hand. On the cover, Charm looks about 16hh or more. There is no way a 9/10 year old can mount or handle that much horse.
BIG SECRET SPOILER- Sasha gets mad at Heather as she is messaging Jacob behind Sasha's back. (I mean, big deal ammi right?)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 9, 2012
Summary:
It was sooooooo good! pretty much what happens is that sasha has a big fight with her best friend Paige, who she was supposed to stay with during fall break. now she has no where to go scince her parents have gone on a vacation. so she stays with Heather Fox, the person who has been her rival scince Sasha got to Canterwood, and ends up having a blast.
why I rated it 5 stars:
It was wonderful. it tells what she is thinking, witch most of the time she is thinking wow. she gets to go to really expensive stores and has a blast with her number 2 rival.
Who I would recommend this to:
anyone who likes horses, rivalry, and fancy girly-girl stuff.
It was sooooooo good! pretty much what happens is that sasha has a big fight with her best friend Paige, who she was supposed to stay with during fall break. now she has no where to go scince her parents have gone on a vacation. so she stays with Heather Fox, the person who has been her rival scince Sasha got to Canterwood, and ends up having a blast.
why I rated it 5 stars:
It was wonderful. it tells what she is thinking, witch most of the time she is thinking wow. she gets to go to really expensive stores and has a blast with her number 2 rival.
Who I would recommend this to:
anyone who likes horses, rivalry, and fancy girly-girl stuff.
April 17, 2023
absolutely my fav in the series so far. silverfox at their PEAK gayness sasha she is buying you clothes she is buying you spa treatments she is showing you her favorite secret trail she is taking you out to dinner she is asking you to be a part of her life in ways no one else has ever BEEN how are you still going uwu jacob rn. are you serious. the version in my head where heather panic hooks sasha up with jacob because she needs to Stop Having Feelings is 10x funnier, also.
Read
December 1, 2011I am on page 147 of 224 pages. This book is very interesting! Sasha went to New York City with Heather Fox, her arch nemesis, for Fall break instead of her best friend, Paige Parker. They got into a fight, and now Sasha is actually having a good time riding, shopping, and exploring the wonderful city of NYC with Heather without any arguments, yet. . . .
August 19, 2010
Just like Home Sweet Drama, bad and not very well written. It did keep my attention better than Home Sweet Drama did but still, no good.
June 6, 2011
I love this series!! It is very relastic and I can always imagine that stuff really happening.
September 12, 2023
3/5
Heather Fox co do cholery
Heather Fox co do cholery
June 22, 2022
it was one of the slowest in the series but had important details
August 7, 2017
I really enjoyed this book because it kept me engaged and totally unaware of the HUGE plot twist that happens at the end! Heather is nice all week but has secretly been doing something behind Sasha's back! Will Sasha forgive and forget Heathers 'good' intentions and will she ever regain her BFF status with Paige?? Read to find out!
May 3, 2020
I liked that this book focused on Sasha and Heather's friendship it was different and palatable. I still don't feel sorry for Paige, one boyfriend and she suddenly thinks everyone wants to steal him from her. Heather surprisingly turned out to be the least annoying of all the Canterwood girls. We got less of worrying and anxiety ridden Sasha and a look at what makes Heather Fox tick.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 28, 2019
Another good read
This book shows how the modern day social media can really change lives! We had no such thing growing up. It eliminated a lot of messy friendships as did an all girl school! Just our horses, no complications and tough lessons to be show ready. Forget boys!!
This book shows how the modern day social media can really change lives! We had no such thing growing up. It eliminated a lot of messy friendships as did an all girl school! Just our horses, no complications and tough lessons to be show ready. Forget boys!!
July 20, 2020
I love this book, but I didn’t, does that make sense? This book was overall great but compared to the previous books I felt that their was less drama and I’m kinda tired of heather criticising Sasha.
January 4, 2023
My favorite in the whole series because I wanted the outfit the cover model wore, it was set in New York for a school break on the Upper East Side, it birthed my obsession with Gossip Girl and city life.
March 1, 2024
While this book was not the best of these so far, I enjoyed my time reading it. I don't know anyone who would read it, but if I ever meet someone who loves horses, I will surely recommend this series to them.
July 26, 2017
I think this was the best book in the whole series it is definitely my favourite
December 24, 2017
This is actually one of my favorites from the series! I really liked the character development with Heather in this one 😊
March 28, 2018
These books never disappoint.
July 2, 2022
boring
December 8, 2022
These books get better and better with each one!
December 28, 2022
mega podobala mi sie w tym tomie relacja heather i sashy, bywala momentami jednak troszke sztuczna i ogolnikowo nudna akcja, ale koncowka mnie zdziwila. i przyxnam troszke zezloscila.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews