A Hoof in the Door

Eventing #2

by Caroline Akrill

In book 2, Elaine tries to win a scholarship so she and her horse can be schooled in the finer points of competition ("eventing").

Genres: Horses, Young Adult, Fiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Caroline Akrill has been a riding school proprietor, an equestrian journalist, a publisher and a hotelier.
She lives in Suffolk. You can talk to Caroline on Facebook.

Reviews

[Margaret]

Second part of trilogy.

[Mary Pagones]

Imagine if PG Wodehouse and Jennifer Saunders of Absolutely Fabulous wrote a book about a homicidal, brilliant eventing horse. This would be it.

[Amanda]

Loved the whole Comet part of the novel - what a beautifully noble horse. The plotline about Nick became farcical and I couldn't see why Elaine would ever want to be with him. The Fanes were still gloriously weird.

[Carmel Ann Sperti]

Amazing thi ngs happen

The saga of Elaine and her Eventing dreams continues in this enjoyable story filled with charming characters. Sometimes the most eccentric chatactets are the most endearing, and that is the case here. While a more believable story might please people, this delightful novel allows the readet to slip into a more fanciful world. I look forward to completing this trilogy.

[A.J.]

Amazing, not-quite-believable, but perfect

The zany Fanes have become Elaine's sponsors, and have done an amazing job of it, but when their promising young event horse is injured, a substitute must be found... and we step into the Twilight Zone. Believe it or not, the saga is simply irresistible. I was riding along on the gallant grey campaigner, feeling every stride. Unforgettable!

[Kat]

In the second installment Elaine tries to win a scholarship to help further her eventing dreams. There is a very sweet story involving an ex-Olympic eventer. Both human and equine characters (especially The Comet) are one again great to read about. Akrill tells a great horse story but I was less convinced by the romance angle, however overall a lovely read with great humour running throughout.

[Malphasia]

this story is more a novella. probably so the story could be cut into 6/7 editions.

Should be longer, seems like a marketing ploy. Still, I enjoyed it. Not sure how old Elaine is though. She sounds older than 18.

[Emma Rose]

Aahh this was brilliant!!! Elaine enters different competitions with Legend and tries desperately to make money. This was lots of fun, there’s even a disastrous date and Henrietta and Nigella are their usual scatterbrained selves. I love this series so much!

[Susan]

Lots of action, wonderful characters, and some surprise plot twists. I read it in one sitting. I definitely recommend this book.

[Judith Falkner]

The horses are so real they gallop from the page into my head. Great story told at a cracking pace.

[Cheyenne Blue]

I dived straight into this after reading the first in the series. Loved this just as much. The horse personalities are still wonderful (strangely, Elaine's bay event horse is flatly drawn). The Fanes are still the stars of the book.

I picked the great reveal at the end a mile off, but that didn't detract from its charm. Looking forward to the third book in the series (which unfortunately doesn't seem to be available on Kindle just yet).

[Becky]

Unique and fun.., don't miss it!

This series of books has really been a great find. Lots of laughs and characters I am falling in love with. It has been quite awhile since I have found a novel about horses that has kept me laughing and turning the pages so quickly to see what is going to happen next. Don't miss it!

[Debbie Tink]

It's a grate series the Fane's are getting very annoying thow, trying to control Elaine, but I do serpose she is letting them. In this story Elaine and the 2 Fane sisters try to raise money for eventing, Elaine desided to try for a scholarship.

[Tracey]

Loved this series. Eclectic characters, lots of horsey references, just brilliant. My teenage self loved it.

[Beth Gosser]

love this series only sorry book three is not on Kindle so I don't know how it ends.

[K.L.]

Enjoyed this as well as its horsey, though cynically think that as hard as Elaine finds it... she still has a stable of horses plus two competition horses and I can't even fi d the odd hack!!!!

[Tulipsaki]

Brilliant story, funny and heartwarming.

It's beautifully written with characters, human and horse, that jump off the page and make you cheer! Read this series!

[Pauline Pedley]

Caroline Akrill

A writer of horse books who actually knows what she’s talking about. Second in the series and as brilliant as the first!