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Thoroughbred #9
Pride's Challenge
The highest stakes of all . . .
Wonder's Pride is ready to race again. Samantha McLean, the colt's groom, and Ashleigh Griffen, his jockey, are thrilled that he has recovered so well from an injury. But not everyone wants Pride back at the racetrack. Brad Townsend, Pride's owner's son, and his wife, Lavinia, want Pride out of the way so their own horse can reach the winner's circle. When the horses are pitted against each other in a big stakes race, Samantha knows Lavinia will stop at nothing to make Pride lose. With Ashleigh busy planning her wedding, it's up to Samantha alone to save Wonder's Pride from the scheming Townsends.
Wonder's Pride is ready to race again. Samantha McLean, the colt's groom, and Ashleigh Griffen, his jockey, are thrilled that he has recovered so well from an injury. But not everyone wants Pride back at the racetrack. Brad Townsend, Pride's owner's son, and his wife, Lavinia, want Pride out of the way so their own horse can reach the winner's circle. When the horses are pitted against each other in a big stakes race, Samantha knows Lavinia will stop at nothing to make Pride lose. With Ashleigh busy planning her wedding, it's up to Samantha alone to save Wonder's Pride from the scheming Townsends.
192 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1994
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 18, 2024
At least this one was better than the last book in that things happened that made sense for the characters, haha.
Brad and Lavinia are TERRIBLE human beings and I honestly am mind boggled with how much they get away with here (not to mention throughout the series!) though I don’t doubt there are people out there in the world who act exactly like them.
Some sad things happen, some good things happen, and a lot of drama happens, and that’s it for this review, lol.
‼️Content‼️
Language: darn; gosh; darned; screwed/screwed up; heck; what the heck; God (3)
Sexual: kissing (not detailed)
Other: a character has a heart attack; death and grief
Brad and Lavinia are TERRIBLE human beings and I honestly am mind boggled with how much they get away with here (not to mention throughout the series!) though I don’t doubt there are people out there in the world who act exactly like them.
Some sad things happen, some good things happen, and a lot of drama happens, and that’s it for this review, lol.
‼️Content‼️
Language: darn; gosh; darned; screwed/screwed up; heck; what the heck; God (3)
Sexual: kissing (not detailed)
Other: a character has a heart attack; death and grief
July 25, 2024
I picked this up off of my shelf looking for something light to read to take my mind off the recent deaths in my life (of my dog and my Dad) but I just can't get away from death, even in kids' books. A major character in the series dies here. In a 2014 online interview, Jo Ann Simon (Joanna Campbell) stated that she cried after writing the death scene.
She also stated that she subscribed to three leading Thoroughbred racing publications of the day ... and yet wrote very unrealistically about the world of racing.
This is a silly book in that it in no way paints an accurate picture of a top thoroughbred racing stable. It's just a fantasy of what racing stables should be like, but aren't. For example, no champion colt with as bad an injury as Pride sustained would ever go back to racing. He'd just be retired to stud on the spot.
And yet the series has a soap-opera magnetism to it, though. The feud between Whitebrook Stables and Townsend Acres really heats up here. This time the main baddie isn't Brad, but his new (and incredibly rich and laughably bitchy) wife Lavinia. You thought Brad was bad? He's a cream puff compared to Lavinia.
Speaking of laughable, the cover depicts an interesting image (and the only image in the series of Brad) but clearly the artist never bothered to learn about horse racing equipment or read the manuscript. In the book, the horses are running on dirt, not turf and exercise riders wear jockey helmets and not the black hunt caps shown here. Lord Ainsley (Brad's horse) was never described as having a blaze. Playing "spot the screw-ups" for the Thoroughbred covers is becoming an enjoyable pastime.
Other notable moments in this installment:
*) Some nice scenes with Sierra the steeplechaser.
*) Mr. Wonderful is introduced.
*) Take careful notes about what each horse looks like, their names and even their genders. Later on in the series, these all get screwed up. For example, Mr. Wonderful is described here as looking like Wonder, only a couple shades darker. Later on in the series, he'll be dsecribed as having a star instead of a blaze and he goes through a wide variety of chestnut shades. Pride's name gets mixed up later on. Some later books refer to him not as Wonder's Pride but as Townsend Pride, which is (if you'll remember) the sire of Ashleigh's Wonder.
She also stated that she subscribed to three leading Thoroughbred racing publications of the day ... and yet wrote very unrealistically about the world of racing.
This is a silly book in that it in no way paints an accurate picture of a top thoroughbred racing stable. It's just a fantasy of what racing stables should be like, but aren't. For example, no champion colt with as bad an injury as Pride sustained would ever go back to racing. He'd just be retired to stud on the spot.
And yet the series has a soap-opera magnetism to it, though. The feud between Whitebrook Stables and Townsend Acres really heats up here. This time the main baddie isn't Brad, but his new (and incredibly rich and laughably bitchy) wife Lavinia. You thought Brad was bad? He's a cream puff compared to Lavinia.
Speaking of laughable, the cover depicts an interesting image (and the only image in the series of Brad) but clearly the artist never bothered to learn about horse racing equipment or read the manuscript. In the book, the horses are running on dirt, not turf and exercise riders wear jockey helmets and not the black hunt caps shown here. Lord Ainsley (Brad's horse) was never described as having a blaze. Playing "spot the screw-ups" for the Thoroughbred covers is becoming an enjoyable pastime.
Other notable moments in this installment:
*) Some nice scenes with Sierra the steeplechaser.
*) Mr. Wonderful is introduced.
*) Take careful notes about what each horse looks like, their names and even their genders. Later on in the series, these all get screwed up. For example, Mr. Wonderful is described here as looking like Wonder, only a couple shades darker. Later on in the series, he'll be dsecribed as having a star instead of a blaze and he goes through a wide variety of chestnut shades. Pride's name gets mixed up later on. Some later books refer to him not as Wonder's Pride but as Townsend Pride, which is (if you'll remember) the sire of Ashleigh's Wonder.
May 6, 2012
This can be read as a stand-alone book, but if you get a chance, read some previous books. This is a fun book for horse lovers of all ages.
October 30, 2013
It's been several years since I've read this one but I remember I really liked it.
February 10, 2014
I am really happy that Pride made a comeback and beat Lord Ainsley.It really got me scared when Pride stumbled.
April 30, 2015
A great series for tweens that love horses and/or are interested in horseback riding or racing. Teaches about the struggles of working with animals and the benefits.
December 22, 2015
I loved that book when I was younger :)
July 5, 2024
This book Was Amazing! It had the suspense, Surprise, Tension (Stop thinking about that kind of tension), tragedy etc. I really liked the rivalry between the characters. This book had a very very unexpected twist. Literally Cried for days on end. I was going through the 5 stages of grief over this event. I had to read it over and over again to make sure I wasn’t imagining it. I could literally read this book over and over if I had the time. Just go read pleased.
June 13, 2018
Fortsatt hyggelig tidsfordriv.
October 6, 2025
Childhood favourite series (haven't read in a long time) giving all four stars unless it was a favourite as a child.
January 28, 2015
Grade: A
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews