Three Strides Out: A Horse Show Novel of Suspense

by V. S. Anderson

Saving a champion show jumper from a burning horse trailer gives young rider-trainer Robb Slaughter one finding out who tied that horse in that trailer and making them pay.For Robb, avenging that horse means atonement. Sure, he was just a kid when he left his mother screaming while her lover killed her, but that doesn’t mean he ever quit hearing those screams.It’s the horses who’ve saved him from the torrent of unanswered cries inside his head. Clearing the big jumps on horses he cares about has given him a hard-won mental peace. He has built a good life for himself as a professional show-jumping rider, on his way to Grand-Prix stardom . . .Until that fire.You were crazy to jump into that trailer to save that horse, everyone tells Robb. But for Robb saving the horse like he did is just the beginning. Let the police solve it, everyone says. But Robb knows no cop will ever deliver the right kind of justice. Only somebody brave enough and driven enough can hunt down the killers and exact true justice. Somebody with a visceral need to right wrongs and find peace from his own torment. Somebody like Robb.With the help of a sharp-witted female reporter, Robb unravels the plot that put that horse in that trailer. He’s ready to do whatever he has to—until he learns that one of the people involved is a troubled young woman he has always dreamed his love could rescue. But what if saving her asks a lot more of him than saving the horse?Set against the daily background of a hunter-jumper show barn in rigorous international competition, Three Strides Out pits a young rider’s life against fraud, money-laundering, blackmail, and murder. Like a Grand Prix class that asks horses to jump fences they can’t see over, Robb’s quest to bring killers to justice demands an ultimate commitment—and an ultimate sacrifice.

322 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 4, 2023

Reviews

[Kristin Carmack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Difficult to follow

There is a good mystery in this book, but it is a difficult book to follow. There are so many things going on all at once it gets very tangled up. Lots of loose ends that don't get tied up either.

[Shawnee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book.
Not enough horse. Way too much of the main character's headspace, and too much of his mumbled hidden back story.

[Melanie Sutherland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. This had good “bones” to be a great book, but it’s just so all over the place, it was hard to follow.

[Carolyn Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

complicated and raw

The book has a great many twists and turns. Sometimes overwhelming to follow. I would have enjoyed the book but the 4 letter words are so overused, it was distracting and unnecessary.

[PelicanFreak · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is told in the first-person POV of the male lead. He is likable, the world, what little I get to see of it is likable, and the story/mystery does seem intriguing. The issue is this male lead gets off on tangents, a lot, mid-attempt at action-showing, it seems. So it can be tricky to follow. Not tricky as in hard, per se, but as in to keep paying attention as he rambles on about something other than the issue at hand.

So I do think this would be a fun mystery to read, but as is, it could be better executed. Recommend revisions, perhaps with the help of a great dev-editor? Reads more as a first draft at this stage, not as a completed book.

Horse life!
Mystery … ish.

Overall:
Okay, needs some help or polishing, I think.
2.5 stars.

Audio:
Overall sound quality is good! Professional production. The narrator’s voice is deep and raspy, fairly pleasant to listen to, and he isn’t exactly robotic, though he doesn’t exactly ‘perform’ either if that makes sense. I appreciate the lack of monotone here! 3 stars.

[Sara Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow

I love it. This book really made me engage with a flawed protagonist that I kept hoping would not be so damn broken at the same time my heart hurts for his being broken. Really well written. Excellent story.

[Braidee Foote · Rating 3 out of 5]

Agree with many other comments. At times it was good and overall a good mystery and story but it was too all over the place, difficult to follow, and too many loose ends. The ending was especially difficult to follow.

[Nancy Gossage · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put it down

Once I started this book, I did not stop until I finished. I stayed up until dawn to finish it. Great read and details about the horse show world are spot on.

[Kristin Grappone · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd give it a 1 except it has horses, so I gave it an extra star.

[🐴wallenhorsegirl🐴 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was different. In a good way. It was interesting but a bit hard to follow. The ending wasn’t great but this is a great mystery horse book for teens and adults. I highly recommend! Note: there is a bit of adult content and I recommend for ages 13 or 14 and up. 💕😊