Showdown

by Tilly Bagshawe

Book by TILLY BAGSHAWE

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Horses, Adult, Contemporary

Hardcover

First published April 1, 2007

About the author

Matilda Emily N. Bagshawe was born on 12 June 1973 in England, UK. She attended local all-girls Catholic schools near her family home in Surrey. She was a single mother at 17, but she won a place at Cambridge University and took Persephone, her ten-month-old baby daughter with her. As a journalist, she went on to enjoy a successful career in London, and contributed regularly to The Sunday Times, Daily Mail and Evening Standard, before turning her hand to novels. Her first book, Adored as Tilly Bagshawe, was a smash hit on both sides of the Atlantic in 2005, and she hasn't looked back since.

Tilly is married Robin Nydes, a US businessman, and the couple have two sons together, Zac and Theo. The family divide their time between their homes in London and Los Angeles. Tilly is also the sister of the writer and politician Louise Bagshawe.

Reviews

[Bren fall in love with the sea. · Rating 3 out of 5]

"As well as being horse country, this part of the var was also littered with vineyards. The endless, neat rows of vines lent the rolling landscape a symmetrical, regimented air that reminded him of Napa.

Showdown
by Tilly Bagshawe


Showdown is not a book for me although it wasn't bad. Technically, I finished this with the help of alot of skimming.



One big positive was the horses and horse breeding and alot of that took center stage here which was nice. I loved the descriptive writing. I have read other books from this author and she writes really well.

The cover is luscious! This story takes place in Horse country and I love horses so that was an aspect that was really appealing.

The main reason it was not for me was the romance aspect which was full of so many cliches and I just was not into that aspect. I think had I read it at the time in my life when I was reading oodles of romance novels it would have worked better for me.

I do think Horse lovers will enjoy it. For me, as mentioned, I skimmed much of the romance aspects. It's not that they we re not an interesting couple. It's just that so much kept them apart and I sort of knew where the story was going..

SPOILERS:

They all live happily ever after.

[Laura Cunningham · Rating 5 out of 5]

love love love love love!!! this book was the perfect about of sex.. emotion.. fights.. thrills and it all ends happily ever after. I have to say this book was one of my favorites and it was so hard for me to put down. I picked up this book at a used book store along with a few other books and i have to say this book just called to me.. within the first ten pages i was hooked and in love with Bobby.. every girls dream boat (in my opinion). And Milly is the typical tom boy with beauty and not trying. and Rachel is the perfect girl to hate not only a sleez ball but just a real B**ch in general. I related to this book a lot because my brother reminds me of J! so instantly i felt a connection. The whole time i was rooting for Bobby and Milly and every time i thought oh yay! they will be together just lead to another let down! the book is made up of so many great characters!! I loved all the twists and unexpectedness of this book. It is not a quick read at least for me but i enjoyed every minute of it. Right after i finished it i gave it to a girl friend and she loves it.. haha its so hard for me not to spoil things for her. But i would recommend this read to any girl!!!

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read. Felt like author was trying to replicate “Riders” by Jilly Cooper. No chance.

[Bonnie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked up this book for $2 at Half-Price. Tawdry romance novels are not my thing but the author (Tilly Bagshawe) has written a couple of fairly decent Sidney Sheldon novels (authorized by his estate) and this book seemed to center around horses and horse racing, so for $2 I figured I had nothing to lose. Except a week of my life. I'm not really sure what kept me reading this almost 600-page novel. Unable to tear my eyes away from the train wreck, I guess. Neither of the main characters were that likable; frankly, I didn't care if they ever got together or not and the fact that it was rushed into in the last 20 pages or so was extremely unsatisfying. I was mildly more interested in two secondary vague pairings and both of them let me down with lack of development and rushed resolutions. Of course, being a romance novel, the book was filled with cliches. Every woman was stunningly beautiful--big boobs, cascading hair, elfin features. And the one woman who was not physically attractive was a paragon of virtue and kindness. Every man had massive biceps and chests, twinkling eyes, and huge...well, they were awesome in bed, okay? Lots of sex, lots of language, but I guess that's expected from this type of book. I was more annoyed with the constantly changing POV, the endless product and name dropping of pop culture items/people, and the fact that it was apparently too much work to Google a few horse racing sites and get facts straight. Not just unrealistic but completely absurd on a number of occasions. Waste of my time.

[Emmie Ksilent · Rating 1 out of 5]

So the only reason this book gets a star at all is because the stuff surrounding the horses was really well-written and incredibly accurate. Sadly her blatant hatred of gay people and fat people Shawn through in spades in this book. I checked to make sure that she wasn't trying to make a point with a character or make sure we knew that somebody was a jerk it was just pure gross fat phobia and judgment and hatred and the same with lgbtq stuff to the point where I hope that somebody has stopped to educate her that her 1950s attitude doesn't really work in 2019. Also the needy betrayal of women along with unnecessary sex stuff that only degraded women and portrayed them as nothing more than fuckable housekeepers was disappointing as well as a female author she should be deeply ashamed of this book.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh more like a screaming UGHHHHHHH... Ya so this chick lit sorta novel had high hopes. It started out pretty good, then got boring, then it seemed to pick up some (which seems to happen 3 or 4 times through the entire book) I'm not going to go into full detail, I wouldn't want to bore anyone to death. I will say it had a HEA (I guess) & that the H&h boinked everyone but each other.

I have heard the term wallbanger several times, well this one IMHO deserves the paper shredder!!

[Kat · Rating 1 out of 5]

The characters were strongly underdeveloped and shallow. All of them had the worst flaws you can possibly think of. Milly and Bobby irritated the hell out of me - especially Bobby - God, he was so stupid most of the time. Milly was portrayed fine as a naive 17 year old (I felt really sorry for her) but the only somewhat decent characters in this book were Amy, Dylan, Wyatt, Maggie and Tara. The rest were awful. Absolutely awful. I wouldn't recommend.

[Aukje · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too many clichés stuffed in one book that drags on for too long and keeps repeating the same phrases. ('all over him/her like a rash' and 'hanging around like a bad smell' are used at least once every chapter). Only reason I finished was my craving for a brainless book while I was in bed with the flu.

[Michaella · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is just fluff. The autthor has no idea what she's talking about. She approaches a story with the subltety of a bad soap opera.

[Mayu · Rating 1 out of 5]

Primero aclarar que al añadir la versión española a goodreads, he añadido detalles fundamentales de esta novela. De la otra forma, la sinopsis era muy engañosa.

Pues bien, con la sinopsis oficial con la que se vende esta novela, no pude evitar darle una oportunidad. Y desde el principio, Pura sangre me desilusionó. No era lo que planteaba. Para empezar, no se contaba que Bobby era un cerdo que solo pensaba con su pene, que Mil estaba a punto de perder a su padre, que Bobby la acogería y huirían juntos, y que, una vez ya siendo compañeros de piso, Bobby se acostaría con otras chicas en la habitación de al lado, simplemente por el placer de hacer daño a Mil, y tampoco se contaba que Mil huiría con un viejo verde a cambio de fama y trabajo.

Obviamente, odié esta novela de principio a fin, sufrí mucho con ella. Fue una lectura horrible, deprimente, trágica, con el final más estúpido del mundo, y con una trama demoledora. Me aburrí con esta novela, odié muchísimo al cabrón de Bobby, lloré un montón al ver como Mil se veía obligada a acostarse con su novio (el señor mayor y adinerado) a cambio del trabajo de sus sueños. ¿Hasta que punto puede una luchar por un sueño, merece la pena venderse para lograrlo? Absolutamente no, y así lo aprendió Mil, y de la peor forma.

La vida de Mil es una tragedia constante, a veces ella tiene la culpa de sus desgracias, de su sueño hecho pesadilla, de su corazón permanentemente roto, pero otras veces, son los demás quienes trituran su corazón y la asfixian. Mil es solo una niña, una niña con el corazón herido, y los hombres, la manipulan con gran facilidad. Al final, esa vida la ahoga, y Bobby, que siempre está presente en su corazón aunque no en su vida, es como un veneno. Es una pena que Mil se pierda a si misma en el camino, que todo lo que la hacía especial, quede borrado por tantos errores.

Bobby es un cabrón, y lo odié. Por cerdo, por cobarde, por estúpido, por follarse a otras chicas para dañar a la persona que ama. Si esa es su forma de querer a Mil, ella está mejor sin él.

Para los amantes del drama y los finales felices, de cara hacia al final, Mil y Bobby se reencuentran, y el amor... oh, el amor les une esta vez. Odié el final también. Bobby no se merecía a Mil, y me pareció muy mal que acabaran juntos. Fue como si Tilly nos hubiera tomado el pelo durante toda la novela. Tanto drama, tantas desgracias, tanta mierda, para acabar así ¬¬.

[Maggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

**re-reading 2011 on audio. I'm putting it off.

I started out really liking this book! At times it was completely frustrating and the characters really irked me but in the end I had an affection for each of the "good" guys. The end kind of fell apart, it was over 400 pages and I would think the story lines could have been wrapped up over the last few chapters instead of putting everything off until the very end. Made it kind of anti-climatic and now I wish I would have just skipped to the end for the wrap-up.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up as just something to pass the time. But wow, what an amazing book! I love that the author can carry the characters over the years in their lives and show you the subtle changes they go through in their lives....just like real life. But it is also filled with enough action and drama and romance to keep you hooked till the end! I love it!

I also like the fact that even though the main couple are amazing, they also have the same natural flaws that everyone else has....unlike the trashy romance novels out there....this book is the real deal!

[Nevine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply superb!!! Tilly Bagshawe is a great great writer. As a reader, you get to understand the characters' faults and strengths, and why they behave the way they do. I love a good love story.....Millie and Bobby's story was no exception. Tilly Bagshawe is simply superb!!! She knows how to deliver. This is my 5th book from this author. Hope to locate her other books for me to read!!

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a decent story and plot. However, I felt the story was too long and could have been condensed. I often found myself skimming through chapters. If you like a romance with not much depth, this is a great book. If not, it's a decent read, especially at the beach.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

would have been better if it would not make the main characters go through every possible awful event then get together at the very end of the book with little explanation of what changed their mind about being together

[Kelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awful plot, awful story line. Downright boring.

[Fay Bishop · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was only ok I felt it lacked something and the heroine was extremely childish and naive.

[Lesefieber22 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicht nur auf der Rennbahn geht es halsbrecherisch zu, sondern auch im Leben

Milly liebt die Pferde und das Gestüt ihres Vaters. Seit einem Unfall darf sie zwar nicht mehr reiten und die Konkurrenz mit ihrer Feindin Rachel Delaney nagt an ihr, doch für Milly ist klar, dass sie ihr Leben auf dem Gestüt Newells verbringen wird. Doch der Besuch des Cowboys Bobby Cameron, der einige Pferde trainieren soll, bringt alles durcheinander. Nicht nur auf dem Gestüt, sondern vorallem auch in Millys Herz. Bobby unterstützt sie dabei, den Weg zurück in den Sattel zu finden. Sie begleitet ihn zurück nach Kalifornien, wo sie als Jockey ausgebildet werden soll. Doch schon bald läuft nicht mehr alles glatt und Milly gerät in den Sog der Macht und des Geldes, welche die Pferde-Rennbahnen und ihre Menschen ausstrahlen. Sie überwirft sich endgültig mit Bobby. Nach einer schockierenden Entdeckung findet Milly langsam wieder den Weg zu sich selbst und damit auch zurück zu ihrer Familie und zu Bobby.


Das Buch lässt sich flüssig lesen und hat mich gefesselt. Ich liebe Pferde und kenne die Faszination der Rennbahn und kann somit sie Protagonisten in ihrer Leidenschaft sehr gut verstehen. Die Geschichte bietet viel Spannung und Unterhaltung. Dabei wurde meiner Meinung nach jedoch Millys Verwandlung zu einer karrierebesessenen, geldhungirgen Persönlichkeit etwas übertrieben. Mir hat sich überhaupt nicht erschlossen, wie sie so schnell von ihrer Liebe zu Bobby abgekehrt war und plötzlich in den schmierigen Todd verliebt war. Ich wurde mit ihr als Hauptfigur generell nicht so warm. Umso mehr hat mich aber Bobby begeistert. Er hat mich mit seiner sturen Art und dem Willen, alles richtig zu machen in den Bann gezogen. Auch seine Liebe zu Milly und die damit verbundenen Qualen wirkten auf mich jederzeit authentisch.

Das Buch ist spannend und nicht nur für Pferdeliebhaber empfehlenswert. Wer eine Geschichte mit Liebe, Macht, Freundschaft, Geld und Leidenschaft sucht, ist mit diesem Buch bestens bedient.

[E W · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've had this book for years. I know I've read it once and must have liked it enough to keep, but I don't remember anything about it other than being set in the horse racing world (which alone was probably why I kept it, looking back). I needed a book to read during the kid's swim practice, so I grabbed this one.

OMG, it's a wreck. In the first place, I'm not certain that the author knows how horses actually structured because the cowboy in chapter one is leaning on a filly's left flank while sitting in the saddle. I literally cannot visualize this because this would require toppling out of the saddle. Also, the insane French trainer's screaming over a functionally unbroken filly makes zero sense. The assistant trainer, maybe, if there's concern about the horse's progress and the hoped for time table, but a head trainer isn't going to be in the weeds over a yearling outside of sales, sorry. Furthermore, we proceed directly to said cowboy screwing his boss's wife before I've even had a chance to decide if I like him or not, which tips me into the not liking category. Also, his thought process beyond "my dick is hard" consists of story dump, so basically not established as a real character from the get go.

Then we shift to spoiled brat Milly who is the moistest awesomest horse loving girl eeeeevuh. Also, she's super hot, but doesn't know it, disdains being like the rest of those icky girls around, and has a ridiculous potty mouth. In fairness, having interacted with English people they can be quite vulgar sounding to American ears, however, this was on a whole other level. Calling someone's mare a slut because you hate the owner is frankly bizarre and to do it in front of your parents, who have a financial stake in horse breeding just takes it so far over the top that I decided to bail on this reread. Flipping through I was able to pick up the gist of the story and I made the right decision to add this to the book sale pile.

[Lyn Ambrose · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tilly Bagshawe's novel is set in California and in Newmarket, England with two main characters Millie and Bobby. Millie is a young jockey living on her parents' stud farm in England. She is an excellent rider with dreams of becoming a thoroughbred jockey. Bobby Cameron has lived on Highwood ranch in California with his father since he was ten and is heir to the ranch. Like his father he does not wear his heart on his sleeve.

Milly is forbidden from riding because of a childhood accident. Her father has a problem horse and has organised for Bobby, the best horse trainer in the business, to visit the English property and work with this horse. Bobby secretly witnesses Milly's riding ability and is amazed at how much Milly knows about horses. He offers her a chance to work on his ranch in California and eager to get Bobby to notice her, she accepts. Bobby, is a good few years older than Millie and he has other worries as he tries to control the debts at his ranch.

The story takes the reader into the world of thoroughbreds and quarter horses and pairs Milly against her childhood nemesis Rachel, who comes to California to further her career as a jockey. The glittering world of international racing, where the rich rub shoulders with the sexy, gives an interesting and amusing backdrop to the novel.

The book is an easy and enjoyable read.

[AK · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is definitely not the type of book I would usually read as it is a romantic drama genre, but for some reason I got intrigued with the whole cowboy theme of it and gave it a try. To be honest, it is a bit dragged out during the middle of the book with too many unnecessary details and scenes that really didn't come to play with the outcome of the story. The descriptions of all the horses and races and maintaining a farm was very accurate to the point where I believed Tilly may have come from that background otherwise her research was VERY well performed. Overall, I did like the ending. I did not expect it but definitely hoped for it. If you are looking for a casual read with a romantic cowboy drama story, then this is for you. Be prepared for the overwhelming info on everything.

[Eileen Bakker · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely summer read. As an horse fanatic I loved the scenery described in this book. Horse racing, cowboys and a bit of upper class English country living. 👌🏼 You really start feeling for the characters in this story and just hope for Milly and bobby to work out. Sometimes a bit frustrating that Rachel just comes and f*cks everyone and everything over but, thank goodness there’s a happy ending in this lovely book.

[Jessica Martin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ll start with the positive - detailed descriptions and carefully thought out plot.
However, the book is far too long and dragged out to the point that most of it is pretty boring. There were way too many characters which took some time to get my head round. The book is very cliche and obviously ended with the inevitable happy ending.

[Kristina · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a dramatic story about a young naive English girl who wants to be a jockey, gets herself entangled in celebrity culture & men using her, until she finally realizes her love for the person who saw her worth all along.

I get frustrated when the love story comes together in the last 3 pages of a 472page read. Pet peeve.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly I was a bit disappointed with this book. I've read many of Tilly's books and have enjoyed them all, however I found myself uninterested, bored and dragging my heels reading this one. Definitely lacked the sparkle that I usually find in a Tilly Bagshawe book.

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Haha!! Lovely and hilarious about the world of horse-racing. Lots of different characters - all with at least one dysfunction and their own ulterior motives... Excellent romping read!

[Annika King · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent read. Like a racing version of Jilly Cooper's Rider. A long read but the characters and events are interesting enough to carry you through.

[jacques · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think it's great. Although the love story bored me a little

[Marilyn Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Showdown Indeed

This book has kept me absorbed to say the least!
So many twists and turns that were so very unexpected. I had a hard time putting it down...

[Joann · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just ok