The Scorpio Races – spotted as I was leaving the library, always looking for Maggie Stiefvater’s Raven Boys, which has been on my TBR forever. The Scorpio Races has nothing to do with that book, but, boy, what a gem. I am so glad I read this!
It gives me a lovely red cover for the Colour Coded Reading Challenge as well!
The Scorpio Races
by Maggie Stiefvater
Every year, the Scorpio Races are run on the beaches of Skarmouth. Every year, the sea washes blood from the sand. To race the savage water horses can mean death, but the danger is irresistible.
When Puck enters the races to save her family, she is drawn to the mysterious Sean, the only person on the island capable of taming the beasts.
Even if they stay together, can they stay alive?
A breathtaking ride that will make your heart race. [goodreads]
My Review
It’s not much of a blurb, but it’s enough—and it’s also the back cover of the book that made me pick it up. The Scorpio Races is full of energy, and the wildness of both the remote island and the people and beasts that inhabit it. I read this in only two sittings, but they were long sittings, with time set aside very quickly for the second one. I really did not want to leave it for a minute.
It’s not just the horses. Some, like Puck’s Dove, are regular horses. Others, the water horses, are terrifying twists of wild horses. They eat flesh, live in the sea, and return there after they’ve preyed on land animals—and humans. In order to take part in the Scorpio Races, each November, the men of the island try to catch the water horses. They must tame them for long enough to race on the beach, stopping them from returning to their watery home for long enough to take the prize.
It’s also the people. Puck, with her brothers Finn and Cabe, struggling to keep going without their parents or any money. The betrayal when her older brother says he plans to leave the island. What will happen to them then? It’ll be the workhouse, or its marginally more modern equivalent. Puck has enough trouble with school. Sean, a loner who has an affinity with the water horses—with all horses, which is why he is so valuable a stable hand with the rich horsebreeder who employs him. He’s the only one who understand his bloodstock well enough to show them at their best to the even richer owners who come to buy them.
wild and compelling
It’s a wild story, full of harsh island life, and legends, and twists and turns. It’s compelling, engrossing, and makes you wonder why nobody’s told you about this book before. I’ve read a lot of candidates for my book of the year already, but this is at the top of the list. Of course, it helps if you like wild horses and wild islands….
THE SCORPIO RACES 'compelling, engrossing - a wild story, full of harsh island life, legends, twists and turns' #thriller #horses Share on X
Sounds fabulous, Jemima. How are you and the boys doing?