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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
A well-told story about a girl, her horse, a boy, another (water) horse and a race to settle what they really want.
She, Puck, is headstrong and offers what she gives. Hard work and love for those closest to her. He, Sean, is the lonesome, quiet, strong-willed water horse whisperer that happens to be the reigning champion of the Scorpio Race.
The story itself is about doing what you must to overcome adversity and I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a movie coming out soon(ish) based on it.
As someone not that into YA romance, I found it somewhat slow in the middle, but the ending went by very quickly.
She, Puck, is headstrong and offers what she gives. Hard work and love for those closest to her. He, Sean, is the lonesome, quiet, strong-willed water horse whisperer that happens to be the reigning champion of the Scorpio Race.
The story itself is about doing what you must to overcome adversity and I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a movie coming out soon(ish) based on it.
As someone not that into YA romance, I found it somewhat slow in the middle, but the ending went by very quickly.
Let's just say someone was utterly speechless and didn't expect the book to end at all.
I loved this so much , It's going to be my favourite book of the year ( or one of them) because I love it that much.
I was reading as one does when they pick up a book and all of a sudden the book ended , but it ended just how it began , in an entirely beautiful manner altogether.
The world building and the world generally was something that I'd never had the chance to read about before . But : Sea Horses ? Races ? Death + destruction ? tragic characters ? Sean Kendrick ? Count me in.
People/Horses:
PUCK : Her name is in fact not Puck , it is Kate , but people who know her that call her it , so shall I because I have just read her whole story about her racing. She was the first girl to races in the races. Yes no one really likes the female kind on the beach in the middle of November because the Scorpio Races are considered a man's sport , and with all the death and similiar things that occur during it I can totally see why , but this aside , because she needs the money , she races. She raced very well .
DOVE: This happens to be Puck's horse , she's a white island pony that she races and is defnitely in love with Corr which would make sense too.
SEAN : Kendrick , Sean Kendrick. He's won the races 4 times in a row and has a capill usice ( excuse the spelling , but that means water-horse) , is mysterious and loves Corr and the beach and the Sky and racing and of course his blue jacket of his. He is wonderful , although may appear to look intimidating as I've learned from Puck. Nonetheless , he is beautiful.
CORR: My favourite horse of all ( sorry Dove) , and he is most definitely in love with Dove too ( It's very hard for water horses to settle down as it were) and he's red , feisty , but loves Sean with all his heart and never leaves his side. Oh and he made me cry , just as Sean did.
Overall , if you haven't read this :
1) what are you doing ? what are you reading instead of this book?
2) It will make you want to live in Thisby ( Its fictional but still)
3) Sean Kendrick. ( and all the other characters too shh)
4) Please pick it up !!
Its my favourite thing.
I loved this so much , It's going to be my favourite book of the year ( or one of them) because I love it that much.
I was reading as one does when they pick up a book and all of a sudden the book ended , but it ended just how it began , in an entirely beautiful manner altogether.
The world building and the world generally was something that I'd never had the chance to read about before . But : Sea Horses ? Races ? Death + destruction ? tragic characters ? Sean Kendrick ? Count me in.
People/Horses:
PUCK : Her name is in fact not Puck , it is Kate , but people who know her that call her it , so shall I because I have just read her whole story about her racing. She was the first girl to races in the races. Yes no one really likes the female kind on the beach in the middle of November because the Scorpio Races are considered a man's sport , and with all the death and similiar things that occur during it I can totally see why , but this aside , because she needs the money , she races. She raced very well .
DOVE: This happens to be Puck's horse , she's a white island pony that she races and is defnitely in love with Corr which would make sense too.
SEAN : Kendrick , Sean Kendrick. He's won the races 4 times in a row and has a capill usice ( excuse the spelling , but that means water-horse) , is mysterious and loves Corr and the beach and the Sky and racing and of course his blue jacket of his. He is wonderful , although may appear to look intimidating as I've learned from Puck. Nonetheless , he is beautiful.
CORR: My favourite horse of all ( sorry Dove) , and he is most definitely in love with Dove too ( It's very hard for water horses to settle down as it were) and he's red , feisty , but loves Sean with all his heart and never leaves his side. Oh and he made me cry , just as Sean did.
Overall , if you haven't read this :
1) what are you doing ? what are you reading instead of this book?
2) It will make you want to live in Thisby ( Its fictional but still)
3) Sean Kendrick. ( and all the other characters too shh)
4) Please pick it up !!
Its my favourite thing.
Much like The Hunger Games, I delayed reading this because the subject matter sounded as though it would be of little interest. Also like The Hunger Games, I was so glad once I forced myself to read it. I found myself very attached to the characters, and hoping strongly for a second book.
After reading my student's review (http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/242805713), I realized that I couldn't write a better review. But I loved this book so much that I couldn't leave a blank review.
This mystical tale sucked me in! On Christmas Eve, I was secretly reading it because I couldn't bear to be apart from Sean and Puck. Now that the novel is over, I am depressed and feel like I am missing my friends. (Does that make me odd?)
It is going to be difficult to booktalk this novel, as the concept is so bizarre. Sean and Puck live on an island that has an annual Scorpio Race. Each year, horses come out of the sea and are trained to race. The horses are wild and survive on flesh and blood. Sean has an incredible ability to tame the horses and has one four of the past six races. Puck decides to ride the races for the first time in an effort to save her house. No one wants a girl to ride in the races, as it breaks tradition.
I am drawn to Stiefvater's writing because she paints a setting in a way that I feel as if I am alongside the characters. They feel very real to me. It is rare that I have difficulty putting a book down, but this was certainly one of those amazing books.
This mystical tale sucked me in! On Christmas Eve, I was secretly reading it because I couldn't bear to be apart from Sean and Puck. Now that the novel is over, I am depressed and feel like I am missing my friends. (Does that make me odd?)
It is going to be difficult to booktalk this novel, as the concept is so bizarre. Sean and Puck live on an island that has an annual Scorpio Race. Each year, horses come out of the sea and are trained to race. The horses are wild and survive on flesh and blood. Sean has an incredible ability to tame the horses and has one four of the past six races. Puck decides to ride the races for the first time in an effort to save her house. No one wants a girl to ride in the races, as it breaks tradition.
I am drawn to Stiefvater's writing because she paints a setting in a way that I feel as if I am alongside the characters. They feel very real to me. It is rare that I have difficulty putting a book down, but this was certainly one of those amazing books.
The world-building, characters, relationships, community... this book is absolutely amazing. We have a small island community hosting the annual Scorpio Races, a competition where young islanders race on monstrous water horses. Our POV characters are complex, stubborn, wild, and I adore both of them. If you've enjoyed any of Stiefvater's other books, definitely give this one a try.
Also: the audiobook is fantastic and I recommend listening to it if you can.
Also: the audiobook is fantastic and I recommend listening to it if you can.
It was well written!! Just... Not that much happened, I feel like this book could've told the same story in about half the length
4.5 ⭐️
Okay, wow! Despite being different than I was expecting, this story was beautiful!
The characters were my favourite part! First, SEAN! Enough said really, he was just… lovable. Plus, he and Kate together were simply adorable. And Finn… my heart, this child is precious. Okay, technically not a child, but he’s such a sweet little brother!
There’s an interesting mix of fantasy & reality that threw me at the beginning. Obviously the whole horse thing is fantastical, but it’s alongside uses of cars, radios, and Americans. It all made sense by the end though.
I’m not a horse girl, yet I found the concept here fascinating! And grisly. But mostly fascinating. And I’m not sure sure how to explain it, but something of this book was reminiscent of Gillian Bronte Adams’ “Of Fire and Ash.”
My only really complaints would be the language & sexual innuendo / crude comments, but I had a heads up going into the book.
The ending was so beautifully touching. My heart broke & cheered, and while I didn’t cry, my eyes certainly misted up a time or two!
.
.
.
.
“There are moments you’ll remember for the rest of your life and there are moments you think you’ll remember for the rest of your life, and it’s not often they turn out to be the same moments.”
“‘I will not be your weakness, Sean Kendrick.’
Now he looks at me. He says, very softly, ‘It’s late for that, Puck.’”
“My mother always told me that you should wear your best clothes when you are angry, because it would scare people. I’m not angry, but I’m in the mood to be terrifying.”
Okay, wow! Despite being different than I was expecting, this story was beautiful!
The characters were my favourite part! First, SEAN! Enough said really, he was just… lovable. Plus, he and Kate together were simply adorable. And Finn… my heart, this child is precious. Okay, technically not a child, but he’s such a sweet little brother!
There’s an interesting mix of fantasy & reality that threw me at the beginning. Obviously the whole horse thing is fantastical, but it’s alongside uses of cars, radios, and Americans. It all made sense by the end though.
I’m not a horse girl, yet I found the concept here fascinating! And grisly. But mostly fascinating. And I’m not sure sure how to explain it, but something of this book was reminiscent of Gillian Bronte Adams’ “Of Fire and Ash.”
My only really complaints would be the language & sexual innuendo / crude comments, but I had a heads up going into the book.
The ending was so beautifully touching. My heart broke & cheered, and while I didn’t cry, my eyes certainly misted up a time or two!
.
.
.
.
“There are moments you’ll remember for the rest of your life and there are moments you think you’ll remember for the rest of your life, and it’s not often they turn out to be the same moments.”
“‘I will not be your weakness, Sean Kendrick.’
Now he looks at me. He says, very softly, ‘It’s late for that, Puck.’”
“My mother always told me that you should wear your best clothes when you are angry, because it would scare people. I’m not angry, but I’m in the mood to be terrifying.”
The Scorpio Races is a complex, beautifully written story on so many levels. Every detail has been carefully crafted and engagingly written. It is the story of Thisby, an island off the coast of Ireland that is unique because it attracts the presence of water horses: vicious predators who emerge from the sea hungry for meat: human or otherwise. The island itself and the ocean play major roles within the novel -- not only as a harsh, barren setting (the former) or a fickle, dangerous, alluring mystery (the latter), but the two main characters, Puck (aka Kate) Connolly and Sean Kendrick epitomize both of these entities respectively. I liked that, but I did not appreciate how obvious this connection was laid out. Puck is often compared to the wild, fierce island, and I'd have preferred a little more subtlety. Either way though, the setting itself is a powerful character unto itself. The island, its inhabitants, and its small, close-knit community are essential parts of the novel and create an alluring and yet magical setting: a place either passionately loved or hated enough to drive people away.
The story itself is a build up to the annual races, where men race (and often fall victim to) the water horses, or capall uisce, in a bloody spectacle on the beach every year. Naturally, this blood-infused sport is a major tourist attraction: pulling in hundreds of visitors each November.
Both of the main characters are wonderfully portrayed and are absolutely unique protagonists: Puck *is* wild; she has a bite, and she makes no apologies for it. She shakes things up by being the first female to enter in an unspecified but clearly earlier period of history and in a race that's been "Men Only" for as long as the island's long, mythical memory extends. She enters -- despite major personal objections -- to have a chance to save her home and keep her orphaned family together. On the other hand, Sean is a quiet powerhouse with an intense connection with these ferocious water horses. He's a master at catching and handling these man-eating monsters; he's the undisputed favorite going into the races, having won four times previously on his capall uisce stallion, Corr, to whom he has a powerful connection -- despite the beast's innately bloody and aggressive nature. Sean's goal is to win Corr for himself rather than to race for a controlling patron.
My primary complaint was that the story was rather slow to start. I thought it dragged in places before it finally found its pace, but once it did, I fell in love with the writing, the characters, the setting, and of course Corr. Stiefvater took a legend and created a very engaging, heart-tugging story from it with quite the ending. I loved that I couldn't predict the ending itself, much less the outcome of the Scorpio Races.
4.5 stars.
The story itself is a build up to the annual races, where men race (and often fall victim to) the water horses, or capall uisce, in a bloody spectacle on the beach every year. Naturally, this blood-infused sport is a major tourist attraction: pulling in hundreds of visitors each November.
Both of the main characters are wonderfully portrayed and are absolutely unique protagonists: Puck *is* wild; she has a bite, and she makes no apologies for it. She shakes things up by being the first female to enter in an unspecified but clearly earlier period of history and in a race that's been "Men Only" for as long as the island's long, mythical memory extends. She enters -- despite major personal objections -- to have a chance to save her home and keep her orphaned family together. On the other hand, Sean is a quiet powerhouse with an intense connection with these ferocious water horses. He's a master at catching and handling these man-eating monsters; he's the undisputed favorite going into the races, having won four times previously on his capall uisce stallion, Corr, to whom he has a powerful connection -- despite the beast's innately bloody and aggressive nature. Sean's goal is to win Corr for himself rather than to race for a controlling patron.
My primary complaint was that the story was rather slow to start. I thought it dragged in places before it finally found its pace, but once it did, I fell in love with the writing, the characters, the setting, and of course Corr. Stiefvater took a legend and created a very engaging, heart-tugging story from it with quite the ending. I loved that I couldn't predict the ending itself, much less the outcome of the Scorpio Races.
4.5 stars.
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death of parent
Moderate: Death of parent
Several horses die violently. One cat is harmed, several sheep are killed off screen. Several humans die on and off screen.