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laurathomas61

Please make this a movie!

Reviewed in the United States on November 12, 2016

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What a great story. I love horses and just had to see what this was all about.

The water horses are a race of beings that live in the water, emerging to feed on flesh or drag you to a watery death. The thought makes me shiver.

Every year, riders mount these monstrous beasts for the Scorpio Races. It’s hard enough to win a regular horse race. In this race, you have to worry about surviving as much as winning.

The character’s are numerous and very genuine. Puck is a young lass willing to risk her life in the races. She lost her parents to the water horses, and now her older brother is leaving her and her younger brother Finn to fend for themselves. The money from the race would help save their home.

Sean and his stallion, Corr, are four time winners of the races. He’ll ride again this year, but the stakes are much higher.

Puck and Sean have a growing attraction for each other. But both must win the race.

I so loved this world and the character’s that galloped through the pages, human and other. I wanted this one to win. And that one to win. This one to stay. That one to stay. I feared the worst and hoped for the best.

This story is so much more than a race. I struggle to even tell you about it. There’s desperation and hope, bravery and honor, magic and danger. And I couldn’t have asked for a better final scene.

K. C. Martin

Superlatives are inadequete for this book

Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2015

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I have lived a good long time...longer than I will admit to here, and I have been reading voraciously since before kindergarten. I have read a lot of books. Many of them have been good, and a precious few have been great. The Scorpio Races is as good a book as I have read in many years. It was so good, in fact, that once I finished it, I mourned for a few minutes and then promptly started re-reading it.

The story is intriguing...the Scorpio Races are races set on a small island (fictional, but it feels a lot like an Irish offshore island) between Cappaill Uisce, the water horses of Celtic folklore. These are no Disney water horses...they eat meat, drink blood and kill. Each other, and humans. But the island, Thisby, and the horses are connected in ways modern man has trouble understanding. They have ancient blood ties past remembering. Two of the contenders in this years race are Sean Kendricks, and Puck Connelly.

Sean has been working with the Cappaill Uisce since he was a boy. Described by the islanders as having "one foot on land, and one in the sea" he has won the races for the past four years on a stallion named Corr. He loves Corr deeply, and the horses in his charge love him and his magic.

Puck is an orphaned girl who is riding in the races for the first time, as the first woman to compete. She is also riding her mundane island horse, Dove, rather than one of the Cappaill Uisce...another first. She is hindered in her efforts by almost everyone on the island. Everyone but Sean, who is drawn to her for reasons he cannot explain.

The two face many obstacles. Chief among them is Mutt Malvern, the cruel son of the richest man on the island (and Sean's employer). Another hurdle they must face is that each has desperate reasons for needing to win the race, but to do that, they must beat the person they are growing to love. The love story is awkward and terribly sweet.

I can't really put my finger on what I find so compelling about this book. The story is unique, and the slight tinge of magic over everything on Thisby adds a delightful air of mystery. Its written by a YA author, which may be the reason the love story is so muted and delicious. We don't have sex to rely on making the story interesting. The writing must carry the story.

And the writing is superb. The suspense simply never lets up. One is completely drawn in by the two immensely likable main characters, and many of the lesser characters deserve their own book: Finn and George Holly are two I would love to read more about. The rituals and traditions surrounding the races are unsettling, yet have the feel of ancient rhythms and rites. Stiefvater has an unswervingly deft hand in her timing and the pace of the story feels just right. The conclusion is a surprise, albeit one that satisfactorily resolves the dilemma of the two protagonists.

I was rather haunted by the story. I found myself thinking a lot about the story and the characters during the first read, and even the second. Sean, in particular caught my imagination. He is mysterious and magical and immensely attractive. Again, Ms Stiefvater reveals just enough of his background to help explain him, but we never fully understand him.

I will definitely read more by the author. I don't usually read YA novels, but this one is so exceptional that I too will make an exception.

MyHumbleOpinion

It Gave Me Beautiful Dreams!

Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2018

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This book was highly recommended to me by a friend who is very well read from young adult literature to the high-brow classics. She told me she has read this book about 4 times and never gets sick of it. As soon as I started reading it, I realized this is not really my “type” of book – it’s kind of a fantasy type book with mythical horse-like creatures. I soon got past that prejudice as I realized it’s a story about our complex relationships with animals, family, neighbors, and the community we grow up in. The community is shown in all it’s complexity – how some long to escape, others find ways to shine in it, and many just struggle with it. A community that generally stands still in time, the Scorpion Races brings in people from all over to mingle with the locals once a year to watch the event – a dangerous race on water horses that often results in the death of the human rider. The cash prize that the winner receives is ostensibly enough for one to risk it all – but the prize alone is not the only lure for all the racers. The book is a compelling glimpse at culture, poverty, competition, and gender that does not speak down to young adult audiences. It’s a book that can be enjoyed by teens and adults alike and both boys and girls. Whenever I read this book, I had the most fantastically magical dreams about the horse creatures in the book – and I don’t usually remember dreams. Something about this books sparks your imagination because it is so unique, but has an archetypical, universal quality to it as well.

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Kindle Customer

Lyrical, atmospheric and wonderful

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 10, 2018

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Oh how I loved this story! Sure it was a little slow off the starting blocks but once I was hooked that was it, I read all night to see how it all turned out.
I enjoyed getting to know the main characters, Puck and Sean, who were well developed, as were the supporting cast. Mutt and his father were excellent bad guys, Dory and her sisters entertaining, and Puck's brothers well drawn.
The island was a character too - wild and pagan with the tourists uneasy visitors from a more secure world. Then there were the capaill uisce, who should dispel any fantasies of faeries as twinkly little charmers. Sean's relationship with Corr, his water horse, was poignant and led to one of the most moving endings I've ever read in a novel. It was perfect.
The race was a wild ride indeed. I had no clue who would win or if the racers would survive... I tore through the story at that point I can tell you!
Some have said this book was too slow for them. I think the slow start suits the season when the book is set, a strange and dangerous autumn when death is only too close for the islanders of Thisby.
Full marks to Maggie again! I am so happy to have found this writer :-)

Georgiana89

Brave attempt to do something different with paranormal/fantasy YA but a little too slow-burn

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 30, 2016

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The story in this book revolves around an island where deadly man-eating horses come out of the sea each November and are raced by the inhabitants. The location (probably somewhere off Ireland) and the period (probably mid-twentieth century) are left purposefully vague, and the gritty realities and romanticism of life on the island are just as important as the supernatural elements. There's a romance between two desperate entrants in the races, but it's incredibly slowburn. The love of the main characters for their horses and the details of how they care for them are spelt out. Whatever else, good or bad, I think about this book, I admire the way the author has written something genuinely original and unusual, with little regard to genre boundaries or recent conventions of YA lit. This reminded me a little of some of the seventies and eighties teen books that merged magic and reality, such as Elidor or the Dark is Rising, which I've always loved. I read this straight after devouring the final three books of the same author's Raven Boys series, and to some degree, this feels like an early attempt at the tone that book does so well.

On the whole, I enjoyed this - the well-drawn characters, the island, the horses. However, it was very slow, which sometimes built up atmosphere, sometimes made it drag. And while it was nice not to have an "insta-love" plot, the romance took a seriously long time to get going, and didn't have as much spark as I'd have liked. I suspect that to fully appreciate this book, you need to really, really like horses, as they are so integral to the plot and the mood.

Worth a read as something a little different, particularly if you like the author's other books, but didn't quite hit the mark for me.

Emmy

incredible!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 5, 2016

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I finished reading The Scorpio Races while I was on holiday in Llandudno, Wales, during an incredible thunderstorm. The thunder and lightning only added to what was already a terrifying ride, and if I thought I heard the pounding of hooves outside, or a scream from the sea… well, I ducked under my blankets and prayed!

Maggie Stiefvater knows both how to weave a story and craft characters so real they practically leap off the page and shake your hand. Strong-willed Puck makes me proud to share her nickname, and Sean… well, I liked Sean a lot. Though I don’t often like the way boys are portrayed in YA, Stiefvater manages to make me feel for everyone involved in each story she writes.

The action is fast-paced, but once again the characters step forward to lead the way with the usual Stiefvater flair; attention to detail, emotion, and humour. Stiefvater takes an awesome idea – racing water horses – and turns it into something altogether breathtaking in its depth. It is simple yet complex and I will read it again and again.

The ending was perfect. Part of me ached for something more at the end of The Raven Cycle (a Thing that I believe was intended) but the last page of The Scorpio Races made me think: “Yes, this is how it should be.” Of course the characters and even Thisby itself will live on, as they should. But this chapter of their lives has come to a satisfying, magical close.

I Read, Therefore I Blog

Entertaining and well-crafted YA fantasy

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 6, 2014

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16-year-old Kate ‘Puck’ Connolly has lived her whole life on the island of Skarmouth with her brothers Gabe and Finn ever since their parents were killed by a capall (a fierce, carnivorous water horse indigenous to the island). When Gabe announces that he’s leaving the island to seek work on the mainland, Puck discovers that they’re behind on the rent for their house and it’s up to her to find a way to pay it. The only option is to enter the Scorpio Races held on 1st November each year where riders race their capalls along the Skarmouth beaches and the winner takes a fat purse and the promise of fame. But Puck doesn’t have a capall of her own and even if she did, she isn’t sure she can control one.

Her only hope is Sean Kendrick, a boy not much older than her who’s won the Scorpio Races numerous times and works as a horse and capall trainer for the crafty Benjamin Malvern. But Sean has his own reasons for wanting to win the Scorpio Races and although Puck finds herself drawn to him, there’s no way that each can get what they want … is there?

Maggie Stiefvater’s critically acclaimed standalone YA fantasy is a well-crafted, exciting read that really conveys the magic of horses (both real and fantastical) while also establishing a credible romance between the two main characters. The story is a little predictable and I found Skarmouth veered at times towards being distinctly Oirish in flavour while Kendrick’s main antagonist Mutt (the cruel and vicious son of Benjamin Malvern) is two dimensional, but Stiefvater’s skill as a writer means there are still some surprises in the plot together with some beautifully observed and touching scenes. What really sets this book apart though is the fact that the romance is so well written – you see Puck and Sean grow towards each other and the love they share for horses. In lesser hands this could be clichéd but Stiefvater gives it life and a sweet intensity (and I say that as someone who doesn’t like a lot of romance). Also good is the relationship Puck has with her brothers, especially the sweet and fearful Finn who isn’t quite able to deal with the real world. Ultimately this was an interesting and entertaining read and I really look forward to seeing what Stiefvater does next.

Arkham Reviews

Simply Stunning

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 10, 2015

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This novel was far more than I was expecting based on the title and blurb. While the story does build up towards the race, it is by no means the focus of the story (the race itself only takes up 14 of the 410 pages). Instead, the novel is more of a snapshot, allowing the reader to experience what life is like on Thisby. Stiefvater's attention to detail is nothing sort of staggering, helping add to the panoramic experience and allowing me to feel as though I was actually there.

The novel does a really good job of balancing the supernatural and mundane aspects of the story in a way that allows the story to feel believable. Although the capaill uisce are magical creatures, they don't feel tacked on and are a completely believable part of the world. The vicious and unpredictable nature of the horses help add a level of tension to the story, which in turn made it impossible for me to guess how the novel would end. In the final act of the novel, I just devoured the story. I had no idea who would win (or even survive) the race and therefore I just couldn't put the book down.

Yet it's the characters that really make the story for me. Both Puck and Sean feel like real characters, flawed but ultimately very likable. They could act selfishly (Puck) or insensitively (Sean). Yet they still had noble thoughts at heart. Sean sought his freedom – the chance to live the life of his choice with the capaill uisce that he loves. Puck’s issues are more grounded in the physical, a strong desire to hold her family together and remain on the island that she calls home. Both of the characters are very strong and capable, able to hold their own against people who wish them ill and not afraid to speak their mind. Because of this, I found it difficult to choose who I wanted to win the race and for me, this made the story more effective. While I would be glad for either one to be the victor, it also meant that one of them would have to sacrifice their dreams.

All in all, it's just a stunning novel - even better than Shiver. I can't wait to read more from this author.

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