Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Horse Passages by Jennifer Macaire and a Clean Reads Giveaway!


A Horse is a Horse, Of Course… Or Is It?

HORSE PASSAGES by Jennifer Macaire

I’ll admit it. At first I hesitated to read this book. I’ve never been a huge, Horses Rule gal. But guess what—it’s the human characters who rule this book (although the horses do make wonderful companions and add a necessary thrill to the story).
Jennifer Macaire seamlessly weaves in factual details about horses—riding them and their care—without ever losing focus of the story itself. Not knowing a thing about horses, I found I really enjoyed feeling a part of the herders’ lifestyle. I never once felt as if I were an outsider looking in. Now, that’s good storytelling. And hey, if you ARE a Horses Rule gal or guy, you’ll find even more pleasure from this book!
Orphaned twins, Meagan and Carl Cadet, share an honored path—they’re horse herders. But the horses they herd are unique, for each horse grows beautiful clusters of unicorn-like horns made of living quartz. Like fingerprints, each is dazzlingly different from the other. The horses use these horns to travel through mystic passages, finding new planets for humans to colonize. Meagan and Carl are teenaged equestrians who make perfect caregivers for these unusual horses—if they can avoid the merciless Raiders.
Raiders stalk horse herders; capturing them to work their mines, using them until death finally takes the poor humans away from their endless misery. Once taken, no human has been able to escape the brutal grasp of these mysterious aliens.
HORSE PASSAGES is divided into two books with intertwining stories. Book I follows Meagan as she faces the same terror that took both of her parents and little sister—the Raiders. Carl is left behind, fearing the worst. He can’t save her. Meagan must save herself.
Book II follows Carl as he faces his own frightening reality—falling off a horse during mid-passage. He will die, unless he follows the light.
Each twin’s story in HORSE PASSAGES sends the reader into a whirlwind of emotions—just what I like! The main characters are well defined, written to be accessible and intimate with the reader.
HORSE PASSAGES is an exciting young adult read I highly recommend!
P.S. There’s a twist at the end of Book II. It’s left a strong impression with me. I feel both anxious and exuberant. Explore the book, and you’ll see what I mean!
P.S. P.S. Jennifer Macaire—I want more!!!!


Review by Kelsey E. Johnson Defatte, guest reviewer


GUESS WHAT? I have a copy of this book in my hands! And it's for YOU! This is how you can become the owner of this new copy of HORSE PASSAGES by Jennifer Macaire...Simply leave a comment on any Deliciously Clean Reads post between now and Monday, April 30th. Comments can be about anything, but I would appreciate if they were relevant to the book reviewed or your feelings about Clean Reads in general. Your comment must include your name (of course, it can be just a first name, or if you're really shy, just an online alias). Names of commenters will be tossed into a hat, and I'll announce a winner one week from today on Tuesday, May 1st.

Please let your friends know about the Clean Reads Giveaway! Thanks and good luck!
-Emily


Review and Free Book generously provided by the author, Jennifer Macaire.

10 Comments:

Anonymous said...

Kelsey and Emily! Clean Reads is such a fantastic idea! Woohoo!

I'm just a middling fantasy fan, but Kelsey the Query Queen, your talent is showing. Enter me in the contest--I'd love to own and read Horse Passages. Sounds intriguing!

Stephanie Reed
Stef at Verla Kay's Blue Board

Anonymous said...

I am so glad that I stumbled onto this site. I have a pre-teen that reads at a much higher level than her 10 years, so it is wonderful to read reviews of CLEAN books that I can safely let her read. Thank you.

Stacy at Exceedingly Mundane said...

I recently found this site also, and love reading reviews of good, clean books. This Horse Passages book sounds good, and I have a niece who is horse-crazy. I'd love to have my name thrown in the hat for the free book giveaway. How very generous :)

Have a wonderful day!

stacy{at}hambones.org

Andi Carter said...

OK, I found this blog on the Blue Board and I am absolutely excited about it. I'd sure like to win that horse book. The horses "with a twist" looks great for those fantasy readers. Gee, Stef, if you win it, may I borrow it?

Susan K. Marlow
AKA SuzyScribbles

Anonymous said...

I plan to list this blog at my school's site (I'm a parochial teacher.)

My fifth and sixth grade girls will love "Horse Passages." (I'm not a horsey girl, myself.)

Stephenie Hovland
aka Inspired

Daisy Martin said...

I would LOVE to have a copy of Jennifer's book! In fact it is on my wishlist at the book trading club I belong to.

Anonymous said...

I always like to read books about twins since I am one. I like to see if the author "gets it"

Elayne "EJ" Petterson said...

I think that Horse Passages looks like a really good book. The review looked very interesting and I really want to read the real thing.

Rosie said...

Good review. I'm not a horse mad person, so I appreciate you telling us that there's more to the story than just horses.

Framed said...

Hi, I found your blog on "Semicolon" and enjoyed the review. This book is going on my TBR list. Also, I love the idea of "Clean Reads."

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