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INTERMEDIATE FICTION
Coats, J. Anderson

The Night Ride

224 pp. | Atheneum | October, 2021 | Trade ISBN 978-1-5344-8077-3 $17.99 | Ebook ISBN 978-1-5344-8079-7 $10.99
(2) 4-6 In this horse-centered fantasy, Sonnia has one desire in life: to earn enough coppers to buy her beloved ­Ricochet, a fleet horse in the royal stables. Then Ricochet is reassigned to the king's racetrack, where she can't follow. Except, through a great stroke of luck, the new jockey at the track is her former carer, Deirdre, who pulls strings to get Sonnia a job as a stablehand. Being one of only a few female workers isn't easy, but Sonnia doesn't expect the most difficult challenge: all the stablehands take part in illicit midnight cross-country races for wealthy bettors, and she has to choose between sitting them out while struggling to support her family (let alone saving money to buy Ricochet) or risking the horses' soundness--and the king's wrath--if she participates. The factors that pressure Sonnia against her better judgment into joining the ride add up to a somewhat contrived motivation in this vaguely old-fashioned setting (kings, bandits), but what's completely authentic is the engine driving the story: Sonnia's unquenchable desire to own Ricochet, in the face of all obstacles. Horse-lovers will sympathize with Sonnia's ambition, her fierce protectiveness toward the horses, and her strong moral compass. Technical aspects of horse care are minutely and gratifyingly rendered. And not to spoil the ending, but when the drama comes to a rousing finish, fans of ­wish-fulfillment narratives will be smiling.
Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022

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