Rating: 4

I’ve read about 600 horse novels so far, but except for the novelisation of Hidalgo (I love that film!) and a Mustang Mountain volume I more or less consider western riding, this is the first proper novel about endurance I ever read – at least as far as I remember. It’s a shame, really, because this makes for a rather interesting and hardly touched upon topic. I liked it so much I even gave the novel another star …

Sometimes, it’s best to let the hype die down before reading a book. When We Were Liars was published in 2014, everyone was talking about it even. Unfortunately, spoilers were flying around so I lost interest. Now, five years later and not remembering all of that, I was able to read this with an almost clean slate. And what can I say: without that kind of baggage, I really enjoyed this book – much more than I would have, had I read it back then …

This one’s for the dreamers, for the ones loving getting lost in winter woods, for the ones enjoying delicate and thoughtful fairy tales. McKillip once again spins words into a beautiful, tranquil story about magic, curses, faerie realms, and love with only a handful of characters and a limited setting that reminded me a little of Naomi Novik’s more recent novel Uprooted …

I found this little gem in my favourite Dublin bookshop last summer and it took me no time at all to whisk it away. I mean, just look at it! The beautiful cover drew me in, the promise of feminist fairytale retellings and beautiful illustrations sold it, and it being thoroughly Irish in origin was the cherry on top. And what can I say: it was so worth its money!

Damn! This is by far the best (and worst) dystopia I’ve ever read! Best, because it’s exactly what I’m looking for in a dystopia. Worst, because it’s so eerily topical I had to check the copyright page several times because I could not believe this was first published in 1985 …

Welcome to the whimsically wonderful world of The Parasol Protectorate! In its YA incarnation, it’s just as steampunky, supernatural, and sublime – albeit demure. And yet, it shines with quirky characters, witty dialogue, adventurous episodes and an all-encompassing feel-good atmosphere …

The novel begins with a trope and a lovely spin on it: There are new horses arriving at the stable, but not just any horses! Oh no, these two are stunt horses! Protagonist Zoe is not impressed though and that’s what I love about her. She’s worried about their well-being and eyes the training very suspiciously …