Title: Scorpio Races
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Teen Fiction, Fantasy Fiction
Publication Date: October 8, 2011
Publisher: Scholastic Press
ISBN-13 Book: 9780545224901
Audiobook Publisher: Scholastic Audio
ISBN-13 Audio CD: 9780545357050
Length: 10 sound discs (12 hrs. and 7 min.)(Unabridged)
Disclosure: I checked out the audio from my library and received a copy of the book for committee work. This is my honest review!
The Scorpio Races by Maggie StiefvaterMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Summary:
Sean Kendrick watched his father die in the Scorpio Races, killed by a water horse. Still, he continues to race and win every November. This November he hopes to win his freedom and his horse. Despite being the first girl to ever enter the race, Puck decides to race to win the money her family needs to keep their home. Both are outsiders, but both hope to win the race despite all the odds.
Review:
This novel was not what I was expecting. I was expecting more of a fantasy element to the story, when if you take out the water horses, you almost have a realistic fiction novel. Stiefvater’s weaving of the fantasy was so subtle, that it makes it that much more real.
The pacing in the novel could have been better. The beginning is very slow, and friends who have tried to read this novel have said that they couldn’t make it past that slow start. It is worth the persistence though, because the payoff at the end is great. Once I was half way through the novel I had a hard time putting it down—I wanted to know what was going to happen to Puck and Sean.
I loved Sean from the beginning, but had a little harder time getting to know Puck. She is fiercely independent, and very opinionated. It made it harder to get to know her, but as the novel progressed you began to love her as well.
The setting for this story was perfect. The small island of Thisby, where the bloodthirsty water horses come raging out of the sea, was wonderfully depicted. I wanted to know more about the island and their festivals and of course, the horses.
Audiobook Review:
The audio version of this novel was produced by Scholastic Audio and read by Steve West & Fiona Hardingham. The two readers served this novel well since it is narrated from the perspectives of both Puck and Sean. I love the accents! It suited the characters perfectly. Because the book had such slow pacing at the beginning, the audiobook was a perfect medium to keep me reading and interested. I doubt I would have finished without the audio, and that would have been a shame because this book was brilliant.
Overall:
The slow beginning makes this a hard sell to readers, but the book is brilliant. It is definitely up there with my favorite reads of the year. I loved the characters, the setting, and the horses (who couldn’t love man eating horses???). I definitely recommend this book, and the audiobook. Just be prepared, you may have to stick with it for a while.
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welcome back . I love this book and thanks for the great review :0)
ReplyDeleteThanks! I'm easing into it. I think I got a little burnt out towards the end of last year. It's a New Year time to start fresh! I adored this book--I have been promoting it to the teens at the library since I first read it!
DeleteThis is one of those books that has been on my tbr list forever. It sounds like a great read but I see myself having a bit of a hard time getting into it. Your review makes me want to try though.
ReplyDeleteI hope you like it when you read it. It does have a slow start, but I am so glad I finished it. I loved the water horses.
DeleteThis is actually my least favorite Maggie Stiefvater book just because of the super slow beginning. I had such a hard time getting into this one but once I got past that I enjoyed it. Great review!
ReplyDeleteI think I liked it better than the Shiver books--mostly because I loved the mythology here with the water horses, but I can definitely see what you are saying. It is much slower at the beginning than any of her others. If it hadn't been for the audio I might not have finished--so glad I did though. It was really worth it in the end.
DeleteLOVED LOVED LOVED this story! The audio version is fabulous! I was hesitant to pick up Scorpio Races as I had to put Shiver away after only getting through half of it...I just could not get into it. But man, am I ever glad I did! While the cover is pretty, it doesn't draw in many readers, which is a really big shame. Everyone who I've convinced to read it loves it, though!!
ReplyDelete