The SkyHorse by H.L. Carpenter

By: Anonymous on Friday, December 28, 2012

Title:  The SkyHorse

Author:  H.L. Carpenter

Published:  April 6th 2012 by Musa Publishing

Genre:  Fantasy Young Adult
Shelf:  Review Copy

Rating:  ★★★★

Synopsis from Goodreads:

 Fourteen year old Tovi thinks finding a flying horse is fabulous luck - until a mysterious stranger says finders aren’t always keepers.

When fourteen year old Tovi Taggert moves to Honeysuckle Hollow to take care of her grandmother, she has a hard time fitting in. For one thing, she’s been tagged with the hated nickname Too-Tall Tovi. For another, everyone at Honeysuckle Hollow High believes Tovi played the Choking Game with someone else’s boyfriend – and made out with him besides.

As if she doesn’t have enough problems, after the latest stand-off in the school hallway, Tovi finds a gorgeous speckled egg nestled in a feather lined nest.

She takes the egg home – and mysterious visitors begin appearing almost immediately. Even more worrisome, whatever is inside the egg starts chipping its way out.

When the egg hatches, revealing a winged horse, Tovi’s troubles multiply.

As she struggles to return the horse to the magical land where he belongs, Tovi must make a courageous decision – and accept what that decision will cost her.


My Review:

Before beginning this review I have a confession to make. I chose to read this book for one reason and one reason only. It has a horse in it. Not just an ordinary horse, however, it’s a flying horse. What girl in their right mind can turn that down? And who doesn’t want to ride a flying horse. Coolest thing ever.

That said, I was so caught up in the story by the end of the first chapter that I could barely put the book down. Carpenter takes the life of a real life teenager who is transplanted from the city into a small town during high school and gives it one heck of a twist. The author has also given the story an entire mythical backdrop all of its own. It is not based on a pre-existing cultural mythology but seems to have been developed solely for the purpose of this story. It is extremely well developed and engages your imagination.

The author uses very vivid descriptions to draw you into the pages of the book without being wordy and long winded. You get so caught up in the who’s and what’s of the story that you are pulled within the pages. The story also has the ability to make you really stop and think about reality, both the reality of the story and the reality that you are living.

I must also commend the author for writing such a strong stand alone book. Although you can tell that life went on before the story began and will continue long afterwards there are no other books that you need to read to figure out what is going on. You don’t feel like you are missing anything and you aren’t guessing to fill in the blank. This is an excellent read all on its own.

This story was so unique and intriguing that I was completely in awe by the end of the story. 

Get your copy here today!