Genre: New Adult (Contemporary Romance)
Date Published: August 19, 2013Publisher: Self
This book is now titled: Breaking Free
After a fire takes her grandma’s life and kills her horse, Hannah’s immaculate life spirals out of control. Her father disapproves of her decision to run her grandma’s ranch instead of focusing solely on learning the family business; Animal Control brings her Argus, a mistreated horse that she can’t turn away even though she’s not ready for another horse; and her boyfriend, Eric Bennett, a world famous polo player, becomes possessive and authoritarian. Despite her best efforts to disguise it, Hannah grows wary of him.
Then, Leonardo Fernandes struts onto the polo scene. A cocky rookie with a messy life of his own, he’s drawn to Hannah and isn’t afraid of showing it, even when Eric makes it clear she is his and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep it that way. Hannah suffers for Eric’s jealousy. The abuse only gets worse when Leo steals the title of best polo player in the world from Eric.
But the title isn’t enough for Leo. He wants Hannah too, and she can’t deny her attraction to him either. Somehow, she must find a way to break free from abusive Eric before he breaks every bone in her body.
Breaking the Reins by Julia Haygert gave me the kind of story I haven't read in a long time. I used to read horse stories all the time growing up. There aren't enough horse stories out there that are focused on an older crowd rather than children. So, I'm glad we finally have one. I really enjoyed this story. The over use of the bridle bothered me a little, and I'm the first to admit when it comes to horses(among other animals), I'm super picky. I grew up with horses. They are a huge part of my life. The horse in the book has been severely abused, so we're starting from scratch with him. From the start of his rehab, they put him in a bridle for everything, even a walk from point A to point B. Until he's used to being touched, a simple halter and lead would be a lot easier, more functional, and less traumatic for the horse. With a bridle you have to deal with the bit and the reins(which would just get in the way) and when you're starting from the beginning with a horse who's like this...why would you want to stuff a bit in his mouth from day one anyway? Once they got to the ground work, then yes, you totally need the bridle. I know I'm a lil crazy when it comes to animal stuff, so in my head I just changed bridle to halter, until they got to the ground work phase of the horsey rehab.
Also, the term "breaking" is just horsey lingo for "training" a horse to ride under saddle. When a person says they are "breaking" a horse (and many, many, MANY people use this term), this doesn't always mean they use rough and abusive methods to train a horse like it seemed to mean in this book. Unfortunately, there are many abusive horse trainers out there, but the use of this term isn't the sign of one.
Okay so, let's forget about the bridle and breaking horses now. I loved the story itself. The anticipation with the romance was electric. Leo was completely swoon worthy with his bad boy/good boy ways. The story throws you some curves too. I though I had Eric completely figured out, boy was I wrong. Leo had some surprises of his own too. I loved, loved, LOVED Argus. He's a horse with attitude and spunk. Once he's fully rehabilitated, he'd be so much fun. I love him! The story was very well put together and captured my attention from the start.
Breaking the Reins by Juliana Haygert was provided to me by the Xpresso Book Tours for review. The opinions are my own.
Also, the term "breaking" is just horsey lingo for "training" a horse to ride under saddle. When a person says they are "breaking" a horse (and many, many, MANY people use this term), this doesn't always mean they use rough and abusive methods to train a horse like it seemed to mean in this book. Unfortunately, there are many abusive horse trainers out there, but the use of this term isn't the sign of one.
Okay so, let's forget about the bridle and breaking horses now. I loved the story itself. The anticipation with the romance was electric. Leo was completely swoon worthy with his bad boy/good boy ways. The story throws you some curves too. I though I had Eric completely figured out, boy was I wrong. Leo had some surprises of his own too. I loved, loved, LOVED Argus. He's a horse with attitude and spunk. Once he's fully rehabilitated, he'd be so much fun. I love him! The story was very well put together and captured my attention from the start.
Breaking the Reins by Juliana Haygert was provided to me by the Xpresso Book Tours for review. The opinions are my own.
Click here for some more awesome teasers and an excerpt!
Check out my reviews of the books in this series!
Have you read these books by Juliana Haygert?
Check out my reviews of the books in this series!
Have you read these books by Juliana Haygert?
To learn more about Juliana Haygert and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook and Twitter.
Open internationally Prizes:
-Signed paperback of Breaking the Reins
-Ebook of Breaking the Reins
-Signed paperback of Destiny Gift
-Ebook of Destiny Gift
-25$ Amazon/B&N gift card
a Rafflecopter giveaway
I don't believe I've read a horse story before so I'm really curious about this one. It sounds like a great read with three dimensional characters, too! Great review! :)
ReplyDeleteI love horses but haen't read any books before. I saw Flicka with Tim McGraw which was really good. I would love to read this book. Sounds so good. Tore923@aol.com
ReplyDeleteYeah! Love books with horses!
ReplyDelete