Chapter by Chapter features me reading one chapter of the selected book at the time and reviewing it as if I were reviewing an episode of a TV show or an issue of a comic. There will be spoilers if you haven’t read to the point I have, and if you’ve read further I ask that you don’t spoil anything further into the book. Think of it as read-along book club.
In our last installment we saw Alec do something very stupid. Despite every evidence that something was wrong he took his horse and rode off with a strange man in the swamp, went into his house, and now finds himself with two guys who may want to do him harm. We, the readers, know the actual goal is to get Black to mate with Ghost. Would that make the colt grey?
Chapter 5: The Professionals
This chapter has two things that make it good: a bit more history of the Captain and (if you’re a horse show fan) discussions of show horses in the circus world versus race horses, and how that affects the riders of each kind of horse. Again, since I’m not a horse aficionado this discussion really didn’t interest me. However, it might for equestrian enthusiasts who note the time period of the story.
The Captain and Alec bond of their mutual yet different love of horses. There’s talk of an act that dressed a horse up as the mythical Pegasus, leading to a brief discussion about Pegasus and other mythical animals. We learn the Captain actually has history in America, as his ancestors include the Caribs Native American tribe, one I’ve never heard of until now, as well as a few other countries. Odin is apparently his great-uncle. It’s not exactly character development, but there’s some interesting history of the Carib and their connection to the Conquistadors.
However, a storm starts brewing outside and Alec decides it’s best to return to farm he and Black are staying at before it gets worse, and that’s where the story ends. In two weeks we’ll see if he gets away and what else the Captain has planned.
Next Time: “The Storm”
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