by Maggie Stiefvater
publisher’s synopsis
Some race to win. Others race to survive.
It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line.
Some riders live.
Others die.
At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.
Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a choice. So she enters the competition – the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.
Sean and Puck balance each other perfectly as main characters. Stiefvater did a fantastic job with their character voices. You knew when you were reading a Sean chapter or a Puck chapter. Finn was my favorite side character. I loved how his character voice, perspective, and personality came through even without being a POV character.
In her acceptance speech for the Printz award, Stiefvater mentioned that she wanted The Scorpio Races to be a book about a world. And she truly did excel in the worldbuilding of The Scorpio Races. You can almost feel the sand between your fingers, the ocean breeze off the cliffs, and the salt on your lips as you read the book. Thisby is almost a character itself.
Initially, I thought that The Scorpio Races was set in a fantasy world, so I was thrown off by the first mentions of cars and the American tourist. However, I soon settled into this timeless island, seemingly located somewhere among the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The pacing is perhaps a little slower than one might expect, but it fits perfectly with the atmosphere of the novel and Stiefvater’s writing style.
Ultimately, The Scorpio Races is a book about fighting for what you love, whether that be family, home, or a horse. It’s easy to see why it’s such a popular novel.
Cautions: seven instances of swearing; seven instances of coarse language; nine instances of coarser phrases/innuendo; two instances of blasphemy; three instances of British swearing; light/moderate romance; two kisses; brief, semi-detailed moderate/heavy violence
Hailey Huntington 
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