Blue Ribbon Trail Ride for Younger Readers a Litfuse Book Review
Blue Ribbon Trail Ride (David C. Cook, January 2016)
Thirteen-year old Kate and her friends came up with the perfect way to raise money for her autistic younger brother and others to attend summer camp—a horse scavenger hunt! As local businesses donate money and prizes, Kate keeps the entry fees in her mom’s antique jewelry box.
But when the box and the money disappear, Kate and her friends must unravel the clues, hold on to hope, and solve the mystery along the Blue Ribbon Trail Ride.
My Review: This is the fourth in a book series about Kate, who loves horses, and her friends. We received the full set but this review is about book 4. We started off reading The Blue Ribbon Trail Ride but in order to put all the pieces together my daughter backed off (because she didn’t want the whole series spoiled by knowing how it ends) and started at book one while I continued on.
Is it bad to say I enjoyed this piece of juvenile fiction (that’s what it’s called when it’s for preteens) so much?
Taking place mostly at Katie’s home which doubles as a horse barn this was a cute story about a Christian young girl and her small bevy of friends which includes one boy.
The book mostly focuses on the mystery of the missing box and money (read the synopsis above) which happens about 1/4th of the way in the book.
After the money goes missing the kid’s spend the rest of the book thinking up creative ways to find it and we meet a few other interesting characters. There is very, very little boy/girl stuff and a younger reader (like my daughter who is 10) might miss it altogether.
I had to ask my daughter for some back story on a few characters as there have been some changes in the full series but I was able to grasp it pretty quick.
But you probably want to know how my 10 year old liked it? Right? She’s really enjoying this series. She doesn’t read as fast as I do but this series has sparked an interest in horses in her. She hasn’t been around them before and always claimed she was scared of them but now she’s asking to take a horse ride. That shouldn’t be a problem, there are several horse riding places near and around us.
This is a sweet read for young girls, maybe young boys but since the main character is a girl maybe boys won’t be so enamoured. It’s got horses, a mystery, and faith wrapped in one.
Miralee Ferrell is the award-winning author of more than a dozen novels. She and her husband live along the Columbia River Gorge in southern Washington State, where she enjoys riding the wooded trails and spending time with her grown children. In addition to horses and dogs, Miralee once owned two cougars.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Litfuse Group as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Thank you so much for your thoughtful review, and for taking the time to read my book. I truly appreciate it!! ANd please tell your daughter that if she takes a ride on a lesson horse at a barn, to PLEASE have you take a picture of her and post it on my fan group. I’d love to see her on a horse for her very first time! How exciting that my books have caused her to be interested–please give her a hug from me. That really blesses me! Miralee