The Scorpio Races

by Maggie Stiefvater

A stunning new novel from the bestselling author of SHIVER, LINGER AND FOREVER. Stay alive, stay astride, stay out of the water...Every November, the Scorpio Races are run beneath the chalk cliffs of Skarmouth. Thousands gather to watch the horses and the sea that washes the blood from the sand. The mounts are capaill uisce: savage water horses. There are no horses more beautiful, more fearless, more deadly. To race them can be suicide but the danger is irresistible. Sean Kendrick knows the dangers of the capaill uisce. With one foot in the ocean and one on land, he is the only man on the island capable of taming the beasts. He races to prove something both to himself and to the horses. Puck Connolly enters the races to save her family. But the horse she rides is an ordinary little mare, just as Puck is an ordinary girl. When Sean sees Puck on the beach he doesn't think she belongs. He doesn't realize his fate will become entwined in hers. They both enter the Races hoping to change their lives. But first they'll have to survive.

• ISBN13: 9780545224918
• Publish Date: 1 April 2013 (first published 1 October 2011)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Scholastic US
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 448
• Language: English

Reviews

[inlibrisveritas]

I finally managed to get my hands on a copy of this and surprisingly it was from my library. I’ve read Shiver and I was rather interested in seeing how Stiefvater would portray horses and the seemingly brutal way of the Scorpio Races.

The writing style is surprisingly rich even though the story is laid out by two rather straight forward people. The story was obviously written with a careful hand and it is very evident in the quality of the story telling. The setting of Thisby is very much believable and described in wonderful detail. It comes off as a rather dismal place to live with it’s dreary weather and fierce wildlife but at the same time it seems like a strangely exotic place to live and it truly becomes a world all to itself. The progress of the story is rather slow but I found that I didn’t mind all that much since it’s more about the journey and evolution of the characters than about the actual action. The Capaill Uisce are a fantastic creation and utterly unique in their presence. They seem like immense and powerful creatures that border on beautiful and horrifying. I loved how deadly they were and how even when “tamed” they were still incredibly dangerous.

Puck is an awesome female main character and she has a ton of layers that really give her tremendous depth. She’s stubborn, smart, sharp-witted, strong and at times vulnerable. She’s the whole package and I really invested myself in her person story. Season is also fantastic. He’s immediately a mystery and in same ways he kind of stays that way through out the entirety of the story. He is what you would consider the strong silent type but there is something about his calmness that gives him a seemingly wild nature. The connections between the characters and the environment are very believable as well. Sean’s connection with capiall is both strange and mystifying, it’s clear that he can connect in a way other can’t. It was a tad confusing at times however as not a lot of his actions ar explained, so you do feel a little out of the loop. I didn’t mind it too much however, because it was similar to observing someone else work, you don’t necessarily expect to understand everything they are doing but it’s enrapturing all the same. The relationship between Puck and Sean is also fairly interesting and wonderfully constructed. It’s not rushed and their actions (reactions) are believable. Like Sean’s connection with the capiall it’s very clear that there is an understand between them. I will say that I didn’t quite enjoy Puck’s brothers as much but I did understand them. My first reaction to Gabe was irritation and borderline hate, and it really didn’t get better until near the end when he finally explains his actions. I still don’t like him though, but that’s just a clash of personalities more than anything.

Overall I found this was a very captivating story and everything about it seemed carefully crafted.

[Ashley]

Review from my blog, booknook:

You have no idea how much it pains me to write this review. This is the book I was looking forward to. The one that made me squeal like an excited 6 year old when it arrived in the mail. People raved about it (it has a 4.13/5 rating on Goodreads).

It just didn’t happen.

I read the first chapter and immediately I didn’t connect with Puck. I didn’t really feel her speaking to me. I just saw the words on the page, but I didn’t actually care about her or get invested. I figured it was early on and surely I’d get attached to her later.

My next annoyance is from a little later, but still the beginning of the book. It’s about the reason why Puck enters The Scorpio Races. First of all, I never got the impression that her entering was a big deal. I was waiting for some big monumental decision but it was basically just like:

“I’m going to enter the race.”
“Okay.”

The author, Maggie, did describe the dangers of The Scorpio Races and how brutal the horses are, but I just never got the impression that it was a big deal to Puck. She didn’t seem scared or excited. I just had no idea what she was feeling and I didn’t even know why she was entering (it wasn’t made clear until later that the winner gets a lot of money). When she first said she was going to enter the race, she didn’t seem phased by it, and her family didn’t seem to mind at all.. which is my next frustration.

The Scorpio Races are supposed to be this huge deal. They’re supposed to be terrifying and the sea horses are supposed to be ruthless. Well, her brother Gabe is an asshole. First he announces that he’s abandoning his brother and his sister Puck. Then Puck says “I’ll join The Scorpio Races!” Then Gabe is just like “Okay.” He has absolutely no problem with letting his little sister join the most dangerous event on the island?

As the book progressed, I had to accept the fact that I was never going to care about Puck. I never connected with her. I never felt her emotions leaking off the page. I was never thinking to myself, “OMG SHE HAS TO WIN THE RACE!” I didn’t even care if she won or not because I never got attached to her as a character. Finally, I just came to terms with it.

With each turn of the page, I developed a new frustration. Nothing was happening. There was no action; there were no events; nothing. The first ten pages was Puck deciding to enter the race and the last 20 pages were the race itself. So what the heck happened in between? We had like 380 pages of just “getting ready for the race.” But none of that was intense or exciting. Most of it was Puck training her horse, chatting with neighbours, getting to know Sean, and maybe once every 50 pages something exciting might happen.

I just felt like I had no idea where the story was going. I never cared about any of the characters. I felt like most of the characters outside of the main ones had little importance. There were times when I would start reading a chapter and then go “Wait, who’s point of view is this?” and I’d have to double-check the chapter heading. I didn’t feel a real difference between Puck and Sean. They were both quiet, reserved, and didn’t really care. Neither of them ever got excited or expressed true happiness. They just both felt so monotone and didn't have different "voices."

So this review isn’t completely negative, I will say that Maggie Stiefvater did have a beautiful writing style in this book. The descriptions and the wording of the novel were artfully done — really terrific. Unfortunately it just wasn’t enough to make up for my disappointments.

I’m sorry, Maggie, I really am. I wanted to love this book because I absolutely love horses and I’ve loved similar race stories like Hidalgo.. but this one just didn’t resonate with me. Believe it or not (since most people feel the opposite), I actually enjoyed Shiver more.

[jnikkir]

FANTASTIC book. I was absolutely glued to every word. The characters are immediately vivid and engaging, and the writing is gorgeous and very atmospheric, which suits the story so well. Some people have said that it takes too long to get to the actual race, but I get the feeling that the race isn't really the point. All in all, a fantastic read which I would recommend to almost anyone.

[Suz @ Bookish Revelations]

The Scorpio Races is a thrilling and captivating journey of adventure and unexpected moments. There are incredible challenges and odds to overcome and extreme pulsating tension that will pull readers into the story keeping them glued to the edges of their seat. Maggie Stiefvater pens a beautifully written tale of magical and realistic atmosphere with stunning visual imagery that tugs and pulls at readers emotionally. The world of The Scorpio Races is wonderfully breath taking and full of mystical creatures such as the Capaill Uisce, that possess a deep connection to the water. The imagery is quite stunning and amazingly creative, while being original and unique. This is a book that is very different and definitely appealing in a refreshing light, in what it has to offer readers.

The Scorpio Races definitely holds mystery and intrigue well enough to keep readers captivated, putting them right into the adventure through brilliant imagery and wonderful character development. They are wonderfully unique, multi-faceted individuals that are fascinating and likeable. Maggie Stiefvater writes them in such a way that readers will be able to sympathize with them. Puck is an incredibly determined, slightly vulnerable, and scared young heroine. She's fueled with so much grit and fire, that she has nothing else to lose except possessing the amazing tenacity to survive going with two brothers out on their own. Her super fiesty attitude matched with her undeniable strength makes her an inccredly strong and relatable character that readers will easily be able to connect with an a realstic basis. Sean, is an orphan who has been working at the local stable as ahorse trainer for quite some time. He seems to have this magical pull or connection that he shares with the horses, especially the Capaill-Cor.

It was enderaing to see how both Puck and Sean have such a special bond with their horses. It was also charming to see how well the supporting characters stood out and had a voice of their own that was just as important to the story, as well. I personally found Puck's younger brother Finn, to be such a refreshing and delightful character to get to know. It was sweet to witness just how much he cares for his sister and the bond that they share with one another. It seemed to add a whole other element to the story. The Scorpio Races delivers some wonderful complex characters with intriguing personalities of their own. It's filled with terror, adventure, sadness, joy, and the importance of relationships.

The island of Thisby is absolutely gorgeous and breath taking, readers can only imagine how amazing it would be to actually see it come to life before their eyes. From start to finish, The Scorpio Races is brilliantly excuted, well thought out, and completely imaginative. Both Puck and Sean are beautifully written heart wrenching noble characters that readers will fall in love with. It is definitely a must read and I would recommend it to anyone who has enjoyed Maggive Stiefvater's prior novels. This, by far, is quite possibly her best written one.

[Kelsenator]

Originally posted on my blog Kelsey's Cluttered Bookshelf

(4.5)

I loved Maggie’s Shiver series, so reading this was definitely a must.

Every November, men capture and try to train water Horses that come out of the ocean water, to compete in a race for fame and money among other things. These horses are bigger and faster, are always drawn to the ocean, and oh yeah they kill people.

The story centers around Puck, a girl who loves to her brothers and her riding horse Dove, and Sean, who has a special relationship with his red horse, Corr, a capall uisce. The story changes to their individual perspective through the book, with Sean being the champion, and Puck having entered for the first time, for personal reasons. Only problem is, women don’t race, only the men do, and they only do it on the water horses, not the normal land ones like Puck decides to.

The writing for this was really good, getting to know about the troubles of both Puck and Sean’s life, what drives them to race, and how they meet each other. I liked the idea of it as well with the water horses, it felt new, and the characters were so full of energy I just loved reading about them. The build up to the end was worth every second, I wasn’t sure who was going to win the race.

I definitely suggest you try this book out, even if you haven’t read any of the author’s other books.

[rakesandrogues]

Like any other book that I know I’m going to read, I pretty much dove into THE SCORPIO RACES blind. I did not read any reviews. I merely skimmed the back of the ARC – which ended up telling me nothing about the book, a little to my dismay. And I refused to read any summaries that would tell me what the book is about. I knew the book was going to be about horses. The cover pretty much gives it away. But not just any horses: capaill uisce - magical killer water horses. Huh.

The concept behind this book is actually pretty cool. At first, I was really confused because I’d never heard of this mythical / legendary creature before. But after a few chapters, it was so easy to get hooked onto the idea of capaill uisce. They are such beautiful creatures and you can count on Stiefvater to describe them to you with precision. It actually made a lot of sense to read the Author’s Note at the end of the book because it gave me insight as to how Stiefvater came around to writing about magical killer water horses and background on the different variations of the myth. I wouldn’t recommend reading the Author’s Note before reading the book. I think it’s best to discover the magic of capaill uisce yourself first.

The prose is fantastic. Stiefvater writes so beautifully and THE SCORPIO RACES is no exception. Sometimes I forget just how much I love the way Stiefvater crafts a sentence, but I’m immediately reminded of that fact from the very first page of starting one of her books.

There is a bit of romance in THE SCORPIO RACES and I am stunned by the way Stiefvater just pulls it off effortlessly. There is a slow build up so it is definitely realistic. The novel isn’t about an epic love story like the Wolves of Mercy Falls series, but there are just some scenes that made me positively giddy. The romance is sweet and touching. Stiefvater is able to portray realistic young love without being overly sappy.

THE SCORPIO RACES is just about on the threshold on being a 4-star review. I really wanted to give this book a 4-star rating just for the sake of beautiful writing, but I felt like the plot was a bit lacking. It’s true that I did read it in more or less a day, but I also felt like I could easily have stopped reading and walked away. There is not as much mystery to this novel. Essentially, the plot can be summed up in a sentence: girl and boy (in this case Puck and Sean) want to compete in the Scorpio Races, a race involving magical killer water horses. The book itself is more character driven than plot driven. The novel unfolds as the races get closer, and the characters grow and go through self-discovery.

THE SCOPRIO RACES is good, but the pacing is just a little bit slow for me. I needed a little bit something more fast-paced. This book is perfect for fans of Maggie Stiefvater. If you’re in love with her writing, you won’t be disappointed with this one. Furthermore, I would recommend this to lovers of horses, mythology and lore, and fantasy.