A breathtaking novel set in the wilds of Ireland, 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.
- Romantic and steeped in legend
- Maggie Stiefvater is a master at writing both romance and heart-pounding
action
- Her books have consistently debuted at #1 on the NYT bestseller
list
PRAISE FOR SCORPIO RACES
"If The Scorpio Races sounds like nothing you’ve
ever read, that’s because it is. The capaill
uisce are exhilarating, frightening creations... Stiefvater has
successfully plumbed lesser-known myths and written a complex literary
thriller" - New York Times
The bestselling author of Shiver (2009)
and Linger (2010) turns the
legend of the water horse into a taut, chilling, romantic adventure. The
water horses are breathtakingly well-imagined, glorious
and untamably violent. The final race, with Sean and Puck each
protecting each other but both determined to win, comes to a pitch-perfect
conclusion. Masterful. Like nothing else out there now.
- Kirkus Review
e "Stiefvater's novel, inspired by Manx, Irish, and Scottish legends of beautiful but deadly fairy horses that emerge from the sea each autumn, begins rivetingly and gets better and better . . . all the way, in fact, to best."
-Horn Book Review, Starred Review
e "Masterful...like nothing else out there now."
-Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
e "A study of courage and loyalty tested...utterly compelling."
-Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
e "A book with cross-appeal to lovers of fantasy, horse stories, romance, and action-adventure, this seems to have a shot at being a YA blockbuster."
-Booklist, Starred Review
e "Upon the sea-battered and wind-swept isle of Thisby, fall brings the famed and feared capaill uisce, or water horses, and with them, death . . . The author takes great liberties with the Celtic myth, but the result is marvelous."
-School Library Journal, Starred Review
"Stiefvater not only steps out of the young adult fantasy box with "The Scorpio Races" but crushes it with pounding hooves.... If "The Scorpio Races" sounds like nothing you've ever read, that's because it is."
-The New York Times Book Review
"Tactile world-building, an island full of compelling characters, and the budding romance between Sean and Puck all make for an unforgettable book that's quite unlike anything else out there."
-NPR Books
"With this beautifully executed drama, Stiefvater has established herself as one of the finest YA novelists writing today."
-Entertainment Weekly
"Tense, atmospheric, and utterly original."
-People Magazine
--People Magazine