5 Perfect Novels for Equestrian Summer Reading
by Natalie Keller Reinert
While you might have to buy your own personal pan pizza as a reading reward these days, that’s no reason not to indulge in summer reading. The days are long, the weather is…well, it’s insane, most of the time…and the couch is calling. When you want to blow off chores, skip the training session, and settle in for a read-a-thon, here are my recommendations for equestrian reads you might not have read yet!
Eventer’s Dream, by Caroline Akrill. While UK readers may know Akrill’s work as classic pony books, they’ve only been available in the US for a short time. When I first picked up Eventer’s Dream, the first in her Eventing Trilogy, I thought I’d somehow hallucinated the absolute perfect book for me. Rich with dry British wit and satisfying horsey details, Akrill’s book follows a young woman who takes a job managing a stable-yard for a set of extremely eccentric women. The cast of horses is as memorable as the characters, featuring The Comet, who is a bolter, and The Mare Who Slips a Stifle, who is an amazing hunter until she, you know, slips that stifle. I’m suggesting book one, but honestly, just buy all four (there are four now, so it’s not really a trilogy anymore.) They’re short, fun reads you’ll rip through in no time.
Horse Heaven, by Jane Smiley. Years ago, I would have thought this book was a gimme and wouldn’t even have included it on this list. But I have a unique experience because I was working at the Ocala Barnes & Noble, during HITS, the year it came out in paperback and we couldn’t keep it on the shelves! Since then I’ve talked to a lot of people who haven’t read this absolute masterpiece of a novel. Horses and their owners jump off the page with Jane Smiley’s perfect command of character, taking readers deep into racing, showing, and off-track Thoroughbred life. You absolutely cannot miss it.
Girls and Their Horses, by Eliza Jane Brazier. I’m scared of thrillers, not going to lie about that. But I gave in to my burning curiosity and read Girls and Their Horses, a novel about A-circuit jumper kids, wealthy people shenanigans, and a murder. And I loved it. Brazier knows her topic and brings the California show-jumping scene to life with merciless precision. The scheming of trainers, parents, and not-so-hapless kids to get the best horses, with other peoples’ money whenever possible, will be instantly recognizable to anyone in the horse world. Could I have done without the murder part, since I’m a scaredy-cat? Yes, but it’s also very skillfully done…I can’t actually get it out of my head. Hint for the busy: the audiobook of this is VERY good.
Horseplay, by Judy Renee Singer. We talk a lot about teens and 20-somethings in fiction. I myself started Ambition when Jules is just 22, and my 2026 novel, The Jump, is also a coming-of-age novel about a 21-year-old in the horse business. What can I say, it’s a fascinating time, and it’s also exactly when a lot of horse girls run away to be working students or grooms. Horseplay, written by a former Chronicle of the Horse feature writer, asks…what happens when a full-grown woman leaves her full-grown life and just goes off to be a groom at a top dressage barn? With all the Tylenol and tears you’d expect, and a ton of laughs, Horseplay explores giving it all up for horses, long after most people would have written it off.
Ambition, by Natalie Keller Reinert. If you’ve read my Eventing Series before 2025, no you haven’t! This year I’ve re-released brand-new editions with new scenes and editing in partnership with Flatiron Books. These gorgeous new paperbacks have matching covers and spines that will pop off your bookshelf! And the Eventing Series is in development for a streaming television series with Amazon MGM Studios, too. So right now is the perfect time to revisit Jules Thornton, the most prickly young trainer in horse history, and get immersed in the ups, downs, and absolute drama of life on the competitive three-day eventing circuit. Book 1, Ambition, is the perfect place to start…but get ready to binge-read all eight books. You can download a free prequel from my website to get started right now. Click here to buy the Eventing Series.
Editor's Note: I LOVE THE EVENTING SERIES!!! I was gifted the first two books and hooked from the first chapter. For books 5 and 6 I ran to the bookstore on release day and finished them in 3 days. Anxiously awaiting release of the last 2...
