Not too long about I bought The A Circuit by Catherine Hapka and Georgina Bloomberg to read and it went into my “one day” pile. I’m REALLY bad about that like most of us bloggers are, books we buy usually take the back seat to books we need to review. Then the last Read-A-Thon came around just ask I was asked if I’d like to take part in the My Favorite Mistake tour. What better opportunity than to read them both back to back? Because of that, I’m going to do a joint review for them each.
In The A Circuit, we are introduced to a stable in which the well-to-do board and train their horses. The main focus is a small group of friends/acquaintances who all participate in the same circuit for horse shows. These aren’t cheap horses, some are valued at more than the average home. These girls (and horses) are the best of the best.
The three main girls being Tommi, Kate, and Zara. Tommi’s father is extremely wealthy, but she’s pretty down to earth. She wants to prove herself in the community and to her family and friends as being serious about horses. Kate is working at the stable to pay for the “right” to ride horses for the trainer/owner. She works herself pretty much nonstop to prove that she’s worthwhile to keep around. Zara’s dad is a famous rockstar and she’s a bit of a party girl, she’s serious about riding but she knows how to have fun too.
In the first book, The A Circuit, we are pretty much just introduced to the characters and the basis of the story is introduced. It’s a short read, so aside from that not much is really established, in my opinion. Kate is by far my favorite, she’s the most realistic of the characters and has real issues that make me feel for her. The other girls definitely have their fair share of issues, but she’s definitely my favorite. I enjoyed The A Circuit, but I found myself kind of wanting a bit more.
In My Favorite Mistake, the real action begins. The girls are starting to develop a bit more as characters. We are introduced to additional characters and the story line develops more. I found myself cheering for Kate, feeling sorry for Zara, and wanting to slap Tommi. The character I found the most growth with this time was Zara, sure she’s still a bit shallow, but I see the starting of something a bit deeper. I see so much potential with this series and can’t wait to read more of their drama and mischief.
If you haven’t tried out The A Circuit yet, imagine a Gossip Girl-style book tossed in the middle of a very upscale barn. It’s drama-filled, but holds a bit of depth and serious situations too. If you enjoy horses and/or books filled with drama, you are going to be very satisifed. Non-horse lovers may be a bit confused by some of the terminology, I personally know very little about horses, and had no issue keeping up so it’s definitely not something that should shy you away from the series if you want to give them a try!