Book Review: Hoofprints by Laura Crum

Following my insta-love of Cutter by Laura Crum, I dove right into her second book, Hoofprints.

"In this second installment in the Gail McCarthy series, the young vet stumbles upon two murdered bodies in the course of a routine call. When a midnight emergency turns into an attempt on her life, Gail knows she must uncover the motive before its too late. Plenty of authentic horse lore and an action packed plot from an author who spent most of her life training cowhorses and knows whereof she speaks."



I was greeted with her now-familiar writing style and was thrilled to find Gail alive and well, and working on another day-to-day call. I smiled to myself, feeling like I already knew the character. There was enough re-introduction where someone could potentially jump into the second book without ever reading the first one (but WHY??) but not so much that I felt like I was re-reading something I already knew.

I was surprised at how quickly the initial action happened in the book. I was expecting to be a few chapters in before I found out what the mystery would be. At first I wasn't thrilled about the sudden leap in plot, but then I realized I was feeling the shock that Gail herself must be experiencing. I see what you did there, Laura.

As the plot unfolded, suspects came out of the woodwork. Some of them were easy to pin the crime on, and despite the fact that I knew rationally that the guilty party wasn't likely to be the first suspect, I found myself falling for them anyway, thinking up possible scenarios in my head.

'Gail's' observations on the people she interacted with in the second book were excellent. I could easily picture the other characters as I read. She made similar comments to what I would probably note if I were in her shoes. For example, a sheriff's deputy was described as, "Too young to have a gun." I remember having similar thoughts when the firemen came to pull Ozzy out of the swamp two years ago. "Is that kid old enough to be a firefighter?"

Gail's emotional depth seemed to grow with this book. The turmoil she felt in the early chapters made her less perfect and more real. I found myself reflecting on how I would deal in her place. Her fierce independence makes me relate to her and I love that she's stubborn and snarky, but not annoyingly perfect.

We also get to meet Gail's barn owner a little more in depth in Hoofprints. The endurance rider instantly sparks my interest... as I'm sure you can imagine.

What surprised me about this book was when it was revealed how little of a rider Gail actually is. I found this trait endearing as it lends the reader a chance to learn along with the main character. It also seemed pretty much spot on with a lot of horse vets who I've met over the years... all of whom are very knowledgeable about medicine, but many of whom don't ride much if at all.

And then it struck me. What is really starting to captivate me about the series is the fact that, despite its imperfections, Gail's life is one I would like to live. Her house, her dog, her routine, and her appreciation for her surroundings are all things I admire, and, while I wouldn't trade my love life for the romantic undertones of the books, I don't mind getting a glimpse of the handsome horsemen she deals with in her travels.

Again, I don't want to give too much away, but just as I was starting to feel comfortable in her life, Gail gets into trouble, much earlier and more abruptly than I expected. My heart was pounding and my hands were clenched as I read about her predicament. Once again, Laura got my blood pumping and my adrenaline up and I couldn't put the book down without reading further.

Gail wasn't the only character growing on me though. I'd already grown fond of her 'roommate' Bret and I still wasn't decided about her boyfriend, Lonny, but it was the detective on the case, who had made a rather unpleasant appearance in the first book, who was starting to pique my interest and gain my affection. A woman shrouded in mystery, and hard to read even in writing, I found her intriguing. I found myself wanting to know more about her story, and I was sure Laura would get there eventually.

Another thing I really appreciated about this book is the ways in which it varied from the first novel. The danger in reading a series is that the books often form a sort of cookie cutter mold and wind up mirroring each other with slight changes in plot or character. Laura, however, demonstrates greater ability as a writer than that. Whereas Cutter dealt with a class of people who seemed very down-to-earth, the type to work with their hands and get down-and-dirty, Hoofprints delves into higher class society, revealing the dirty secrets of a whole different group of people. I found the analysis of the unbelievably wealthy intriguing, and a nice change of pace from the previous book. Best of all, Gail's career as a vet made her interactions with various types of client very believable, granting the author access to a wide variety of characters and plots.

The reader also gains insight to a wide variety of horse sports. I learned and enjoyed reading about the world of bridle horses, hackamore classes, and running cows. In the next chapter, I experienced the world of fancy German warmbloods and dressage barns. Setting the books in California with a vet as the main character makes all of this plausible and I got a rush out of the Salinas show setting. Very cool!

Once again, the suspense started to build and I found myself unable to put the book down. Laura is very good at creating tension and coming up with unpredictable scenarios that catch the reader off guard and throw the plot for a loop. Surprising me once is awesome, but surprising me twice in a row... let's just say I'm impressed!

As the book started to wrap up, I found myself in absolute shock at the ending. All along I'd been trying to guess which unlikely suspect was behind the crime, but even with what I thought was out-of-the-box thinking, I hadn't even come CLOSE to guessing. Looking back, the clues had been there all along, but I had totally missed the answer. When the climax of the book came, I had to run out the door to meet a client and I was FURIOUS. I wanted to finish the book then and there, but didn't have the time.

Thankfully, the end of the book left me satisfied. All my questions got answered, but I didn't feel like it rushed to a conclusion. Best of all, I was left with enough 'unfinished business' to make me want the next book. And before I knew it, I'd read not one, but two books in less than a month! I think I'm hooked.