On a dark and stormy night, Spanish ships started crashing on the shore located near Nora Donovan’s home. The next morning her family and their close neighbors help gather up the remains that have drifted ashore from the ship. What Nora finds will change her life forever—a Spanish boy gasping for help. Nora decides to deliver him from the sea, from the English armies who are searching for the Spanish survivors to kill, and also from the evil wrath of Manannan mac Lir (the god of the sea). She also finds a beautiful stallion as white as sea foam which has a wounded shoulder. She decides to call the horse Lir, and takes him to a cave close by to help him recover his health, but inside lurking in the shadows is the injured shipwrecked Spanish sailor. He asks Nora if she will take him to a ship that will take him back to Spain and after pondering the idea for a while, she agrees. She will have to disobey her parents, leave without a trace, escape English soldiers, give up her beloved horse, and risk her life to save a boy she hardly even knows.
The Horse from the Sea is a wonderful book that I enjoyed reading. It is full of adventure and edge of your seat suspense. Victoria Holmes has two other horse novels called Rider in the Dark and Heart of Fire, which I can’t wait to read. The plot was well chosen, the title fit very well, and the cover was gorgeous. Even though this book was a good read, I think that the story was continued for too long and should have ended much sooner. I recommend this book mostly to girls ages 9-14.
Rating (0 - 10 scale): 8
Reviewer Age: 13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Upper Strasburg, PA US
