False Gods: The Show Jumper's Challenge

Teens

synopsis

Synopsis

Cory Iverson's junior year is off to a lousy start. Publicly humiliated by the school's hottest guy and terrorized by a bullying band director, Cory flees sports try-outs and just about everything else she begins, earning a reputation as a loser as well as a quitter. But when her wandering dog leads her to the barn of a former Grand Prix rider, she finds a welcome refuge in the familiar world of horses. It's not too long before she starts dreaming of showing in one of the country's most prestigious shows--a totally unrealistic hope--until she rescues a mysterious horse with some unusual talents. But her road to success is littered with roadblocks as events spin out of control: prescription painkillers appear in her mother's purse; her ballerina sister wastes away before her eyes; her boyfriend is keeping secrets; and her normally opinionated trainer becomes strangely evasive. Worst of all, the horse show world is not what she imagined. It isn't long before Cory's winning spree attracts the attention of a brutal trainer with a string of unexplained horse deaths in her wake. When Cory lands in the crosshairs, she has to decide if she'll once again back down and flee or stand up for herself, her horse, and her dreams.

bio

Author Biography

Inspired by everyday miracles, L.R. Trovillion weaves magical stories of hurting people who find hope through horses in her Maryland Equestrian Novel series. Although she earned a degree in Russian and spent a career in government service, her real love has been caring for and working with horses. That love shines through in her series, focusing on the healing power of horses in the lives of teens facing complex and sometimes dangerous family situations. Believing there is more to this world than meets the eye, she adds a dash of the supernatural to each story. L. R. Trovillion lives on a small horse farm in Maryland with her husband, daughter, and several animals that really run the place. Her other works have appeared in Baltimore magazine, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and various poetry anthologies.

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Author Insight

Bickering and Ballet

In this scene, the two sisters, Cory and Jess, know just how to get under each other's skin. Did you have a sibling who knew all your hot buttons and how to push them? Cory loves belittling ballet because she knows how much dance means to Jess. Readers may not know that my roommate (before marriage) was a devoted ballerina who not only danced in but also choreographed the Nutcracker for several local dance companies for several years. Starting usually by August, the house was filled with Waltz of the Flowers or other signature pieces and talk was centered around the challenges of costume, setting, selecting principal dancers, etc. Each year by the time December rolled around and "normal" people were excitedly purchasing tickets, I was already tired of this ballet. In this scene, I had fun pouring out the snark through Cory's words, maliciously making fun of the lovely Nutcracker Ballet.

Book Excerpt

False Gods: The Show Jumper's Challenge

Jess came in wearing her usual baggy sweatpants and oversized sweater. She tossed her dance bag on the bed, lifted the sweater over her head, stepped out of the sweats, and kicked them across the floor. She then shimmied out of the leotard with her characteristic fluid movement. As she turned to pick up the discarded clothing, Cory looked at her more closely. Jess’s stomach was actually concave below her ribs, which stood out prominently along her side. Her spine looked like a string of pearls along her slender back.

“So, how’s The Buttcracker rehearsals coming along?” Cory asked.

“Ha. Hilarious, Cory. I never get tired of that joke.” Jess sounded peeved. “The Nutcracker rehearsals are going well, thanks, as if you care.”

“Oh, lighten up. Just kidding.”

Actually, she wasn’t kidding. She hated The Nutcracker, hated being dragged to see it every year because Jess was in it. She was five when she landed her first role as a mouse in the chorus, up until last year when she was selected for the starring role as Clara. Cory swiveled around in her chair to face Jess.

“So, are you at least a human again this year, like that Clara girl, or some flower or fairy or something?”

Jess struggled into a t-shirt so tiny it looked like a five-year-old owned it.

“I’m too big to be Clara this year. She’s supposed to be a kid.” Jess pulled another baggy sweater over her head, an almost exact match for the one she tossed in the hamper. “Actually, I’m the Snow Queen.”

“Not the head Sugar Plum Fairy?” Cory knew that was a coveted role. A poisonous delight touched her smile when she asked Jess such a seemingly innocent question.

“No, they always get a pro for that, for the principal dancer roles.” Jess dropped onto the bed and became absorbed in unwinding the tape thickly wrapped around each toe.

God, she had such ugly feet from dancing—the toes were all calloused and raw looking all the time. Cory felt particularly irritated with her skinny body, gnarled toes, and baggy sweaters.

Scooting her chair closer to Jess’s bed, she asked, “So, you aren’t a human this year? A snow queen? Is that like an ice princess, only more bitchy? Do you ever wonder what exactly it is about this ballet that makes it a Christmas tradition? A creepy old pedophile uncle gives a young girl an ugly nutcracker that turns into a prince who, of course, she falls in love with. Then he fights off the Rat King to protect her because, of course being a girl, she can’t fight for herself. Then all these weird characters dance for her like she’s some kind of princess or something. And she falls for the prince because all girls should have a prince, when actually it is the rat that should have turned into the prince to make it much more true to life.” Cory took a deep breath.

Jess stopped working on her toes and stared at Cory. “What’s up with you? Does this have something to do with that guy who ditched you?”

Zingo. Jess had good aim, too.