Overview
As Samantha adjusts to having a new step–mother, she must help the Phantom find his missing lead mare. But when she does, can Sam return the mare to her herd?
An injured mustang is taken off the range. Sam wants to do the right thing, but does that mean taking the horse away from her wild herd?
The adventures of Samantha and her mysterious Phantom Stallion continue in this fresh addition to the time-honored and much-loved horse series genre. In this new tale of the Phantom, readers will be captivated by a land where cowboys still ride the range and mustangs still run free.
Synopsis
As Samantha adjusts to having a new step–mother, she must help the Phantom find his missing lead mare. But when she does, can Sam return the mare to her herd?
An injured mustang is taken off the range. Sam wants to do the right thing, but does that mean taking the horse away from her wild herd?
Norah Piehl - Children's Literature
After her near-disastrous fall from a horse, thirteen-year-old Samantha Forster isn't sure she will ever feel totally comfortable on horseback again. But when an injured wild mustang is brought to Sam's River Bend Ranch to recuperate, Sam quickly realizes that she must conquer her fears if she is going to help gentle the wild mare, Queen. Sam's dad, recently remarried, is on his honeymoon in San Francisco, and Sam is all alone with her horse-shy Aunt Sue. Jake Ely, with whom Sam has a love-hate relationship, is the only one who is able to help Sam when a sleet storm threatens the livestock or when Queen tries to escape. What's more, Queen is the former lead mare of Sam's very special mustang, the Phantom Stallion how will he lead his herd without this beautiful mare by his side? Readers who attempt to pick up this novel without having read the previous series volumes will likely be flummoxed by the quasi-mystical origins of the Phantom, which doesn't make sense out of context. There are also many passing references to Sam's previous adventures with the Phantom. Readers who aren't horse fans already will probably not find much to keep them reading an understanding of basic equine vocabulary is assumed, and the plot is certainly not compelling enough to keep any but the most horse-mad readers drawn in. This is the seventh book in the "Phantom Stallion" series. 2003, Avon,
Editorials
Children's Literature
After her near-disastrous fall from a horse, thirteen-year-old Samantha Forster isn't sure she will ever feel totally comfortable on horseback again. But when an injured wild mustang is brought to Sam's River Bend Ranch to recuperate, Sam quickly realizes that she must conquer her fears if she is going to help gentle the wild mare, Queen. Sam's dad, recently remarried, is on his honeymoon in San Francisco, and Sam is all alone with her horse-shy Aunt Sue. Jake Ely, with whom Sam has a love-hate relationship, is the only one who is able to help Sam when a sleet storm threatens the livestock or when Queen tries to escape. What's more, Queen is the former lead mare of Sam's very special mustang, the Phantom Stallion—how will he lead his herd without this beautiful mare by his side? Readers who attempt to pick up this novel without having read the previous series volumes will likely be flummoxed by the quasi-mystical origins of the Phantom, which doesn't make sense out of context. There are also many passing references to Sam's previous adventures with the Phantom. Readers who aren't horse fans already will probably not find much to keep them reading—an understanding of basic equine vocabulary is assumed, and the plot is certainly not compelling enough to keep any but the most horse-mad readers drawn in. This is the seventh book in the "Phantom Stallion" series. 2003, Avon,— Norah Piehl