Review: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: The Scorpio Races
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Release Date: October 8, 2011
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Pages: 404
My Rating: 4.5 stars

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It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn't given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition- the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen. - Goodreads

When I first started reading The Scorpio Races, I honestly didn't know what to expect. I have to admit, I had been a bit hesitant about reading another book by Maggie Stiefvater, since her Shiver series was just okay, and yet everybody had been saying such great things about this specific book. Let me tell you: I AM GLAD I DID. The book's blurb is pretty self explanatory and explains the basic plot of the book- Puck and Sean live on an island where the Scorpio Races are held. Except instead of land horses, there's the capaill usce, or water horses, being raced. They're giant, blood-thirsty (not in a vampire way) creatures, and they aren't always tame, making them incredibly dangerous to other living creatures. 

I know this is going to make me sound incredibly dumb, but at the beginning of the book I was kind of lost in the concept of them. I thought, hmm, maybe it's just a different name for majestic horses who like water? Maybe they're really riding fabulous dolphin-ish creatures? Yeah, NO, maybe not. I couldn't quite focus on the beginning of the story because I was so confused. I seriously don't know why (I feel really ridiculous now), and I don't think it's the book/author's fault, but I'm wondering; am I alone on this? I'm just going to pretend that I'm not. <.<

My absolute favorite thing about this book is the little bits of history of the island included here and there. The background and description of people who live there gave me such a realistic image of it all. I can't even begin to explain it, but the narrations of both Puck and Sean just radiate how they feel about where they live, and that in turn made me feel the same way. Like I, myself, knew the island. Not only that, but all the description of the place gives it a seriously beautiful culture, which plays in a lot with the character's thoughts. Since they're growing up, they have to decide if the island is really home for them or if they want to have a future on the mainland, which I feel a lot of people, particularly teens, can relate to. 

The book is written from both Sean and Puck's perspectives. Most of the time, I wasn't that big of a fan of Sean or his POV, since I found him to be quite dull and boring, but hey, maybe it's just the feminist in me that can't help but be all "YAY 4 FOR U PUCK U GO PUCK!!!" She is strong, sarcastic, and snarky, and I found myself actually laughing in those moments when most people would have kept their mouth shuts, but she just couldn't help herself. That's not all there is to her, of course, and Sean has way more going on in his head, as well.

This book is also pretty great if you're not a big fan of overbearing romance (that's not necessarily me though LOL), since there's way more to the book than that. There honestly isn't that much romance, but every little thing that happened between Sean and Puck made me fangirl. *FLAIL* BC THEY ARE SO CUTE OK *UNFLAIL* The way the entire book is written makes every little thing exquisite and important in its own way, their relationship included.