BLOG TOUR: Christa's Luck by Jennifer Grais and Michael Grais

Hi guys!
Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Well, I had a busy weekend; how about you?  Between reading, the BIG COVER REVEAL yesterday, checking out the TCM Grease Sing-A-Long event at a local theater, and blogging, it's been a marathon to say the least.  Today, we're jumping between the pages of my most recent read courtesy of TLC Book Tours.  It stars a Young Adult title that was inspired by a true story and is filled with enough emotion that you'll be on the edge of your seat for many reasons.  So grab your cowboy or cowgirl hat and get ready to ride!  Today's blog tour guest and book of choice is...

Christa's Luck
by
Jennifer Grais and Michael Grais
9780990605300
Ingram Sparks

About the book...

Christa Cassidy is a teen cowgirl who loves horses more than anything. She is willing to risk everything in order to keep the wild mustang herds near her home in Nevada free from capture… especially a legendary band of mustangs known as the Lost Herd. Christa inspires her sister, her best friend, and her best friend’s brother (her first crush) to join in her quest. When a tragic accident breaks Christa’s heart and her spirit, only the Lost Herd can bring her back to life. But then a storm traps the mustangs in a flooded canyon and Christa will need more than luck to save them.

Inspired by a real horse rescue, this story is about Christa’s fascination with an endangered herd of wild horses and how her special connection with them inspires her to look beyond her own unforgivable mistakes and try again. She rises up to become a horse advocate at fourteen, whose passion and heart move an entire town to take action. In the vein of Wild Horse Annie, The Horse Whisperer, and the Black Stallion, Christa’s Luck is an epic adventure story of courage, friendship and freedom.

Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

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When I found out that this was inspired by a true story, my heart both sank and jumped for joy.  Why?  Well for the simple reason that so much happened to both shock and celebrate, you'll have to catch your breath and process it all upon turning the final page.

The amount of emotion that comes through the writing, the good and bad times, the dangers and celebrations, the friendships and bonds for life formed; all of it comes alive, right off the page. Christa is a passionate young lady, yet real.  She's a "pony girl" through and through, but she's human and makes mistakes.  Those mistakes might have tilted her fate and the fate of one she loved in the wrong direction (still not completely convinced it was her fault alone) but despite the heart shattering event that followed (and it did shatter hearts, my own included), she never gave up.  Sure, she delved down and wallowed a bit in self doubt, pity, and utter leave-me-alone-ness, but there's not a soul that could blame her.  I myself left several tears on the page when it all went down.  When things got really dark and it looked like all hope was lost, she still never gave up.  She was that determined, that dedicated to be the voice for those that wouldn't/couldn't speak.  Taking a note from those that came before her (and the wisdom of one smart Grandma), she was the change she wanted to see in the world and that effort on her part, make people stand up, take notice, and follow her example.

I love the way the author portrays the characters as well as the bigger issues.  We get a chance to bond with her sister Sara (who actually is much more caring than she seems), find strength in numbers with the likes of Kim and Amy, share in the bonds of family (her Grandma is my favorite there!), and get a taste of young love with the cowboy-whisperer next door (*tips hat at Cisco*).  There's also the horse love with Lucky, Jenner, and the Lost Herd (so magical!).  We also see just what happens when greed clouds the mind with dollar signs versus life, nature, and beauty...as well as what happens when that spell is broken.  As far as the issues, the facts represented are much more shocking than you might think and definitely eye opening.  Talk about a call to arms...

Overall, a captivating experience from cover to cover.  A story about more than simply a girl and her horse, but about what being passionate and caring with all our hearts is all about.  It's about noticing those things around us that need changing and actually DOING something about it, despite how impossible it might seem.  There's heart and hardship, laughter and tears, young love and love of animals, all wrapped up with the harsh reality that faces wildlife, or in this case wild horses, today.  Brava to the author and high recommendations from me to you on this title.

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About the authors...

Jennifer Grais is a singer-songwriter who recorded several albums in Los Angeles and Nashville and toured as Jackson Browne’s background singer.  When she met Michael and they moved to the rural area of Topanga Canyon, CA, her childhood passion for horses was rekindled. She completed a year-long program of study with Linda Kohanov, best-selling author of “The Tao of Equus”, and “Riding Between the Worlds,” and began exploring a deeper relationship with horses. In December 2006, she was captivated by footage of a horse rescue that took place during a flood in the Netherlands at the hands of women riders. The drama of the rescue inspired the novel, “Christa’s Luck,” a young adult novel co-authored by Michael Grais. Research for the novel exposed Jennifer to the unfolding drama of the wild mustangs in the western United States and became the primary plot of the book. Read more about Jennifer and the inspirations behind Christa’s Luck.

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Michael Grais has written and produced movies of domestic and international acclaim including Death Hunt, Poltergeist, Poltergeist II, Marked for Death and Cool World and more.

Michael has also contributed to the book Why We Write and has taught film-making at University of New Mexico and in various workshops abroad. After attending New York University’s Film School and Emerson College, he earned his MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Oregon. Read more about Michael Grais.

Michael and Jennifer currently live in Northern California with their horse, Solo and two cats Francesca and Finnegan.

SITE   |   TWITTER   |   FACEBOOK

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Special thanks to Lisa at TLC Book Tours for the chance to bring this tour to you and the ARC for review.  (THANKS!)  For more information on THIS TOUR, the authors, the publisher, or those tours on the horizon, feel free to click through the links provided above.  This title is available now, so be on the lookout for it on a bookstore shelf or virtual retailer of your choosing.  To learn more about the wild horse issues presented here, check out  Return to Freedom and Love Wild Horses.

Until next time...happy reading!