The Clincher

In Lisa Preston's the Clincher, the first installment in the Horseshoer Mystery series, you'll be hooked and lassoed into the wild world of horseshoes and clinching.  Meet Rainy Day. She's a high school dropout who works for a barn in small-town Cowdry, Oregon, when she works as a horseshoer for barn. When she works for the Flying Cross ranch, her first assignment is for Patsy-Lynn Harper, who runs the ranch. Things tend to go well, except when later on, Patsy-Lynn turned up in a supposedly "suicide." Though Rainy doesn't know the Harpers real well, she became to suspect everyone who came close in contact with her: from her ranch-hands, herders, and even her step-son. And when the police ask her questions about rasps and other horseshoeing equipment, it brought back to the memories of her past. Of how life were unkind to her as a teenager, when she was forced to give up a baby, and when she met her landlord, Guy Kittridge, who was also the chef for the ranch. Though she pays his rent, they have a sweet kind of kindred relationship that he really cares about Rainy and wants a life with her. As Rainy investigates the prime suspect further from a missing mare, a pregnant mare, and missing tools, she runs into trouble of her own with Patsy's step-son Junior. And she becomes a victim of his wrath when she suspects him of killing Patsy. When Guy saves her, it would be up them to stop him before he gets away with murder.

This was an interesting and intriguing introduction to this series. You get to learn a lot about horseshoeing and clinching and how to take care of horses in a ranch. I did care for Rainy and how she had dealt with so much in the past, and in the present as the only female clincher in Cowdry, Oregon. I did care for Guy, who seems to be good for her, and is also there for her in every way. I did like the small-town location of Cowdry, Oregon, and the barn settings around it to paint a vivid picture. This would make you fall in love with horses and be compelled to read Rainy's story with non-stop action, drama, suspense, and hints of sparking mystery of every page.

Will you check out the Clincher today?