The Secret of the Stallion

Saddle Club Super Edition #2

by Bonnie Bryant

The Saddle Club is in England for a show on the grounds of an old estate where a past duke and his beloved stallion died and where, legend has it, the duke buried treasure.

Genres: Horses, Young Adult, Animals, Childrens, Fiction, Middle Grade

208 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1995

About the author

American author of children's books. She is best known for creating the intermediate horse book series The Saddle Club, which was published from October 1988 until April 2001. The Saddle Club chronicled the adventures of thirteen-year-old Lisa Atwood and twelve-year-olds Stephanie "Stevie" Lake and Carole Hanson. The series was static in time; the girls never aged in 101 books, 7 special editions, and 3 Inside Stories.

Bonnie Bryant also wrote two spin-off series: Pony Tails, aimed at beginning readers, and Pine Hollow, aimed at teenage readers. The 16 Pony Tails books followed the lives of eight-year-olds May Grover, Corey Takamura, and Jasmine James. Pine Hollow featured Carole, Lisa, Stevie, and their new friends in a series set four years after The Saddle Club. Unlike The Saddle Club, Pine Hollow conformed to a realistic timeline. The 17 books took place over the span of less than a year. Later a television show called The Saddle Club, based on the books, was filmed in Australia.

Bonnie Bryant wrote at least 38 The Saddle Club books and 2 Pine Hollow books herself; after that they were taken over by a team of ghostwriters, a common practice in long-running children's book series. Ghostwriters for the Saddle Club and Pine Hollow books included Caitlin Macy (sometimes credited as Caitlin C. Macy), Catherine Hapka, Sallie Bissell, Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, Helen Geraghty, Tina deVaron, Cat Johnston, Minna Jung, and Sheila Prescott-Vessey.

Bonnie Bryant is also the author of many novelizations of movies, including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Karate Kid, and Honey, I Blew Up the Kid, written under her married name, B.B. Hiller. She also collaborated in the ghostwriting of The Baby-sitters Club Super Special #14: BSC in the USA, published under the name of its creator, Ann M. Martin.

Bonnie Bryant was born and raised in New York City. She met her husband, Neil W. Hiller, in college, where they both worked on the campus newspaper. They had two sons, Emmons Hiller and Andrew Hiller. Neil Hiller died in 1989. Many of Bonnie's books are dedicated to him.
***from wikipedia.org

Reviews

[Kerri · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a child nothing could beat the excitement of a Saddle Club Super Edition - they had even more drama, higher stakes, more pages and incredible covers! I loved them.
Despite this being the second of them, it's the first I read, and also one of the earlier Saddle Club books I encountered. It takes place in England and alot is happening: a three-day event, a Pony Club demonstration, an ancient mystery involving lost treasure, a rather epic prank on Veronica, the Italian boys are there, Lisa's friend Lady Tessa is included, Nigel is competing- it's got everything a Saddle Club fan could want!
💂🍕💎💖

[Ashleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. The saddle club goes to London and gets to participate in a 3 day Horse show.

[Sammy]

Perfect read for pony-crazy teenagers.

[Allie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the saddle club!

[Ashwise · Rating 5 out of 5]

REad this ages ago, thought it was a good read.

[Cassie Bateson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this in the back of a bookshelf I hadn't moved around in quite some time. I never did read this one as a kid so I figured I might as well now lol And at 31 years old, the writing is a bit simplistic but that's what I expected. Still a great story and wonderful writing for the age intended for.

[Ronel Janse van Vuuren · Rating 1 out of 5]

I liked the premise of the blurb, but the writing didn’t draw me in. Repeated words in quick succession and an info dump – with a condescending tone implying that the reader won’t keep up otherwise. Ah, no. I love horses, but this is a bit too cringe-worthy to read.
DNF 4%

[Lidik · Rating 2 out of 5]

I randomly picked up and read this book one day.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This may have been a bit too hard on Veronica.

[Ida Debley]

Read it when I was little

[Danielle Routh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm surprised this isn't on my Goodreads yet since it was my favorite from my Saddle Club-crazy middle school days. England, jokes on Veronica, a blossoming romance between Lisa and Enrico... what's not to like?

2021: I find it really hard to believe I haven't read this at some point between 2019 and 2021.

2023: Read as joke-prep for our trip to England, but the joke is on me because now I want to stay in just England.

[Tarissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a splendid "Saddle Club" addition! The girls (Lisa Carole, & Stevie – plus Veronica DiAngelo) are flying to England to compete in a horse show. I really loved the old legend about a Duke who lived in a castle, his horse, treasure, and a fire.

If you like the "Saddle Club" at all, you'll really enjoy "The Secret of the Stallion".

[Hazel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good series for horse crazy young teens. I loved it when I was younger.

[Rena Sherwood]

Read it when it was first published but can't remember it. Sorry.