Book Review: Horseman: A Tale Of Sleepy Hollow by Christina Henry

 SUMMARY:

Everyone in Sleepy Hollow knows about the Horseman, but no one really believes in him. Not even Ben Van Brunt's grandfather, Brom Bones, who was there when it was said the Horseman chased the upstart Crane out of town. Brom says that's just legend, the village gossips talking.

Twenty years after those storied events, the village is a quiet place. Fourteen-year-old Ben loves to play Sleepy Hollow boys, reenacting the events Brom once lived through. But then Ben and a friend stumble across the headless body of a child in the woods near the village, and the sinister discovery makes Ben question everything the adults in Sleepy Hollow have ever said. Could the Horseman be real after all? Or does something even more sinister stalk the woods? 

TEE'S THOUGHTS:

The Horseman by Christina Henry was added to my reading list the moment i knew it existed. I am obessesed with The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I have books, I have movies, I have candles, and pillows and you name it, if it has the Horseman on it, I want it. My husband was nice enough to even drive me half way across country to Sleepy Hollow New York for vacation. I won't lie, to me it was a dream to see the area, which of course included the old Dutch church and cemetery that Irving wrote about in the story.

The bridge that Icabod Crane had to cross is not longer there, however there is a fantasic bridge in the cemetary that I loved and it gave all types of Horseman vibes off with its moss covered wood surrounded by woods..

One can imagine that this old wooden bridge is the spot that Crane disappeared from. 

I will stop playing tour guide and get back to the review...which I don't think I have even started LOL...

Years after Icabod Crane mysteriously disappeared from Sleepy Hollow, rumored to be carried off by the Headless Horseman, Brom Bones ( If you have ever read the orginal story you will know who Brom is and of the mischief he caused ) and Katrina Van Tassel have been married, had a son, and the son married and had a daughter Ben, who because of the early deaths of her parents live with her grandparents Brom and Katrina.

Ben and her friend Sander are out playing Sleepy Hollow Boys one day in the woods when they happen on the body of a headless village boy, and the legend is again in full swing in the village.

The book was quick paced and very atmospheric. It did have some breepy undertones that might bother some, but to me it was just a great continuation of a beloved childhood tale. There were times when the writing was a bot graphic and gory, but the writer kept it to necesaary parts and did not use it as a shock value, it was there to describe a creepy creature that had come to haunt the village.

Henry also wove some important issues between the horror such as the imporatnce of family, acceptance, loss and grief, and being true to oneself.

Early on in the book Ben, who is the main in this book and born female declares:

" No one was ever going to make me be female-once I'm old enough I. going to cut my hair and runaway to be a man "

I loved this part of Ben, he knew who he was and how he was going to live at an early age. I loved the way that Henry dealt with the subject and showed some of the hardships with family and townspeople over Ben's decision. During the first part of the book I had a hard time imagining Ben actually being 14, his character and actions seemed so childish and I imagined him to be a lot younger in age, but as the story progressed so did Ben and it was fantastic to see him grow into a strong person at the age of 24 when the book ends.

I will be the first to admit, I was very skeptical about this book. I have a hard time thinking anyone can do Irvings classic justice. But by not actually re-telling the story, but fast forwarding it 25 years, Henry made it both entertaining and captivating . It was fun to see her creativity in what happend to Crane, he certainly was not the lawyer Irving wrote him to be, and also her take on the Horseman, who is indeed in this tale, but in a new re-imagined way. She did great honoring the original with out taking away from it or changing it. Trust me that is saying something coming from a person who picks apart every Sleepy Hollow movie version to the point that no one will even watch one with me LOL.

Horseman is a fun and entertaining read for Halloween and beyond.