Reviewed by Chris
TITLE: Horsefeathers 
AUTHOR: Caitlin Ricci
PUBLISHER: Less Than Three Press
LENGTH: 31 pages
BLURB:
Justin was sent to get a mare, and is helpless to explain to his unhappy boss why he came back with an untouchable gray stallion instead, but there’s just something about the horse that wouldn’t let him leave it behind.
Of course, because an angry boss and a horse they don’t need isn’t enough, the horse goes missing—leaving a strange man in his place, a man who speaks in riddles and seems more than a little crazy, but he’s also just as hard to refuse as the stallion…
REVIEW:
Nohatu and Brother Horse have been one for a very long time. More than a century has passed since Brother Horse came to Nohatu and offered him the chance to become more than just a mere man. But times have changed since then and now the once free and open land they ran thru is fenced off and hoarded by men. Taken, along with a group of wild mustangs, Nohatu and Brother Horse struggle to find a way back to freedom in a time when very little is free.
First off, I think it is pretty much universally acknowledge that this cover is damn pretty. I actually didn’t get around to seeing it till after I picked up the book, but I will admit that it probably would have swayed me even if I didn’t already have this short story down in my books. So massive kudos to the cover artist.
As for the book. Well the first part of it was damn good. I really enjoyed the bi-play between Nohatu and Brother Horse. I like how they struggled against each other. One a man one a horse and while they are clearly separate entities, they are also one being in the end.
Justin was also pretty cool, but we really did not get anywhere near enough time to get to know him. I would have loved to get more of his backstory. There are a lot of unanswered questions about Justin and why he chooses what he does, and I felt a bit let down that we didn’t really even begin to cover them.
While I enjoyed this story it felt a tad unfinished and a bit rushed, especially near the end. There were characters that had so much going on within and around them, that this short short story doesn’t really cut it in terms of a full narrative arch.
RATING:
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