Search

Search only in certain items:

Heart of Hope (Hooves & Hearts #2)
Heart of Hope (Hooves & Hearts #2)
Hannah E. Carey | 2025 | Contemporary, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
HEART OF HOPE is the second book in the Hooves & Hearts series, and features Isabel and Derrick, along with Cadence, Kaspar, and Knight.

Isabel is a rider at her dad's place, River Green Farm. From what I understand, she competes in horse shows and events on behalf of the horse owners. Her dad (and I use that word loosely) is an antagonistic character with plenty of sharp edges that he usually uses on Isabel. She is lucky enough to have a trust fund, but lives frugally, which is how she can buy two horses (Kaspar and Knight) to go with Cadence when they are up for sale. Unfortunately, Knight is quite old, and Kaspar is having issues. That, coupled with Cadence's problems, is where Derrick comes into play. Rodger (dad) doesn't like Derrick, but his own vets have missed problems in both Cadence and Kaspar.

I'm going to be probably controversial here, and I apologise to the author, but I connected more with the horses than with Isabel and Derrick. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed reading about the two of them, and I was rooting for them to get together. What really held my attention, though, and had me turning every page, was Kaspar, Cadence, and Knight. I desperately wanted Kaspar's issues to be found so he could be helped, along with Cadence getting better, and Knight getting the retirement he'd earned.

Meg and Carter make an appearance here, which was wonderful to read. There are also a host of other characters to help bring the story alive. Some I liked, Sierra, for example, while others I really didn't, like Sara and Trevor. I mean, I know I'm not supposed to, but I didn't enjoy any of the scenes they were in. There was too much unknown - like why did Sara's attitude change even before Isabel left - that I just didn't care about.

A good, solid read and I was happy to return to their world. You don't need to have read book one to get the full enjoyment from this one. Definitely recommended by me.

** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Nov 26, 2025