Green Rider by Kristen Britain

Title: Green Rider
Author: Kristen Britain
Genre: YA Fantasy
Published: 1998
Pages: 471
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Synopsis

On her long journey home from school after a fight which will surely lead to her expulsion, Karigan G'ladheon ponders her future as she trudges through the immense forest called Green Cloak. But her thoughts are interrupted by the clattering of hooves as a galloping horse bursts from the woods, the rider slumped over his mount's neck, impaled by two black-shafted arrows. As the young man lies dying on the road, he tells Karigan that he is a Green Rider, one of the legendary messengers of the king, and that he bears a "life and death" message for King Zachary. He begs Karigan to carry his message, warning her not to read it, and when she reluctantly agrees, he makes her swear on his sword to complete his mission "for love of country." As he bestows upon her the golden winged-horse brooch which is the symbol of his office, he whispers on his dying breath, "Beware the shadow man..." 

Karigan's promise changes her life forever. Pursued by unknown assassins, following a path only her horse seems to know, and accompanied by the silent specter of the original messenger, she herself becomes a legendary Green Rider. Caught up in a world of deadly danger and complex magic, compelled by forces she cannot understand, Karigan is hounded by dark beings bent on seeing that the message, and its reluctant carrier, never reach their destination.

Review

This book was given to me by a youngish man on his deathbed, and by deathbed I mean the driver's seat of his car after a horrific accident on the autobahn. I tried to do what I could to help him, but the jaws of life just didn't arrive in time. But before he died, he gave me this book and made me promise to deliver it to Angela Merkel without reading it first. (Clearly I failed in that endeavor, and now we have Trump for president. But the two probably aren't related.) 

See, I know the plot to Green Lantern when I see it, and even though Ryan Reynolds is hot, that movie kind of sucked. Taking the plot and adding horses and "shadow men" is just not enough to redeem that garbage. Karigan can't even do anything cool with her newfound responsibility. She just has to ride the horse to wherever it's taking her and not die along the way. Boring. 

Oh, and not read the letter. The Green Rider makes it sound like something horrible will happen if she reads the letter, but it's totally just a love letter from his mistress (who happens to be married to the shadow man obviously.) Of course homeboy's pissed. His wife is stepping out on him and he can't exactly go after her lover because he's the freakin' king! I can see how keeping the message from being delivered can seem like the next best option there. (Then again, as the person who may be single-handedly responsible for Donald Trump being president, I'm probably not the best person to be giving advice on these matters.) 

I expected more of this book and it really just ended up being a great big snooze-fest-y pile of garbage. Would not recommend. 1 out of 5 stars. 

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About the Author

Kristen Britain is the New York Times bestselling author of the Green Rider Series. She lives in an adobe house in the high desert of the American Southwest beneath the big sky, and among lizards and hummingbirds and tumbleweeds. 

www.kristenbritain.com

Alternate Reviews

To read some legitimate reviews of this book, just click on any of the links below. 

Fantasy Book Review // Fantastical Reads // Fine Print Blog