Stable Lass

Book excerpt: Being a stable lass is probably one of the poorest paid jobs in the country, and yet for Gemma it is the most rewarding. She works in a beautiful location - Middleham in Wensleydale - and if the people are occasionally challenging, the horses are downright astonishing. Now, in Stable Lass, she takes us into the closed world of a racing stable, from the politics and in-fighting to the romances and affairs, from the elation of riding her first winner to coping with the grief of losing a horse. Like all stable lads and lasses, Gemma arrived as a teenager and had to cope with living away from home for the first time, as well as adapt to the brutal hours and backbreaking work. Eighteen years later she is assistant trainer and still loves it. She describes falling in love with some of the horses as well as what happens when a horse takes against you, and the very real danger of being killed by a kick. She brings to life the characters around the yard, from straight-speaking boss Mickey Hammond to the millionaire owners who land by helicopter in the paddock, the jockeys starving themselves to make weight, and the stable lads and lasses who are from very different backgrounds. And of course she pays tribute to the horses themselves, some loveable, some cantankerous, all impressive.