In the Reins Book Review: Catching Up With Carly Kade

Insights from the Author

Have you ever reached a point in your life when you needed to just start over? You woke up one day and realized that you had lost the parts of you that were most important, and the things that made you “you” had slowly faded away?

This is exactly where Devon Brooke, the leading lady of In the Reins, found herself after waking up one day and not recognizing her life.

Mid-30s and in a dead-end relationship, Devon had compromised her love for horses and the open country to make her relationship work with a man who could not reciprocate. Throwing her life into a hard stop, she found her relationship with her fiancé suddenly ending, causing her to realize just how much of her passion she had lost, not only in her love life, but in life in general.

Most of all, leaving horses behind had caused her to live a life with an underscore of hollowness.

Inspired to make a change, Devon uproots her whole life in search of greener pastures. She finds them in the shape of a talented young paint mare named Faith and a quiet ranch named Green Briar. She soon becomes part of Green Briar’s makeshift family, comprised of a noble and delicate matriarch, Sophia, a happy-go-lucky player and bull rider named JD, and a mysterious cowboy champion horse trainer named McKennon.

Carly Kade with her mare, Sissy.

In the Reins, by Carly Kade, is a captivating novel that chronicles one woman’s journey away from everything she knew to find her way back to herself. Devon encounters struggles and an ill-fated weekend away at a show with Faith, as she slowly finds love and passion with the broken-yet-strong cowboy, McKennon. But ultimately, she finds that the breakup that seemed to be the end of a road in her life was just the beginning of a much better one.

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Interview with the Author

In the process of reading In the Reins, I had the pleasure of interviewing its author, the lovely Carly Kade. She is always full of life and love, which overflows into her writing. Follow along as I interview her about her books, her story, and what’s up next for her.

How long have you been an author?

I’ve always enjoyed creative writing and was recognized as a young author. My education involved English, Journalism, and Creative Writing courses, but I didn’t set out to publish a novel until McKennon Kelly, the leading man from In the Reins, came to me like lightning one day in the form of a poem.

I vividly remember the day I furiously scrawled him in my journal. That poem ended up being the intro to the first book.

From there, I just wrote the novel that I wanted to read. Beverly Cleary once said, “If you don’t see the book you want on the shelves, write it.”

I’ve always loved reading and have been riding horses since I was seven. I know that I sure wouldn’t be able to resist reading about a handsome horse trainer who knows his way around horses, so I wrote about what I knew — horses and the equestrian culture. The first book in the series was published in 2015.

My dream is to keep writing equestrian stories that help people feel. I want to write novels that give people escape. I want to write stories that people don’t want to put down. I want to get lost in my imagination and bring stories to life for others.

Did you know Carly hosts a weekly podcast too? Check out Equestrian Author Spotlight in our Media Guide.

What drew you to writing, particularly equestrian fiction?

Being an equestrian is a lifestyle. It inhabits everything you do. It starts as a girl and grows throughout life. I know I will pick up anything with a horse on it, especially a book. I think the link between horses and my writing is due to the fact that loving horses is a lifestyle.

I remember how much I loved horse stories when I was a little cowgirl, but I grew up. In my adulthood, I am just as horse-obsessed as I was as a child. I think the equestrian fiction and equestrian romance genres are the books that young horse lovers grow into in order to feed that need to read about their passion for horses.

I am inspired to write equestrian fiction novels that all horse lovers can appreciate no matter their discipline. I have found that my readers are just like me — horse crazy, book crazy, and crazy for handsome hunks who know a thing or two about horses.

Some of the best feedback I’ve gotten though, has been that non-horsey readers say that one doesn’t have to love horses, or have knowledge about them, to enjoy my stories or fall in love with the characters.

Many readers are actually enjoying the fact that they are learning so much about the human-horse connection because of my books. That feedback makes my spurs jingle!

Do you identify with Devon in any past seasons of your life?

One similarity between the leading lady of the In the Reins series and me is our unabashed love for horses. There’s no place I’d rather be than spending time with my horse. Just like Devon, I’m happiest when I am in the saddle.

As I wrote Devon’s story, a big difference between us unfolded as her character became far more risky in the saddle (and in love) than I think myself to be.

Chief Rookie Aside: Stay safe and always wear a helmet when you ride.

Devon is a little bit of a mental train wreck. I try to go about my day as clear-minded and present as possible. It isn’t always easy, but thanks to meditation I like to think I definitely have a quieter mind than Devon does!

What do you perceive as Devon’s greatest strengths?

What is most important about Devon is that she is willing to learn from her mistakes. Readers will find that Devon grows as a person and horse owner throughout the series. Who she is in In the Reins is merely a reflection who she becomes in Show Pen Promise. I think the most powerful thing about Devon is she knows that she is always a work in progress, defined not by her past, but by the future she is creating for herself.

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I think this quote really sums up Devon Brooke nicely:

“She could never go back and make some of the details pretty. All she could do was move forward and make the whole beautiful.” – Terri St. Cloud

In what ways do you think Devon represents all women (equestrian or otherwise)?

I can relate to all the things that make up Devon Brooke (the good and the bad) because those things are inherently female. Devon Brooke represents all the mixed emotions that make up a woman: strength, independence, uncertainty, desire to find love, and that little bit of neurosis I think a woman can harbor when her fantasies don’t exactly match up with reality. Devon’s judgment certainly becomes impaired over a cute guy in cowboy boots!

One reason the books resonate so much with readers is because the trilogy is a romantic drama about life and the struggles we all go through to overcome life’s challenges. The In the Reins series captures the struggle between letting life move forward and shying away from taking the reins.

How has your own horse journey impacted your writing?

The inspiration for my equestrian novels comes from time spent at the barn and riding my horse Sissy. After my rides, I often have to scurry to capture the words on the only thing I can find when inspiration suddenly hits me — torn out insides of my horse’s feed bags! I scribble down my thoughts while perched on hay bales listening to the sounds of the horses rustling in their stalls.

Reflecting on the process today, it feels as if In the Reins just flowed out of me and was just something I had to do. That’s the way I feel about having a horse in my life, too. It’s just something I have to do. Writing equestrian fiction novels about horses and riding them are both good for my creative soul.

My history with (and knowledge of) horses is definitely a reason why I think other horse lovers have been drawn to the books. I know what it feels like to enter a show pen and be nervous. I know what it feels like to feel stuck with my horse’s training. I know what it feels like to swoon over a cute cowboy. Ha! I hope that sort of authenticity comes through in my writing.

I’m a horse owner. I’ve shown competitively most of my life. I write about my lifestyle, not something I’ve researched, but what I do.

What’s next for you?

Right now, I am working on the first draft of the fourth book in the In the Reins series. I’m calling it JD’s Story right now, but I never know what I am going to name my books until the story tells me what it wants the title to be. I didn’t name In the Reins until the moment those three words left my fingertips toward the end of the novel. It was the same with Cowboy Away.

I can’t wait to see where my bull riding heartthrob takes me in the next book in the series. I have had readers tell me that they love JD McCall and want more of him. That makes my spurs jingle because I was hoping it would be difficult for readers to choose between JD and McKennon.

I think the combination of these two very different men is the perfect storm when it comes to handsome cowboys!

I will be sharing series sneak peeks, updates and new release info on my blog for readers who can’t wait to find out what happens next for McKennon, Devon, Sophia, JD and the Green Briar horses.

Get Lost in a World of Horses, Cowboys, and Second Chances

In the Reins is somewhat of a departure from my usual realm of non-fiction reading. I loved getting lost in Devon’s transformation as she faced her need for change head-on. She pursued her new life so tenaciously, in spite of uncertainty and doubt.

As a reader, I love the complexity of each of the characters, JD the reckless yet tender-hearted bull rider, McKennon the strong and intuitive cowboy, and Sophia, the matriarch and Devon’s confidant and guardian angel throughout the novel. I would recommend this to any equestrian who loves getting lost in a great story.

For parents with young reading cowgirls, please note, the content is best for adult eyes only, as there is an element of romance in the pages.

Thank you everyone for following along with me for this book review. Huge thank you to Carly for joining us for an in-depth interview about In the Reins and life as an equestrian author!

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In the Reins Book Review: Catching Up With Carly Kade