The main characters in this book are Alec and a new guy he met in the swamp named Captain Philippe de Plumminel. He is in the circus unit. He has a horse named the Ghost because of her swift movements. The setting takes place in the Everglades with the captain.The conflict in this book starts when Alec met the captain and the captain wanted Alec to come back with him to his house in the middle of the Everglades. The captain wants to breed the Black with his mare, but Alec can’t because the racing season isn't over yet. There was a storm, so Alec couldn't head back to his house. The captain put the Black in the barn for the night. Alec was worried because his stallion was in the same barn as his mare and didn't want the Black to get out of the stall and get to the mare. Alec had to sleep in the upper part of the house that night. The captain had told some stories about the legend of Kovi. The captain didn't listen to Alec about him breeding and so that night the captain went out to the barn and tried to breed the two horses. Alec caught him beating the Black because the stallion was trying to attack the captain. Alec attacked the captain and the Black ran out into the Everglades toward the home of Kovi. The captain apologized to Alec and they set out into the Everglades on the search for the stallion. They ran all the way to the home of Kovi. The captain went somewhere and came back so terrified he couldn't move. Alec took off to go look for the Black so they could get out of the place. Alec wasn't scared of Kovi because he thought it was all an imagination. He was caught by Kovi and was sent into darkness. He eventually got out of the darkness and had figured that it was what the captain had saw. When Alec found the Black he got on him and went back to the area he had left the captain. He wasn't there so he went searching for him. He found the captain dead by a tree with wounds and blood surrounding him. He went back to the captain’s house to tell Odin, another man at the captain’s house, to tell him the captain was dead. When he got to the house, both the barn and the house was locked so tightly. Odin had left with the mare. A few weeks later he went to the circus where the mare was playing. Odin had sold her to some other circus man who would show her in the circus. After the mare was done with her act he went past the security guards and found the mare in her stall. He talked the man into letting him buy her for $30,000! He bought her because she was pregnant with the Black’s foal and for other reasons.I think this book was really awesome. At the beginning I didn't really know what was happening, but as the book went on I understood more. I was so into the book. It was great! I was so shocked when the captain had died. I wasn't expecting any of that to happen. I would recommend this book to my friend Abby Sparks and any other person that likes a lot of surprises!
I am always saying how Walter Farley's books are true adventures. This is where his adventures start to deviate from the norm and become the surreal. I am not a fan of this writing style for Farley, but I enjoy the concept of this book. I wish that there had been a little bit more of an adventure to it than the talking that went on between two characters for a good half of the book. There was also a lot of repetition that isn't typical of Farley's work. It's enjoyable and in some ways is a mystery for the mind. Does the creature exist? Alec thinks he knows what happened, but did it really happen in the way he thinks it did? The beginning of the end for the Black's great adventures.
I hated this one. It was surreal and far-fetched and horrific and not at all what I was expecting, all in the worst ways possible. And, yet again, there was no point, as this is never mentioned again, and we're not sure if (view spoiler)[the Ghost is pregnant or not (hide spoiler)]
—Wendy
The last few books in this series are really bad and what's really sad is that as much as I hated this one, there are worse books in the series. Re-reading this childhood favorite has been a real love-hate relationship. The books I remember liking the best, I still love. I think the ones I didn't like, I hate even more. In this book Alec and The Black get lost in the Everglades and spend the night with an old man determined to "steal" a mating for his mare with The Black. The night is filled with terror and voodoo. Really horrible book.
—Bonnie
