The Scorpio Races

I have been on a BINGE of YA reading lately--all very good. The first was this book by Maggie Stiefvater. Set on an island off the coast of England in contemporary times, where magical, man eating horses emerge from the wild surf every fall. If you play your cards just right, you can capture and semi-tame one to enter into the Scorpio races that take place along the beach on the first of November every year. Of course you might get killed in the process, but if you don't you stand to win a lot of money. The folk on this island fish or farm and it's a poor place with few other opportunities for young people looking to make their way. So Puck (given name Kate) and Finn Connelly are not surprised, but nevertheless devastated when their older brother Gabe says he is leaving the island to find work right after the races. Since their parents were killed by the water horses--the capaill uisce--while out in their small fishing boat, the Connelly children have lived on their own, barely making ends meet. When the major land owner on the island, Malvern comes to the house and says they are months in arrears on the rent, Puck is determined to enter the races and win the money to pay back the debt and stay in their house. Only thing is, she is going to enter the race with her island pony, who normally would not stand a chance against the blindingly fast water horses. But the capaill uisce are also driven somewhat mad by the breaking waves on the beach during the race, so there is just a small chance... There is a love story here involving Puck and the 3-time winner of the races, Sean Kenrick, an orphan who works for Malvern in his renowned stables.  Sean has a magic touch with capaill uisce, which makes him invaluable, but is still just a hired hand. He is despised by Malvern's son,  Mutt, who will do anything to sabotage Sean, including trying to kill him or the water horse, Corr, that Sean will ride in the race. If Sean wins, Malvern will let him buy Corr, but if he loses, he will continue to be an indentured servant for a long time to come. So why is Sean helping Puck learn to race when so much is at stake?