The Masters Ball by Anne-Marie Lacy, 2012, Indigo-Inc Publishing, 206 pages, $25.00From the elegance of the annual fete in New York to a hair-raising ride at closing meet, author Anne-Marie Lacy takes the reader on mad gallop in The Masters Ball, a light-hearted murder mystery with a charming ghost.
The author, who has hunted for seventeen years, drew upon her experiences in the field with the Mooreland Hunt (AL), the Hillsboro Hounds (TN), and the characters she met along the way for her first book. The astute reader will recognize a few larger-than-life, real-life Masters who were Lacy’s inspiration for her characters.
Lacy, an attorney in private practice specializing in criminal defense, now hunts with Albert Menefee’s Cedar Knob Hounds. She writes that when she started the book, she soon realized she had killed off her most interesting character by the second chapter. Her solution was to turn him into a ghost. He may be the only ghost in white tie and scarlet evening tails who rides double during a hunt.
The author tells an enjoyable story plotted around some of the nonfictional issues plaguing hunts today, such as the costs, loss of hunting territory, and differing opinions. Experienced hunters will nod in agreement while the non-horsey reader will come away with a better understanding of the sport. A quick read, the book would be a good companion during a beach weekend away from the farm.
Posted May 14, 2012