Raising the Horseman

Raising the Horseman is a recently released book by Serena Valentino - author of the Villians series. The story follows Kat Van Tassel, the great-granddaughter of Katrina Van Tassel the first, a young teenager living with the pressure to live up to her family's expectations of getting married and running the family's estate following graduation from High School when all she dreams about is a life outside of Sleepy Hollow.As an avid fan of anything and everything involving a headless man on horseback, this book caught my attention via Amazon and was able to easily read it in one sitting.The story itself was particularly easy to follow, once you got the idea that all of Kat's previous family members were named "Katrina" and kept the name of "Van Tassel" of course, and the connections between the past and present. I loved how there were similarities between many of the characters, both past and present, and how it was sometimes difficult to know who could be trusted and who couldn't - especially when it came to Crane and Bram in the past, and Blake and Isadora in the present. I also enjoyed how the chapters were each given from Kat's point of view and, when they referenced Katrina's diary, the following chapter would be an entry from Katrina's Diary as told by Katrina herself. The descriptions of the places - the graveyard, the old oak, the school - was as if I had stepped out of my bedroom and was walking along the streets with Kat and Isadora, watching their every move. I also loved the concept of the original tale being told from a different perspective - and not just Brom's or Ichabod's view - with a modern twist.The one thing I am disappointed in is the lack of the Headless Horseman - but that might just be me, though I do love the concept of the spirits of Katrina Van Tassel and the Headless Horseman being friends after death, and maybe a little before(?).Overall, the book was well-written with a well-thought out plot and nicely rounded characters. I hope Miss Valentino has a chance to write a sequel to this as I'm curious to know more about what lies in the other diaries of hers as well as what happens next for Kat and Isadora.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was a fantastic way to build upon the foundation of the tale shown in the Disney film from 1949. I really liked how we had the story in the present day and how that mirrored the story of Katrina Van Tassel and her experiences with Ichabod Crane and Brom Bones. There’s some AMAZING easter eggs and references to the film, “The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad,” which I loved since I’m such a huge fan of that film. I also adored the LGBTQIA+ representation in this book as well. If you’re a fan of Sleepy Hollow, and a fan of the Disney film adaptation of it, you will definitely enjoy this book.SPOILER (Easter Eggs mostly)Okay, I just had to share this because I was beaming in excitement when I saw this in the book. I was so excited reading the Headmaster Toad easter egg. I love how Toad, Angus McBadger, and Cyril were included in this book. Of course they aren’t a part of the legend but they are a part of the film “The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad,” so seeing them appear was really fun.Another thing I loved was the diary chapter revolving around Ichabod’s encounter with the Headless Horseman. I’ve seen the film so many times, so when I saw the diary quote at the start of the chapter, I immediately recognized it was the exact narration from the film. The chapter was fantastic as well, every detail of the film and that particular scene was perfectly shown.

20 years ago Gregory Macquire blew my mind with his brilliant book, Wicked, and the books that followed. No surprise when 7-8 years ago I quickly fell down a rabbit hole when I discovered Disney YA books. The retellings or twisted tales are told from a number of perspectives. The endless possibilities are wildly fascinating, and I cannot get enough. To me, these books are the equivalent of the multiverse, and I love them just as much as the MCU!You can ALWAYS count on Serena Valentino to deliver. I have every one of her books, with the exception of what I believe is her very first book, (which is for toddlers) and I haven't met one I didn't absolutely love. They are all just their own individual works of art. The talent this woman possesses is insane.To some degree I am sure we are all familiar with the tale of the Headless Horseman, but "it seemed there was more to the legend of Sleepy Hollow than we could possibly fathom, but that is a story for another time". This particular retelling became unexpectedly heartwarming. A story about acceptance. A story about unconditional love and support without hesitation. There is a particular scene in the book towards the end that evoked visions of The Charmed ones meeting Melinda Warren shortly after discovering their powers, and I loved it.Such a fun read anytime of the year, but especially right now!

This book follows Kat Van Tassel a teenager without a lot of pressure to live up to her family name and to follow in their footsteps. She dreams of a life outside of Sleepy Hollow, but will that happen?Her mother gives her the first Kat diaries and she soon learns that maybe history repeats itself.We follow Kat as she navigates family, new love, new choices, ghosts, and the headless horseman.A great modern twist to the headless horseman

I really wanted to like this book as I love the authors Villains series but unfortunately, this one was very disappointing. Story was just dragging on so boringly & repetitively which made me struggle to even want to finish it, despite it being a quick read. Characters were developed really shallow & bland. I didn’t find any of them interesting. I mean, I like how the author writes in a way that makes the story flow easily & understandably where it’s nothing too complex & I like retellings but this one fell really short for me & left a lot to be desired. I like her Villain books better where I would definitely reread those again but this one, I don’t think I would be picking this one up again so I will probably be donating it to a library. I just could not get into this book at all. The cover art on the other hand is really nice though. Kinda wish I would’ve read a preview if there was one available before spending the money but not all books have free previews. Oh well. 1star.

Ordered this book as a present. Had a lot of miss-printed text. Replaced the item, exactly the same issue.