You know what happens to all those girls who are just crazy about horses? Once they discover boys, the horses are history. Or maybe not. For Lizzy, and others like her, no boy, no man who knows what's good for him, speaks the unspeakable-It's me or the horse. It's no contest. And so Lizzy snips the threads that hold her, however tenuously, to a conventional life and begins her journey into the world of horse sports. She signs on as a working student for dressage superstar Margot Fanning, heading to south Florida with her six year old mare, for the season. She immerses herself in an extraordinary world of high-dollar horses and ambitious women and receives an incredible education in more than just riding dressage. And she's taking notes. Welcome to The Dressage Chronicles.

When it comes to fear, horses and humans are not so different; emotions can overtake reason. The rubber snake might as well be a real snake -- the nightmare reality -- when they elicit the same response. Blind fear will make both horse and rider try to outrun lions, even when those lions are made of paper. Blind fear can send you straight over a cliff, and even if you manage to pull up before the edge, that is no way to live life.

It is only through training, training, and more training, and then testing that training, that you learn to turn and face fear, find courage, and welcome the ride, wild though it promises to be.

These are the rings of fire, the trials that lie ahead for all of us, whether they be taking command of a spooky horse or navigating more human problems. Once trained, with worthy companions marching with you, shoulder-to-shoulder, you are ready for
the ride.

Welcome to The Dressage Chronicles IV: Rings of Fire.

Margot tells Lizzy that nothing in life is ever really settled, not until they pack the earth over your grave, darling.

And of course, as usual, Margot is right.

Although Lizzy is living her dream at Equus Paradiso Farm, there is no guarantee that her future is settled. She is terrified to think that despite her hard work, despite her commitment and desire, her efforts may not be enough.

Regardless of the shifting sands beneath her feet, Lizzy still has a job to do. It is a job with growing responsibilities, without regular hours, without weekends off, that pays almost nothing and beats her up physically and mentally.

And while success is not guaranteed, failure in part or whole appears to be.

Maybe she is foolish with her rainbow and unicorn thinking; maybe the naysayers were right all along and reality is coming to kick her in the rear and eject her out of paradise and back out into the ordinary world.

Not all good deeds are rewarded, or efforts even appreciated as the territory of her daily routine gets trickier to navigate.

Life is not fair. But giving up before the battle is finished is not an option.

Though she'll be tested, though she'll know doubt and failure, she will come to discover that she is indeed the right girl for the job.

As it is with people, so it is with horses. There is what you see on the surface, and then there is what is churning below. Lizzy's good work ethic, and a desire to learn, will take her only so far. To go beyond the books, beyond the riding lessons, she will need courage. Why? Wild Child. He is beauty coupled with power, but mean as a rattlesnake. He triggers reactions in everyone who sees him; envy; ambition; and fear. And he is her responsibility. But not her only challenge. Some rattlesnakes are two-legged. She will find some of her teachers in unlikely places she could never have imagined. She will develop that special quality known among horsemen as feel. So the journey of The Dressage Chronicles continues. Put on your helmet.

It seemed sometimes like God had a mean streak. That was what Bev had said to Eloise. But Eloise knew none of this mess was God's fault.

Yes, life had been unfair, had taken too much from her. But her efforts to claw back what she could, well, they weren't honest. And she had been caught.

Was there no safe place to go where people did not think her pitiful. Or worse?

There was. Even if it existed in the 18th century. And there, in the journals of Louisa Roberts, she had found another horse-crazy, motherless young woman, a big shaggy dog, a special horse, and a handsome Hessian prisoner-of-war. And although they no longer lived, alongside them was a living man, a man who was the guardian of the journal, who walked the very floors they walked, the man who welcomed her, restored her, Dabs Carter of Ivy Creek Plantation.

But the time had come to return to Atlanta, it was time for full disclosures. This mess was all hers to clean up. Forgiveness was not hers to give.

It was time to ask for mercy.

Author Karen McGoldrick found her first job at age twelve by answering an ad in her local newspaper. Now, 48 years later, with over 30 of those years dedicated to dressage, Karen has collected a wealth of knowledge and in-the-saddle practice in riding and training horses. Having been a voracious reader of fiction all her life, Karen understood the power of fiction to tell truths in a way that was just not available in most non-fiction riding books.

In hopes of filling that niche, she wrote a four-book series called The Dressage Chronicles. In her novels, the character of Margot came to represent all of the best Karen had experienced in her trainers and mentors. To the character of Margot she gave words of wisdom that had been given to her. When the wisdom delivered just wasn't right for the character of Margot, she invented other characters that were better suited to the lesson.

But storytelling limits how much of the actual training theory can be imparted. The plot carries the reader forward and demands movement rather than too much time spent on formal theory, and so the idea for this final book was born. And while this slim work is not intended to be a complete guide to training and riding dressage, it offers up a more cohesive presentation of the theory and practice, gleaned from the best of Karen's Margots. Karen continues to write in a way that is both educational and light in tone, yet dead-on realistic. While the book can be read without having first read the series of novels, readers who enjoyed the novels will relish taking one more trip down centerline with Karen.

Dad's number one rule was, Just keep the horse between you and the ground.

Even so, Eloise fell off her mare too many times to count. But in time, they made a winning team; Mom, Dad, Eloise, and a chestnut mare named Whiplash.

But her parents' divorce, her mother's death, and estrangement from her father had knocked her flat. No effort on her part could change things. The bridge she thought she would cross had burned. Maybe it was her dad, Jock, who lit the match, but it was Eloise who had poured the gasoline on top.

Eloise had made her peace. Now, reading history was a fine escape, and she loved her job at the animal clinic. Her online reading community, daydreaming, and caring for other people's animals fed her mind, heart, and soul, even if it was by proxy.

Then early one morning a stray dog showed up at the clinic door.

Then a faceless man on the Internet offers her a glimpse of an 18th century journal he claims to have found. If she wants more, she must get it from him.

Eloise becomes obsessed with the stray dog and engrossed in the 18th century journal.

The dog, the journals, and a horse called the Red Devil propel Eloise on a journey.

A journey that puts her back in the saddle, both in the present, and in 18th century Virginia.