Fiction THE HORSEWOMAN

by James Patterson & Mike Lupica, Century, £20. Available December 30 Bestselling author James Patterson switches from crime writing to showjumping – and the result is yet another gripping story.

The book gallops through the efforts of Maggie Atwood and her daughter Becky McCabe to qualify for the Olympics, with each chapter throwing up physical and personal barriers to their dreams.

Any thoughts of showjumping being a sedate world of jodhpurs, funny hats and stirrups are shattered amid clashes with a rich, ignorant horse-owner, injuries, rivalry with other riders, and romance.

The book, jointly written by sportswriter Mike Lupica, is told with Patterson’s trademark drama.