If you loved the novel 'Riders' by Jilly Cooper then this is the book for you. The hero, Rafael, has dark eyes and glossy raven-black hair. He grew up as an orphan in a South American shanty town, adopted by Carina, a British exile. She taught him everything she knew about horses and he is a gifted and intuitive horseman. When Carina dies Rafael goes to work as a stable boy at the Melilla riding school, but he has no chance to demonstrate his equestrian talents in a place ruled by pretentious notions of class. Opportunities are handed out according to wealth and family connections. Rafael's destiny is inextricably bound to that of Phoebe Lester-Blythe, an unhappy, overweight English schoolgirl whose father works at the British Consulate. This story crosses the world from South America to the home counties of Oxfordshire. It is a tale of passion for horses, intrigue, betrayal and revenge.