John Royce – Page 10 – THE LEGEND OF THE GREAT HORSE trilogy

The Great Horse Nero

“Surging, the music rose and Nero gathered himself and … exploded into the air! Aloft in a mercurial arc, the horse struck backward with both feet as if to kick himself asunder. He pulled the earth under his hooves and rose again, ripping the air behind him in a display of disciplined power…”

The premier of NEW artwork by Marti Adrian Gregory for The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy! The scene is from The Golden Spark (Book 2) … Meagan restores a mistreated dressage mount to the manège (dressage arena), where he becomes a star performer.

Shorty and the Hounds

“For riding out in the field, Meagan’s favorite mount was a smoke-colored dun gelding she called Shorty, for the obvious reason. The horse’s stubby legs and thick neck allowed only so much of the flexibility needed in dressage. Though he ambled around the sand arena gamely, Shorty only came into his own when galloping across open fields.”

The premier of NEW artwork by Marti Adrian Gregory for The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy! The scene is from The Golden Spark (Book 2) … Meagan’s borrowed 17th-century mount is spooked by dogs who give chase.

Chouchou, the reluctant Knight’s destrier

“Chouchou started down the Lane with promising speed, but when he scented the carefully laid turf—obviously a thoughtful buffet—he stopped and dropped his head.”

Marti Adrian Gregory‘s miniature of the 13th-century knight Henryk and his trusty steed, Chou Chou, is a humorous rendition of what Meagan calls the “dynamic duo.”

Chou Chou means ‘teacher’s pet’ in French, a name knight Henryk bestows upon his dream mount―a Great Horse of Europe, a destrier―who goes very slowly.

The Great Horses: Targa, the Mongolian warpony

“Her grandfather had a saying: sometimes you can trust a horse and sometimes you can’t—
and sometimes you have to.”

The 4th Great Horse Meagan meets in history is a no-nonsense Mongolian warpony she dubs ‘Targa’ … the two bond together in an era when a good horse could make the difference between life and death.

This miniature artwork by Marti Adrian Gregory captures the close partnership the pair develop as they try to outrun the Mongol army and survive medieval life in Europe.