Jilly Cooper is by far one of the best writers of those books referred to generically as the bonkbuster. For those not in the know a bonkbuster as defined by the Oxford English Dictionary is ’’a type of popular novel characterised by frequent sexual encounters between the characters’’. Well at least you now know what you are in for which as far as I am concerned is a real treat but if you think that this is not your cup of tea then maybe it is not the book for you. There are a large number of characters in Riders and essentially it chronicles the rivalry between two of the UK’s greatest show jumpers.
The first Jake Lovell is a gypsy who born and raised in common surroundings has worked his way up the ladder of show jumping by sheer talent, hard work and a very tactical marriage to a reluctant rich debutant Tory. His main rival is Rupert Campbell-Black dubbed the ’sexiest man in Britain’. He is improbably glamorous, very good looking, very rich and he knows it. Bown of extremely wealthy parents he is the sole heir of Penscombe a beautiful estate set in the Cotswalds where he spends his time breeding and riding horses. Able to utterly charm the pants of most women there is no shortage of ladies who are willing to seduce or be seduced by him and even being married to the lovely Helen Campbell-Black has not changed his womanising ways. Whilst an utter cad in some respects Rupert is a man who is utterly loyal to his friends. His best being Billy Lloyd-Fox an all round nice guy and fellow show Jumper. The rivalry between Jake and Rupert begins in school where Jake used to be bullied by Rupert for being the dinner ladies son and a gypsy. The rivalry progresses as their paths cross again in time at the various show jumping venues around the world. Rupert still treats Jake badly. Jake sees the glamorous and effortless lifestyle that Rupert leads and is jealous of the fact that Rupert’s position in life gets him everything that he wants and what Jake would like is a part of that lifestyle. The rivalry between them is apparent in both their professional and personal arenas. Professionally both of them are looking to be included within the Olympic show-jumping squad and it is only the watchful eye of their coach Malise Gordon that stops them from killing each other at times. Personally their rivalry stretches to most aspects of their lives including their horses and their women and ultimately culminates in a showdown at the Los Angeles Olympics where everyone is desperate to win Gold. This is a fast-paced book filled with rich, beautiful, glamorous people doing all the things you wished you could do but can’t. It is set in the decadent eighties and is full of people who follow the work had and play even harder lifestyle. Although titled a bonk-buster there is not that much sex in it and if you were worried it was a porn novel it isn’t. It is a nice easy read and you do start liking the various characters in it. It is probably not really a mans book as essentially it does have several romances running through it.
It does have a lot of show jumping in it though and Jilly Cooper’s descriptions bring out the actual practices and terminology of show jumping very knowledgably. She keeps you on the edge of your seat waiting to see what the outcomes of the various tournaments are. There are several books written by her that chronicle the affairs so to speak of Rupert Campbell-Black and Riders is the first. If you like your books with fast lifestyles and glamorous people but essentially British humour then you will like this book. You will also like it if you like most Jackie Collins books, Lace and other books of a similar nature. I recommend it as being worth a read and I will bet you that you don’t finish it without having fallen in love with Rupert Campbell-Black.