I loved this book and sobbed my way through it. I may not even be able to speak rationally to people who don’t love it as I did, even though it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, as the title indicates. As the book opens, our heroine, Penny, is being arrested – she’s not sure why and she’s not all that clear until her overworked public defender, who hasn’t yet passed the bar exam, arrives to take her through her options. As every lawyer does, she advises Penny to settle, but as Penny is sure she is innocent of what turns out to be a murder charge, she does not want to settle.

The other narrator is the Pony. He doesn’t have a name, though he’s given various names by various owners. He’s guided by hatred and revenge toward Penny, who he feels abandoned him long ago. So whenever he can, he bites or steps on feet. He is not accommodating. He’s like a grumpy old man. He also seems to think very much as we might imagine a pony would think. He can talk to any animal, whatever species, bat, rat, sparrow, goat, dog (he feels dogs are altogether too fond of humans), and the journey he takes to find Penny is a very, very long one.
We are with the Pony as he is part of a birthday party troop, part of a pony racing group, part of a fancy stable where the owners tart him up and try to sell him for lots of money, and he travels via truck, boat and even at one point a car. He lives through hurricanes and cold and periods where – horrors – he has no carrots. But he’s driven, as a private eye might be, to discover Penny’s whereabouts and creatures from sparrows to butterflies give him clues along the way.

As we go back in time, the reader realizes that the partnership between Penny and the Pony was a perfect one, one that was never replicated for either of them. While the end of it made Penny sad, she’s also grown up, gotten married, and become a teacher as well as the mother of a difficult daughter. Further into the story, the Pony realizes not only that Penny probably didn’t abandon him, but he’s certain she is not a murderer. So his mission changes: save Penny.

While this sounds a bit ridiculous and cutesy it’s actually a fairly profound and funny look at love, the nature of friendship, and a rather sobering look at the way humans treat animals. Each animal from the comfort chicken to Dr. Rat has a distinct personality, and various horses are able to give Pony advice and thoughts on the nature of love. None of them believe in it as a concept.

Meanwhile, Penny’s struggles in jail are another sobering look - at the justice system. She is confused by it and forced to rely on it’s slowly turning gears as she doesn’t have the money to hire the kind of lawyer who might have been able to get her out. She only meets her actual attorney in the courtroom; the entire time, she works with her law student lawyer who does what she can but who is incredibly overworked.

I really don’t want to give away any of the surprises in this book, and there are many. Halfway through, three quarters of the way through, I still wasn’t quite sure where things would end up. But the voice of the Pony and the agonies he and Penny go through as they try to find one another are not just funny, they are a universal story of thwarted love and friendship.

One part Black Beauty, one part The Incredible Journey, with a dash of Murder She Wrote.
Surprisingly heartfelt moments are scattered throughout what I had assumed would be an absurd romp. The mystery was a tad too easy to figure out, but that really wasn't the central focus of this tale anyways.
Enjoyable and unique.
3.5 stars.

This is a Pony that everyone needs to know. And, this pony has decided to find and confront Penny, the girl “who up and sold him.” But did she? Now an adult, Penny has been arrested for a long ago murder of the man she rode into the woods with, the very last time she rode the Pony.

This book was unexpectedly enjoyable. I found the mystery to be fun to read about. It was different having the POV of the pony. I did find the writing to come off as a bit childish though. The pony chapters also felt a bit filler at points.

Penny is having a normal afternoon at home after school when she answers the door; her friend, policeman Ed, announces that she is being arrested and extradited to New York for murder. Sure she’s being pranked, Penny learns that the murder in question happened twenty-five years ago. She remembers that, when she was twelve, some confusing and awful things happened, prompting her parents to pull up stakes and move the family to Chicago. She didn’t even get to say goodbye to her pony, who she remembers fondly.
Pony’s memory isn’t as fond as Penny’s. He has spent years hating all humans because the one time he let himself love a little girl, she deserted him; as he thinks about this, he impulsively decides to find Penny and make her pay. Pony has the unique gift of communicating wordlessly to other animals and even some humans, influencing or charming them to do his bidding. This gift comes in handy as he travels the country; however, one encounter with an owl reframes his view of Penny entirely. On that fateful day years ago, Pony and a horse played a prank on young Penny and the boy she was riding with, sneaking home and leaving their riders stranded in the woods. Pony now feels guilt in forsaking his person and his purpose in finding Penny becomes an urgent rescue. Can he find her in time?
I enjoyed the dual narration of Penny and Pony’s story, and the mystery had me guessing until the end. The publisher describes this as a “comic mystery,” and this fits perfectly. Thanks to NetGalley for the arc!

Penny is a 37-year-old teacher, mom and wife trying to hold her marriage together while agonizing over the decision to place her teenaged daughter in a special boarding school. To make matters worse she answers the door one afternoon to find her friendly neighborhood policeman is there to arrest her for murder and extradite her to Ithaca, NY, where she grew up. Did she murder someone when she was 12? She doesn't think so but doesn't have clear memories of that time. The only person who can help her is the pony she owned at the time the murder happened and half of the story is told with his voive. A truly original page-turner that I loved and will be recommending to everyone.

A grumpy pony covers an unbelievable amount of territory to track down his person - Penny - who is accused of a murder that happened when she was a little girl. This book had funny parts, especially the pony, but the way he serendipitously moves from place to place was far-fetched and bogged down the mystery part.

I really loved Pony Confidential. It is indeed a murder mystery. The magic of the tale however comes in following the intrepid Pony, who, after living for years resenting Penny, the child who owned him and loved him and then sold him and disappeared from his life, comes to realize things were not as simple as he had thought. With the help of other animals he encounters along the way, he realizes that humans have very complicated lives and that emotions, especially love, are not easy to always understand. As pony sets off to find Penny and reevaluate their time together, he begins to realize that not only does he need this reunion, but that Penny may be in peril from something that happened long ago and that he may be the only one who can help save her.

I was brought up with ponies and horses, and my children were as well, so to me Christina Lynch's character development of the cantankerous old pony with a heart of gold is spot on. The story had humor and heart, and any animal lover will be moved by the trials and tribulations Pony goes through to reunite with the one human who truly made his life worthwhile. My one reservation is in finding a wide audience for this story. At some points it almost feels like a middle grade book, but then topics come to light that make it more YA or even adult. It never compromises it's sweet story by getting too upsetting, which I applaud as refreshing compared to most books I have read in recent times. I guess I would say I will enthusiastically recommend this book to some of my true animal loving high school students, as well as adults who once had a pony in their younger lives, and who would enjoy a real change of pace in the mystery genre. In fact, I can personally say that I would love to see Pony and friends join forces to solve another mystery in the future.

From the publisher: n this one-of-a-kind mystery with heart and humor, a hilariously grumpy pony must save the only human he’s ever loved after discovering she stands accused of a murder he knows she didn’t commit.

You ever wish there was a novel in which a pony solves the 25-year-old murder his old owner is accused of committing? No, me neither. But Pony Confidential is here for your reading pleasure, and I enjoyed it. Did you cry at the end of the movie Homeward Bound? Then you definitely need to check out Pony Confidential.

The narrators of chapters alternate between human Penny and the pony. Something terrible happened in the woods 25 years ago. Penny was attacked. A man was killed. Afterwards, Penny’s parents took her away, and she didn’t get to say good-bye to her beloved pony. The book opens with Penny being arrested for the murder. If you want to enjoy this book, I strongly recommend that you set aside your disbelief in specific plot points and just go with the story. (If you can’t believe an elderly pony can solve a cold case, this book is definitely not for you.)

The pony’s self-introduction alone kept me reading. “I am a pony. But not just any pony. I am a pony who is bent on revenge. I am the Iago of ponies, a furry Fury.” (p. 16 of the advance reader copy) But not to worry, the Pony learns to set aside his anger and learn to love. (Is that a spoiler? Maybe. But this book is being marketed as a Christmas pony mystery so I don’t really think it’s much of a spoiler. I hope a movie is in the works.)

The book could have been a little shorter, as it did take some chapters before I really got into the book. I also had difficulty following the timeline. This may have been intentional by the author but I found it confusing. Trigger warnings: animal abuse and depressing discussions of how we treat horses as a society. There are some sad and scary moments. Still, I found the payoff at the end well worth a bit of slogging and confusion. And we do treat horses terribly.

I read an advance reader copy of Pony Confidential. It is scheduled to be published on November 5, and the Galesburg Public Library will own it.

This was an interesting book. On the one hand I couldn't put it down. The writing was perfectly paced and each chapter kept me wanting to read more. On the other hand it was described as a murder mystery and while there was a mystery, this did not seem to be the main plot. I enjoyed the chapters told from the pony's point of view and his interactions with the other animals, I felt the Penny chapters were a bit flat and the choices she made were questionable. While I sped through this book, the end was a bit contrived. Overall it was an enjoyable read.

Christina Lynch has written an interesting and unique novel. The main characters are Penny and Pony. Penny is in her late 30s, a wife, mother, third grade teacher and charged with a murder that occurred 25 years prior. Pony is the riding pony that Penny owned when she was a child and thought of as her best friend. The murder occurred when Penny was 12 after which she and her parents moved to Chicago and sold Pony. The story is told by both Penny and Pony in alternating chapters. Each tells their story of the past 25 years along with the present. The novel is a testament to love between a person and their childhood pet, the struggle to understand the past and determination to find the truth and the connections that remained strong after loosing each other for 25 years. Lynch does a remarkable job connecting the storylines and joining them for an astounding conclusion. I highly recommend this book.

Years ago there was a young girl named Penny who loved a horse named Pony, and he loved her too. They were separated and he went to a number of different homes - unhappily. When Penny is accused of murder, Pony gets involved to help solve the crime.

I wanted to read this novel because it sounded unique and intriguing. It was! This is the most unusual book I've read in quite a while. Pony is a character in the story, often helped in his detecting by other animals, with some fantastic and unexpected adventures. I have never been a horsey person, but I am an animal lover, and found this all very intriguing. I think that other animal lovers will as well!

Wonderful book! The scenes switch between the pony's point of view & Penny's (his former owner). The pony is determined to find Penny & "make her pay" for what he thinks is her betrayal. You'll love the ending! Totally unexpected.

I just never really got invested in the story. Even over halfway through I didn’t care if she and the pony found each other. I liked the alternating story telling.

I was intrigued by the premise... but ultimately I wasn't sure who the target audience for this book was supposed to be. I thought it was going to be a kind of tongue in cheek, humorous murder mystery, but so much of it reads very earnestly like literary for animal lovers. Even as a horse girl myself, I think it was missing a classic mystery structure that might've helped hold the overall story up in the long run. I felt the pacing was a little off and the writing voice was occasionally juvenile. The Pony's POV chapters felt cheeky but somewhat hardboiled; I think it might have worked even better if that was the full POV for the whole storyline. Ultimately this one just did not work as well for me as I hoped it would but I applaud the concept and the attempt at genre-bending.

I love love loved this book! I typically read psychological thrillers and social horror, but sometimes I need a break. This book was the perfect break. It is a murder mystery, and the plot kept me turning the pages, but the star of the show was the Pony! I freaking loved Pony. I’d it too late for me to become a horse girl? lol. Each character felt unique (even Dr. Rat lol).
This book left me w a warm fuzzy feeling. Five stars!

I imagine the logline of Pony Confidential was 'Pony solves murder; horse girl rejoices.' Or something along those lines. I myself am not a horse girl - in fact I have a pretty specific fear of horses - but the cover and the jacket copy caught my attention. I LOVED Henry Hoke's Open Throat and I figured I might enjoy another book, particularly a murder mystery, that had at least one animal POV. Animal POVs have been huge recently. And, for the most part, I did enjoy Pony Confidential.

Penny and the Pony, our two MCs, were each compelling in their own rights. Penny had a lot less to do, really, and mostly waited for the Pony to save her while providing characterization and plot through different-stage-in-life flashbacks, but was generally likeable if a bit static. The Pony was, frankly, a bit of a ~character~ in that his tone and motivation seemed less than domesticated. Parts every animal from Homeward Bound, Airbud, and less-violent John Wick, the Pony drove the narrative. The Pony also went on what can only be described as inane and unnecessary side quests that significantly drew out the length of the novel and made me question what I was doing reading the book. Had the story been more tightly constructed (including removing a lot of unnecessary characters who did nothing to advance the plot), and had there been significantly less time-jumping, it would have been a lot easier to answer that question.

There is a meme that depicts a drawing of a horse in which the first 25% of the horse is beautifully drawn, detailed down to the micrometer, each hair rendered in extraordinary style. And then the back 75% of the horse is a children's best attempt. Maybe they haven't seen a horse. Maybe they have. It's sort of close, but it's not all there. That meme is how I felt about Pony Confidential. Ironically, had the book instead been a drawing of a pony in the metaphor - much shorter and more compact - it probably would have been much more lovely a narrative. The pieces were there, but character and adventure bloat turned this interesting idea into a bit of a slog.

Christina Lynch's latest novel is a love letter to the pony/human bond. It's a whodunnit murder mystery. And a tribute to fables. It's also a call to respect all creatures great and small. It's told in alternating chapters from the dual perspectives of schoolteacher/mom/former equestrian Penny and her childhood pony, Yes, the pony narrates, and I found his chapters the more compelling. The novel's characters change and grow more empathetic as the truth emerges of what really happened that night twenty-five years ago when 12-year-old Penny and her beloved pony were torn from one another.
I'm a fan of Christina Lynch's. This is a very different book, waaaay more fantastical than The Italian Party, which I prefer for its espionage thriller vibes and Italian setting. What I appreciate about Pony Confidential are its humor, its empathy, and its revelations about all things pony. The author is obviously a pony fan. This book is her passionate homage, and that passion kept me reading. I will continue to seek out Lynch's books.

[Thanks to Berkley Publishing Group and BookBrowse for an opportunity to read an advanced reader copy and share my opinion of this book.]

3.5 Stars.

But wait! There’s more! The opening was imaginative and caught my mind, but…
There kept being one more thing, one more wrinkle, one more trip, one more bending of chronology and imagination. I got tired by the end.
I learned some things, like a pony is not just a young horse. And I was following the story of a 3rd-grade teacher in California arrested by a deputy she knew (and thought was pulling a prank) and subsequently extradited to New York for a murder she supposedly committed 25 years before when she was 12.
The story alternates voices, Penny (the woman) and the pony she had as a child. Magical conversations between different species of animals as the pony tries to find Penny. The amount of time the pony’s travels had to have taken were only one of the realities I had to forego.
Not sorry that I read it. It was a page turner until about the last 100 pages when I had to suspend many beliefs.

Wow! What a captivating blend of mystery, thriller, and women's fiction! The writing is engaging, weaving together suspense, fun and emotional depth seamlessly. The plot is intricately crafted, keeping me hooked from start to finish. It’s a stellar 5-star read for sure.