Jenny Hughes

Born in Poole, Dorset, and still lives in that county. Has had a lot of experience with horses, working in a stud, a riding school and with polo ponies. She also had a brief spell as a singer in a local rock band!

Her first writing success came, when aged 14, she won a National Essay Competition. Later she began writing romantic short stories for women's magazine. Her pony books are a combination of her love and knowledge of horses and her romantic writing talent. All are aimed mainly at the teenage market, with a fairly tame teen romance included and also usually a mystery to solve in each of the stories. However they are at the same time much more traditional pony stories than many of the other modern teen pony books. Although aimed at teens they are suitable for younger children and adults.

Although Jenny is British, only four of her early pony books were originally published in the UK. Jenny was then commissioned by the pony book publisher Stabenfeldt to write more titles. These were published in Scandinavia, Germany, and in some cases in the USA and Canada. Two are not in English language, however, and most were hard to find in her native UK. Recently however many of Jenny's books have been reprinted in paperback by a new publisher and are now available in both the USA and UK. She has also been adding more titles to her considerable list.

For more about the author please visit her website.

Other Horse & Pony Books:

THE DARK HORSE
(KENILWORTH PB 1994)
Paperback original
Reprinted in paperback by Kenilworth in 2006
Reprinted in paperback by Breakaway Books in 2014
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, Breakaway paperback edition
SUMMARY: Liz is overjoyed to be leaving school and working at Tanglewood stables, especially as the lovely Darren, son of the stables owner, also works there! But when financial problems strike Liz and Darren must solve a bizarre puzzle in order to save the stables and the dark horse they both love.

A HORSE BY ANY OTHER NAME
(KENILWORTH PB) 1994)
Paperback original
Reprinted in paperback by Kenilworth in 1998
Reprinted in paperback by Breakaway Books in 2014
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, Breakaway paperback edition
SUMMARY: To save the poor neglected chestnut, Charlie, was Fran's goal. But she was also worried about the good-looking stranger who had helped her, yet had such contempt in his eyes.

THE PAINTED HORSE
(KENILWORTH PB 2001)
Paperback original
Reprinted in paperback by Kenilworth in 2006
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY: Stacey is struggling to manage her new horse Diablo. She is helped by the very attractive Dean. However he is labelled the local bad boy and she is warned to stay away from him. But are things really as they seem?

THE HORSE FROM NOWHERE
(KENILWORTH PB 2001)
Paperback original
Reprinted in paperback by Kenilworth in 2006
Published in the USA in hardback by Pony/Stabenfeldt in 2005
In print as of 2014 (Kenilworth edition only)
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, USA Stabenfeldt hardback edition
SUMMARY: When a beautiful horse unexpectedly comes into Kate's life she is completely smitten and is reluctant to find his real owner. Then she meets Jason who also turns her world upside down as they risk everything to find out the mystery behind the horse that came from nowhere.

A HORSE CALLED GEM
(PONY/STABENFELDT PB 2002)
Paperback original
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY: Jack's not keen when his girlfriend, Billie, offers to help with a new girl's riding problems but becomes more involved when they discover she's a victim of the local bully, Kyle. Now there are three things to put right, the horse's behaviour, Kyle's destructive cruelty and the strange enigma of the Longrigg Emerald.

MYSTERY AT BLACK HORSE FARM
(PONY/STABENFELDT PB 2004)
Paperback original
Reprinted in paperback by Breakaway Books in 2013
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY: When Yasmine and the gorgeous Oliver travel together to summer camp it seems her dreams have come true. They're getting on well and the riding is great but trouble seems to be brewing at Black Horse Farm. When someone is attacked it takes all Yasmine's bravery and riding skill to find the solution.

THE FANTASY HORSE
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2005)
Reprinted in paperback by Breakaway Books in 2013
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, Breakaway paperback edition
SUMMARY: Emma is thrilled to be riding her brilliant pony Rocco in the opening show at the new Theme Park. But then someone starts threatening to hurt horses and people and her boyfriend is suddenly acting weird. There's a war being acted out both in Fantasy Land and real life and Emma needs to win both to survive.

LEGEND OF THE ISLAND HORSE
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2006)
Reprinted in paperback by Breakaway Books in 2013
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, Breakaway paperback edition
SUMMARY: Tia and her novelist father are visiting a remote island where he is researching the legend of a long-ago shipwrecked horse. Tia meets the very cute Daniel who introduces her and her pony to the excitement of riding in the ocean. But when a group of students turn up to stay on the island, and one of the girls is deliberately hurt, it seems that the long ago legend is stirring up disaster!
PONYMAD RATING: 3 HORSESHOES

A HORSE CALLED TROUBLE
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2006)
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY: Amy arrives at the prestigious Caspian Riding Centre as one of a group of prize winning riders. The good-looking Matt makes an impact and Amy also finds an instant connection with a talented but difficult horse nicknamed Trouble. But danger strikes when the spoilt star of the group is threatened and finally kidnapped. Suspicion falls on the charismatic owner of the centre and it takes Amy, helped by the now devoted Trouble, to uncover the truth.

HERO HORSE
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2008)
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY: Dana promises her best friend Lucy that she'll give up a few weeks of summer horse competing in order to go with Lucy to her family's estate in the country. Little does Dana know what she's truly sacrificing. Lucy's Uncle James is an old curmudgeon who nobody gets along with, the estate is falling down from neglect, and James quarrels with Lucy's dad about a family heirloom that is supposed to be passed down to Lucy…

THE IRON HORSE
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2009)
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY: Green Acres, with its beautiful horses, pastures, and riding trails, is the ideal place for Gemma and her friends to grow up in. But when a new gang shows up in the neighbourhood property is vandalized and the horses are in danger. Are these new boys to blame?  If not, then who?  Matters become even more complicated when Gemma befriends one of the boys. Can she turn in her friend?

THE SEA HORSES
aka SEA HORSES (Reprint)
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2009)
Reprinted in paperback by Breakaway Books in 2013 with slightly changed title
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition, Breakaway paperback edition
SUMMARY: Caitlin is on wonderful riding vacation, one where she gets to take her pony, Jade, and swim in the ocean every day! But a mystery threatens to mar the idyllic holiday. Can Caitlin and her friends solve it?

HORSES GET LONELY TOO
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2010)
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY:  Sian has a great family and a lovely pony, but needs a friend.  Then Jess moves in next door. Jess's family are rich and she has a gorgeous horse, Tag. Yet she, too, has a problem. Something is terribly wrong with Tag. He seems miserable and lonely. Sian wants to help, but there's a catch - their parents don't get along and have forbidden the girls from seeing each other...

THE PROBLEM HORSE
(PONY/STABENFELDT 2010)
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY:  Tamzin lives at a centre for training problem horses and enjoys helping the equines that come there to be cured. However, she longs for a horse of her own and when the young abused Rosa arrives, Tamzin loses her heart to her. She wants to help Rosa trust people again, but when she does she will lose her forever. Things get even more problematic when the beautiful Sophie arrives on the scene and dazzles her close friend Seb. Is she going to lose him too?

THE MODEL HORSE
(BREAKAWAY BOOKS PB 2013)
Paperback original
In print as of 2014
EDTIONS PICTURED: 1st edition
SUMMARY:  Casey loves her horse Limelight but he's a challenging ride and her parents and instructor are pressuring her to sell him. The opportunity of a summer vacation with her friend Hannah and their horses comes not a moment too soon. Hannah's eccentric aunt has opened up her ancestral estate by the sea as an art school for sculptors. Casey and Hannah's expectations of lazy summer riding on the beach come to a halt when a ghostly presence starts threatening the students. Suddenly things are not as they seemed: a dark family secret comes to light, casting an eerie shadow on the present. Between solving the mystery of a haunted past, unraveling the truth behind theft among the students, and mastering her own horsemanship challenges Casey has the most exciting summer of her life!

Collectors Info:
Despite the author being British most of these titles were originally published in the USA and various European countries such as Germany, Sweden and Norway. This is because they were originally published by the specialist pony book publisher Stabenfeldt who distributed to the USA and Europe but not the UK. All were published in English language and as far as I know in several other European languages. Most of these first editions were hardbacks but a few were paperbacks (see specific titles for details) These titles are all easy to find in the USA but a lot harder elsewhere. However recently many of the books have, like the Garland House series, been republished in paperback by Breakaway Books and at the time of this update (2014) are in print and available new from the USA and the UK. It is hoped that the other titles will also be reprinted by Breakaway in the future. Jenny's latest book was first published by Breakaway and is therefore only available in that edition. I am not sure of the quality of the newer paperbacks but if you can get hold of them the Stabenfeldt hardbacks are very nice quality little books and being hardback will be longer lasting.

Horse & Pony Books not in English Language:

THE MYSTERY OF THE GOLDEN HORSE
(STABENFELDT 2001)
SUMMARY: Kelly is taking part in a mounted games competition, when a valuable gold statuette is stolen. Can she solve the crime and clear the name of the gorgeous Luke?

THE CHASING HORSE
(STABENFELDT date unknown)
SUMMARY: City girl Lara finds excitement learning to ride and meeting the good looking boy Michael. But together they must solve a crime.

Collectors Info:
These titles were as far as I know available in German, Swedish and Norwegian languages. As many of the author's books are being reprinted there may possibly be  plans to republish these titles in English language.