Thick as Thieves.....Circle C Milestones Review

     We love animals in our house and horses are a favorite of our seven year old.  We were excited to read  and review Susan K. Marlow's book Thick as Thieves  the first book in the Circle C Milestones series and my original plan was to read the book out loud to the smaller kiddos while having my thirteen year old read the book and do the free downloadable study guide that is available also.  We made it halfway to our goal.  I started out reading  out loud but it didn't keep the attention of the smaller ones so I switched to just reading the book myself and then passed it on the teenager.
     The book was great!!! I am thirty-two years old and I had no problem staying completely immersed in the book.  My teenager who is a boy loved it also.  We are both avid readers and are open to anything that is well written with a good storyline.  Thick as Thieves touches on many life lessons and is a great learning tool along with being a fabulous book.  I had never heard of this series when I started this review.  Since finding it our family has feel in love with not only it but also the first two series Susan K. Marlow did centering around the same character.  The Circle C Milestones series is geared for ages twelve and up, since I also have younger kiddos I was delighted to discover Circle C Beginnings for ages six to nine and also Circle C Adventures for ages nine to fourteen.  From what I have seen so far in addition to being great series the books also shine as stand alone reads.
     Thick as Thieves follows somewhat of a rough patch in fourteen year old Andrea Carter's life.  Known to most as Andi, she is avid horse lover who would love to spend one hundred percent of her time on the family's property the Circle C.  I don't want to give too much of the storyline away but the book features the birth of twin foals, cattle rustling, horse thieves, lessons on responsibility, a look into a bullying situation and it teaches us that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover because you never know what someones life is really like.
    After reading the book I looked over the FREE downloadable study guide and had my son complete it.  The forty page study guide is packed full of wonderful English skills and activities.  I pulled out some of the hands on activities like foal training guideline and crossword puzzles for my horse enthused seven year old.  My teenager benefited greatly from the extra English practice (English is his worse subject).  The study guide is divided into a few chapters for each section.  We opted to read the whole book before beginning but you could also read the chapters for each section and then do the study guide as you go.
    I will be keeping this book for years to come and also plan on purchasing the first two complete series.  In July we can't wait for the release of book two in the Circle C Milestones  series, Heartbreak Trail.  Be sure and follow them via their social media accounts for the latest updates on book releases; Facebook and Twitter.