Blood Red Horse

Blood Red Horse (2004), a young adult historical novel by K.M. Grant and the first in the De Granville Trilogy, tells the story of several children growing up in the late twelfth century as the Crusades sweep them into conflict and adventure. It was followed by the books Green Jasper and Blaze of Silver.

The story opens at the estate of Sir Thomas de Granville in England, where his sons, Gavin and his younger brother William, and their ward the orphaned Eleanor live. Eleanor’s mother died in childbirth; Eleanor has already been betrothed to Gavin. She is, however, much closer to Will. The brothers, at odds with each other, always compete; Gavin, being older and stronger, usually wins, once even throwing Will into the horse trough. Will is sensitive to animals and loves horses.

Will, who wishes to defeat his brother in horsemanship, gains permission from his father to find a better horse. Will goes with the family’s groom, Hal, and Sir Walter, who watches over the boys, to find a new horse. Will is presented with two choices: A fine bay horse and an unusual red horse with a white star on its forehead. The red horse, Hosanna, is difficult and spirited, throwing Will off a few times; he is also undersized for a warhorse. However, when Will rides Hosanna, he feels a strange connection to the animal, and so he selects him. Will and Gavin joust on their horses, and for the first time Will wins. Hosanna proves to be quite formidable despite his small stature. Gavin and Will share a moment of affection as Gavin tells Will he will soon leave to fight and that Will must watch out for their home and take care of Ellie.



Two years go by and Gavin returns from the Queen’s service. He goes out fox hunting, treating his horses brutally, wearing them out, and injuring them. Despite protests from Will, who is resting Hosanna after a lot of work, Gavin takes him on the hunt and runs him too hard, injuring Hosanna. Sir Thomas orders Will to hand Hosanna over to the monks for care; while the horse is recuperating there, one of the monks notices the same mental and spiritual connection that Will did. When Hosanna is healed, he is brought back to Will.

We are introduced to Kamil, a young Muslim boy in the Holy Land. Kamil’s father was killed during an earlier crusade, and Kamil wishes to take revenge on the man who killed him.

In England, more time passes. When Will is seventeen, his brother Gavin, who has become a strong warrior, is hastily married to Ellie although they have no feelings for each other. This upsets Will, who does have feelings for Ellie. Gavin and Will’s father announces that King Richard, known as Lionheart, has declared a new crusade to take back the Holy Land and that he and his sons will take part. Will and Ellie have an emotional farewell; Will asks her to watch over the horses while he is gone.



Gavin, Will, and Sir Thomas travel by sea. Will is assigned to take care of the horses. Gavin is separated; when the family is reunited, Will becomes very ill. His father prays that if anyone must die pointlessly, it should be himself. Gavin brings Hosanna to see Will, and the next day Will has made a miraculous recovery—but Sir Thomas is found dead. When the boys join the crusader army, Will is chosen to lead the charge because Hosanna’s reputation precedes them, but when the time comes, the horse won’t move.

Kamil is also at the battle, fighting madly. When he sees Hosanna, he feels a strange attraction to the horse. He fights his way very close to where Will and Hosanna are, but cannot quite get there. Later, Kamil is lectured by the Muslim leader Saladin for his bloodlust.

Despite a letter from Ellie to Will assuring him that everything is fine at home, Ellie has problems. The constable in charge of the estate while the family is away, de Scabious, has less-than honorable intentions towards her. He spies on her while she learns to read and write from a kind monk Brother Ranulf, and accuses the monk of an inappropriate relationship with the married girl.



At the crusades, Will and Gavin are surrounded by Kamil and his men. A fight ensues; Gavin is wounded and his horse killed. Kamil takes Hosanna from Will and rides off. Kamil meets with another Muslim who agrees with his desire to kill all the Christians in revenge for his father’s death. Kamil is introduced to a conspiracy to assassinate Saladin, who is seen as too just and merciful towards the Christians. Kamil attempts to follow through with this plan, but as it turns out, Saladin knows of the plot and has Kamil’s co-conspirators killed.

Gavin’s arm is amputated due to his injury. King Richard offers two plans to his knights, but before a decision can be made, they spot a civilian caravan in the distance. The knights raid the caravan and steal everything, leaving the people with nothing. At home in England, Constable de Scabious tells Ellie that Gavin and Will are dead, and that she will now marry him. Saladin, a man of honor, orders Kamil to return ten horses, including Hosanna, to the Christians; Kamil reluctantly agrees.

During the battle the next day, King Richard’s horse is killed under him, and Will offers the king Hosanna. As the king rides off, Hosanna is shot with an arrow. The battle miraculously stops as all the soldiers, aware of how special Hosanna is, stare in horror. Gavin, Will, Kamil, and Richard gather around Hosanna and pray; Hosanna finds the strength to crawl. They help the horse from the battlefield. King Richard offers a salve to help the horse’s wound. Gavin and Will take a recovered Hosanna home.