Sasscer Hill Wins Ryan Book Award

Castleton Lyons

Linda Sasscer Hill, author of the mystery novel Flamingo Road, received the 12th annual Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award on the evening of Apr. 19 at the Ryan family's Castleton Lyons near Lexington. Sasscer Hill is a former amateur steeplechase jockey who has bred, owned and trained Thoroughbreds in Maryland for more than 30 years. She is a descendent of Maryland Governor Samuel Ogle, who established the historically significant Belair Stud in 1747.

Flamingo Road is first in a limited series of novels centered around Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau agent Fia McKee. The book includes themes such as equine slaughter and racetrack doping. The second volume of the series, The Dark Side of Town, was released Apr. 17.

Lead judge Kay Coyte, formerly of the Washington Post, called Flamingo Road “a can't-put-it-down book, with snappy dialogue and plenty of twists and turns… Sasscer Hill's evocative storytelling likely comes from her own racing background. But most impressive was her development of the book's unsavory characters, the crooks and charlatans, all of whom sparkle with sharp focus and the urgency of today's crime headlines… It had a great deal of heart and even some comic relief.”

Rounding out the 2017 judges were TVG Network host Caton Bredar and last year's winner, Eliza McGraw. The award was established in 2006 by the late Dr. Ryan, a prominent businessman, sportsman and philanthropist who sough to combine his love of horse racing and literature. The award honors one book-length work of any genre with a racing backdrop each year, and the $10,000 winner's check is equal to that given for the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize for Literature prior to 2018.

 

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