Jump!

Etta Bancroft – sweet, kind, still beautiful – adores racing and harbours a crush on one of its stars, the handsome, high-handed owner-trainer Rupert Campbell-Black. When her bullying husband dies, Etta’s selfish, ambitious children drag her from her lovely Dorset home to live in a hideous modern bungalow in the Cotswold village of Willowwood.

Etta’s life changes when, in the snow in nearby woods, she finds a horribly mutilated filly, which she names Mrs Wilkinson and nurses back to health. The filly charms everyone in the village, then tests reveal her to be a spectacularly well-bred racehorse. After a nail-biting court case, she is awarded to Etta, thus ensuring the lasting and vengeful enmity of her former trainer and owner. A village syndicate is formed to put the filly into training, consisting of a riotous mix of local characters, who set off to the races in a minibus clanking with bottles. Ridden by Rupert’s delectable god-daughter, Amber, Mrs Wilkinson captivates vast crowds as she progresses from point-to-point to major races and brings fame and fortune to the syndicate, until, at last, she is entered in the Grand National.

Can she be the first mare in over fifty years, and Amber the first woman ever, to win this mighty race? In Jump! you will meet rich, capricious owners, obsessive trainers, gallant stable lads and lasses and tough, brave jockeys; you will fall in love with the horses, and above all with Mrs Wilkinson herself – hilarious, heroic and gutsy, she will gallop into your heart forever.

‘Sit back and enjoy the ride as the queen of the bonkbuster, Jilly Cooper, delivers another fabulously entertaining saga’
– Good Housekeeping (May 2011)
‘Jump! is the perfect read for chilly autumn nights. Hugely entertaining, touching and funny, yet again Cooper has a winner.’ – Daily Express

‘The narrative zips along, pierced with her characteristically brilliant ear for dialogue and empathy for human relationships of all kinds…You won’t be able to put it down once you get going.’ – Daily Mail

‘Unrivalled joy’ – Tatler

‘Near-magical ability to conjure up a world and populate it with people for whom you feel a deep affection.’
– The Observer

‘A classic romp through the world of horse racing. Guilty pleasures rarely come as delicious as this.’ – ELLE

‘Jilly has given more pleasure to more girls and women than anyone else alive today…Cooper’s familiar warmth and irrepressible humour.’ – LADY

‘A magnificent portrayal of how a beautiful young girl might become the first woman ever to win the Grand National.’
– The Spectator

‘Classic Cooper: either the perfect beach read or else something to curl up on the sofa with to keep out the encroaching autumn chill.’
– Sunday Express

‘She is sharp, funny and touching – and knows how to work a winning formula.’ – TLS

‘Just the thing for a wet winter weekend.’ – The Independent

‘To read one of Cooper’s books is to escape into an alternative universe in which all is right with the world.’
– The Guardian

‘Jilly’s descriptions of the glorious Cotswold countryside are some of the most lyrical ever written and her comedies of manners rival Nancy Mitford, if not Jane Austen.’ – (Femail) The Daily Mail

‘Warmed by the tender characterisation that has made Jilly Cooper a national treasure’ – Country Life

‘A rollicking fantasy’ – Horse and Hound

‘I loved it’ – Rosie Boycott

‘Loved Jump! It has taken me 3 months to read – simply because I wanted to stretch my reading time to as long as possible, because I didn’t want to finish reading the book.’
– Linda Taylor (Canada)

‘Loved Etta from page 1 and loved Valent too. Haven’t wanted 2 people to get together so much since Rupert and Taggie’
– Jill Byers

‘I loved every minute of this! I was devastated when I thought Mrs Wilkinson had died, but as usual you pulled it and back and Tears of joy not sadness came at the end.Love you Jilly! ‘
– Jo Eastman

‘It was captivating and had me laughing out loud and silent tears rolling down my cheeks at times well done jilly for this fabulous read’
– Michelle Rampley

‘Have just finished Jump, which I didn´t wont to end.’
– Adam Osborn

‘She made me laugh and cry and having a great time reading and re-reading Jump! in less than 2 weeks.’
– Pien Pico, The Netherlands

‘It was a great book. I really enjoyed it. The characters, the setting, the tension, the drama, the laughs, the “mood.” I’ve enjoyed all your books in the Rutshire Chronicles, and have re-read each one many times.’
Herman Prager PhD, Austin Texas

‘I have just finished Jump and totally loved it! The story was great, the characters amusing (and some annoying ones), plus the lovely animals. Thank you for giving me another wonderful ready, I can’t wait for your next book about Rupert turning 60.’
Megan Davis, Cholsey, Oxfordshire

‘I would like to offer my congratulations for yet another outstanding book that had me reading for almost 24 hours non-stop, often arriving at work with tired red eyes from reading into the early hours.’
Amy Remmer

‘Have just finished your wonderful new book in record time! Absolutley fantastic as ever.’
Christine Ellison-Adams, Suffolk

‘I loved ‘Jump’ as much as I loved all your other books – you are so funny and clever.’
Carol Stephens, Milton Keynes

‘I was absolutely captivated by the story with its twists and turns. It really was a page turner, and I did not want to finish it. The ending was marvellous.’
Iona J Campbell-Hoyle, Halsall Southport
‘Jilly never disappoints her fans and this was no exception.’ – Karen Clifford

‘Not only am I enjoying the book itself, but the memories of my friend Miranda and I reading “Riders”, Rivals et al side by side on her parents’ lawn many years ago have come flooding back, and makes enjoying this new book all the more special.’
– Kate Halls

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