Veterinarian Dr. James Robert Masterson fights life and death battles each day in his practice. So when a horrendous vehicle accident confronts him on his way home, it's natural instinct for Dr. Jim Bob to lend a helping hand. Surveying the smashed horse trailer, he finds a mare on death's door and her little colt trembling with fear. When he finds out the owner's dead and no one else has the means to care for the colt, Jim Bob offers to take care of him on a temporary basis. Little does he know how long temporary is going to turn out to be.

The colt is christened Orphan by Jim Bob's daughter, Elizabeth. Liz has demons of her own to fight and she desperately needs something to believe in. Nonetheless, Orphan is a lot more trouble than anybody bargained for. After over a month with no one coming to claim the colt, there's a new twist. Not one but two people show up with court papers claiming ownership -- an ex-wife and a temperamental horse breeder/boarder. Soon the Mastersons are knee-deep in lawsuits, murder and mayhem. Orphan is more important than anyone figured because running in his veins is the blood of champions just waiting to be tested. Only time, training and solving the ever-growing dangerous mystery will tell just what's in store for Orphan and the humans who love him.

While it stumbles a bit at the starting line, ORPHAN soon picks up momentum along with the mystery. The descriptions under each chapter heading read more like factual roadmap directions instead of portents of things to come, which is a bit distracting. However, it's a fast read filled with lots of interesting facts about Leukemia, the opera and horse rearing, training and racing. The story is full of scene changes, traveling from Texas to New York to the Florida Keys to Ruidoso, New Mexico. While I would have liked to see more attention devoted to the characters themselves, there is plenty of mystery and hope-filled food for thought to keep the reader cheering them on. Mr. Haines is one of the winners of the 2008 Mayhaven Publishing short fiction contest, and I'm sure we'll be hearing more from him in the future.