Five years after his wife's death Wyatt Blaine determines to bring back a program she held dear; New Beginnings, an equine therapy program for troubled teens. Ironically, Wyatt himself is far from ready for a 'new beginning' where the loss of Krista and their son Danny is concerned.
Gabby Powers realizes the sight of her can only bring pain to Wyatt. Her drunk husband was the cause of the accident that lost Wyatt his family and cost her son his father. Trevor had been a loving boy but as the years have passed, he has become a young man in search of something she cannot provide. Despite the evidence, he is certain his father would be alive if not for Krista Blaine. The equine therapy program may be the last chance she has of finding help for Trevor before he gets into trouble so deeply it ruins his life. Although Gabby sympathizes with Wyatt, for Trevor's sake she asks that the past be put aside and he allow Trevor to be part of his program.
Other characters have their own important contributions to the storyline. Patriarch Ram Blaine has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and is trying to find his way while maintaining his benevolent dictatorship of the ranch. Aunt Lucy and her husband have been working for the Blaines most of their lives and are more like members of the family than employees.
Robert Barclay has chosen a narrative style that reminds me of sitting next to a fire and listening to a story, told well. His first novel is about a single tragic event rippling outward. It's about finding your way back from heartbreak; not only the healing from the loss of wife and husband but how love can come to a boy who has lost his father as he learns he can make a difference in lives beyond his own small circle. It explores the power of secrets to keep those who love each other apart, and the even greater power of truth to help those wounds heal. At the core IF WISHES WERE HORSES is a love story, one between a man and a woman, but greater than that it is a story of other kinds of love; that between father and son and of love growing between a boy on the cusp of manhood and an irascible old coot who is facing the greatest loss of all, that of the memories of his life.
Wyatt Blaine is a broken man, still reeling from the death of his wife and son, who were killed in a drunk driving accident years ago. Searching for a reason to go on, he reinstates his late wife's horse therapy program for troubled teens at the family ranch. When Gabby Powers, the widow of the man responsible for the death of Wyatt's family, begs his permission to include her son in the program, Wyatt eventually concedes. There's an incredible spark between Wyatt and Gabby, but under the strange, emotionally-charged circumstances, they are both terrified to admit their feelings--let alone act upon them.
This is the story of not only Gabby and Wyatt's healing, but also redemption for the rest of the richly woven cast of characters, including Gabby's rebellious son, and Wyatt's tough (yet charismatic) father with Alzheimer's.
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