David Parsons is winning, on the best calf-roping horse in
the country. Muddy might not be much to look at but he
knows his job. Then David does the unforgivable - lets
himself get distracted from taking care of his horse.
Fireworks spook Muddy and that's the last David sees of
him, despite offering a reward.
David comes across as a really nice guy, who ignores offers
from ladies because he's got a fiancée at home. But when we
catch up with him four years later, he's alone. Everything
seems to have gone wrong after Muddy's loss. He's still
competing, but without success, and his family ranch is
drought struck. Depression and debt have sunk him. Then a
friend calls to say he's spotted Muddy in a high-school
rodeo. The Blackfeet Reservation looks
far from prosperous. But it's Muddy all right, and David
won't let anything stop him from taking the horse home. He
hardly spares a thought for the kid riding him now.
Mary Steele is the family of young Kylan Runningbird, who
has the chance of a better life if he can qualify for
national rodeo finals on Muddy. Mary is smart enough to
take Muddy
back to the Rez where only the FBI can best tribal police
in matters of jurisdiction-
and they won't bother for a horse. Mary admits that Muddy
belongs to David, but she wants Kylan to have his chance of
success. She proposes an unorthodox deal - but having
served in Afghanistan, Mary Steele is no ordinary lady.
Atmospheric and strong, the tale by Kari Lynn Dell brings
us the unceasing west wind, a grizzly, and warm huckleberry
pie. The interpersonal story is complex. Mary is Kylan's
guardian but he is slightly disabled and tends to behave
impetuously. Whether he has much of a future with or
without rodeo wins is a moot point. David actually does
come up with a trade Kylan could learn, one which interests
him, and to me this is far more valuable than a horse for
the summer. As David spends time around Mary, he sees more
than he likes of the challenges facing people every day on
the Rez. Full marks to Kari Lynn Dell for showing us this
side of the story.
THE LONG RIDE HOME is a splendid romance at heart, showing
an upright man out of his normal surroundings and a
determined woman who maybe overdoes the protectiveness,
because her people have always had a bad deal. There are
horses so real you can feel them kick up the dust, and the
romance can be read without blushing. I highly recommend
the unusual story, THE LONG RIDE HOME, and I can't wait to
see what Kari Lynn Dell, herself a roping champion, will
write next.
He came in search of his missing horse…and wound up losing
his heart.
David Parsons is on the verge of making his pro rodeo
dreams
come true when his one-in-a-million rope horse, Muddy,
goes
missing. In the aftermath, David loses everything. His
career, his fiancée, his pride.
Four years later, David is clawing his way out of the
ruins
and back up the rankings when he gets the miracle he’s
prayed for. Muddy has been found on Montana’s Blackfeet
Indian Reservation.
But repossessing Muddy is unexpectedly complicated. Kylan,
the teenager on Muddy’s back, has had a lifetime of hard
knocks. His custodial aunt, Mary Steele, will fight like a
mama bear to make sure losing this horse isn’t the blow
that
levels the boy. Even if it’s at David’s expense.
David is faced with a soul-wrenching dilemma. Taking back
his own future could destroy Kylan’s. And ruin any chance
he
might have with the fierce, fascinating Mary.
It’s a long, hard ride to the top of the rodeo world. And
for David, an even longer ride home. Unless he can find a
trail that leads to both.
Warning: This book is blush proof. Should come with a
“prim
and proper” warning label. There is no nudity, no violence
to speak of, but there is some sensual kissing and mildly
R-rated language.
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