Mattie is fourteen-year-old and obsessed with horses. Thrilled to discover a primitive painting of a beautiful black horse hidden in the attic of her grandmother's home, it is not long before Mattie realizes the image of the painted horse seems to be coming to life. This is no ordinary work of art-this is a painting with a fascinating history that Mattie is about to unearth. One moonlit night, Mattie leaves the safety of her grandmother's home and ventures deep into the surrounding forest where she meets a wild horse who bears an uncanny resemblance to the one in her painting. Mattie and her mystery horse form a bond that she instinctively knows she cannot reveal to anyone. The mysterious spirit who inhabits the painting seems to gain strength as Mattie's bond with the wild horse deepens. But Mattie is uneasy as she wonders-and fears-if the two are somehow connected.
Mattie soon realizes she should have heeded her grandmother's warnings to be careful what she wishes for in life-for it is one thing to hope her painted horse is real and quite another to discover he might be.