Coward or cowgirl? In her heart she knows what she wants to be ... but desire and reality do not always ride the same horse. For twelve-year-old Brooke, horses are a way of life. It does not matter whether she is riding in the rugged hills of the Silverton River or helping out on the Silver Valley Ranch, which she calls home; Brooke cannot remember a time when horses have not brought her joy-until now. Fighting to recover from a tragic riding accident, Brooke struggles to regain the confidence she has lost. She wants nothing more than to give her fears a giant kick and send them flying for good. But when the horse she received for her birthday mysteriously vanishes and trouble threatens to destroy her family's ranch, fear grips her in a stranglehold that seems impossible to break. In the face of these difficulties and the discovery of a clue that unlocks a near century old mystery, will Brooke have the courage to act, or will she give in to her fears? Coward or cowgirl-which will she be?