Known far and wide for her healing touch, Lady Talarrie Eircelly offers sanctuary for villagers with every manner of ailment, from heart to the head. But she finds herself tested when her husband is sent into battle, leaving a houseful of children behind and no cure for the father’s absence. With her husband away, Lady Eircelly watches her two oldest Tracell and Tirza, appraoch their 16th birthdays. While Tirza will receive the gift of a special crystal, even Lady Eircelly cannot give Tracell what he wants and needs most, a new horse. Though Lady Eircelly’s magic has its limits, her heart has no bounds. And in the waning months of the twins’ childhood, she gives them two unforgettable gifts: the power to find hope in hardship, and the faith to trust in love, the greatest magic of all.