The last thing Sam MacCallister expected when he returned home after a trip to Kansas City was to find that his good friend and neighbor had lent his cabin to a widow and her two boys.  Determined to get them out as quick as possible, Mac decided he wasn’t going to be very friendly at all.  After some time together, with a new baby in tow, Mac realizes he needs her more than he knew.  Even her boys seem to have wormed their way into his heart.  Then, he finds himself falling for the lovely and spirited woman.

Sadie Pritchard doesn’t want to think about the horrible life she had with her dead husband.  Her attraction and friendship with Mac came so easily, she hated the thought of leaving when their time was up.  However, newfound love between them would keep them together.  Little did they realize just how much their love would be tested when the Sioux decided to fight back against the white man…

A remarkable debut by Dana George, WISHES ON WATER slowly weaves a complex story of love and devotion against a backdrop of one of our country’s most perilous times in history.  The relationship that slowly builds between Mac and Sadie is one of pure delight.  I thoroughly enjoyed seeing them come together, only to fight to stay together through horrendous circumstances.

Based on an incident that took place in 1857, Ms. George tells the story of a fight for survival by Sadie as she is kidnapped by the Sioux.  The brutality that white settlers faced sometimes gets overshadowed and glossed over for the gentle reader in some stories, but not in this romance.  Ms. George does a creative and straight forward telling of the horrors that were faced by Sadie and the other women.  I couldn’t put it down and feel that if this book is any indication of what to expect from Ms. George, we have a lot to look forward to.