Painted Path Series

A lost foal. A lonely child. A path that calls them both.

In a quiet valley brushed by starlight and shadow, a young Appaloosa colt named ShadowPatch is born beneath a sky full of stories. Across that same land, a child wrestles with change, uncertainty, and the ache of being unseen. When their worlds collide, something ancient stirs—a...

Courage isn’t the absence of fear—it’s the quiet decision to keep going.
Thirteen-year-old Kieren never thought he’d be chosen for anything, let alone a magical path that calls only to the brave. But when a flickering light leads him into an enchanted world, he meets Emberhoof, a flame-maned Akhal-Teke who speaks not with words—but with fire,...

Rivermane and the Healing Heart

In a realm where nature breathes magic and legends walk among the living, one girl holds the power to heal more than just the land...

When thirteen-year-old Liora discovers a hidden valley untouched by time, she stumbles upon an ancient bond with Rivermane—a mystical, silver-maned horse with a heart as wild as the...

Stormtail and the Strength Below is a magical coming-of-age tale where myth meets emotion and courage runs deep beneath the surface.

Fifteen-year-old Tristan feels invisible in a world that praises the loud and fearless. Bullied at school and burdened by silence, he thinks strength is something he’ll never find. But when a thunderstorm tears...

Isabelle has always lived by the rules—her rules. Color-coded schedules, perfect grades, never a single step out of line. Being the “perfect daughter” has earned her praise, but inside, she feels like a bird trapped in a cage she built herself.

Everything changes when her family spends the summer in Windmere Ridge, a rugged valley where the wind...

Jasper is twelve, silver-tongued, and never at a loss for a story—even if it’s far from the truth. His tall tales keep him safe, admired, and just out of reach of the consequences he fears. But when his deceit spirals out of control, Jasper finds himself paired with Nightwhisper, a hauntingly beautiful Friesian with eyes like storm clouds and a...

Camila lives by logic. She doesn’t chase dreams—she solves problems.
At thirteen, she’s a gifted thinker with a mind built for patterns, puzzles, and order. But when a talking Thoroughbred named Starflare leads her into a realm called the Mind’s Maze, everything changes.

In this dream-bending world of living riddles and shifting reality, Camila...

Some stories race. This one waits.
Eli is nine years old, and already the world feels too slow. He runs when he should walk, blurts when he should listen, and rushes through life like he’s afraid it might leave without him. But when he crosses paths with Moonshade—a silver-coated Morgan horse unlike any other—everything begins to shift.

Moonshade...

Samantha is fifteen—and furious. Life has given her more loss than love, and she’s learned to survive by shutting out the world. Anger is safer than sadness. Walls are easier than trust. But when she’s sent to live on a quiet farm for the summer, everything changes… because that’s where she meets Willowstep.

Willowstep is a Gypsy Vanner horse...

Greg knows all the shortcuts. He knows how to dodge blame, how to charm adults with a grin, and how to leave behind the messes he makes. But when a single reckless decision leads to damage that can’t be undone, Greg finds himself facing something he’s never met before: a silence too heavy to outrun.

That’s when he meets Meadowstride. A Mustang...

Danica doesn’t let things go— not when she’s right. And she’s always right. At seventeen, she’s beautiful, brilliant, and brutally unforgiving. With long dark hair, sharp blue eyes behind round wire-frame glasses, and a brain that cuts like a scalpel, Danica makes sure everyone knows where they stand: with her, or against her. There is no middle...

In this upper middle grade tale of healing and hope, a quiet boy finds his voice through the trust of a golden Haflinger who just might speak.

Twelve-year-old Steve doesn’t laugh anymore.

Not since the accident. Not since the silence that followed. His world has faded into quiet grays—where smiles feel dishonest, and joy feels like a betrayal of...

Thirteen-year-old Chloe doesn’t know what’s wrong with her—only that something is. She hesitates before speaking, second-guesses her every move, and lives in a fog of what-ifs and almosts. Everyone tells her to “just be herself,” but what if she’s not sure who that is?

Sent to spend the summer with a quiet aunt in a small prairie town, Chloe...

In the wild heart of Idaho, beyond the reach of roads, one boy finds the only voice steady enough to silence his storm.

John didn’t ask to come to the boys’ ranch. He didn’t want new people, new rules, or new expectations. What he wanted was quiet—real quiet. Not the kind that echoes with shame or rings with anxious thoughts, but the kind that...

Some flames destroy. Others reveal.

Fifteen-year-old Ali doesn’t want to heal. She wants justice. Real justice. The kind that burns. When the people who hurt her walk free and the ones who should’ve protected her stay silent, Ali stops waiting for someone else to fix things. She’ll do it herself.

But her fury—white-hot and righteous—doesn’t lead...

What if the worst thing you did… was the only reason someone finally saw the truth in you?

Bronson’s world was marble floors, private chefs, and endless “yeses”—until a public meltdown in a fancy restaurant changes everything. Wild with entitlement and acting out, Bronson didn’t expect anyone to stop him. But when his father shows up, the party...

Zyriah used to win.

Every barrel race. Every rodeo. Every bet anyone ever made against her. With a red-hot streak and a horse that could turn barrels like he had wings, Zyriah wasn’t just a competitor—she was a legend in the making. But somewhere along the way, the wins stopped. And when the glory disappeared, something in her started to unravel....

Fourteen-year-old Tyler doesn’t care about anyone but himself. He talks loud, mocks weakness, and always has to win—even if someone else pays the price. Feelings are for suckers. Vulnerability is for losers. And empathy? Never even crossed his mind.

But when a freak accident at a riding camp leaves Tyler alone with a quiet, strange Warmblood...

Mistveil and the Mirror Self is a haunting, heart-laced journey into a world of mist, memory, and becoming.

Seventeen-year-old Melia has always felt like something was missing—like she’s been watching her life from the outside. Her reflection seems too still, too hollow. Her voice never quite fits. Her home feels like a place she’s borrowing, not...

A whisper can start a fire. A truth can save a world.

In Echoflame and the Spoken Truth, the twentieth entry in the acclaimed Painted Path series, author Trudy Myrland takes readers on a heart-stirring journey of courage, friendship, and the transformative power of truth—told through the eyes of a quiet boy and the fiery little horse that won’t...

The Painted Path has called its Riders home.

From every edge of the map, twenty Riders and their legendary Horses receive the same mysterious summons: a sealed scroll marked only with the spiral of the Painted Path. No name. No instructions. Just a single line:
“Return. The balance is breaking.”

Some come willingly. Others come wary. But all feel...