Belladonna (MP3 format, CD, Unabridged)

When Thomas Rose first spots the girl concealed in a ditch outside his rural village, she looks as drab as a lark, blending with the English countryside. Only her bright-red kerchief gives her away. Yet French H?l?ne, who goes by ?Ling? - for the year is 1757, and England and France are at war ? is no ordinary bird. She is tiny and agile, with huge dark eyes and hair as black as plums. Ling enchants Thomas with tales of the circus, where she danced atop Belladonna, a pure-white horse with a tail the color of barley. But the leader of the troupe has sold Belladonna, and as Ling and Thomas set out to find her and fetch her back ? with help from a mysterious painter and anatomist ? Thomas knows that his simple life, that of a clever but unschooled wheelwright's son, is about to change forever. Acclaimed author Mary Finn has crafted a lyrical coming-of-age story about a boy, a girl, and a horse ? and about how a chance encounter can lead to a life of daring, intrigue, and learning, a life beyond imagining.