Authors: Christy Yorke

The Wishing Garden

“Are you concentrating, Dad?” Savannah asked, because he had stopped swirling the cards. He started again and thought about the only question he really wanted answered: How much more time would he have with Maggie?

Savannah took back the cards and laid them out. They looked all right to him. No Death card, no Devil.

“Look at this, Dad. Your future is the Knight of Wands. I’ve always loved that card. It’s the card of journeys. Advancement into the unknown without fear. It’s a card of risk.”

Doug looked over at his wife. She turned suddenly and stared at him. “What’s there to risk if you’re already dying?”

He leaned back. Maggie was absolutely right. What did he have to risk except those few things that cancer could not devour and the bittersweet poetry of his soul?

If he was already dying, then the least he could do was go about it flying through thin air. He found himself thinking everything depended on whether or not Maggie thought him capable of poetry. All of a sudden, he had a million ways to say he loved her, and he had to get them all down on paper.

Also by Christy Yorke

M
AGIC
S
PELLS

T
HE
W
ISHING
G
ARDEN

A Bantam Book/August 2000

Illustrations from the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck®, known also as the Rider Tarot and the Waite Tarot, reproduced by permission of U.S. Games Systems, Inc., Stamford, CT 06902 USA. Copyright © 1971 by U.S. Games Systems, Inc. Further reproduction prohibited. The Rider-Waite Tarot Deck® is a registered trademark of U.S. Games Systems, Inc.

Cover art copyright © 2000 by Robert Hunt No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

For information address: Bantam Books.

eISBN: 978-0-307-76813-1

Bantam Books are published by Bantam Books, a division of Random House, Inc. Its trademark, consisting of the words “Bantam Books” and the portrayal of a rooster, is Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. Marca Registrada. Bantam Books, 1540 Broadway, New York, New York 10036.

v3.1

Dear Reader:

I’m thrilled to share
The Wishing Garden
with you. Its main character, Savannah Dawson, was inspired by my husband, Rob, who is nicknamed Mr. Positive. Like Savannah, Rob sees the good in everyone and finds the bright side to every disaster. Obviously he drives me crazy, but mostly because I wish I could be more like him.

While Rob breathed life into Savannah, my young children are the driving force behind all my novels. I began writing stories about the power of wishes and love’s ability to transform us for one reason: I wanted my daughter and son to believe in a world of possibilities.

Like them, may you believe in magic. May you wish daily on stars.

Sincerely,