Karly Lane is on a roll

If Wishes Were Horses is the latest offering from Macksville author Karly Lane.

Aside from the familiar touchstones of romance and rural setting, which in this case takes its shape from the country out near Dalmorton, west of Dorrigo, it is Karly’s exploration of the history of the horses that went to World War One with the Lighthorse Brigades, and were left behind, that colours this novel.

“I have always been interested in military history … the military museum in Bowraville was one of my research sources and everyone there was so helpful,” Karly said.

“I just knew my main character, Sophie, would find a horse and I had noticed the Facebook posts of the Heritage Horse Association, so I moved the setting of the story from Central NSW to create the link with the (Guy Fawkes) National Park and the brumbies.”

That link proved a powerful one, not only for Sophie, who stumbles on the diary on a Light Horse trooper and finds herself discovering secrets that had long been sleeping in the tiny community, but also for Karly, who is now the proud owner of two brumbies.

“I read a lot of old diaries before I felt I could create my own … one of the things they all wrote about was the fine dusty sand in Egypt and how difficult it was to tether their horses.”

Details like these make this a very real read for her audience.

“I had always assumed they had brought the horses back at the end of the war – I was stunned to learn that was not so.

“Quarantine and the expense were the reasons given, but without those horses the Australians would not have had those strategic wins!”

With this latest book, published by Allen and Unwin, now launched and on sale (RRP $29.99), Karly is about to leave on a five library tour of towns west of Uralla. 

And stay tuned – another book is due out in December.