An epic novel of love, knowledge, jealousy, and hard choices.
Ayla, the independent heroine of the Earth's Children series, sets out from the valley on Whinney, the horse she tamed. With her is Jondalar, the tall, handsome, yellow-haired man she nursed back to health and came to love. Together they meet Mamutoi - the Mammoth Hunters - people like Ayla. But to Ayla, who was raised by the Clan of the Cave Bear, they are the Others. She approaches them with a mixture of fear and curiosity.
It is the Mamutoi master carver of ivory - dark-skinned Ranec, flirtatious, artistic, magnetic - who Ayla finds herself drawn to the most. Because of her uncanny control over animals, her healing skills, and the magic firestone she discovers, Ayla is adopted into the Mammoth Hearth by Mamut, the ancient shaman of the Great Earth Mother.
Ayla finds herself torn between her strong feelings for Ranec and her powerful love for the wildly jealous and unsure Jondalar. It is not until after the great mammoth hunt, when Ayla's life is threatened, that a fateful decision is made.
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"This is the last of Auel's books that I truly enjoyed. There was a lot more human interaction in this one than in the previous novel, and had enough happening in it to keep the plot moving at a decent pace. The characters in this book are some of my favourites, as Ayla finds her own people and learns about all the different cultures that have sprung up out in such a relatively small group of people."
—
Amanda (4 out of 5 stars)