The Shelters of Stone by Jean M. Auel

Ayla and Jondalar have reached home: the Ninth Cave of the Zelandonii, the old stone age settlement in the region known today as south-west France. Ayla has much to learn from the Zelandonii as well as much to teach them. Jondalar's family are initially wary of the beautiful young woman he has brought back, with her strange accent and her tame wolf and horses. She is delighted when she meets Zelandoni, the spiritual leader of her people, a fellow healer with whom she can share her medicinal skills. After the rigours and dangers that have characterised her extraordinary life, Ayla yearns for peace and tranquillity; to be Jondalar's mate and to have children. But her unique spiritual gifts cannot be ignored, and even as she gives birth to their eagerly-awaited child, she is coming to accept that she has a greater role to play in the destiny of the Zelandonii.Amazon ReviewJean M Auel's The Shelters of Stone, is the latest title in the Earth's Children series--undoubtedly one of the most celebrated works in publishing history--and includes The Clan of the Cave Bear, The Valley of Horses, The Mammoth Hunters and The Plains of Passage. Each of these books enjoyed long runs on the bestseller lists across the world and have sold more than three million copies in the British marketplace. There are 28 foreign language editions of Auel's books in print and 34 million copies have been sold worldwide.The Shelters of Stone continues the story of Ayla who lost her family to an earthquake and was raised by the people who call themselves the Clan of the Cave Bear. She arrives in the land of the man she loves, but his people are wary of her and think of the Clan who cared for her as animals that resemble people and who are not much smarter than beasts. Ayla has brought with her two horses and a wolf over which she has uncanny control. Ayla vows to learn from the Zelandonii and hopes, in turn, to teach them. She is particularly pleased to meet the spiritual leader of the tribe, a fellow healer with whom she is able to share medical skills and knowledge. But Ayla's greatest problem is to convince her new hosts that she is from a tribe of human beings, not the subhumans they are regarded as. And when she gives birth to her eagerly awaited child, she is forced to accept that she and her child will have to play a very significant role in the clouded destiny of the Zelandon.Auel is particularly sharp in her characterisation of Ayla, the woman who is foreign and strange in this new land, and her heroine's clashes with her new-found people are handled skilfully. The reader is immersed in another world, one whose every detail is skilfully evoked, while the writing has all the colour and vividness of Auel's previous books.--Barry Forshaw ReviewMeticulously researched . . . fascinating . . . course-by-course menus for Upper Paleolithic blow-outs . . . that Joanne Harris might envy. Jean Auel is as remarkable a figure as J R R Tolkien. (Independent Magazine)A Stone Age sensation. Auel vividly brings to life a forgotten world. (Coventry Evening Telegraph)Jean Auel's greatest achievement is to have created a plausible primeval community where men and women love and sometimes hate, and learn to survive in a harsh environment that demands rules and co-operation. (Daily Express)Bursting with hard information about ancient days and awash in steamy sex . . . Auel's latest will not only please her legions of fans but will hit the top of the list, pronto. (Publishers Weekly)Jean M. Auel has meticulously researched her subject and this latest book should continue the huge success of the series. (Hello)As always, Auel has meticulously researched her prehistoric subject and this latest offering is a triumphant continuation of the saga. (Irish News (Belfast))Impeccable research makes this much more than a fantasy reconstruction of prehistoric life. (Daily Express)A publishing event . . . a huge new pre-historic masterpiece (Peterborough Evening Telegraph)Massive in scope (Daily Mirror)A glorious blend of purported history with sexy fantasy. (Evening Standard)A triumphant continuation of the saga. (Western Daily Press)Enthralling, exciting and impossible to put down. (York Evening Press)Auel is particularly sharp in her characterisation of Ayla . . . has all the colour and vividness of Auel's previous books. (Starlog)ReviewMeticulously researched . . . fascinating . . . course-by-course menus for Upper Paleolithic blow-outs . . . that Joanne Harris might envy. Jean Auel is as remarkable a figure as J R R Tolkien. (Independent Magazine)A Stone Age sensation. Auel vividly brings to life a forgotten world. (Coventry Evening Telegraph)Jean Auel's greatest achievement is to have created a plausible primeval community where men and women love and sometimes hate, and learn to survive in a harsh environment that demands rules and co-operation. (Daily Express)Bursting with hard information about ancient days and awash in steamy sex . . . Auel's latest will not only please her legions of fans but will hit the top of the list, pronto. (Publishers Weekly)Jean M. Auel has meticulously researched her subject and this latest book should continue the huge success of the series. (Hello)As always, Auel has meticulously researched her prehistoric subject and this latest offering is a triumphant continuation of the saga. (Irish News (Belfast))Impeccable research makes this much more than a fantasy reconstruction of prehistoric life. (Daily Express)A publishing event . . . a huge new pre-historic masterpiece (Peterborough Evening Telegraph)Massive in scope (Daily Mirror)A glorious blend of purported history with sexy fantasy. (Evening Standard)A triumphant continuation of the saga. (Western Daily Press)Enthralling, exciting and impossible to put down. (York Evening Press)Auel is particularly sharp in her characterisation of Ayla . . . has all the colour and vividness of Auel's previous books. (Starlog)Book DescriptionThe long-awaited fifth book in the hugely successful Earth's Children seriesAbout the AuthorJean M. Auel is one of the world's most esteemed and beloved authors. Her extensive factual research has earned her the respect of renowned scientists, archaeologists and anthropologists around the globe.Excerpt. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.People were gathering on the limestone ledge, looking down at them warily. No one made a gesture of welcome, and some held spears in positions of readiness if not actual threat. The young woman could almost feel their edgy fear. She watched from the bottom of the path as more people crowded together on the ledge, staring down, many more than she thought there would be. She had seen that reluctance to greet them from other people they had met on their Journey. It's not just them, she told herself, it's always that way in the beginning, but she felt uneasy.The tall man jumped down from the back of the young stallion, he was neither reluctant nor uneasy, but he hesitated for a moment, holding the stallion's halter rope. He turned around and noticed that she was hanging back. 'Ayla, will you hold Racer's rope? He seems nervous,' he said, then looked up at the ledge. 'I guess they do too.'She nodded, lifted her leg over, slid down from the mare's back, and took the rope. In addition to the tension of seeing strange people, the young brown horse was still agitated around his dam. She was no longer in heat, but residual odours from her encounter with the herd stallion still clung. Ayla held the halter rope of the brown male close, but gave the dun-yellow mare a long lead, and stood between them. She considered giving Whinney her head; her horse was more accustomed to large groups of strangers now, and was not usually high-strung, but she seemed nervous too. That throng of people would make anyone nervous.When the wolf appeared, Ayla heard sounds of agitation and alarm from the ledge in front of the cave if it could be called a cave. She'd never seen one quite like it. Wolf pressed against the side of her leg and moved somewhat in front of her, suspiciously defensive; she could feel the vibration of his barely audible growl. He was much more guarded around strangers now than he had been when they began their long Journey a year ago, but he had been little more than a puppy then, and he had become more protective of her after some perilous experiences.As the man strode up the incline toward the apprehensive people, he showed no fear, but the woman was glad for the opportunity to wait behind and observe them before she had to meet them. She'd been expecting dreading this moment for more than a year, and first impressions were important . . . on both sides.Though others held back, a young woman rushed toward him.Jondalar recognized his younger sister immediately, though the pretty girl had blossomed into a beautiful young woman during the five years of his absence.'Jondalar! I knew it was you!' she said, flinging herself at him. 'You finally came home!'He gave her a big hug, then picked her up and swung her around in his enthusiasm. 'Folara, I am so happy to see you!' When he put her down, he looked at her at arm's length. 'But you've grown. You were just a girl when I left, now you're a beautiful woman . . . just as I always knew you'd be,' he said, with slightly more than a brotherly glint in his eye.She smiled at him, looked into his unbelievably vivid blue eyes and was drawn by their magnetism. She felt herself flush, not from his compliment, although that's what those standing nearby thought, but from the rush of attraction she felt for the man, brother or not, whom she had not seen for many years. She had heard stories of her handsome big brother with the unusual eyes, who could charm any woman, but her memory was of a tall adoring playmate who was willing to go along with any game or activity she wanted to play. This was the first time as a young woman that she was exposed to the full effect of his unconscious charisma. Jondalar noticed her reaction and smiled warmly at her sweet confusion.