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2.92 AVERAGE
2.92 AVERAGE
I am a fan of Native American fiction in general and Jean Auel's series in particular. I've read the previous books over and over. That's why this one was so disappointing. I found the book un- necessarily long and wordy; so much so, that descriptions and passages became down right repetitive... almost as if the author feared readers would not remember key traits of the main characters over her many pages. This was a hard one to finish, but finish I did. Good plot and the characters are just as I remembered them. I'd say pare it down and trust readers not require frequent trait reminders throughout and we'd have a winner.
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
CENSORED SPOILERS BELOW
I honestly don't know if I should rate this lower or leave it as-is. I enjoyed the book and series as a whole, (skimming over the insane amount of repetition in the last two books forgiven) but there is one, ONE part that I absolutely cannot get over.
I'm writing this three months (and 30 books) after I finished The Land of Painted Caves and, EVERY TIME I think about the scene where SpoilerAyla walks in on Jondalar being fellated by Marona and right after losing a pregnancy and everyone else around her totally aware of it and protecting him, I get irrationally angry. My pulse speeds up, it's hard to breathe. I just feel like that was such a betrayal, to both the reader and the characters, to make that come right at the end of the book and then give almost no resolution to it.
I would be happier if it had never happened. I don't know if it says more about me or about this book that this scene is what I remember most, and it fills me with such a visceral burning rage that I will never forget--or forgive--this book.
I honestly don't know if I should rate this lower or leave it as-is. I enjoyed the book and series as a whole, (skimming over the insane amount of repetition in the last two books forgiven) but there is one, ONE part that I absolutely cannot get over.
I'm writing this three months (and 30 books) after I finished The Land of Painted Caves and, EVERY TIME I think about the scene where SpoilerAyla walks in on Jondalar being fellated by Marona and right after losing a pregnancy and everyone else around her totally aware of it and protecting him, I get irrationally angry. My pulse speeds up, it's hard to breathe. I just feel like that was such a betrayal, to both the reader and the characters, to make that come right at the end of the book and then give almost no resolution to it.
I would be happier if it had never happened. I don't know if it says more about me or about this book that this scene is what I remember most, and it fills me with such a visceral burning rage that I will never forget--or forgive--this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Pregnancy
Moderate: Animal death, Suicidal thoughts
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Wasn't as exciting as the previous books, but I did enjoy it very much.
emotional
informative
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this book the day after it came out.
I had been waiting for what felt like my entire life for the book ending the series.
I now pretend this book doesn’t exist.
There if Fan Fiction that is better than this.
Other reviews have excoriated this book better than I can. I am only adding my review because for some reason Goodreads has this at a 3.5 stars, and that is an insult to 3.5 star books everywhere.
Less than a star.
I had been waiting for what felt like my entire life for the book ending the series.
I now pretend this book doesn’t exist.
There if Fan Fiction that is better than this.
Other reviews have excoriated this book better than I can. I am only adding my review because for some reason Goodreads has this at a 3.5 stars, and that is an insult to 3.5 star books everywhere.
Less than a star.
Oh I am so disappointed with this book. The first two parts were terribly slow and repetitive. It wasn't until part three that the story really took shape and moved along at a nice clip. Her editor should have cut the first two parts way down and fleshed out all the goings on at the end of the book. I waited years for this book to come out, and I was so close to putting it away, but had invested so much in these characters for so long that I had to find out what was going to happen to them. It could have been so much more, but I'm glad to have read it and finished the story. It just seemed like Ms. Auel was bored of her characters and wanted nothing to do with them. But it's over now and on to better stories...
Badly in need of a ruthless editor. There were so many spelling errors in the last 200 pages or so.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Re-reading affirms just how much I love (and by the end, hate) this series. It's always great to see Danug and Druwez again. But I find Jondalar to be too entitled, and Ayla's (or rather, Mother's) Gift of Knowledge is basically the beginning of the end for women. After such a matriarchy throughout the Other's cultures, this is a rather disappointing end.
Always dreading this book.
The only reason I give this book three stars and not one is because I love the series, but I still HATE this book. Why OH WHY did Jean Auel have to make their relationship like this? We see Jondalar's jealousy in previous books but he himself admits that he needs to improve his communication skills to overcome it. Yet why didn't he even try?
For a society which seems to be about worshipping women and the Mother, it seems very chauvinistic. It's alright to share pleasures with someone else but STILL there is that difference when a woman does it. Because she needs to appeal to the man's ego. It seems Ayla gives much more in this relationship than Jondalar and I hate it.
Also, WHY DID SHE HAVE TO SAY MEN ALSO HELP IN CONCEIEVING CHILDREN!! We all know what happens. I was just enjoying a little era when women were meant to be 'superior' because of this. We all know society deteriorated after and I didn't need this in the series. This could have been left for some blurry, cloudy future.
Always dreading this book.
The only reason I give this book three stars and not one is because I love the series, but I still HATE this book. Why OH WHY did Jean Auel have to make their relationship like this? We see Jondalar's jealousy in previous books but he himself admits that he needs to improve his communication skills to overcome it. Yet why didn't he even try?
For a society which seems to be about worshipping women and the Mother, it seems very chauvinistic. It's alright to share pleasures with someone else but STILL there is that difference when a woman does it. Because she needs to appeal to the man's ego. It seems Ayla gives much more in this relationship than Jondalar and I hate it.
Also, WHY DID SHE HAVE TO SAY MEN ALSO HELP IN CONCEIEVING CHILDREN!! We all know what happens. I was just enjoying a little era when women were meant to be 'superior' because of this. We all know society deteriorated after and I didn't need this in the series. This could have been left for some blurry, cloudy future.