Hello, today I am reviewing the book People of the Raven by Kathleen O'Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear. They are the authors of an exceptional series ("The People Series") which are fictional tales that focus on North America's "forgotten past". The settings are usually hundreds of years before Europeans discovered the north american continent, and really dissects the way people lived back then. I've been reading this series for almost two years now (I've read about 5 of them and 3 by just Kathleen O'Neal Gear), and I absolutely LOVE the books they've written. It is DEFINITELY a series I would recommend to anyone. All the books (in my opinion) have plenty of mystery, romance, action, enlightenment, etc! They hit all the points I would want in a novel.
NOW on to People of the Raven. This book's setting was somewhere around the coast of Washington I believe, and it described a lot of beach scenes and forest, and COLD. There were good guys and bad guys, and a whole lot of drama and action. There were battles and loving relationships that developed throughout the book, and it was a definite page turner. I think it was one of my favorite people books (although I adored people of the Weeping Eye and Thunder the best).
The story starts out with the discovery of the Kennewick man (Caucasian male). It's a mystery, and the Gears developed an idea, a story out of this anomaly. The time this novel is set in has a huge impact of the people living their daily lives and influences much of the events in the story. At a time when people are struggling to keep up with the changes of the Earth's climate, a power struggle between two peoples occurs, and folds out into a tale of twists and turns!
**From the Gear-Gear site: One day a strange and beautiful red-haired woman, Evening Star, stumbles into his council lodge and begs him for sanctuary. Rain Bear soon learns that she is an escaped slave from the North Wind People, the Raven People's mortal enemies. If he offers to protect her, the North Wind People will attack, but if he sends her back, Rain Bear knows Evening Star will be tortured and perhaps killed.
But when Evening Star warns Rain Bear that the North Wind warriors are already on their way to Sandy Point Village, Rain Bear must decide at once if he should take his people and run or gather them into a battle that could result in the Raven People's complete demise.
