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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
I think the book could have been a third shorter. Long and sometimes slow. I got bored with the back and forth I love him he doesn't love me business. The rest of the book was great.
Some things about this book, I loved! Some great new characters and some lovely dynamics between male and female characters, notions of gender etc... What I didn't love was the weird love triangle that feels a little dubious in consent - I guess it was ahead of its time but now it felt a little icky (I don't remember being bothered by it when I read then years ago).
I was very disappointed in this one.
:( <---- I has a sad.
I felt like it went from a real story and turned into a romance. One with sex that is too graphic. I forgave, and kind of understood, the graphic sex in Valley of the Horse because of the contrast between making love with Jondalar and being abused earlier. The contrast between how "the others" had sex and how Clan had sex. But. I didn't need all that crap over and over again in this book. I got very annoyed with Jondalar and with Ayla and with everyone else. I did enjoy the culture in the Mammoth Hunters and the description of their Summer meeting. In all the books I enjoy the detail in which she describes all of their actions and customs but particularly in this one when Ayla is acclimatizing to their ways of doing things and religion.
:( <---- I has a sad.
I felt like it went from a real story and turned into a romance. One with sex that is too graphic. I forgave, and kind of understood, the graphic sex in Valley of the Horse because of the contrast between making love with Jondalar and being abused earlier. The contrast between how "the others" had sex and how Clan had sex. But. I didn't need all that crap over and over again in this book. I got very annoyed with Jondalar and with Ayla and with everyone else. I did enjoy the culture in the Mammoth Hunters and the description of their Summer meeting. In all the books I enjoy the detail in which she describes all of their actions and customs but particularly in this one when Ayla is acclimatizing to their ways of doing things and religion.
Absolutely loved this one again, she's keep[ing me super into this world and I've barely been reading other books becuase I've just been immersed into this world :)
Ayla's story is once more continued in this book but now we have Jondalar accompanying her to integrate with new types of people and clans. She's managed to learn so much from Jondalar, but her heritage and customs from living as part of the Clan of the Cave Bear are still ingrained in her behaviour and finally meeting more 'Others' is both a welcome adventure and a trial once again. Ayla is resourceful and inquisitive and highly intelligent, but she;s also unsure of all the subtle nuances and the ways that the other's have been raised. She knows she was raised unconventionally, but until the Summer gathering of the Mammoth Hunters she doesn't realise quite how different her way is...
What I loved about this book was getting to see the way that Ayla integrated herself and her animals with the Lion camp. She's a very likeable character for the way she understands and adapts to all situations, but in some ways she's very naive too and this leads her to both good and bad situations with friends and lovers alike.
The element I would say is a bit irritating about some moments is the repetition. Sometimes I feel like I have been told 100 times that Ayla wonders how babies are made or that Jondalar thinks he's ruined things. However, even with that complaint occasionally, I still love the detail Auel goes to with her descriptions and immersion in the culture and time period.
Overall I loved the ending of this book and particularly enjoyed meeting the leaders of the Lion Camp and their spirit man. There was also a lot of genuine love in the Lion camp which I felt really rubbed off on Ayla and her animals, and she got some of the care she'd been so desperately missing during her years alone.
I also think that the magic of this world became a lot more prominent in this book and there was a definite blend of Clan and Mamutoi within Ayla and the others who got to know her was very intriguing and sometimes awing! There was one particular scene which was pretty creepy and sounded like very intense spirit magic, and I like all the rituals and music associated with the magic (even though I have no idea how accurate it is - it sounds cool!)
One character that I just have to mention is the young boy who Ayla meets at Lion Camp who cannot speak. He is a mixed child who is a blend of Clan and Mamutoi much like someone Ayla used to know, and she forms a firm attachment to this character. I loved their relationship and found that it progressed quickly and beautifully into something I really loved to read about... Until... (I'll say no more!)
Overall another very solid continuation and despite the repetition I am really loving the series. I have already started the 4th one on audio and hope to read it fairly quickly too and I am excited to be past half-way through Ayla's adventure, but also super intrigued about where she will end up. 4.5*s for this one :)
Ayla's story is once more continued in this book but now we have Jondalar accompanying her to integrate with new types of people and clans. She's managed to learn so much from Jondalar, but her heritage and customs from living as part of the Clan of the Cave Bear are still ingrained in her behaviour and finally meeting more 'Others' is both a welcome adventure and a trial once again. Ayla is resourceful and inquisitive and highly intelligent, but she;s also unsure of all the subtle nuances and the ways that the other's have been raised. She knows she was raised unconventionally, but until the Summer gathering of the Mammoth Hunters she doesn't realise quite how different her way is...
What I loved about this book was getting to see the way that Ayla integrated herself and her animals with the Lion camp. She's a very likeable character for the way she understands and adapts to all situations, but in some ways she's very naive too and this leads her to both good and bad situations with friends and lovers alike.
The element I would say is a bit irritating about some moments is the repetition. Sometimes I feel like I have been told 100 times that Ayla wonders how babies are made or that Jondalar thinks he's ruined things. However, even with that complaint occasionally, I still love the detail Auel goes to with her descriptions and immersion in the culture and time period.
Overall I loved the ending of this book and particularly enjoyed meeting the leaders of the Lion Camp and their spirit man. There was also a lot of genuine love in the Lion camp which I felt really rubbed off on Ayla and her animals, and she got some of the care she'd been so desperately missing during her years alone.
I also think that the magic of this world became a lot more prominent in this book and there was a definite blend of Clan and Mamutoi within Ayla and the others who got to know her was very intriguing and sometimes awing! There was one particular scene which was pretty creepy and sounded like very intense spirit magic, and I like all the rituals and music associated with the magic (even though I have no idea how accurate it is - it sounds cool!)
One character that I just have to mention is the young boy who Ayla meets at Lion Camp who cannot speak. He is a mixed child who is a blend of Clan and Mamutoi much like someone Ayla used to know, and she forms a firm attachment to this character. I loved their relationship and found that it progressed quickly and beautifully into something I really loved to read about... Until... (I'll say no more!)
Overall another very solid continuation and despite the repetition I am really loving the series. I have already started the 4th one on audio and hope to read it fairly quickly too and I am excited to be past half-way through Ayla's adventure, but also super intrigued about where she will end up. 4.5*s for this one :)
Reseña completa y más en www.escriboleeo.blogspot.com
De nuevo las repeticiones de cosas, de nuevo las explicaciones detalladísimas, de nuevo Ayla, y a veces Jondalar, parecen realizar todos los avances tecnológicos de la época: ya han hecho desde la doma de animales y lanzavenablos hasta las primeras agujas para coser.
Pero bueno, esos son los contras. Los pros son muchísimos más. La historia mejora mucho al tener más personajes importantes esta vez, lo que da mucho juego. Nos encontramos con otra nueva sociedad, y con un grupo especialmente tolerante que tiene unas interacciones realmente interesantes. Destacan Ranec y Mamut, que desempeñan un papel importante en la integración de Ayla, que sigue siendo una inocente de cuidado.
También se integra un triángulo amoroso, y me da mucha pena Jondalar. No voy a decir más, no sea que os lo chafe. El caso es que se hace mucho hincapié en la falta de comunicación y en los malentendidos de las diferentes culturas, así como en los prejuicios que tienen sobre el clan.
De nuevo las repeticiones de cosas, de nuevo las explicaciones detalladísimas, de nuevo Ayla, y a veces Jondalar, parecen realizar todos los avances tecnológicos de la época: ya han hecho desde la doma de animales y lanzavenablos hasta las primeras agujas para coser.
Pero bueno, esos son los contras. Los pros son muchísimos más. La historia mejora mucho al tener más personajes importantes esta vez, lo que da mucho juego. Nos encontramos con otra nueva sociedad, y con un grupo especialmente tolerante que tiene unas interacciones realmente interesantes. Destacan Ranec y Mamut, que desempeñan un papel importante en la integración de Ayla, que sigue siendo una inocente de cuidado.
También se integra un triángulo amoroso, y me da mucha pena Jondalar. No voy a decir más, no sea que os lo chafe. El caso es que se hace mucho hincapié en la falta de comunicación y en los malentendidos de las diferentes culturas, así como en los prejuicios que tienen sobre el clan.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
2021:
Wanted the feel for this series, so I picked up where I'd left off in 2019, not far into book three. I'd forgotten quite how much pining and assumptions happened between Ayla and Jondalar--was painful to read, ESPECIALLY because pretty much all the members of the Lion camp see their struggles but refuse to help! It was exasperating.
Plus, I know Ayla is supposed to be super special and is the main character, but it was still obnoxious to have her be so damn perfect all the time and have invented/discovered flint and iron pyrite, domesticated animals, the sewing needle, and to have magical shaman powers too?
Listening to the audio cds was painful at the 1x, now that I'm used to audiobooks at a faster speed. I think it was more the narration, but frequently every characters just sounded like bad acting or completely idiotic. Auel doesn't hesitate to spell out the minutiae of everyone's thoughts and feelings and reasonings, which makes the whole thing drag.
Also that ending!! Ayla has been adopted by these people, accepted by these people, grown to really love them, and then in the space of the last 10 pages she's like "yup, I'm out, see ya never!" and just boogies...??
As much as I didn't really enjoy this re-listen, I'm weirdly wanting to continue the series?? I know the next entire book is a year's worth of travel and encountering different cultures...
2012:
These are very long books to listen to when really 3/4 of the novel is the two main characters having so many near-misses and complications. I mean, each of these characters are portrayed as being rational and pragmatic, yet they go for months in emotional turmoil and despair and never think to just be like "hey dude, I really love you and don't want to get with this other guy, so can you help me out here instead of silently pining for me?"
I enjoyed this book though, and it felt a bit more fast-paced than the previous ones. Maybe because it covers significantly less time than the others? One aspect that I hope is developed and explained a bit more in the next book is WHY the two main characters love each other. We still don't know much about J, and other than being good in bed I don't feel like these two are meant to be. But I hope I'll be shown wrong!
Wanted the feel for this series, so I picked up where I'd left off in 2019, not far into book three. I'd forgotten quite how much pining and assumptions happened between Ayla and Jondalar--was painful to read, ESPECIALLY because pretty much all the members of the Lion camp see their struggles but refuse to help! It was exasperating.
Plus, I know Ayla is supposed to be super special and is the main character, but it was still obnoxious to have her be so damn perfect all the time and have invented/discovered flint and iron pyrite, domesticated animals, the sewing needle, and to have magical shaman powers too?
Listening to the audio cds was painful at the 1x, now that I'm used to audiobooks at a faster speed. I think it was more the narration, but frequently every characters just sounded like bad acting or completely idiotic. Auel doesn't hesitate to spell out the minutiae of everyone's thoughts and feelings and reasonings, which makes the whole thing drag.
Also that ending!! Ayla has been adopted by these people, accepted by these people, grown to really love them, and then in the space of the last 10 pages she's like "yup, I'm out, see ya never!" and just boogies...??
As much as I didn't really enjoy this re-listen, I'm weirdly wanting to continue the series?? I know the next entire book is a year's worth of travel and encountering different cultures...
2012:
These are very long books to listen to when really 3/4 of the novel is the two main characters having so many near-misses and complications. I mean, each of these characters are portrayed as being rational and pragmatic, yet they go for months in emotional turmoil and despair and never think to just be like "hey dude, I really love you and don't want to get with this other guy, so can you help me out here instead of silently pining for me?"
I enjoyed this book though, and it felt a bit more fast-paced than the previous ones. Maybe because it covers significantly less time than the others? One aspect that I hope is developed and explained a bit more in the next book is WHY the two main characters love each other. We still don't know much about J, and other than being good in bed I don't feel like these two are meant to be. But I hope I'll be shown wrong!
Amazingly accurate representation of Cro-Magnon life. Love story ehhhh
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No