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A review by bibliorama
The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
In some ways, this surprised me. I never had quite the pull to read it and only knew about it because it was my mom's favorite books series when she was in her twenties. I picked it up on a whim from the library and didn't put it down until it was done.
I think beyond the world building and insane amounts of detail about Neanderthal lifestyles, I really liked the writing style. I've noticed in some of the other older fantasies that I've read, like The Blue Sword, the authors will just head hop into multiple characters in literally the same paragraph. However, the reason it works for me is because they do it purposefully and not by accident. They use it to build out the other characters and in turn the main character, and overall, it keeps the story moving with momentum and expands the world in a way that makes it feel fleshed out. Genuinely, I need this style of writing to make a comeback in fantasy stories today.
There are a lot of characters followed, and every single one is fleshed out and consistent throughout it all. The way Broud's hatred progressively grows is so realistic and, in a way, satisfying seeing every piece fall into place as the story goes. He is one of the most annoying, and probably more evil antagonists I've read in a long time just by how common his attitude is.
Also, soooooo much happens in these 500 pages, like more plot than most modern day books can dream of. I guarantee if this were written today, the first book would've stopped when Ayla got back from the death curse, and they also would've dragged out most of the plot points two-fold. I appreciate how much ground is covered in one book.
It is kind of hard reading about the super strict patriarchy, but it helps that Ayla constantly chafes against it. It also helps that there are some really decent characters who are not a-holes that we follow (in all actuality, there's only one a-hole and his name is Broud).
I think beyond the world building and insane amounts of detail about Neanderthal lifestyles, I really liked the writing style. I've noticed in some of the other older fantasies that I've read, like The Blue Sword, the authors will just head hop into multiple characters in literally the same paragraph. However, the reason it works for me is because they do it purposefully and not by accident. They use it to build out the other characters and in turn the main character, and overall, it keeps the story moving with momentum and expands the world in a way that makes it feel fleshed out. Genuinely, I need this style of writing to make a comeback in fantasy stories today.
There are a lot of characters followed, and every single one is fleshed out and consistent throughout it all. The way Broud's hatred progressively grows is so realistic and, in a way, satisfying seeing every piece fall into place as the story goes. He is one of the most annoying, and probably more evil antagonists I've read in a long time just by how common his attitude is.
Also, soooooo much happens in these 500 pages, like more plot than most modern day books can dream of. I guarantee if this were written today, the first book would've stopped when Ayla got back from the death curse, and they also would've dragged out most of the plot points two-fold. I appreciate how much ground is covered in one book.
It is kind of hard reading about the super strict patriarchy, but it helps that Ayla constantly chafes against it. It also helps that there are some really decent characters who are not a-holes that we follow (in all actuality, there's only one a-hole and his name is Broud).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Child death, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
There's a lot, mostly the rape, misogyny, and the one brutal beating scene are most constant. But non happen all throughout the book, they are mostly a season if that makes sense. And the descriptions feel more clinical at times than super gruesome, but that could be the third person pov keeping a distance. The one I would mostly caution about is the fact that there is rape that does lead to pregnancy. Also Broud brutally beats Ayla at one point those are the two triggers I would caution people most about.