People of the Thunder
First North Americans Series, volume 16 of 18
by W. Michael Gear & Kathleen O'Neal Gear
People of the Thunder is a wonderfully imagined story of what might have been in the present-day
Missouri-Mississippi River watershed basin. It begins in about 1300 AD. War among the tribes is a probability,
and guerilla tactics among the warriors is common. The Sky Hand people crushed and enslaved the Albaamaha
people and built a high-walled capital, Split Sky City. Smoke Shield is the crafty leader of the Sky Hand, but
will he lead them to victory over the other tribes, or condemn them to a lesser fate?
Old White, Trader, and a strange woman named Two Petals, who is the Contrary, are traveling the river to trade
with the tribes, but have a destination in mind and plan to bring down the treacherous Smoke Shield. What's a
Contrary? It seems that she is able to see the future, but her mind is a bit muddled.
People of the Thunder has a bit more shamanism than I like, but fans of W. Michael and Kathleen O'Neal
Gear would expect and look forward to a peek into the religious beliefs of the early American clans. This series
does move chronologically, but each novel also stands alone, so if you have read some of the series, but skipped
others, don't hesitate to read this one out of order. It is a fast moving novel of intrigue among early American
Indian nations. You will recognize the names of some of them; and this might have really been what happened to
these characters, who are compelling and easily visualized. The Gears write with a fluid style that held my
interest, making this a hard book to put down. |
The Book |
Forge Books (McMillan) |
January 6, 2009 |
Hardbound (reviewed from the Advance Reading Copy) |
0-7653-1439-8 / 978-0-7653-1439-0 |
Fiction / Historical 1300 AD in present day Missouri-Mississippi |
More at Amazon.com |
Excerpt |
NOTE: |
The Reviewer |
Beverly J. Rowe |
Reviewed 2009 |
NOTE: Reviewer Beverly J.
Rowe is Myshelf.com's "Babes to Teens" columnist, covering topics related to reading ideas
for the youth in the family. |
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