Kwani's beautiful and high-spirited daughter, Antelope, journeys with her Hasinai mate and her daughter to the city of the moundbuilders and into the designs of the Hasinai's Great Sun
This is the last of the 3 books of the series....it is awesome! Could not put any of the 3 books down until I had finished the series. If you love the southwest and Native American heritage, this will take you back. These places are still around. Amazing people!!!!
Let the Drum Speak is the 3rd in Shuler's series about Kwani, She Who Remembers. These are books that need to be read in order as you need the history of the characters and to know how everyone relates to everyone else.
This is the story of Antelope, Kwani's daughter who has traveled far to the East with her mate in search of good trading. They come to a city where a being called the Great Sun rules. And that being wants Antelope and is determined to have her no matter what. But he doesn't want to deal with the inconvenience of her child, especially when it makes such the perfect sacrifice for an upcoming festival. With her mate nowhere to be found, Antelope must find what friends she can if she ever has a hope of returning home.
I never really realized that there were Queen and King figures in North Native American tribes. The civilizations that were described sounded more like the Mayans or Aztecs, especially with the talk of Jaguar pelts. So I learned more about the people of the area, if the information is indeed true. Antelope is only a little more likable than her mother Kwani. They are both pretty selfish and concerned with their own worth, but at least Antelope mellows out a bit with time. Far Walker I actually liked. Of all the men in these stories he actually didn't act the womanizer and was decent. The rest had some pretty large fatal flaws and weren't the best people. At least the younger ones.
This story moved with a better pace than the previous two. And the story, despite spanning a number of years, had enough description to make it realistic. There's still the usual vivid descriptions of sex, rape and violence though, so reader be warned. There are a number of plot contrivances in this book (and the previous) that always make me question some of it though. Like how people are always against Kwani and her daughter. It seems that their lives are needlessly hard and everyone is out to get them. While I recognize that sometimes powerful people have a hard time with people wanting to bring them down, I've just always felt that it's skewed a little too much in these books. But they're still enjoyable, and if you like prehistory you'll probably like these books. And you even get a little bit of real history as the author has done research before writing them.
I think there's a fourth book in the series and I might see if I can get my hands on it. I'd like to know how the story ends and these books are decent enough to keep reading.
I didn't find this book as compelling as the other two in this series. It was much more static in terms of both location and time frame. I also didn't like what the author did with Chomoc's character and felt that his actions did not reflect his feelings as she described.
Most importantly, it felt really unfinished for a concluding book to a series and i would have enjoyed a few more books exploring the next generation of Skyfeather and the new baby whose name i have forgotten already! Its a shame that it will never happen as the author is no longer alive. All in all, i can forgive the flaws of this book because it was a fantastic series overall.
I hate when I discover I've started myself in the middle of a series. I'm going to read it anyway and see if that effects my experience.
Starting with book three didn't have a huge affect on my read but I was not taken by this book. Event and description of time period are interesting, but the characters are not more than lightly engaging. This book did not deserve it's comparison (on the cover) to Auel in any regard beyond it being a prehistorical novel. This book did not inspire me to read any of the author's other work.
I enjoyed all three books in this series. This last one was different from the others because it mostly took place at a different pueblo. At times, I found it annoying because I wanted to be back in the "home" location with kinder and more humane people. The story did work well and the ending was not disappointing.
What can I say. Linda Lay Shuler is one of the best authors there ever was, she catches one's mind and just won't let go. wish there were more books. I felt this way with Auel's books as well, just wanted them to go on and on.
I loved every one of these books! The author really has a way of drawing you into the story and holding a level of suspense that is hard to put down. Great read!!
The final book doesn't have as strong a female lead as Kwani and I feel the plot drags in a few places and then the ending is rushed. It's still a good story, but I prefer the first two books.
The last book in the 'Kwani' series is mainly about her daughter Antelope, who finds herself in a place where she knows she shouldn't be. Her efforts to survive and make a life in a hostile community whose beliefs and rituals are alien to her and whose acceptance of her and her blue eyed daughter waxes and wanes, is full of adventure, premonitions and romance. I'll miss the characters in these books and wish that Linda Lay Shuler had managed to write another.
Just fabulous! While the second book was just a bit annoying, this one more than made up for it! Such a rich storyline, with real and believable characters. The attention to detail in portraying the daily lives as well as the spirituality of the different tribes and people within the communes was wonderful. We tend to think of native Americans as all the same, but even within a small distance there were very big differences in language, beliefs and daily lives. A wonderful book that had me researching more as I went along. Now for the trip to these places!
Shuler did a much better job writing this book than her previous two books. I felt her confidence as a fiction writer blossomed in this book. She wrote with greater detail and had characters that acted like respectable people for once.
I loved Antelope's character. The bratty girl who became a woman. I felt she lived her life more noble and caring than Kwani. I will say however, I mourn for the end of the book where Antelope and Far Walker cannot live and die together but that's why I adore Antelope; she's a real woman.
This book inspires your imagination and takes you back into a "circle in time" that will come back around. Civilizations flourishing and then being destroyed has occurred throughout history. The "teachings" of She Who Remembers are coming back around now, with women and their spirit.
I can't decide which book I liked the best, all of them were like watching a movie. The descriptions and songs with chanting were amazing, I didn't want this series to end. Loved it.
This is a nice conclusion in this trio of books. If you like history of American Native Indians you will love this and the two other books in this series.
This is the final book in a two- book series. Be sure to read the first book ("Voices of th Eagle Clan" or something like that) before you read this one, as the story is continuous. Both books are very worthwhile, especially if you're interested in Native Americans and how they actually lived before the Europeans arrived.
I read the first two books about 25 years ago. It was better the second time around and the third in this series was a welcome surprise! Go back in time with Kwani, her family, and descendents and immerse yourself in ancient Pueblos history. I guarantee these books are hard to put down. Well written with colorful language. Loved them!
Women who walked.this way before the white men came.
I felt as tho I were were living the whole thing. Excellently written. Wonderfully told. Marvelous people of the plains. Something happening on every page.
Told through a love story, the reader sees complex societies with rituals and beliefs. The closeness to nature and the natural world is a strong theme that probably needs to be followed. The significance of women teachers is prevalent.
This trilogy ends with a bittersweet note. I enjoyed it and thought it could not have ended any other way. It was intense, funny, thought provoking, and dramatic all while maintaining a sense of history in a fictional story. I highly recommend these books.
I thought a wonderful reading experience to complete the trilogy. I'm sure most people would enjoy the journey enabled by reading this enjoyable publication.