In the ancient days before the Ancestors kept the stories, the People of the Frozen Earth lived in the vast wasteland that is now called Siberia. Seeking a better life, they moved south across the land bridge into a New World, traveling through what are today Alaska and Canada. Just under two thousand years ago, this semi-nomadic People settled in the basin between the foothills at the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains and the flat tableland of the Western Great Plains in the area now known as Wyoming, Montana, and the Dakotas. Strong and proud, they lived, loved, hated, laughed, cried, and died in the fullness of Mother Life’s time.
The young warrior Mach and the chief’s daughter Horda are preparing to experience the Mating Rituals. Their joyous plans are interrupted and almost destroyed by a combination of their own actions, tribal mores, evil enemies, and forces of nature. They must use all their skills; strengths; and beliefs in themselves, each other, and the values of the People to not only survive, but triumph. In the end, they learn that what they have become is more important than what they were.
Book 2: As Shadows FallMach and Thuro and their mates Horda and Wilda are unexpectedly thrust into leadership roles when they are named leaders of the new band of The People of the Frozen Earth. Mach, Thuro, and Horda rise to the challenge, but Wilda becomes one of their biggest problems. The band leaders have to deal with illness and death among their people, family disputes, an unwanted pregnancy and a miscarriage, droughts, fires, thunderstorms, and other natural disasters. The leaders and the People overcome all the obstacles with wisdom, courage, imagination, strong mores, and the love and support of one another.
Fan Letter
Nancy in Indiana wrote: “Your stories are so well written and chock full of morals, plant information, healings, techniques, good versus evil. I couldn’t put them down! ”
Grace Anne Schaefer, Author
A story-teller and writer since she could talk and hold a pencil, Grace Anne Schaefer is a wife and mother, a giver and friend, a dreamer and teacher, a small town girl and nation-wide traveler, a survivor and overcomer, and an independent spirit.