Author Description

Morton Chalfy's novels are "well written and suspenseful...highly recommended." Joe Vadalma, author the Morgaine ChroniclesRomantic suspense for fans of Clan of the Cave Bear. Risa is a young woman who dreams of love with an exciting young male. She is no different from most other women-except that she and her tribe live in a world thousands of years in the past. Risa's youthful, romantic dreams are crushed forever when an encounter with an enraged bear leaves her badly scarred-and the men who once paid her court begin to avoid her. She is close to giving up hope for her future when the tribe's Arbiter, a wise old man entrusted with the resolution of all disputes and the solving of all crimes, takes her in as his apprentice. Soon she is learning the deeper meaning behind the customs of her tribe, its ways of doing things, and the principles by which its problems are resolved. Risa begins to believe that she may have a meaningful life after all, despite the scars that repel her once-keen tribesmen.But when the tribe discovers that one of its valued members has been murdered, Risa's emerging new life turns upside down. As the Arbiter's apprentice, Risa must undertake a quest beyond the boundaries of the world she has known, into the path of a ruthless killer, and toward the glimmering possibility of a love she never believed she could have. "I love Mort Chalfy's Pre-history books. They are very easy reading, fascinating in their reconstruction of pre-historic tribal society and relationships, and contain entertaining tidbits of anthropological details. This one is a whodunit-type mystery, and the characters are well-drawn and compelling. I enjoyed it thoroughly, and the story carried me along." Tina Tessina (Dr. Romance)Special introductory price $8.99; regular price $12.99