Use the most exciting modern technology to meet a remarkable woman from the very beginning of time.

Europe is in the grip of the Ice Age. Its harsh but spectacularly beautiful terrain supports many varieties of animal but few people. They are Cro Magnons, the first anatomically modern people, and Neanderthals, the other race with whom we shared that cold, ancient land.

Ayala is a Cro Magnon child who lost her parents in an earthquake and was adopted by a tribe of Neanderthal, the Clan. Th Clan’s wary suspicion was gradually transformed into acceptance of this girl, so different from them, under the guidance of its medicine woman Iza and its wise holy man Creb. But Broud, the Clan’s future leader, becomes an implacable enemy, and causes her exile. Forced into dangerous isolation, she eventually finds her soul mate and fellow Cro Mangon, Jondalar.

Their epic journey across Europe is complete and Ayla and Jondalar join his people in the region now known as south-west Europe.

Settling into the rhythm of life in the Ninth Cave, the couple find much pleasure in their baby daughter and in being reunited with friends and family. Ayla plays a vital role in the area of healing, her knowledge of plants and herbs, gleaned from her days with the Clan, strikes awe in her new tribe. They are also both impressed by and wary of her uncanny affinity with long time companion, the mare Whinney and Wolf.

But torn between her desire to concentrate on her new child and the rigours of her training as a Zelandoni acolyte, Ayla finds her relationship with Jondalar moving into stormy waters. Can she manage to balance her sense of destiny with her heart?