I am very pleased to once again host my long-term blog friend and author, Jacqui Murray, and also to introduce her latest novel, Badlands, the second book in her Savage Land trilogy. In the next section of this post you will find all the book information, social media contacts and other useful links; this is followed by an excerpt from Badlands. Please feel free to engage with Jacqui through the comments section.

Savage Land is the third prehistoric man trilogy in the series, Man vs. Nature. Written in the spirit of Jean Auel, Savage Land explores how two bands of humans survived one of the worst natural disasters in Earth’s history, when volcanic eruptions darkened the sky, massive tsunamis crossed the ocean in crushing waves, and raging fires burned the land. Each tribe starring in the story considered themselves apex predators. Neither was. That crown belonged to Nature and she was intent on washing the blight of man from her face. 

 In Endangered Species, Book One of the trilogy, Yu’ung’sNeanderthal tribe must join with Fierce’s Tall Ones—a Homo sapiens tribe–on a cross-continent journey that starts in the Siberian Mountains. The goal: a new homeland far from the devastation caused by the worst volcanic eruption ever experienced by Man. How they collaborate despite their instinctive distrust could end the journey before it starts or forge new relationships that will serve both well in the future.

 In Badlands, Book Two, the tribes must split up, each independently crossing what Nature has turned into a wasteland. They struggle against starvation, thirst, and desperate enemies more feral than human. If they quit or worse, lose, they will never reunite with their groups or escape the most deadly natural disaster ever faced by our kind.

Join me in this three-book fictional exploration of Neanderthals. Be ready for a world nothing like what you thought it would be, filled with clever minds, brilliant acts, and innovative solutions to potentially life-ending problems, all based on real events. At the end of this trilogy, you’ll be proud to call Neanderthals family.

Book information:

Print, digital, audio available: http://a-fwd.com/asin=B0DFCV5YFT

 Genre: Prehistoric fiction

Editor: Anneli Purchase

Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular prehistoric fiction saga, Man vs. Nature which explores seminal events in man’s evolution one trilogy at a time. She is also author of the Rowe-Delamagente thrillers and Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy. Her non-fiction includes 100+ books on tech into education, reviews as an Amazon Vine Voice and a freelance journalist on tech ed topics. 

 Social Media contacts:

 Amazon Author Page:https://www.amazon.com/Jacqui-Murray/e/B002E78CQQ/

Blog:​​​​https://worddreams.wordpress.com

Pinterest:​​​http://pinterest.com/askatechteacher

X:http://twitter.com/worddreams

Website:https://jacquimurray.net

Badlands trailer:

Excerpt from Badlands

Chapter 1

 75,000 years ago 

Modern day Altai Mountains, Siberia

Yu’ung’s legs churned, arms pumped, throat straining to draw in air. Her red hair hung in damp sweaty ropes on her neck and shoulders. After narrowly escaping the cave-in and then Hyaena’s attack, time had run out. B’o was supposed to leave with or without her when Sun reached a particular spot overhead. That point had passed and now, the maelstrom was upon them. She must get to her tribe.

Running never tired her, no matter how long or far. Today was different. Driven by desperation and worry for those who relied on her, she ran too hard and slammed up against her limit. 

She stumbled to a stop and bent forward, chest heaving, sucking in one mouthful of air after another. The blue-eyed Canis–the massive Ump with his dark coat, the smaller White Streak with the light colored stripe cutting her black fur from one side of her forehead to the other, and the older Ragged Ear–circled back to her, huffing and prancing. Somehow, they knew time was short. Shanadar, who seemed to be their pack leader, wasn’t even winded. He waited, patient but anxious.

She muttered, “The smoke–it’s much worse.” 

Yu’ung had departed her homebase before Sun woke. She had gone there to tell the Tall One Fierce that the People would join him. The air tasted of ash then, but lightly. By the time she reached where Fierce and his Tall One band should have been, the small flakes had grown chokingly large. The Tall Ones–wisely–were gone, but her mother, Kriina, now Fierce’s pairmate, left a message in the tunnel telling Yu’ung their destination and of a possible new homebase for the People. 

It was there Yu’ung would lead the People. 

“I’m ready, Shanadar,” and she took off again.

She expected the Angry Mountain’s destruction to clear closer to her homebase, but instead, cinders and smoke thickened and the air dimmed to a dingy gray. Uprooted trees blocked the usual passages forcing her to divert onto new, untried trails. Pockets of flames burned without pause on all sides. The grassland and forests that fed the People were almost wiped out. 

 

It took longer than Yu’ung expected before she, Shanadar, and the Canis reached the outer boundaries of the People’s camp. 

As she skimmed the area for B’o, her hunt partner, Shanadar said, “They will ask.”

They would. Shanadar was unusual. Yes, he displayed the People’s stocky build, shorter limbs, and absent chin, but his body was bony in all the wrong places and his hair secured into an Equiis tail. Those were unusual but so was much about life anymore. What would catch their attention more than any of that was his face, striped in the way of Fierce’s Tall Ones. 

“I will explain how you saved my life, and that you will help us reach our destination.”

That was easier to believe than the truth, that the Primitive Xhosa who visits my dreams sent Shanadar and his Canis to take the People where Nature can’t kill us. 

She took in the distant sea of frantic faces. She saw relief, at her arrival overshadowed by terror, and what should have been well-practiced preparation for an orderly migration–one so often performed that the People needed no guidance–was nothing short of bedlam. 

What is wrong?

The mayhem was not caused by her late return. Whatever caused the chaos occurred after they loaded up their shoulder sacks, collected their spears and walking sticks, and foraged travel food.

They were prepared to leave. B’o told them to wait. What happened?

“B’o!” She shouted to an older male sprinting toward her. He waved and then slowed when his gaze found Shanadar. 

He wonders about a stranger. She jerked her gaze over the clearing. Where are the Canis?

She clasped her hands over her stomach, telling him she would explain later, and shouted, “Where’s Old One?”  

“Coming!” 

Despite her youth, the People, Yu’ung’s tribe, selected her Alpha. Their trust in her leadership was based equally on her cleverness, B’o’s reluctance to lead, and Old One’s unwavering support. The tribe selected a leader only in trying times.Mountain’s anger, the loss of their healer, and the search for a new homeland certainly qualified. All agreed that B’o and Old One’s involvement would offset her inexperience.

“B’o. Mountain’s anger is worse close to the Tall Ones’ former camp. We must choose a different route.” 

B’o fidgeted, looking no more relieved than when she first arrived.

I’ll reassure him.

“But we can take the route Old One remembers from his youth. It is the same as what Shanadar suggests.” She poked her lower lip toward the tall immobile male with the striped face and the Equiis tail. “And where the Tall Ones go.”

Someone called B’o’s name. He held a hand up and returned his attention to Yu’ung.

“According to Kriina and the message she left for me, we will find her and Fierce along our forward path.” 

B’o’s face darkened. “Shanadar.… We don’t know him.…” B’o stared at Shanadar as he spoke, eyes probing, body quivering with nervous energy. 

Ese called B’o which he didn’t even acknowledge.

Yu’ung’s gaze jumped from Ese to B’o. Something is going on.

She swiped a hand in the air, high enough for Ese to see. “Shanadar is a friend who can help us. I will explain later after you explain what happened since I left this morning.”

B’o’s shoulders dropped. His unequaled hunting successes should have given him confidence leading, but when Old One asked him to be Alpha, he deferred to the Elder. His reasoning was good. Old One served in the past, faultlessly guiding the group through treachery few tribes survived as well as the People. Even now, with his infirmities and inability to contribute to many of the tribe’s tasks, he was well respected.

Old One suggested a better alternative. The new adult Yu’ung’s unusual skills suited leadership well. One example was her skill with the Tall One weapon. Many hunters suffered their worst injuries closing on prey for a spear thrust. Yu’ung flung her Tall One lance from far away to avoid deadly hooves, fangs, and horns while still causing mortal damage to the prey. She was so successful in this way, she had never been injured on a hunt.

Next, she possessed what Old One called extreme sight. Images and landmarks a blur to most were clear to her. Where other hunters saw a herd grazing in the distance, she picked out the old and injured that the tribe should focus on.

The last, in the end, was the decisive factor. No one else wanted the job. 

“What is going on, B’o? Sacks are packed, but no one is ready.”

B’o smiled awkwardly. “This male you bring into our tribe like we should trust him. It isn’t our way,” but froze on whatever was at Yu’ung’s side.

The Canis have shown up. 

“This is Shanadar’s pack–Ump, White Streak, Ragged Ear–” 

She stopped. There was a new pawed-and-clawed creature, this one smaller, black with a tan muzzle, also blue-eyed.

Shanadar filled in. “That is Ocha.”

Ocha’s tail swayed, eyes on Yu’ung, snout open and panting.

“Ocha.” It was more whisper than confirmation. 

“B’o!” Ese again. “We’re in trouble!”

This time, Yu’ung heard what Ese didn’t say. A sharp spike went through her head and a shiver down her spine as she scanned the muddled consortium around Ese, the scattering of rocks, boulders, and dirt clods. Yu’ung’s temple twitched and then exploded with what she didn’t see.

“Where is Old One?”

Ocha bumped her leg and turned toward the edge as Shanadar poked his lips to the same spot. B’o’s mouth opened and shut, finally said, “It’s not Old One. Well, not just him.”

B’o’s pale face, the muscles creating tight ropes down the sides of his neck said the rest. 

He wants to talk privately.

But there wasn’t time for that. “Shanadar concerns you. Old One concerns me more.”

B’o ran a hand down his face to clean off the ash. “There’s more. Listen to me!”

He paced nervously then shifted from one foot to the other, glancing sideways at Shanadar.

“I am used to hunting prey and avoiding enemies. Is this one you call Shanadar our kind? Or one of the nob-less Uprights.”He touched under his lip, the location of the Tall One’s round bump, its purpose not even the Tall Ones could explain.

“He’s like us.” Yu’ung pointed to Shanadar’s bulbous nose, wide torso, and powerful legs–all characteristic of the People. 

“Why does he paint himself with Fierce’s stripes and secure his hair in a cord?”

Shanadar fingered the nub behind his head. “Does One-called-Fierce wear a feather in it?”

Now B’o was confused. “No, well, I’m not sure. Does it matter?”

Shanadar shrugged. “No. To answer your question, I don’t know why except we both feel it’s right.”

He looked at Yu’ung out of the corner of his eye, words unnecessary.

Xhosa.

Yu’ung gritted her teeth, choking on the taste of burnt blood from the carcasses that littered the landscape. 

Shanadar faced B’o, unconcerned. “I’ve been told I am odd. We can discuss this later, in depth, but what’s important now is what will soon demolish us. Do you not sense it?”

B’o’s eyes darted over the area, his face stricken. Shouts grew behind him.

“B’o, if not Old One, what’s wrong?”

“Before I tell you what only tribe members should know, Shanadar must convince me he is to be trusted.” He crossed his arms over his chest and snarled, “Go ahead.”

Yu’ung’s head pounded. They didn’t have time to waste, and then, almost against her will, she clamped her jaw shut and waited. If Xhosa sent Shanadar, he would know how to explain. 

Shanadar plucked a short bone and a smooth pebble from his satchel and ran his thumbs over both. 

“You haven’t told him, Yu’ung, so I won’t either.”

B’o jerked. “Told me what?”

Yu’ung clenched her fists. “About Xhosa.”  

B’o growled. Ocha’s hackles stiffened, but smoothed at Shanadar’s touch.

B’o asked Yu’ung, “Who is this Xhosa? A Tall One?” He forced himself to calm and Yu’ung appreciated his effort. 

Rather than discussing the vision, she replied simply, “No. A friend of Shanadar’s and mine.”

“A friend? You have no friends other than us.” When Yu’ung didn’t respond, B’o addressed Shanadar. “Why do you carry a bone?”

“It is a flute. I will play for you later.”

He opened his other hand to reveal a round stone with a face etched onto its surface. “This is my talisman. Both areconversations for another day. Right now, you have something to do and then we must leave before we can’t.”

“B’o!” Ese. “They need help!”

If B’o intended to argue, his pairmate’s voice stopped him. That’s when Yu’ung knew. 

She jerked side to side, searching. Smoke and ash shrouded everything in a dirty mist. “Where are the rest of the People?”

“In the cave.”

Her stomach knotted as she spun around, but the cave was gone, in its place, a cloud of dust and dirt.