Replacement Chronicles Series by Harper Swan

What possible link could Mark Hayek, an introverted twenty-first century research scientist, have to Raven, a young woman who lived during the late Pleistocene? It has everything to do with an encounter between a band of Early Modern Humans and a group of Neanderthals intent on hunting bison.After an injured Neanderthal hunter is taken captive, Raven––as a healer––feels she has no option but to become his advocate... moreWhat possible link could Mark Hayek, an introverted twenty-first century research scientist, have to Raven, a young woman who lived during the late Pleistocene? It has everything to do with an encounter between a band of Early Modern Humans and a group of Neanderthals intent on hunting bison.After an injured Neanderthal hunter is taken captive, Raven––as a healer––feels she has no option but to become his advocate. Her own survival soon becomes doubtful when the band’s leader threatens to cast her out onto the steppe for what he sees as dangerous willfulness. Raven feels an unexpected empathy for the mysterious Neanderthal. But while trying to preserve his life and health, will she go so far as to commit what could be the worst error of her own life? Mark Hayek will never find out that Raven faced a frightening dilemma. But if he did know, he would understand that the present reality exists because of choices made in the past. As meticulously researched as Jean Auel’s Earth Children series but with the benefit of recent discoveries, this novella is an updated story revealing how contact between Neanderthals and Early Humans had surprising results. less

This volume contains parts two and three of The Replacement Chronicles. In Journeys of Choice, we find Raven and Mark embarking on travels they can no longer avoid, crisscrossing the same ancient lands, although thousands of years apart. Raven is again plagued by choices. She's pregnant, but if she has the child, her unhappy fate is sealed whether the father is the departed Neanderthal or her band's leader, Bear... moreThis volume contains parts two and three of The Replacement Chronicles. In Journeys of Choice, we find Raven and Mark embarking on travels they can no longer avoid, crisscrossing the same ancient lands, although thousands of years apart. Raven is again plagued by choices. She's pregnant, but if she has the child, her unhappy fate is sealed whether the father is the departed Neanderthal or her band's leader, Bear. When Raven's original home band is decimated by a tragic accident, her old nemesis, Fern, turns up. Once more, Fern leaves Raven with no choice other than to leave her familiar life and search for a different one. Seeking the Neanderthal man she'd once helped and facing her fear of being alone on the steppes, she begins crossing that grassy land--but a woman like Raven isn't fated to be alone for long. Reluctant to leave his job in California, Mark eventually summons the will to help his mother collect an inheritance. His duties take him to the Levant, where he meets Antun, his cousin. Antun seems to be a great guy, but Mark can't put aside his suspicions. In spite of his unease, Mark enjoys exploring old Neanderthal sites, until he finds himself in the clutches of a jihadist group bent on replacing all other beliefs with their own. At the cave where he's held, he meets another captive, a woman whom he desires to save. Help arrives for them, flowing from an unexpected ancient source, igniting a struggle deep within Mark to accept that the illogical as well as the logical make up existence. less

This omnibus edition of The Replacement Chronicles contains Raven’s Choice, Journeys of Choice, and Choices that Cut. Two Lives… separated by millennia but nevertheless linked irrevocably. What possible link could Mark Hayek, an introverted twenty-first century research scientist, have to Raven, a young healer who lived during the late Pleistocene? It has everything to do with an injured Neanderthal man taken captive by Raven’s band while he and his brothers were hunting bison... moreThis omnibus edition of The Replacement Chronicles contains Raven’s Choice, Journeys of Choice, and Choices that Cut. Two Lives… separated by millennia but nevertheless linked irrevocably. What possible link could Mark Hayek, an introverted twenty-first century research scientist, have to Raven, a young healer who lived during the late Pleistocene? It has everything to do with an injured Neanderthal man taken captive by Raven’s band while he and his brothers were hunting bison. After Raven heals the captive, he leaves for his tribe, and she tries to forget him as she struggles to remain within the band. But it’s not possible to stay when several band members make her life with the group untenable. Seeking the Neanderthal man she’d helped and facing her fear of being alone on the dangerous steppes, she begins crossing that grassy land—but a woman like Raven isn’t destined to be by herself for long. In the future, Mark Hayek is forced into making his own journey when his uncle dies in the Levant. His travels place him firmly in the footsteps of his Neanderthal and Early Modern Human ancestors, crossing the same ancient lands as he struggles against the fate a wayward kinsman has imposed. He’s been made a pawn in a cruel game, but when he encounters a woman being held prisoner in a cave, he seeks a way to save her. Help arrives for the pair, flowing from an unexpected, ancient source, igniting a struggle deep within Mark to accept that the illogical as well as the logical make up existence. Peoples come and go, one group replacing another over time, and echoes from ancient events have always affected the future, but Mark and Raven discover that in certain environments echoes are able to bounce back and forth, blurring their origins. less