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55th out of 110 books
—
146 voters
The Year the Horses Came (Earthsong #1)
by
Mary Mackey
"A fascinating evocation . . . well up there with the best of its kind." says Marion Zimmer Bradley, of this saga of ancient Europe and a young girl's struggle to face the challenges confronting her people at the very time she must face her own coming womanhood. HC: HarperCollins.
Hardcover, 377 pages
Published
September 1st 1993
by HarperOne
(first published 1993)
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These Brooks where beautyful written and no doubt Mary did her research before writing these books .....an insult of my intellect one reader wrote ...too black and white ? Did you recall what the story told happened to those of the motherlands that did not live in peace? anyway research show again and again that live back then was IDD very black and white ...this trilogy is well worth reading I could not put the books down at all only thing I did not like was when I ended the last book I wish sh...more
I have to say, it wasn't boring, but it rather insulted my intelligence. The story's been done! And done, and done...Goddess/Earth worshipers versus Sun God worshipers. The Goddess people are always perfect and loving and pacifistic (yeah, right) while the Sun God guys are evil and cruel and women haters. This gets old. I know the theory that Father-Sky god worshipers probably did take over the matriarchal societies in days past, but the novels needn't be so black and white. Marrah and her peopl...more
I must have been 12 or 13 when I came home from brushing the manes of my favorite pony, and this is what I read. Needless to say, I was completetely blown away by Mary MacKey.
I tried to reread this a few years later, to see if I would get that nostalgic vibe back. Mistake! I now noticed the authors complete and utter lack of nuances and subtlety. As another reviewer mentioned, the matriarchal - women dancing around naked, eating honey and be happy - societies are presented as amazingly blissful...more
I tried to reread this a few years later, to see if I would get that nostalgic vibe back. Mistake! I now noticed the authors complete and utter lack of nuances and subtlety. As another reviewer mentioned, the matriarchal - women dancing around naked, eating honey and be happy - societies are presented as amazingly blissful...more
The Year the Horses Came is the first book in an fictional early early man trilogy that takes place 5 centuries before the birth of Christ.
The story is about a heroine Marrah who is from a long like of priestesses of the nature loving Mother Earth People. The book starts on her coming of age day (age 13) and takes her through a quest to travel to a distant city Shara to warn them about a a vision of doom from the beast men. The beast men turn out to be the warriors sun worshiping culture Hanse...more
The story is about a heroine Marrah who is from a long like of priestesses of the nature loving Mother Earth People. The book starts on her coming of age day (age 13) and takes her through a quest to travel to a distant city Shara to warn them about a a vision of doom from the beast men. The beast men turn out to be the warriors sun worshiping culture Hanse...more
This book took me forever to get through. It became my 'pick it up now and then' book to read. It didn't grab me and hang on, but I wanted to see what was going to happen. I liked Marrah and her younger brother, Arang. I found parts of it interesting, but it still took a couple months for me to finish. The ending is horrible. I was surprised by the amount of swearing in the end. I didn't like that at all, what a huge turn off. The violence towards the end was horrible too, things I did not want...more
This is a genre I usually enjoy, and heck...I'll read anything with the word "horse" in the title. It was a good book in many ways. I don't regret reading it. But it definately could have been better written. Yeah, we get it that matriarchal societies are good, and patriarchal ones bad, but it's a little overdone. This was at heart a love story between the 2 main characters, but with a Clan of the Cave Bear twist. If you are of the "the world would be perfect if women ruled the earth and we all...more
I first read this when I was 14, and I remember I liked it a lot, but after re-reading it again at 21, I have a hard time remembering what exactly it was that I was so intrigued by.
Perhaps I had a different view of the main characters, though I still like Marrah as a character and the description of her, I really don't like Stavan at all. I remember him as this tough viking-esque guy who took shit from no one and was burly as well as brawny, but as I read on it became clear to me that he might...more
Perhaps I had a different view of the main characters, though I still like Marrah as a character and the description of her, I really don't like Stavan at all. I remember him as this tough viking-esque guy who took shit from no one and was burly as well as brawny, but as I read on it became clear to me that he might...more
I liked the beginning of this book - it is a genre that I usually like. The characters are interesting and believable, the settings are interesting, the author's writing style is not bad; but by about the time I got to the middle of the book it just didn't seem to be going anywhere - or at least not anywhere I wanted to go with it.
I actually bought the hardcover version of this book in a bargin clearance bin several years before I never got around to finishing it. Finally gave it away to Goodwi...more
I actually bought the hardcover version of this book in a bargin clearance bin several years before I never got around to finishing it. Finally gave it away to Goodwi...more
I read this book, WOW, a long time ago but I still consider it one of my top favorite books of all time. The detail and the passion that exists in this book is indescribable and I definitely recommend it to all my friends and family.
Very engaging. Moves pretty quickly, and paints a vivid picture of pre-historic Europe. I felt like I was in the story. If you liked Clan of the Cave Bear, my guess is you will like this one.
This is the most beautiful love story you will ever read. It is my favorite book.
This is my favorite book EVER! I love this book.
Was there any truth, research, or academic value to this book? It painted a super-idealistic image of what the world would look like if there were no men or "masculine" values. Rather than elevating me to a new understanding, I felt like it widened the annoying "us"/"them" gap so prevalent in our society's understanding of gender. However, all said, it was a kind of fun read, so long as I didn't go deep.
I liked this book a lot and am excited to complete the series. Definitley not as epic as the Jean Auel books, but close. I thought the middle of the book was a little slow moving but getting to the end, despite the violence was exciting and I couldn't wait to see what happened next!
Good story. Would like more on the ending. All in all good.
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Mary Mackey was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, and is related through her father's family to Mark Twain. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard and received her Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Michigan. During the early 1970s she lived in the rain forests of Costa Rica. From 1989 to 1992 she served of Chair of PEN American Center, West. Currently, she is a pro...more
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