Series:

North America's Forgotten Past

6 primary works • 28 total works

Book 16

Cover of People of the Thunder
By 1300 AD, the Sky Hand people had crushed and enslaved the Albaamaha people and built their high-walled capital, Split Sky City, to dominate towns up and down the Black Warrior River. But a violent wind is brewing that may topple the city's mighty walls. Great armies are on the march and a cunning new leader, Smoke Shield, has risen. He will lead the Sky Hand people either to stunning triumph or to bloody doom. A novel of desperate political intrigue and spiritual power, "People of the Thunder" once again demonstrates the Gears' mastery of American prehistory. Explore the ancestral heritage of the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Yuchi peoples as the majesty and genius of the vanished Mississippian mound builders' civilization comes to life.

Book 17

Cover of People of the Longhouse

Book 20

Cover of People of the Songtrail
People of the Songtrail is the saga of the first European settlers to land on the shores of the New World. It is a story, like so many in America's history, of the swift and violent clash of cultures, and of extraordinary men and women on both sides who were brave enough to work for the fragile hope of peace. On the shores of what is now northeastern Canada, a small group of intrepid settlers have landed, seeking freedom to worship and prosper far from the religious strife and political upheaval that plague a war-ridden Europe... 500 years before Columbus set sail. Vikings, the first European settlers to land on the shores of the new world, intend to make it their home-- in spite of the Skraeling barbarians who stand in their way. In their swift and violent clash of cultures, there are men and women on both sides who are brave enough to work for the fragile hope of peace.

Book 20

Cover of People of the Morning Star

Book 25

Cover of Star Path

Star Path

by W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear

Published 25 June 2019

Book 27

Cover of Lightning Shell

Cover of People of the Earth

Set five thousand years ago and ranging through what is now Montana, Wyoming, northern Colorado, and Utah, People of the Earth follows the migration of the Uto-Aztecan people south out of Canada. It is the unforgettable tale of a woman torn between two peoples and two dreams, of the two men who love her and the third who must have her, and of the vision given to the peoples long ago by the spirit of the wolf.

New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors and award-winning archaeologists W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear bring the stories of these first North Americans to life in this and other volumes in the magnicent North America's Forgotten Past series.

Cover of People of the Black Sun

Cover of The Dawn Country
"War Chief Koracoo and Deputy Gonda of the Standing Stone People have successfully rescued their children, Odion and Tutelo, from Gannajero the Trader. Known as the Crow, Gannajero is a figure out of nightmare--a witch who steals children. Odion's friend Wrass is still held captive, along with several other children, in Gannajero's camp, and Koracoo and Gonda are determined to save them all. This time, Koracoo and Gonda have allies: a battle-weary Mohawk war chief and a Healer from the People of the Dawnland, who have also lost children to Gannajero. These bitter enemies must learn to trust each other and find common ground. Will they be able to put their differences aside and rescue the children before they are sold and carried off to distant villages--and lost to their families and homes forever?"--Cover.

Cover of People of the Silence
At its pinnacle in A.D. 1150 the Anasazi Empire of the Southwest would see no equal in North America for almost eight hundred years. Yet even at this cultural zenith, the Anasazi held the seeds of their own destruction deep within themselves. On his deathbed, the Great Sun Chief learns a secret, a shame so vile to him that even at the brink of eternity he cannot let it pass: In a village far to the north is a fifteen summers old girl who must be found. Though he knows neither her name nor her face, the Great Sun decrees that the girl must at all costs be killed. Fleeing for her life as her village lies in ruins, young Cornsilk is befriended by Poor Singer, a curious youth seeking to touch the soul of the Katchinas. Together, they undertake the perilous task of staying alive long enough to discover her true identity. But time is running out for them all - a desperate killer stalks them, one who is willing to destroy the entire Anasazi world to set to her.

Cover of People of the Fire
It is a time of fire. A small band of pioneers struggle valiantly to keep their ancestors' dreams alive in an unforgiving, drought stricken land. Driven by the promise of an awesome vision, a heroic young dreamer and a fearless woman warrior unite to lead their people to a magnificent destiny. A towering epic filled with tragedy and triumph, courage and conflict.

Cover of People of the Wolf
In the dawn of history, valiant people forged a path way from an old world into a new one. Led by a dreamer who followed the spirit of the wolf, a handful of courageous men and women dared to cross the frozen wastes to find an untouched, unspoiled continent. This is the magnificent saga of the vision-filled man who led his people to an awesome destiny, and the courageous woman whose love and bravery drove them on in pursuit of that dream. A sweeping epic of prehistory, "People Of The Wolf" brings the true story of the ancestors of today's Native American people to life in an unforgettable saga of hardship and determination, conflict and passion.

Cover of People of the Moon
They were called the Chaco Anasazi. They built thirty-foot-wide roads that crossed miles of mountains and mesas and constructed five-story buildings. Their priests and warriors presided over conquered populations via an extensive system of signal towers that could send messages across the vast distances day or night. Warriors could be dispersed to quell any rebellion within hours of the start of an uprising. The moon had reached its maximum three times since the Chacoans conquered the First Moon People. The Chaco matrons had built their Great House high atop First Moon Mountain and their red-shirted warriors stalked arrogantly through the villages. But the gods can only stand so much human arrogance.

Cover of People of the Raven
Rain Bear is the chief of Sandy Point Village, head of the struggling Raven People. One day a strange and beautiful red-haired woman, Evening Star, stumbles into his council lodge and begs him for sanctuary. Rain Bear soon learns that she is an escaped slave from the North Wind People, a Caucasoid race and the Raven People's mortal enemies. If he offers to protect her, the North Wind People will attack, but if he sends her back, Rain Bear knows Evening Star will be tortured - and perhaps killed. When Evening Star warns Rain Bear that warriors are already on their way, he must decide at once if his people should run, or prepare for a prehistoric race war that could result in the Raven People's complete demise.

Cover of People of the Nightland
It has been a thousand years since Wolf Dreamer led his people up through the dark hole in the ice to a rich, untouched continent bursting with game. But the world has changed. Most of the magnificent animals are gone, and the last of the great glaciers is melting, forming a huge freshwater lake in the middle of the world. Over the centuries, the People of the Wolf have split into two clans. The People of the Nightland live in the honeycomb of Ice caves that skirt the glacier. The People of the Sunpath live Inside lodges to the south, hunting the few remaining mammoths, bison, giant sloths, and short-faced bear. When a young orphaned boy named Silvertip receives a vision from Wolf Dreamer that their world is about to end, no one believes him - no one except a jaded war chief and a little girl. Led by Silvertip's dream, the three of them must convince both clans to leave the land of their ancestors and flee eastward as fast as they can before the Ice Giants destroy the world.
This is the sweeping saga of a visionary boy who led his people out of the path of one of the worst catastrophes in the history of the world, and the brave little girl who loved him enough to believe in his dream.

Cover of People of the Sea
A spellbinding tale of life and love, death and adventure, in North America eleven thousand years ago, when mammoths roamed the continent. Award-winning archaeologists Michael and Kathleen Gear, using the best archaeological information, have created a stunning vision of our pre-history, and of the men and women who lived in this rapidly changing world. The great glaciers that cover the Sierra Nevada mountains are melting, destroying the habitats of the great elephants, lions and short-faced bears - and giving birth to the rich land that will become California. The few thousand people who have settled along the coast struggle to understand as the world around them changes. Where have the mastodons gone? And why are the mammoths disappearing? The seer Sunchaser would ordinarily visit the Spirit World and return with answers - but he has lost his way. Meanwhile his rival, Catchstraw, has discovered witchcraft as a way to Power - at the expense of his soul. And what will it mean to the people when a beautiful fugitive arrives? Kestrel, born in Arizona's marsh country, is running from her mad husband, desperately hoping for sanctuary on the coast. But if the Spirits are taking the mammoths now, what will they do should the people shelter an evil woman? Surely they should deliver her to her husband, who will kill her - and who has his own link to the Spirit World through the pitiful, mummified corpse of his little son.... Must Sunchaser choose between the woman he comes to love and the continuation of his world? He knows full well that either choice will damn him....

Cover of People of the Masks
Archaeologists Kathleen O'Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear continue to entertain with their epic of the adventure, triumph and heartbreak of the pre-Columbian peoples who struggled to make America their home.

Cover of People of the Mist

With People of the Mist, bestselling authors W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear take us to the Chesapeake Bay of six hundred years ago, when the unprovoked and brutal murder of a young woman on the eve of her wedding threatens to turn the entire Algonquin Nation against itself in a brutal war that could destroy them as a people.

No ordinary woman, Red Knot was the heir to the Greenstone Clan and the future leader of the independent villages. Her death has shattered all alliances and left a power void that several ambitious clan chiefs see as their destiny to fill. The very air vibrates with the drums and war cries of the rallying warriors.

Into the eye of this brewing storm steps the bitter old man they call The Panther. Feared as a sorcerer, The Panther is the only one with the power to demand to be heard by all. But as he digs deeper into the ever-thickening web of lies surrounding the murder, and uncovers darker, more deeply rooted secrets, he fears there may be no words to stop the impending bloodshed.

Cover of People of the River

People of the River is a gripping new saga of pre-historic America that takes us to the Mississippi Valley and the tribe known as the Mound builders. It is a time of troubles. In Cahokia, the corn crop is failing again and a warchief--and the warrior woman he may never possess--are disgusted by their Chief's lust for tribute. Now even the gods have turned their faces, closing the underworld to the seers. If the gods have abandoned the people, there is no hope--unless it comes in the form of a young girl who is learning to Dream of Power.

A masterful story of North America's Forgotten Past by New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear.

Cover of People of the Weeping Eye
People called Old White the "Seeker," a man never long with any people or place. For years he had wandered, leaving a trail of war, wonder, and broken love in his wake. Now he is headed home, called back by visions of chaos, blood, and fire. But there is more to the Seeker than most know. He is a man driven by a secret so terrible it may topple the greatest city in North America. When the far-off Katsinas told Old White it was time to go home, he had no idea that his journey would take him to the head of the Mississippi, where he would encounter the mystical Two Petals--a youngsoul woman obsessed with Spirit Power, who lives life backwards. But before Two Petals can find her way out of the future, Old White must heal the rift in her tortured soul. To do so, he will need the help of Trader, a loner consumed by his own dark past. "" "People of the Weeping Eye" is an epic set against the might and majesty of the great Mississippian Chiefdoms. The Gears have breathed new life into North America's forgotten heritage with a sweeping saga that will forever change your appreciation of our country.