Sisters of the Wolf

–Two young women, Keena, a Neanderthal, and Shinoni, a Cro-Magnon, struggle to survive in Ice Age Europe 40,000 years ago. Miller-Schroeder uses her graduate degree in biological anthropology to create a vivid and believable world that showcases the idea that family does not have to be limited to certain cultures, races, or even species. When a group of Neanderthal hunters, led by Haakan, attacks and kills Shinoni’s tribe and captures Shinoni, Haakan brings her back to his camp where she meets Keena, who was given to Haakan as a peace offering by her tribe. When the girls escape from Haakan and his hunters, they decide to attempt a return to Keena’s family across glaciers filled with hostile predators. One predator, a silver gray she-wolf, befriends the two girls and shadows the them in their travels, and eventually, is given the name of Tewa. The relationship between Keena and Shinoni grows during their travels as they encounter Ice Age flora and fauna, other tribes of Cro-Magnon and Neanderthals, and the continual threat from Haakan. With two strong female protagonists, Miller-Schroeder has created an enthralling glimpse into a long-vanished world that keeps readers engaged from the first page.