About the book:
Recovering from their wounds, Black Shell and Pearl Hand race the invader Hernando de Soto westward. The fires of Mabila have destroyed most of de Soto’s supplies, and cost him dearly in horses and irreplaceable men. But just ahead lie the greatest warriors in Black Shell’s world, and the people who exiled him in disgrace—the Chicaza. Desperate to earn redemption, Black Shell is thrust face-to-face with the cunning de Soto and locked in a deadly game of wits that will determine the fate of their world. But who’s the bigger threat—de Soto or Black Shell’s poisonous and unforgiving kin? If Black Shell, Pearl Hand, and their loyal dogs can win the battle of Chicaza, the Spanish invader will be broken forever. As Horned Serpent and the terrible Piasa gambled so long ago, in the end, everything hinges on Black Shell—but at what staggering cost?
About the authors:
W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O’Neal Gear are the authors of Fire the Sky and Coming of the Storm, the second and first book in the Contact series, as well as more than twenty international bestsellers that have been translated into twenty-three languages. Their novel People of the Raven won the Golden Spur Award in 2005. In addition to writing both fiction and nonfiction together and separately, the Gears operate an anthropological research company called Wind River Archeological Consultants and raise buffalo on their ranch in northern Wyoming. They welcome readers to their website at www.gear-gear.com.
