Rating: 
Summary: Fans only
Review: What is this series? I guess it is romance, in the same genre as those thick novels with a woman and Fabio on the cover. If one starts this book with that in mind, you won't be disappointed. It still has Ayla inventing everything and healing everyone, and Jondalar is still an amusingly dumb blond with one endearing attribute. The animal friends are still there, wowing the prehistoric residents of France. Auel still manages to make sex scenes tiresome -- singlehandedly she may keep teenagers from having sex because she makes it seem so boring.But a fun bubble-head read nonetheless. Smart of the publisher to release this book in May -- it is the perfect beach read.
Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable conclusion to the other 4 books
Review: I read this within 24 hours of it coming out. I do suggest though that you do read at least one of the other books before diving straight into this one, not that it really matters, but it will draw out the enjoyment of this series if you are new to this series.
Enjoyable, warm and wonderful read.
I would love to see another book after this one with perhaps her becoming a zeleandia and also other members of the group slowing learning how to have wolfs and horses as pets etc. Also I could see the next book having trade negotiations with the Clan as well as perhaps a bit of trouble there too.
Gosh I am a little annoyed I read the book so fast, I wish I still had some chapters left!
Rating: 
Summary: After the long wait...a disappointment
Review: "Shelters of Stone" has a great legacy to live up to, and unfortunately, it falls short of the first four books in the series. After the previous novels--each of which told a story that was an epic in and of itself--this sequel (the penultimate in the series) feels claustrophobic, small, and insignificant. The first 3/4 of the novel literally covers a span of no more than a few weeks, with far too much repetition of previous plot points and tiresome revisiting of similar scenes, replayed under slightly different circumstances. Ayla demonstrates her new firestones at least three times before different audiences; the method of presentation and impact on the audience never varies. Even love scenes between Ayla and Jondalar are deja vu all over again, feeling "prescribed" rather than natural. Oops, it's been 125 pages...time for a paint-by-numbers interlude in the meadow! After a sweeping Journey across hundreds of miles and multiple cultures in the first four novels, this book opens as Ayla and Jondalar return home. The conflicts of the previous novels were on a grand scale; life and death, love and loss, old ways vs. change, Clan vs. Others. But in "Shelters of Stone," the biggest problems are frustratingly mundane. Will Ayla's new in-laws like her?...Will she be able to overcome the petty pranks of Jondalar's ex, the pretty but [grouchy] Marona?... Will Jondalar's father Dalanar show up in time for the wedding?... Will Jondalar's first love, Zolena, be a problem?... This book is, despite its 750-page heft, an exceedingly small story. New material comprises perhaps only a fourth of the entire book; the rest is rehashing, revisiting, and even reprinting entire passages from the earlier books. It's as though, having gotten Ayla and Jondalar safely home, Auel is at a complete loss about what to do with them. Auel has created characters that are far too compelling, complex, and dynamic to saddle them with the inconsequential, mundane, domestic details they are forced to walk through, in excruciating detail, in this novel. I have great hopes that the sixth novel will return to the scale and grandiosity of the previous books in the series. (And frankly, I also hope that if the love scenes between Ayla and Jondalar continue to be as perfunctory and predictable as they were in this novel, they'll be left out entirely in the final book of the series.) With precious little "new" in the way of plot or character development, and very little to recommend it to readers who are not already fans of the series, I sincerely hope Auel will regain the fullness of her voice and vision in the next and final book.
Rating: 
Summary: Stone cold cash shelter.....
Review: Sorry Jean, but like many other Ayla fans, I have absolutely longed for this book, and now I wish I had waited for the paperback.
When "Plains of Passage" ended, Ayla & Jondalar have journeyed through an array of fascinating adventures, and have at last arrived at Jondalar's home cave, pregnant, ready to be mated. "Shelters..." tells the story of their next 8 months, a tale that would have taken a couple of chapters in any of the preceding books, in an agonizing 749 pages...I skimmed and skimmed looking for a spark of Ms. Auel's altogether absent inventiveness and storytelling skill. No pathos, no finely drawn protagonist, no interesting new adversary. If she had wanted to add another few pages, perhaps Ms. Auel could have quoted her Song of the Mother ONE MORE TIME? I'm disappointed that JA would cheat her fans....I gladly paid for the book, but the story I expected was missing.
Rating:
Summary: Slow first half, transforms into true Auel towards the end
Review: The story of Ayla and Jondalar in this fifth book of the Earth's Children series, picks up where the previous left off: Ayla is pregnant with Jondalar's child and nervous to meet his family. As in the past, she impresses those around her in a short period of time through her strange accent, firestones, healing skills and her control over Whinney, Racer and Wolf. The book unfolds slowly, feeling at times more like a lecture in paleoanthropology (both in tone and detail) rather than telling the intriguing story of the girl of the Others who was raised by the Clan. Though fascinating in its own right, the data on the Ice Age and its people are overbearing. Judging by the number of people thanked in the foreword, Auel has obviously done her homework, but it felt like I was doing mine. The pace is such that even at hundreds of pages in, we have but begun to meet the Zelandonii. During the first half, the story is predictable and repetitive containing scenarios seen in previous books - even the love scenes lack the steam of earlier books. Ayla remains on centre stage and plays the role of saviour and role model for the weak and spiteful and, not to forget, spokesperson of the Clan. The Zelandonii, including Jondalar's old flame, seem unusually open and accepting of Ayla's background, unlike previous Others, and are (almost too) quick to adopt her. Ayla herself remains nervous of meeting new people - perhaps with good reason, as she also creates some enemies for herself. The second half delightfully picks up, and it is almost a sigh of relief to see the story begin to flow again. Auel demonstrates a talent for captivating Story-Telling as she paces through events that take place during the Summer Meeting and the following winter. There is a certain maturity in the writing that didn't seem apparent before. Auel takes us through a more comprehensive understanding of the spiritual beliefs of the Zelandonii (though I'm not convinced that she needed to repeat the Mother's Song so often). Spirituality also becomes more pertinent for Ayla, as can be expected, and Zelandoni needs to convince her to put aside her fears of the spirit world. Ayla has tremendous potential to influence the community, but will it be as the zelandonia see fit? Three stars since Auel shows her true talent in the latter part of the book, and for sheer determination to see the project through. I will certainly be reading Book 6 - I couldn't leave my favourite heroine hanging now, could I?
Rating:
Summary: should have been a 100 page novel
Review: The book had too much "padding" in my opinion and would have made a good shorter book. Also, for those of us following the "earth children" series I found that the book was really more concerned with the thoughts and feelings of other characters (notably Zolena) rather than Ayla. I even thought that some of Ayla's behaviour was out of character - she hardly ever took a lead role in the book and was too subordinate to Zolena - she should have been much more of an equal (since actually Ayla was much more advanced) despite her natural modesty.
Rating:
Summary: Where's the variety?
Review: I'm wondering why everyone thus far has rated this book so highly. After having to wait only four years for this book, I'm sorry to say that it was rather disappointing to have to read the repetitious "Ayla of the Zelandonii greets you..." for the ENTIRE book. Did the summer meeting need to drag on for the entirety? Or did we really need to go through 700 pages of her demonstrating fire over and over again?
Maybe I'm being critical. I, at least, have to agree with the previous reviewer. Don't bother reading this book unless you've already dedicated yourself to the series. Let's hope something happens soon with the last book.
Rating:
Summary: Too slow, and too tedious
Review: This fifth book in a seris of six was slow to start and got so bogged down in details about life during the Stone Age that I was forced to skip over pages just to keep interested. If Jean Auel wanted us to know how much she researched this book, she should publish a book based solely on her research. It was intriguing to hear her description of the Cave of Lascaux; however, I felt myself grow bored, especially with Ayla's seeming perfection. Even the description of the Matrimonial Ceremony was too long. Her first three books were far better and were more action packed. In addition, she kept repeating over and over again how Ayla tamed the animals, ect. I am hoping that the sixth book will be like the first three and that the author is finished with her need to describe in minute detail the flora, fauna, geography, and cultural characteristics of Jondalar's Zelandoni world. The ending left a little too much hanging as well. After waiting nearly 12 years, I am disappointed with the result.
Rating:
Summary: Prehistoric rehash
Review: Because it's been so long since the last book, I read The Shelters of Stone with some curiosity. It didn't take me long to realize why the Earth's Children series has become beach/plane reading - not awful, just not compelling. Ironically, I find the protagonist, Ayla, the least interesting thing in the series - except as an example of how authors become overfond of certain characters. Ayla's the kind of character that I have come to find myself rooting AGAINST, even though it's a fixed game - the author clearly loves her creation so much that she can't bear to think of Ayla being insufficient in any way. She's so beautiful that every guy wants her. Every (Cro-Magnon) guy. Whenever you get the male viewpoint, it's never "Ayla was reasonably attractive, though Jarovar preferred smaller, brown-haired women." No, she's always considered dazzlingly beautiful (Neanderthals aside).
Not only is Ayla beautiful, but she's a supergenius. She has already invented or discovered the domestication of animals, the needle, the use of flint to start fires, the atlatl, the travois (I believe) and the role of men in human reproduction. Let's not forget that she's an incredibly talented healer, able to learn foreign languages in less than a month, and, I think, psychic. And she's a great orienteer - she's able to find a cave that has been overlooked by the people who live directly on the site. Does everyone love Ayla?, Well, yes, unless they're psychotic, insanely jealous jilted lovers, drunken bums or otherwise amidst the dregs of humanity. In fact, I can't even recall anyone who's lukewarm about her. But let's get to the plot of the book, such as it is. Here you are. 1) Ayla and her toolish mate Jondalar show up in Southern France. They sadly convey the news of Jondalar brother's death, which everyone seems to take pretty well. 2) Everyone meets Ayla and decides to adopt her almost immediately - except for Jondalar's bitchy ex-girlfriend and the local drunken bum, of course. Oh, there's also Jondalar's old rival and some part-Neaderthal guy who's not right in the head. They don't really like her either. 3) Ayla teaches everyone that "flatheads" are really nice, smart, spiritual people and that wolves aren't really scary. 4) Jondalar's other ex-girlfriend, Zeladoni, recognizes that Ayla is the smartest woman in the world and recruits her for the priesthood. 5) Ayla has her kid, named Jonayla. That's pretty much it. Ayla does get to see the Lascaux caves in their infancy. I'm just waiting for her to become the greatest artist the prehistoric world has ever known. As for the writing, Auel has become increasingly fond of mind-numbing repetition. EVERYONE who meets Ayla has to (mentally) remark upon her accent. EVERYONE thinks she doesn't look like all the other blondes in Southern France. Auel does treat us to many, many examples of what Ayla's accent sounds like (she rolls her rs.) There are also a few clinical sex scenes thrown in. None with the horses this time around, however. I gave this book three stars, because it's a perfectly adequate continuation of the series.
Rating:
Summary: Repetition, repetition, repetition
Review: Did I mention repetition? I came away feeling somewhat lukewarm towards this much-anticipated book. Definitely, there were enjoyable parts to it, even parts that moved me to tears. However, this book had a much different pace to it than what I've come to expect from this series. For every event, it reviewed experiences from the earlier books in tiresome detail. Later in the book, it even reviewed experiences that happened in the first part of the book. And, really, how many times did we have to read about the people's first reaction to meeting Wolf, Whinney, and Racer? Yes, the animals were new to the people, but they were not new to the readers. Recounting the same reaction from the dozens of people that met the animals as well as the never-ending recitation of all the formal names and ties of the characters made for tedious reading. I'll admit to skipping the long narratives to get to the action. In the earlier books I was fascinated at Ms. Auel's extraordinary talent of setting the scene with lots of rich details. In this book, it just seemed to make the story plod, maybe because I had read most of it before. This book is a definite, if somewhat disappointing, read for those that have been captivated by this series. I find myself eagerly awaiting the next book. I only hope the author once again warms to her subject and the plot instead of relying on page-fillers from past books.
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