From Publishers Weekly
A few years back, Canter, a journalist, dreamed up a great premise for his first novel: a Neanderthal alive in late-20th-century America. Problem is, two other writers have beaten him out?John Darnton in Neanderthal and Petru Popescu in Almost Adam. And Canter's story, despite its sincerity, has other problems. In it, a viable Neanderthal embryo is transplanted into a woman of the Quanoot tribe near Seattle. The child grows up as a golden-skinned girl, Ember, with powers of healing and empathy that convince some that she is Sisiutlqua, a powerful shaman. If the narrative were told entirely from Ember's viewpoint, her growing awareness of the physical and mental attributes that separate her from her peers might have generated a gripping tale. But Ember's voyage of self-knowledge begins with the discovery by paleoanthropologist Yute Nahadeh, in the Alaskan tundra, of the perfectly preserved Neanderthal woman who is Ember's original mother. Because Canter emphasizes the human rather than the scientific aspects of Ember's story, and for most of the tale keeps Ember from knowing she's Neanderthal, the narrative is disjointed. Yute and a major subplot about gold mining on tribal lands all but vanish after Ember's birth, only to reappear years later when the heroine seeks the secret of her origins. This leads to inconsistencies in Yute's character, which shifts from driven doctor to patient observer to crazed scientist. In essence, this story is a classic fairy tale in which an outcast child learns her true nature when she discovers that her real parents secreted her with commoners. But Canter's approach fails to do his premise, or his characters, particularly the appealing Ember, full justice. 100,000 first printing; major ad/promo; Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selection; simultaneous BDD Audio; foreign rights sold in Britain, France, Sweden, Holland and Japan; author tour.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
When scientist Yute Nahadeh finds the frozen, perfectly preserved corpse of a Neanderthal woman buried in the northern tundra, he's stunned, especially when he discovers what he believes is a viable fetus in the woman's womb. Believing he can "breed" a baby Neanderthal and thus claim his place in scientific history, Yute bribes an adolescent Quanoot Indian girl to have the fetus implanted in her womb. When the child is born, the starry-eyed mom wrests the baby from Yute's greedy grasp to take home to her tribe. Little Ember grows into an odd-looking adult who's athletically gifted, tawny skinned, and blessed with unique healing powers. But she's too different to fit into her family, her tribe, or society. Her extreme loneliness leads her to Yute to find clues to her past and her parentage. Canter's story is unique and appealing, with an engaging heroine, furious action, and intriguing tidbits of history, archaeology, and Native American culture. Negatives: the plot, while imaginative, nonetheless strains credibility; the writing is often formulaic; and Canter tries too hard to make the story meaningful with a capital M. Still, give this first-time author an E for effort, and expect the book to attract considerable attention. Emily Melton
