I was a huge fan of the "Earth Children" Series and loved the first 5 books. It was the 6th book that made this fan-fiction novel come to pass. I was so unhappy with book 6 and the lack of real closure or even a plot, for that matter, that I had to write my own final version of the series to close some of the nagging questions and give back some respect to the main characters that I felt was taken away from them in the final book.

I heard one reviewer a few years ago say something like; "Ayla (the main character in the series) could perform just about any task short of brain-surgery." And in another review the snide remark of, "For a society of 30,000 years ago, this one could have existed in Central Park, New York City." Yes, the Earth Children series requires a suspension of reality to buy into this rather sophisticated society. But the story's premise is timeless; it's about a woman who is forced to become more than just average. Her very survival mandates that she be exceptional, which she becomes, in spades.

I was captivated by the personality of Ayla and the fact that she was very talented with an appealing personality that would have shined in any society. Honesty, integrity, ability and the wonderful opening up of knowledge was what grabbed me about the character of our heroine Ayla.

I have tried to remain faithful to the original series; so you will encounter sex and violence, but somewhat less than in the original series. I felt that if I wanted to continue the story in a recognizable form I couldn't ignore what had come before or change the writing style beyond eliminating the repetition.

As you read this book - if you're familiar with the original series - you will notice that I have eliminated the overlong travelogues as well as the repeated use of the Mother's Prayer other than a few parts of it when it became essential to the story. The only other obvious change was that I reduced the title of; "The First Among Those Who Serve The Great Earth Mother" to the "First Zelandoni" since it has to be used so many times during the story and the longer title had always been a bit clunky in my opinion.

"The Sacred Mountain" is set ten years after the Land of Painted Caves and is my version of what a book 7 might have been, addressing some of the issues brought up in the previous books.

Writing this story was a year-long effort (mostly on Saturdays and Sundays) and would not have happened if it weren't for ecfans, a forum for fans of the series and a place I went to in my original disappointment with book 6. They gave me the idea to write my own version of the final book and so I did.

I'm not a professional writer, but I do know how to write, I've tried to proofread this work but if I have missed any errors or you find an awkward sentence or expressed thought, I apologize. I wrote this story for my own enjoyment, but I hope you get some enjoyment out of it too.