Summer Light

A novel of life in Ancient Alaska, Book One.

On the frozen shores of Alaska’s distant past, a young woman yearns to be a shaman.

From award winning Alaskan author Elyse Guttenberg comes SUMMER LIGHT a pre-history alive with the magic that was abundant when time was new.

Spirit Singer and Shaman. Elik was not like the others. She could not sew a seal skin with the tiny stitches that would make a kayak watertight.  She could not set a trap as silently as drifting snow.  Or throw the weighted strands of a bola into a flock of birds, or predict the weather. But this she could do:  She could sing the spirit songs, almost like a shaman.

This was a high calling for young woman born into a poor family with a selfish father and Elik longs for the chance to prove herself. The Real People lived in a world of myth and magic, hunger, enemies and danger. A world where every animal and stone spoke to those who knew how to listen.

Desired by a powerful shaman and in love with a stranger cast out of his home, Elik fights for a way to save her people and reach her destiny. But will the old shaman relinquish his claim? Will the spirits reveal their secrets before it's too late?

Revised and re-issued by the author, summer 2017. This book includes an Author’s Note highlighting research into the archaeology of the period around 100 B.C. plus accounts of the earliest ethnographers in Alaska and a brief non-fiction reading list.  Also included is a preview from the sequel, DAUGHTER OF THE SHAMAN, A NOVEL OF ANCIENT ALASKA, BOOK 2.

Elyse Guttenberg’s first novel, SUNDER, ECLIPSE and SEED, was shortlisted for Best First Fantasy by the INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE FANTASTIC IN THE ARTS.  She is the recipient of an Alaska State Council on the Arts Fellowship in Literature.

Guttenberg’s attention to detail and lyric writing is remarkable for a historical novel with a setting 2000 years ago.

"Anyone interested in Alaska's Natives will find much to like in this book, and anyone interested in good, factually correct fiction will find it irresistible." -- Alaska Magazine.

Watch for DAUGHTER OF THE SHAMAN, coming in 2018.