«Forbidden Paths» by Rod Mortin

Members of three tribes are drawn by fate into the menacing Rift Valley. They come from opposing tribes yet follow individual paths that lead to love and friendship. The story opens with a tough-minded, take-action woman fleeing the brute who replaced her father as leader of the Mila Tanari tribe. She chooses to jump into the Rift rather than be the pawn of the tribe's new leader. A cute and brilliant inventor descends into the valley via ropes and pulleys with his lover, Kareel, to escape the persecution of his Geneer tribe. Together they make a home and are happy until Kareel's untimely death. A handsome and sensitive healer, a member of the MeTech tribe, is so troubled by the greed of his new stepmother that he trips while gathering plants and tumbles into the Rift Valley. These three are as different as their tribes. Chased by the beasts that patrol the valley floor, the unlikely allies must forge a path toward friendship to survive. Curiosity lures them down a dangerous path in a quest to understand the ruins long protected by the carnivores. The secret they discover changes everything they thought they knew about their tribes and their world. Forbidden Paths is Book One of an exciting trilogy by Rod Mortin. Filled with non-stop action, powerful relationships, and a quest for truth, the Paths Trilogy will inspire you to examine your own beliefs about those outside your tribe.