Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Sisters of the Lost Nation

On one level, a mysterious suspense novel. On another level, an exploration of the oral history of First Nation tribes. On another level, a condemnation of the powerful urges to adapt one's self in order to be accepted. Overall, an exploration of the thousands of missing and murdered indigenous women across this continent.

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abilyeu's review

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adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Wow wow wow.

This book is labeled as a thriller, but I don't have any clue how I'd actually classify it... there's so much going on.

I found this book started very slow, and I hated the jumping timeline at first. I vividly remember texting a friend and telling her I hoped the antagonist introduced in the first part of the book wasn't the true antagonist. The book remained slow until roughly 2/3 of the way through - and boy did this book pick up. The jumping timeline made more sense, and the character development was top-notch. I loved the inclusion of native american culture and spirituality. I ended up assuming the true antagonist through character development but I didn't foresee the entire ending. Additionally, there's a note from the author speaking to the struggles of the reservations and where the inspiration for this book came from. Highly recommend. 4/5 stars simply due to how long it took to get into this book.

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mondovertigo's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

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erinoco's review

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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starrysteph's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Sisters of the Lost Nation is a heart-wrenching mystery following an outcast fighting for her identity and the life of her little sister. A haunting, enraging, captivating debut.

Anna is a young Native girl struggling to find a place where she belongs. She’s haunted by childhood campfire stories and teenage girls who have never come home, her vicious peers turn high school into torture, and she has growing suspicions about her boss at the casino.

When her little sister Grace goes missing, Anna has to channel all her strength to bring her home. But between the boundaries of rez police, the sneering & haughty town cops, and the piles of missing person flyers that have never been resolved - it feels like an impossible job.

Medina beautifully incorporates storytelling, memory, and myth. Anna is fascinated by legends and traditions of the past, and fights to keep them alive while using them to make sense of her current reality. This is a mystery/thriller novel with a small splash of horror: Anna believes she is being stalked by a supernatural entity.

I found Anna to be an immensely likable main character – she’s both fierce and forlorn as she matures throughout the pages. Her family dynamics were equally compelling: smoldering parents who can’t quite communicate, her overlooked and invisible disabled Gran, her eager younger siblings, and Anna always there to reliably clean up their messes.

The back-and-forth timeline was very confusing at first to follow, and I didn’t really fall into flow with the book until close to halfway through. I almost wish it had been told entirely chronologically. But once it clicks … it clicks. It was impossible to turn away from the pages.

This is a story about monstrous legends … and the real, all-too-human villains that haunt Native communities.

It’s an emotional piece - and while the characters and events were fictional, the trauma of missing & murdered indigenous women is incredibly real. It will enrage you and devastate you.

CW: death, murder, racism, bullying, violence, physical abuse, self harm, sexual assault, suicidal thoughts, trafficking, gore, animal death, addiction, drug use, child abuse, pedophilia, transphobia

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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)

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oldandnewbooksmell's review

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dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Trigger Warnings: (as per Content Warning at beginning of book) addresses issues of addiction, drug use, child sexual abuse, assault (implied, off-page), murder and death (off-page), physical assault, battery, self-harm, sex trafficking (implied, off-page), and racism

Anna Horn works at her reservation’s casino and she’s begun to notice some strange and sinister happenings occurring in and around it. When Anna’s own little sister, Grace, goes missing from the casino, she’ll stop at nothing to bring her home, even if that involves facing the nameless, disembodied entity that has been stalking her every move.

What a heart-wrenching, poignant debut from Nick Medina who is an amazing, captivating writer. Medina did a wonderful job of showing the crisis that is unfortunately much too common for Native, Indigenous, and First Nation communities. Medina was also able to write about the judicial laws and systems that tend to restrict Reservation Police rather than help them out.

I know this is marked as Horror first before Thriller, but I do feel like this is more reversed; definitely Thriller mixed with Horror aspects, especially mythological

I mean, a dead, rolling head will bring that way up to Horror

This is going to be a book I will be recommending to many now that it’s released.

I know most will read it, but please do not miss the Author’s Note at the end as it will give you some more valuable insight about the book, including more about Two Spirits individuals.

*Thank you Berkley and Edelweiss+ for an advance digital copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review

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