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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don’t usually read hard-boiled, tough guy detective novels, but I tried this one because I wanted to read some recent fiction by Native Americans, and it got very good reviews. I did enjoy it, and found it propulsive and well-written, and I appreciate how the author incorporates issues relating to life on the rez and social justice issues faced by Native peoples. The plot and characteristics are excellent. Content warning for some very viscerally graphic, gut-wrenching descriptions of physical violence.
Virgil is the local hired thug. If the police won’t do anything about a crime he will. He is also the caregiver of his nephew Nathen. Nathens mom died in a car accident and he had no where else to go. One day Nathen takes some drugs and almost dies. It’s up to Virgil to get some justice before the time runs out.
I was excited to read this book written from an indigenous perspective but was disappointed by the storytelling. Firstly, it was very ‘male’ which could have been okay, but on top of that the story felt like it was written for non-natives. + I’m not a huge fan of fiction using first person / “I”.
I’d recommend this book if you’re into stereotypical male thrillers and want to learn a bit more about indigenous perspective &/or reservation life.
I’d recommend this book if you’re into stereotypical male thrillers and want to learn a bit more about indigenous perspective &/or reservation life.
adventurous
dark
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:
No
A super interesting read that was hard to put down! I loved all the characters and I really liked the insight on Lakota culture
mysterious
medium-paced
Works best in the details and sections about the Native American experience and life on the reservation. I feel like I'm missing something though, given the glowing quotes and multiple awards won. As a thriller its a pretty mundane by the numbers plot, a lot of time just spent driving about from one place to the next. For a vigilante enforcer, the MC just seems to wander about doing not much. A couple of final revelations make the story just about bearable. But the writing is flat and uninspiring, the main character a pretty unlikeable guy and the pace plodding, the dialogue stilted. There's also a lot of time spent on a strange subplot about a chef that couldn't be any less thrilling. A big plot point is revealed through a spiritual revelation that has no basis in reality and feels like a cheat. A lot of unnecessary swearing to make it sound tough. This is sub, sub-Reacher, a pale imitation. A disappointment, but plenty disagree with me.
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The book begins with the protagonist beating a teacher for touching a little girl but one of the subplots relies on viewing a teenage girl “dating” a married teacher as a home wrecker that the female love interest tried then to punish by reporting and in her hands messing with her locker ergo bullying a another teenager for being a victim of an adult. The male protagonist also lists this as an example of her not being punished for her crimes when she’s later guilty of an actual crime if not the major ones. It’s violently machista and shows that at some point girls preyed on by teachers are blamed.
Which does also lead into the fact that the book had this obsession that even children lashing out becuase of sexual abuse or racism they received onto other kids couldn’t be reformed and all became bad adults in the a novel that very intentionally has a morally grey violent man at the helm who talked over and didn’t listen to anyone else the entire book?
The thriller was also incredibly predictable with poor writing with predictable Mexican cartels that weren’t realistic especially with the author saying flannel and jeans is suddenly gang wear if it’s a Mexican wearing it or the biggest mexican character being called loco. It read like a bad parody or war on drugs fantasy, especially with the book inaccurately claiming weed is addictive.
It had a interesting premise the author couldn’t follow up on.
Which does also lead into the fact that the book had this obsession that even children lashing out becuase of sexual abuse or racism they received onto other kids couldn’t be reformed and all became bad adults in the a novel that very intentionally has a morally grey violent man at the helm who talked over and didn’t listen to anyone else the entire book?
The thriller was also incredibly predictable with poor writing with predictable Mexican cartels that weren’t realistic especially with the author saying flannel and jeans is suddenly gang wear if it’s a Mexican wearing it or the biggest mexican character being called loco. It read like a bad parody or war on drugs fantasy, especially with the book inaccurately claiming weed is addictive.
It had a interesting premise the author couldn’t follow up on.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
"Winter Counts" offers an intriguing Native American perspective on crime and justice. Virgil Wounded Horse's complex character drives the story effectively. The exploration of cultural themes is commendable, but pacing issues occasionally dull the impact. Overall, a compelling debut with room for improvement.