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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
A unification of multiple tribal stories to tell the tale of a two spirit person who finds them selves in a, sadly, much too familiar situation where her sister goes missing. The tale is interlaced with stories from multiple tribes across the nation which greatly enhance the somewhat predictable plot. The characters were great and the story is very pertinent to our time. Can’t wait to see what’s next after this great first novel.
I usually go into my books somewhat blind so beyond what I could glean from the blurb I wasn’t sure what to expect when I picked this one up. It was not necessarily what I expected but I’m glad I chose it. It’s billed as a mystery/thriller but it’s really so much more than that.
It’s a powerful coming of age story where we see the main character, Anna, learn how to accept herself and how to lean into her strengths and passions.
It’s a suspenseful mystery that will keep you on edge wondering what will happen next. Based on the blurb I was expecting a little more horror than we got, but the story still worked well.
It’s also a story about the importance of stories and storytellers. Stories help us to remember. They keep our histories and our cultures alive. They keep the memory of those who have passed and those who may be lost to us alive.
And through all of that, at its foundation, it’s a moving story born from the very real and terrible crisis of missing Native American women and girls. Knowing that there are so many missing makes this story hit even harder.
This book will stay with me for a long time.
It’s a powerful coming of age story where we see the main character, Anna, learn how to accept herself and how to lean into her strengths and passions.
It’s a suspenseful mystery that will keep you on edge wondering what will happen next. Based on the blurb I was expecting a little more horror than we got, but the story still worked well.
It’s also a story about the importance of stories and storytellers. Stories help us to remember. They keep our histories and our cultures alive. They keep the memory of those who have passed and those who may be lost to us alive.
And through all of that, at its foundation, it’s a moving story born from the very real and terrible crisis of missing Native American women and girls. Knowing that there are so many missing makes this story hit even harder.
This book will stay with me for a long time.
It was a bit confusing in the beginning, but overall I enjoyed it. There was a bit at the end where the author talked about the process and his why. Definitely worth your time!
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
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:
Complicated
Mythological horror twisted with the horror of humans, centered on a girl who loves her sister and will do anything for her. I'm a sucker for sister stories!
The timeline jumping at times had me confused and flipping back to previous chapters - but I enjoyed the story overall and I'm looking forward to the authors second book.
Audiobook. Strong 3.5 verging on 4 star book. An indigenous author using fiction to shine the light on the very real issues of missing and murdered indigenous women, loss of cultural identity, racism, and more made for a gripping read. My main issue was the format of jumping back and forth in time that made for some fractured storytelling that undercut and added some confusion what could be a very tense and effective linear story
To start-the topics surrounding this book related to missing Indigenous women is incredibly important. I appreciated the authors note in the back giving more information and context. When I first learned of this book I was intrigued, but glad to know that the author belongs to a tribe himself and did not base this book around an actual tribe but instead created a fictional tribe and incorporated customs from many different groups.
On to the book- it left me wanting more. I bought this with the assumption it was a horror novel based on the marketing I saw for it. I wouldn’t classify this as a horror novel whatsoever. For part of the book it read much like a slow paced thriller. However at the end we got a hint of horror that was never fully explained (or if just didn’t get it) and a total info dump that was very much a “tell, don’t show” situation. It was disappointing to read 300 pages and then just have everything spoon fed to you. I also wanted more about the tribe-the culture, struggles, triumphs, etc. I love alternating timelines, but this one took a while to get used to. There seemed to be additional characters that were confusing to remember and how they fit in.
On to the book- it left me wanting more. I bought this with the assumption it was a horror novel based on the marketing I saw for it. I wouldn’t classify this as a horror novel whatsoever. For part of the book it read much like a slow paced thriller. However at the end we got a hint of horror that was never fully explained (or if just didn’t get it) and a total info dump that was very much a “tell, don’t show” situation. It was disappointing to read 300 pages and then just have everything spoon fed to you. I also wanted more about the tribe-the culture, struggles, triumphs, etc. I love alternating timelines, but this one took a while to get used to. There seemed to be additional characters that were confusing to remember and how they fit in.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is shelved primarily as horror, which is a far cry from what it actually is. It's a disservice to the book to be shelved there, as it's going to get a lot of bad reviews (like this one) for not providing on that promise.
Overall, the book is well written, but very choppy and extremely slow paced. I would say it's more of a cultural fiction, as the author speaks after the book about what led them to write it. While interesting (and sad) in its own right, I felt this book was wasted on me, because I kept waiting for the horror bit to kick in. Instead, it was a fictionalized account of the horrible things that happen in real life to native folks in North America.
If you show up expecting that, you'll likely be happy, but I was not expecting that, so... boo.
Overall, the book is well written, but very choppy and extremely slow paced. I would say it's more of a cultural fiction, as the author speaks after the book about what led them to write it. While interesting (and sad) in its own right, I felt this book was wasted on me, because I kept waiting for the horror bit to kick in. Instead, it was a fictionalized account of the horrible things that happen in real life to native folks in North America.
If you show up expecting that, you'll likely be happy, but I was not expecting that, so... boo.