Scan barcode
realis's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
alyssa_max's review against another edition
5.0
An excellent, unique story imagining the world without European colonization. I enjoyed the murder mystery, but the real success of this book is the thought exercise of how North America might look in present day without the impacts of colonialism or global capitalism. In my opinion, the world building and historical details were perfectly balanced without overpowering plot advancement.
TW (no spoilers): it’s a murder mystery, so…murder. While death and the manner of death are discussed at certain points, there is no gore or graphic violence.
TW (no spoilers): it’s a murder mystery, so…murder. While death and the manner of death are discussed at certain points, there is no gore or graphic violence.
nicovreeland's review against another edition
2.0
Setting: 5/5
Writing style: 3.5/5
Characters 3/5
Mystery: 4/5
Solution to mystery: 0/5
I was really intrigued by the alternate history setting--a world in which Native Americans retained control of America. The mystery plot took a long time to get going, but was cooking along pretty well by the midpoint. Unfortunately, the solution is predictable and the explanation of it is extremely unsatisfying.
FULL SPOILERS AHEAD
.
.
.
.
.
The MC's mother was murdered 20 years ago by his father, and his sister was badly traumatized by her death. When the novel opens, the MC's godmother is murdered, and evidence suggests that it's the same killer as his mother, but that's impossible because his father has been in jail for 20 years. When the MC goes to ask his father why he confessed to a crime he didn't commit and went to jail for 20 years, his father says nothing and then later hangs himself in his cell.
Not a bad mystery, but the progression is slow and the twists are few and far between (that previous paragraph summarizes all of the plot beats before the final revelation). The emphasis throughout the first half of the book is on the setting, which is the most interesting part, but not interesting enough to sustain the entire book.
The mystery starts to crumble because there are only a handful of named characters who could have committed the crime, but they cross off all of them except the MC's traumatized sister, who does indeed turn out to be the killer.
Here's everything the sister did: she killed her mother (at 12 years old), blackmailed her father to make him confess and sent him to jail for 20 years (this doesn't make any sense for him to do for a whole host of reasons), pretended to be traumatized and basically non-functional for those 20 years, ruining her brother's life in that time, and thens she killed their godmother, and is ready and willing to kill the MC, too.
WHY??? Dunno. The mother cheated on their father, but this reaction to that is like swatting a fly with a nuclear missile. The book surmises that she's possessed by an evil spirit, which in Westernized terms means she's mentally ill.
Mental illness--or evil spirit possession--is an incredibly unsatisfying reason to commit crimes in a police procedural like this because it takes away motive, one of the three pillars of investigation (motive, means, opportunity--specifically cited in this book multiple times). Additionally, in one of this type of mystery, the more outlandish the villain, the more rock-solid and relatable their motive needs to be. "Mom cheated on Dad so I ruined all our lives" is not relatable.
Too bad, I really enjoyed the setting and the grounded speculative elements.
Writing style: 3.5/5
Characters 3/5
Mystery: 4/5
Solution to mystery: 0/5
I was really intrigued by the alternate history setting--a world in which Native Americans retained control of America. The mystery plot took a long time to get going, but was cooking along pretty well by the midpoint. Unfortunately, the solution is predictable and the explanation of it is extremely unsatisfying.
FULL SPOILERS AHEAD
.
.
.
.
.
The MC's mother was murdered 20 years ago by his father, and his sister was badly traumatized by her death. When the novel opens, the MC's godmother is murdered, and evidence suggests that it's the same killer as his mother, but that's impossible because his father has been in jail for 20 years. When the MC goes to ask his father why he confessed to a crime he didn't commit and went to jail for 20 years, his father says nothing and then later hangs himself in his cell.
Not a bad mystery, but the progression is slow and the twists are few and far between (that previous paragraph summarizes all of the plot beats before the final revelation). The emphasis throughout the first half of the book is on the setting, which is the most interesting part, but not interesting enough to sustain the entire book.
The mystery starts to crumble because there are only a handful of named characters who could have committed the crime, but they cross off all of them except the MC's traumatized sister, who does indeed turn out to be the killer.
Here's everything the sister did: she killed her mother (at 12 years old), blackmailed her father to make him confess and sent him to jail for 20 years (this doesn't make any sense for him to do for a whole host of reasons), pretended to be traumatized and basically non-functional for those 20 years, ruining her brother's life in that time, and thens she killed their godmother, and is ready and willing to kill the MC, too.
WHY??? Dunno. The mother cheated on their father, but this reaction to that is like swatting a fly with a nuclear missile. The book surmises that she's possessed by an evil spirit, which in Westernized terms means she's mentally ill.
Mental illness--or evil spirit possession--is an incredibly unsatisfying reason to commit crimes in a police procedural like this because it takes away motive, one of the three pillars of investigation (motive, means, opportunity--specifically cited in this book multiple times). Additionally, in one of this type of mystery, the more outlandish the villain, the more rock-solid and relatable their motive needs to be. "Mom cheated on Dad so I ruined all our lives" is not relatable.
Too bad, I really enjoyed the setting and the grounded speculative elements.
tuliptrees's review against another edition
5.0
It’s been a month since I finished this book and I can’t stop thinking about it. The actual story alone was enough to keep my attention, but the world she wove really captivated me.
thestainlesssteelrat's review against another edition
5.0
Unique
This is a wonderful unique world presented in a truly human story. The only thing close to it would be maybe the Tony Hillerman books, but they of course are contemporary to their time and place, whilst this envisions a what could have been of huge potential.
There is a lot in here and I am certain I will be unpacking some of it for a while.
I hope B L Blanchard takes us back here and reveals more of this alternate world.
This is a wonderful unique world presented in a truly human story. The only thing close to it would be maybe the Tony Hillerman books, but they of course are contemporary to their time and place, whilst this envisions a what could have been of huge potential.
There is a lot in here and I am certain I will be unpacking some of it for a while.
I hope B L Blanchard takes us back here and reveals more of this alternate world.
riahashley's review against another edition
5.0
Started off slow and dry, but it was so worth sticking with it. I often found myself tensing up and holding my breath.
posthumusly's review against another edition
4.0
Liked the worldbuilding. I thought the mystery & reveal was a bit poor, but enjoyed the writing.
nshellab's review against another edition
4.0
So much has gone in to the fascinating and wonderful world building of this book! It’s a twist on the detective story, to have it in this setting. And so many things are just presented, not explained, it makes it even more fun to read. I felt it to be squarely in the detective genre more than the fantasy genre, even so. Clues are offered, and I got to the answer more quickly than our hero, but it still kept me turning the pages because I cared about the people. I look forward to a sequel.
paniynshealyn's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75