A review by itsnotalakeitsanocean
Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Did not finish book.
I'm so disappointed that I couldn't finish this book. With such a gorgeous cover and intriguing premise (Daunis, a half Ojibwe girl, raised half and half between her reservation and white family but never seeming to fit fully into either, with an interest in traditional medicine solves the murder of her best friend) I went in expecting a solemn if intriguing time.

Much like Daunis herself, however, the book has one foot in two different worlds and as a result became a meandering mess that failed to capture my attention. It wanted to be a thriller and a mystery story with an unconventional sleuth, but it also wants to be a coming-of-age, slice of life story from a character with a background that is sadly all too often overlooked.

This is especially annoying because I loved the inclusion of Ojibwe terms and customs that didn't come across as hand-holdy and encouraged me to do research outside of the book itself. Publishing absolutely needs more characters and authors from First Nations backgrounds that talk about their culture and their daily experiences. 

My complaints are as follows:
  1. I found it very unbelievable that the FBI chose the immediate witness as their inside agent, let alone a teenage girl who they chose on the merit of getting an "honorable mention" at some science fair. Ron and Jamie themselves also came across as incredibly bumbling and don't seem to do much investigating themselves. I understand they don't want to disrupt the daily life of the Ojibwe people and don't know much about the area, but come on - it's in the name itself - the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

  2. Daunis would actually want to co-operate with the FBI seeing how often she goes on about (very justifiably) hating cops. This is especially egregious when, as I've read,
    the fake relationship between her and an undercover agent goes from fake to real. Not only would a good undercover agent NEVER have casual relations with a civilian informant, it gives me the ick that someone who so ardently hates cops would settle "for the right one". Especially for someone whose people have been brutalised by law enforcement.


  3. Speaking of relationships, I didn't find Daunis as bad as some other reviewers did (considering her background, the fact her grandmother is now permanently hospitalised and she's always on the end of a lot of discrimination, I think she's allowed to act out a little), but her constant slut-shaming of other girls was very grating, and also very hypocritical considering her and Lily talked constantly about "snagging" (read: shagging) other guys.

I feel like if Boulley had eliminated the FBI presence and had Daunis be an amateur sleuth trying to solve the mystery herself (Jamie still could have assisted her; he could have been retooled to be just some guy who was divorced from his cultural roots, having been forced to move around for his own safety), this would have corrected a lot of problems.

I'm not going to get into the scene where
Daunis is raped because I did not get far enough into the book to read that scene, and I think if I tried to give my opinion it would be disingenuous but it is definitely worth mentioning it is a thing that happens.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings