alatarmaia 's review for:

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

4.5

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

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The missing 0.5 stars is because it made me sad on a deep level. Some books really challenge you...you want there to be a happy ending where everything is fixed and justice is meted out, but sometimes in reality that's just not how it works. Some authors want to create those escapist happy endings, but sometimes, showing what reality is like is more important. 

Firekeeper's Daughter, I can already tell, is a book that has had a profound impact on me. It reminds me of reading Children of Blood and Bone. The world comes alive within the author's words, happiness, complications, and tragedy alike. Both the good and the bad of the Anishinaabe world on Sugar Island have been brought to the page in their full, magical, unforgettable beauty. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use

Moderate: Death, Rape

Minor: Domestic abuse

Further content warnings:

Daunis' grandmother has a stroke prior to the beginning of the book, and Daunis often visits her in the hospital. Her failing mental condition is something Daunis, the narrator, pays close attention to.