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A review by giulsfloris
Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
I picked this book because of the beautiful cover and was initially disappointed to find out that this wasn’t a fantasy novel as I believed, but I eventually decided to keep reading and… well, let me tell you why I’m glad I read this book!!
Plot:
This mystery ya novel isn’t really based on a true story, but it does feel like it.
Daunis, the protagonist, is the daughter of the late Levi Firekeeper Sr and his former white girlfriend, Daunis’s mom, making our protagonist half-native and half-white.
Daunis was only a few months old when Levi Firekeeper Sr had a son with a young woman named Dana.
When Daunis, her brother Levi, her best friend Lily and the new guy in town, Jamie, all go to a party together, everything falls apart…
Why I stayed:
This novel is beautifully written.
It took me a while to read the first few chapters, mostly because I was waiting for something magical to happen (yeah, I was so sure this would be a fantasy book) and was disappointed when it didn’t, but then, as the story progressed, I literally couldn’t put it down.
The pace was amazing and the information and details that Angeline Boulley inserted were just enough to let me know more about the Ojibwe culture without confusing me (I’m white, and English isn’t my first language).
Daunis has to face several challenges and she does it with deep compassion and thoughtfulness. I appreciate the author so much for bringing this story to life and I am grateful I got to read it.
Trigger warning: r*pe and se*ual as*ault
There was a moment in particular that triggered my ptsd and made me uncomfortable. I was expecting it because I checked the trigger warnings, even if this one was mostly listed in the “moderate” section and not the “graphic”, but I’m thankful I checked.
The author wanted to highlight the lack of justice whenever crimes are perpetuated against native women and how the native community is neglected. This is a perspective we rarely think about and isn’t talked about enough.
Plot:
This mystery ya novel isn’t really based on a true story, but it does feel like it.
Daunis, the protagonist, is the daughter of the late Levi Firekeeper Sr and his former white girlfriend, Daunis’s mom, making our protagonist half-native and half-white.
Daunis was only a few months old when Levi Firekeeper Sr had a son with a young woman named Dana.
When Daunis, her brother Levi, her best friend Lily and the new guy in town, Jamie, all go to a party together, everything falls apart…
Why I stayed:
This novel is beautifully written.
It took me a while to read the first few chapters, mostly because I was waiting for something magical to happen (yeah, I was so sure this would be a fantasy book) and was disappointed when it didn’t, but then, as the story progressed, I literally couldn’t put it down.
The pace was amazing and the information and details that Angeline Boulley inserted were just enough to let me know more about the Ojibwe culture without confusing me (I’m white, and English isn’t my first language).
Daunis has to face several challenges and she does it with deep compassion and thoughtfulness. I appreciate the author so much for bringing this story to life and I am grateful I got to read it.
Trigger warning: r*pe and se*ual as*ault
There was a moment in particular that triggered my ptsd and made me uncomfortable. I was expecting it because I checked the trigger warnings, even if this one was mostly listed in the “moderate” section and not the “graphic”, but I’m thankful I checked.
The author wanted to highlight the lack of justice whenever crimes are perpetuated against native women and how the native community is neglected. This is a perspective we rarely think about and isn’t talked about enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Rape, Death, Drug abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Death of parent, Medical trauma, Abandonment, Violence, and Addiction