Daunis doesn't fit into either life- not her white mother's life, nor her father's Native American life. Going away to college was supposed to give her a chance to start over, but after illness and tragedy hits her family, she decides to stay near home for college. After meeting Jamie, a new hockey player, her life seems to pick up a little, but this nice, cute boy has a girlfriend waiting for him back home. Daunis refuses to be "That Girl" and interfere in a relationship, but with how charming and nice Jamie is, it's hard to ignore him. When a murder occurs and Daunis is one of the only witnesses, she's thrown into an FBI murder investigation involving Ojibwe medicine and drugs.
This book was so, so good. I felt pain for Daunis as she navigated the reality of not belonging fully to either half of her heritage. She's alone, different, and misunderstood. I really enjoyed getting immersed in the culture and language, even though it was difficult to get into at first due to all the foreign words. After the first 20% of the book or so, we are really thrown into the mystery and action portion of this novel, which I absolutely adored. I fell in love with so many of the characters and I felt Daunis' love for her Elders, family, and friends. I could not recommend this book more to lovers of thrillers, mysteries, and OwnVoices fiction that have the perfect sprinkling of romance mixed in.
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for giving me the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This book was so, so good. I felt pain for Daunis as she navigated the reality of not belonging fully to either half of her heritage. She's alone, different, and misunderstood. I really enjoyed getting immersed in the culture and language, even though it was difficult to get into at first due to all the foreign words. After the first 20% of the book or so, we are really thrown into the mystery and action portion of this novel, which I absolutely adored. I fell in love with so many of the characters and I felt Daunis' love for her Elders, family, and friends. I could not recommend this book more to lovers of thrillers, mysteries, and OwnVoices fiction that have the perfect sprinkling of romance mixed in.
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for giving me the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.