An almost perfect brew of: gore, violence, social commentary and survival. One that I'm looking forward to rereading again now that I know how it plays out.

Wow! This book is my favorite book of 2020(so far). It actually took me
A few days to write this review to gather my thoughts. This book was a bundle of emotions that I loved to hate it in certain parts. Yes, it is a horror story but it is so much more. I learned so much about modern day native Americans and the prejudices they endure. The social commentary in this novel gives the reader a very raw look at the internalization of harmful behavior, not only outside of the reservation but from within as well. Also how the Native Americans are treated and seen in the United States and the prejudices that still prevails.
Going into this book, and knowing about the elk woman being the boogeyman of the story, I assumed would be something silly and over the top that I would never find scary.....boy was I wrong!
Stephen Graham Jones is a masterful story teller and I look forward to reading his back catalogue.
Many many thanks to the publisher and netgalley for an advanced readers copy!!

Stephen Graham Jones has such a wonderfully unique voice and talent for telling stories. I enjoyed this book immensely, as I do everything I’ve read by him.

I have been anticipating this book for months. I have to say it was well worth the wait. It's a slow, creepy build to a true horror. The story is about four Native American Indian friends. They are out hunting on sacred land and they kill a group of elks. Their elders warned them not to hunt on sacred land. Years later they learn of the consequences of killing this group of elks. This instills a fear in them and their families like they have never experienced. I loved each of the characters in this book. Each one plays their own part and makes the story! If you are looking for a fast paced, terrifying, creepy, true story, this is the book for you. I could not put it down. I highly recommend it!

Admittedly at first I was ready to just give up on this book. The changing points of view are a little bit off-putting and some of the characters just didn't sit well for me. Some of the early dialog was hard to slog through, but I'm glad I stuck it out in the end.

The story ended up where I expected but the ride was fun. The title is eh. and honestly in the end some points could have been better elaborated on but overall a good read. Creepy in parts but I did get tired of the basketball references quickly.

This book wasn't originally my taste because I found myself having to take breaks from reading to avoid squirming and getting spooked. However, I actually ended up enjoying it more than I originally anticipated. Still not within my wheelhouse of favorite genres, but it was equal parts compelling, dark, twisty, and deep. I would definitely recommend this book to my horror book lovers! Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery, Pocket Books; Gallery/Saga Press for a copy of this book for an honest review.

Stories are written in a time and place, they have meaning for the author when they are written; sometimes they can take on a different meaning for the reader depending on the time when they are read, things can change between the writing and the reading.

Primarily, The Only Good Indians comes across as a story of vengeance or karma. Our past actions catching up with us. Jones has plunged into the lives of four men tied together by a past, an act that broke with traditions and values haunts them. No matter their choices or how far they broke apart, this one event held them together forever.

Jones told this story from multiple perspectives; he provides his audience with a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree view of the events and consequences. He creates a connection and sympathy for all of the characters. This is horror where everyone is a monster and a victim.

Reading The Only Good Indians during the current political crisis, Jones’ story brought on even more meaning and emotions. We are focused on the mistreatment of a particular marginalized group within our society, and this problem must be solved! But while we are correcting one injustice there is another one that is just as bad. Jones highlighted the struggles, biases and hurdles facing the Native American cultures. Even the name of the story is a biased unfinished phrase. The four men who face a horror of their past highlights the struggles that many face in their present. I can’t help but think that Jones was going there too.

The Only Good Indians was a subtle, yet bloody horror story that pushes its audience to not only think, but to act. The real horror surrounds us every day.

*4.5 Stars

This book just isn't for me. The writing style or plot doesn't capture my attention. I have no clue what's happening or why. This book will have an audience it just isn't me.

Excellent read! Dark, twisted ride! Grab a copy of this one and be prepared to keep turning the pages! ARC provided by NetGalley.

Unfortunately, I don't think this book was for me. I had to DNF it after a few chapters since I was confused and not clicking with the writing. After reading a few reviews, I think I'm not the targeted audience for this one and it's just a case of "it's me, not the book or author in any way". This book has been highly regarded in the horror community so if this synopsis interests you, you should read it! I'm sad I couldn't get into this one but this takes nothing away from the book or author. My rating reflects my personal experience reading it, not that is' a bad book at all.

Thanks to Netgalley and Gallery books for the opportunity, I truly appreciate it!

This book put me on EDGE. I read this bad boy from 1AM-3AM, which added to the horror of it all. Stephen Graham Jones crafts a cautionary tale for those who were stripped of ancestral wisdom and conditioned to adopt White men’s savage ways.

Thanksgiving is a colonial holiday that celebrates the massacre of a group of people and the dominion of another. In this thrilling horror, Jones has the massacred group a herd of elk and the murderers are the Indians on this holiday. The actions of four young Indian men echo the violence of White America who slaughtering buffalo, wolves, and bears for sport. This awakens a vengeful entity and so our story begins.

Themes of greed, vengeance, internalized oppression, and intergenerational trauma are expertly woven into the text. There’s an interesting subversion of expectations that occur in the novel. This is a refreshing critique of wasting resources and sport hunting. If animal abuse/cruelty isn’t your shtick, you won’t like this book. It’s bloody.

The monster and daughter of one of the young men are the best parts of the book. The daughter, D, is an excellent depiction of intergenerational trauma. She is penalized for something her father did and is punished for it. The punishment is the monstrous manifestation of the literal blood on her father’s hands. The monster is compelling, has excellent motives, and is cut-throat--literally.

However, what didn’t work a specific thriller/horror technique. Jones often has the characters react to something without prior allusion, foreshadow, or indication of what is happening. All of a sudden there’s something spooky or unspeakable. The reader does not see what this is until the character is done reacting. This occurs several times, resulting in a lot of rereads. It’s frustrating when reading an ecopy (which was provided by Saga Press on NetGalley for an honest review).

Otherwise, this a good spooky read. It went by rather quickly, especially since at times it read more like a collection of short stories. Read this during Halloween. You won't be disappointed.

I’m afraid I abandoned this one. I felt like I came into the middle of a story that I knew nothing about and after reading up to 25% of the book, things never got any better. I’m really disappointed because I was hoping this would be an exciting read. I just didn't feel like the writing was compelling enough to continue.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Saga Press for the advance copy.

I'm going to be honest, I almost don't know how to review this book. I knew very little about it going in and you can see, the synopsis doesn't give much away. The cover initially caught my attention and then the book itself started getting a lot of buzz. All I knew was that being a horror lover, I couldn't wait to read it.

I think going into this book blind actually increased my enjoyment. I'll admit that I was kind of confused in the beginning but after the first 50 pages or so, it started to fall into place. However, it wasn't until the end of the novel that the full gravity of what I had read hit me. The Only Good Indians tells the tale of four American Indian individuals who as teens, went hunting on sacred land. When they were caught, they were forbidden to ever hunt again, yet for one of them, the weight of what they did weighed more heavily. Now these Blackfeet men are older, have moved on and are living their own lives. But are they safe from what happened years ago??

This book is broken down into different parts and at first, it felt like novellas woven together to form one cohesive tale. And I guess maybe it could be looked at like that. The reader is able to see both of the current day activities as well as the past experiences for various POVs. The format worked well for me as I tend to love it when books show various time periods throughout. One by one we see these men face their fears and struggle to come out the other side.

The book is also so strongly founded in Native American culture. The beliefs and customs are so deeply and play such a pertinent part in the story. I felt for each character in a different way and even though the book was totally terrifying in places, I still had a hard time feeling completely sorry for what the men were experiencing. I could see all sides and honestly, this is a tale that will stick with me for a long time.

I think this book is begging to be made into a movie and if it is, I'm there for it. I'll anxiously sit and watch and probably tell my husband at least a time or two the book is better. Because honestly, I don't know if a film can truly encompass the atmosphere and tone of The Only Good Indians.

If you love horror then you seriously need to consider picking this book up.

I received a copy of the book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

4.5/5

First off, standard disclaimer: I was given a free copy of this novel by NetGalley and Gallery/Saga Press in exchange for an honest review and the untainted blood of my firstborn child. Joke's on them, I'm never having kids.

Anyway-- The Only Good Indians is a full-blooded slasher novel, but it's also more than that. Stephen Graham Jones is a genre chemist, stirring up conventions into something wholly original, surprising, and meaningful. There are some extremely innovative sequences, and the final 50 pages contain probably the best conclusion to a horror novel I've ever read. I'm sure someone has already coined the term "literary slasher" but, that's what this is.

If you're looking for a straight-up blood-and-guts slasher, everything you want is here -- but it won't feel like a slasher the entire time. Those looking for easy-reading-scares may find the middle act a little dull and too literary (the story branches and the author takes the time to introduce us to a couple new narrative perspectives and build thematic weight), but I promise the payoff is worth every second.

My favorite part of the whole novel is the finals girl joke. Plus, Denorah's conclusion smartly takes us away from the unlikable main cast and gives us a purehearted young hero fighting for social change to root for in the end. It adds beauty, levity, and optimism to what otherwise would've been a grim ending.

A truly scary story is one that doesn’t leave you, even after you’ve put down the book. You dwell on it, mull it over, everyday objects remind you of it, you find yourself losing track of your thoughts, only to find them thinking about the story and its haunting imagery. On multiple occasions, when I was reading, I was brutally startled to the present, screaming out loud as someone walked into my bedroom or said my name.

Spooky storyline aside, this book is rich with Native heritage, where past and present collide. Sweats with traditional drumming over a loudspeaker. Hunting and gathering in trucks with the spirits of the elders whispering the legends of the elk. Woven throughout the plot are traditions and storytelling, tales and rituals passed down for generations, explanations and ideas with cultural and paranormal origins.

For the best reading experience, I recommend inhaling parts two and three in one (or two consecutive) sittings, in the middle of the forest, next to a roaring bonfire. Don’t forget your cooler of ice cold beer.

I received a complementary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I hate to say that this was my first experience with Stephen Graham Jones' writing and WOW was I blown away by this. A swiftly moving narrative with flashbacks of Lewis's present day life and flashbacks of a hunting trip he took years ago that has clearly affected him in a very deep way. I am a big fan of dual/flashback narratives like this and this was very well done and enjoyable.
I think was really caught me off guard was the storytelling, I had high hopes because I have always heard people rave about his work, but this exceeded my expectations. It felt almost intimate because the characters were so real, I felt like I knew these people.
And the ending. Thumbs up from me.
I am so looking forward to reading more of his work!

I will start with I really wanted to like this one, I really did! It was one of my anticipated reads, but I just didn't like it. :(

It's about four different characters who were good friends up until something they did ten years prior and now they don't really get together as much as they use to at least Lewis didn't talk to them much. This something they did comes back to haunt them as the spirit is out for a bit of revenge. Sounds pretty good so far right?

Well, this is a very character driven story and I am finding out that I am not a character driven reader I guess. Something happens to one of the guys right off and I was like alright this is going to be good, but then it goes to Lewis and I started to get bored pretty quick. It was just a lot of mundane stuff about his life but he does start seeing an Elk calf and kind of thinks he is losing it a bit.

After his section it goes to Cassidy and Gabe of and on with a bit of Gabe's young teenage daughter having some chapters as she comes in to play a lot at the end. We learn a lot about how they are going to have a sweat because they want to honor their two friends who have died and also try and teach a teenage boy about the sweat lodge.

Can't really say much more or I feel like it could be spoilery, but it felt like it drug on forever and ever. Barb really liked it after she got to around the sweat lodge part and so I kept  going even though I really wanted to DNF, mainly cause I wanted to know why she liked it. Well, I still don't know why lol. We don't disagree to much on books but we do have different opinions on this one.

Even when it got to some cool parts with the spirit thing coming for it's revenge but it wasn't enough to save this one for me and I thought the ending with the teenage girl took to long to wrap up and by then I just wanted to get the book finished. :(

So this was definitely not a book for me though I did like the Native American lore and I know I am in the minority among my blogging friends who have read this, so others I think might like it more than me.

The Only Good Indians either is, or should be on any horror lover’s list of the most anticipated books of the year. I’ve seen a lot of early praise for this one and was lucky enough to get a copy through Net Galley. The story focuses on four Native American men coming to terms with something that happened on a hunting trip years ago, and the inevitable repercussions that come calling.
First off, the book is exciting, and I don’t just mean I can’t believe Saga allowed me, of all people, to get an early copy. The pacing sets it apart and I can’t think of another story, horror or otherwise, to compare the prose to. It contains hints of stream-of-consciousness to it, but also a level of care that allows it to appear well thought out and carefully planned.
I appreciate the way the story is written and bow down to the immense talent that is Stephen Graham Jones. Mongrels holds a special place in my heart as a top-tier werewolf and coming-of-age novel. Mapping the Interior was one of the best novellas I read last year. Unfortunately, The Only Good Indians didn’t work for me. I found the characters and the timelines hard to keep track of at times, and although I enjoyed the way the story panned out, those elements definitely impacted my overall appreciation. Given the early feedback and my other experiences with this author, I firmly believe that this book didn’t hit me at the right time to resonate, or maybe it just wasn’t for me.
I would encourage potential readers to read reviews widely and give this book a go if the synopsis strikes their fancy. As I’ve mentioned, this is a very well-written story, and this may be a title I revisit at a later date. There are two consecutive chapters that deal with a high-stakes basketball game that at first glance don’t fit into the genre, but absolutely captivated me.
If you decide this book sounds up your alley, I sincerely wish you the immersive experience I hoped to have going in.

I kept hearing whispers about this book. People were SO excited and wanted it so badly and those whispers stuck in my head but I hadn’t read the author and I REFUSED to visit Netgalley because I have absolutely zero willpower when it comes to their offerings. But then a few super early reviews came in and naturally I had a weak moment and hit up NetGalley and I am not at all sorry. Well, perhaps a wee bit because there was some animal stuff in here that was hard to read (prepare thyself) but trust me when I say this book is an experience that has the power to take your damn breath away. I don’t say that about a lot of books, hardly any at all actually, but this one managed to do it several times.

It’s about a horrifically bleak and terrible dark deed done by a few over-zealous young punks on a part of the reservation that did not belong to them. This memory will follow and haunt them (as well it should if you ask me). This book is painful to read but truly hard to put down at the same time. Whenever I had to put it aside to return to reality it lingered at the edges of my brain.

“When the whole world hurts, you bite it, don’t you?”

I struggled with this review. I kept starting it and stopping it fearing I’d never be able to do any kind of justice to it without spoiling the hell out of it and I am not going to do that. This book shocked me even though I was warned that it was going to do just that. I figured, “Nah it’s not going to get ME” but I was wrong. The writing is engaging and harrowing, the characters flawed and hard to look away from and it’s simply a beautifully tragic masterpiece of horror on so many levels with anguish so strong you can feel it stain your soul. Read it if you want your heart ripped out of your chest, chewed up, spit out, rubbed in the bloody dirt, and then super glued back together with your tears.

Brilliantly breath-stealing. Just go read it if this is at all something that you think you’re into. I'm giving this one a rare five star because it is deserving and this book is the reason why I am so miserly with my five stars!

ARC was provided by Stephen Graham Jones in exchanged for an honest review.

This review is being published before the release date (July 14th, 2020)

Content/Trigger Warnings: Talk of drug and alcohol abuse, graphic deaths of animals, graphic injuries, murder, loss of a loved one, grief

“For them, ten years ago, that’s another lifetime.
For you it’s yesterday.”

My heart, my whole damn heart is filled with so much appreciation for this book. Growing up with a mother who is horror obsessed, it’s been a while since I read a book that chilled my core. I wish my schedule hadn’t been so busy outside of reading this book because I have no doubt that I would have power read this book in two-three days. Also, this is an ownvoices horror novel for the Native American representation. I can’t even begin to express how much this means to me as an Indigenous reader and reviewer. To have an arc of this book, I’m forever grateful and this is something I’ll cherish with my whole soul.

Our story begins with the prologue as it sets the tone for the rest of the novel. We follow Ricky, the first of the four Blackfeet men to encounter the Elk Woman, an entity born from a violent incident on scared ground. Once the news of Ricky reaches his friends, only Lewis begins to wonder if there’s more to what happened than another Native man dying in a bar fight. But soon, they’ll all see how powerful suffering and vengeance really can be.

🦌 Ricky – After leaving the reservation, works for a contracting company, the first to encounter the Elk Woman and die.

🦌 Lewis – Left the reservation to marry his wife, Peta, still works for the postal office, liked to read books, thinks often of “that day“.

🦌 Gabe – Gabe Cross Guns still lives on the reservations and looks after his father, the fighter/troublemaker of the group, uses jokes redirect conversations and hard topics, and father to Denorah.

🦌 Cass – Cassidy Sees Elk still lives on the reservation with Gabe, living with his girlfriend, the serious one of the four friends

🦌 Denorah – Gabe’s daughter, the reservation basketball star, the underdog of this story.

“It was so easy. He was so fragile, so delicately balanced, so unprepared to face what he’d done.”

The author has an incredible way of writing. The way this book is written in a way that leaves you wondering if the Elk Woman who’s inflicting the wrath upon these men is their guilty imagination or something more real. There’s also a constant theme of grief laced through the entire novel. You have these passages where we see things from, not only the four men, but also the Elk Woman and there’s such a heaviness of loss. Stephen did an incredible job weaving such a powerful emotion throughout this book and really shows how grief can manifest in so many different ways for people.

“We’re from where we’re from. Scars are a part of the deal, aren’t they?”

I also have to take a moment to say that this book addresses so much when it comes to Blackfeet culture and beliefs, talks a little bit about elk ivory, gives you glimpses of what reservation life is like, how if you’re of color you’re treated differently and have to work twice as hard, and so many other important topics that aren’t often talked about. There were so many moments in this book that addressed many of these topics and the truth that’s woven into this book… how could I not get emotional about it?

And the ending of this book what just a shock to the system. I loved it so much! Denorah is such an underdog, but I loved reading things from her perspective. She’s very determined, headstrong, and so courageous. I think many readers will fall in love with her and her actions. I think she’s my favorite character and dare I say she deserves a spin-off book.

Overall, I really liked this book. I want to say so much more about this book, but I think anyone who picks this book up should go in with as little information as possible. I loved how the uncertainty, the horror, and confusion of the characters translated on the page. All the side characters brought so much to the table for the story development, the personal interactions between the main characters, and making this book feel like a horror movie for your brain. If you’re a lover of horror, looking for books by Native American authors to diversify your reading, or if you enjoy supernatural/paranormal novels then recommend picking this novel up!


The quotes above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.