This is a very powerful story that sheds light on the many issues facing indigenous peoples, including racism and discrimination, loss of their culture and history, the destruction of lives due to rampant drug use and addiction, and the disproportionate numbers of Native American women that suffer from abuse, assault, rape, murder, or just disappear and that lack of justice crimes against indigenous women receive.

I was really drawn into the story, appreciated getting to see some of the culture, tradition, and language of the Ojibwa people, and appalled by the abuse and injustice they suffer, saddened by the loss of culture and the devastation caused by addiction. I really liked how strong and insightful the main character was, though I did find her voice to be unrealistically mature for an 18-year old girl, which was a slight distraction at times. However, despite that I highly recommend this own-voices book, which is the first I've read that showed tribal life from the side of the women.

Firekeeper's Daughter is the first of its kind YA book centering the experiences of Indigenous people in Canada, and their rapport with law enforcement and drug use. I found this book to be very dark and somewhat hard to follow. I'm not well positioned to comment on the quality of its representation but I do love seeing #ownvoices titles.

Firekeeper's Daughter isn't a book to rush through; it contains an entire culture within its pages. The storytelling within the story releases the secrets and passions of eighteen-year-old Daunis and her tribe.
This is advertised as a YA book, but will easily cross over to Adult--not because of sexual innuendo (and, there are some mild references) but because of the literary merit and the excellent writing. Sometimes the style comes across as a little dry, but that may be because of the serious subjects presented: meth addiction, murder, rape. Actually, Boulley addresses many hot topics concerning tribal communities, including monthly payouts from gaming revenue, the lack of justice for Native American women who are assaulted on tribal land, and tribal ancestry prejudice. I appreciate the reverence and attention that was maintained while writing about elders, traditions, and holistic medicine. The old ways and the current lifestyles are blended very well.
Living in Oklahoma, if the story's characters' focus was on football instead of hockey, this tale could take place in my hometown.

Absolutely incredible debut thriller/mystery novel. It's hard to express how well done this book is, particularly how well it masterfully deals with incredibly difficult content and themes. Boulley deserves all the accolades and awards possible for this book. TW: murder, drug use, addiction, rape, & suicide.

Writing: 4/5 Characters: 5/5 Plot: 4/5

I loved this book!

Daunis Fontaine is 18 years old, 6 feet tall, an ice hockey ace, and a science whiz. While she grows up in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan with her white mother and grandparents she is also deeply ingrained in the local Ojibwa community of her father. What starts off looking like an upbeat teen romance takes a sharp left turn and becomes mystery, intrigue, and thriller (romance takes a back seat — pun intended). The plot keeps swerving — surprise after surprise after surprise — with Daunis giving us an intelligent and fiercely community oriented view of the ride. I couldn’t put it down. I’ll give you a hint — Daunis ends up being a Confidential Informer (she calls it being a Secret Squirrel) for law enforcement.

One of the things I loved about this book is the way the many characters in the Ojibwa community are portrayed. While references to past injustices are present and individual incidents of prejudice occur (Daunis and her friend like to play Bigotry Bingo — see quote below), they are not front and center. This is a novel of today — various members of the community are successful (by personal definitions of the word) while others are not; some are greedy and conniving while others are supportive and helpful; some have drug and alcohol problems while others have steered clear. In other words, no group stereotypes and no group victimhood. An array of well-drawn individual characters.

Daunis is a great character — I love her scientific approach to life, her fearless and unconcerned approach to typically male endeavors, and her deep involvement with the tribal culture and people. Great themes, great unfolding of the many mysteries past and present, and an absorbing view into a culture unlike my own. Ojibwa is a matriarchal society, and the story includes many strong women characters of all ages. I enjoyed the embedded language and cultural practice tutorials.

A couple of quotes:
“When Lily and I were on Tribal Youth Council, we all played a game called Bigotry Bingo. When we heard a comment that fed into stereotypes, we’d call it out. Dream catchers were the free space. Too easy. There are so many others though. ‘You don’t look Native.’ ‘Must be nice to get free college.’ ‘Can you give me an Indian name for my dog?’ ”

“My mother’s superpower is turning my ordinary worries into monsters so huge and pervasive that her distress and heartache become almost debilitating.”

“When you love someone, but don’t like parts of them, it complicates your memories of them when they’re gone.”

Wow! This is my first 2021 big hand sell to family & friends. If you avoid books with the YA tagline please don't overlook this one - it truly is a book for both adult and YA readers. I had a wonderful time from the start however my colleagues mentioned it was about 50 pages in that it hooked them and they were reluctant to put down. This book was so layered and nuanced that I didn't know who was at fault and the sublimal stories within this story still haunt me even 6 weeks after finishing this book. If you have not heard her interview on Entertainment Weekly, please look for it and give a listen.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Publishing for this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

How do you describe a book that has the ability to simultaneously fill your heart with such joy, but also bring you such sadness? Firekeeper’s Daughter did just that for me.

When I saw the cover of this arc in an email from NetGalley, I immediately fell in love. It was stunning. What I didn’t expect was how stunning the words inside would be. I know very little about the Indigenous/Indian culture. My paternal grandmother was born on a Cherokee reservation, but I grew up in the suburbs, never learning much about it. From learning so much throughout this book, it seems I truly missed out. I don’t think I’ve ever come across a book with Indian’s as the focus, but this was fantastic. Even if you have no knowledge of the language of the tribe, Angeline does such a fantastic job of giving explanation of what certain phrases and words mean. She also does a fantastic job of teaching you about the culture of the tribe and how the day to day life/inner workings work. It’s incredible.

As for the content, Daunis is such a strong, yet stunningly broken character. The arc her character follows is full of growth, understanding and learning. She’s flawed, yet perfect as she is. I would’ve never been able to do what she did. Seeing her familial dynamic as well as her friendships was interesting. Her character was laid out so well, and truly flourished. Besides Daunis, I loved Jamie as a character. His ability to read Daunis was one of my favorite parts. But the best part? Daunis’s ability to stand on her own.

If you’re looking for a true crime style book in the YA category, look no further. This book will fill your heart with joy, rip it out, and put it back together again.

Coming of age & multicultural. Daunis is biracial and has never truly fit in with either of her communities. So when a teammate of her brother shows interest in her, she's flattered. Then her best friend is murdered, and Daunis' world is shattered. When she "accidentally" becomes an informant, she hopes to uncover the scum within her community-- it won't bring back her best friend but she'll save others.

I was so excited about this book when I first heard about it in a webinar last month. Thanks NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group/Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) for the ARC!
This book is fantastic. Incredible. I devoured it in about a day and a half. I'm still thinking about the characters. You need to read it and you need it in your collection. Perfectly fine for adult readers. Go get it come March.

An explosive debut! A powerful, important page-turner that I highly recommend. While technically YA, this would appeal to readers of all ages.

I loved this book. It has an interesting and important story and great characters. I loved learning more about the culture and history and Daunis is fantastic.

I knew little about #FirekeepersDaughter going into it other than the beautiful cover and the description, and I was not disappointed. This was one of the most interesting, layered books I have read this year. It will be easily accessible and enjoyable to a wide range of ages and types of readers. This review will be limited due to it being an early release.

In this story we follow the life of Daunis, a "biracial, unenrolled tribal member," both on and off the Ojibwe reservation. It begins by following her daily life as a young woman living between being unrolled but active in her Ojibwe community and traditions, and her life with her family and friends. Her dream of playing ice hockey and going away to college have been put on hold due to a series of personal and family difficulties. However, she begins a relationship with Jamie, a new hockey player on her brother's team. After witnessing a violent act, she is thrust into uncovering what is going on not just in the Ojibwe community, but in a broader Indigenous communities as well. The story picks up from here into a fast-paced murder mystery.

This novel is so layered. As a white woman, I cannot speak to the author's Anishinaabe traditions, but I appreciated learning more about language, customs, community, politics, and more. They are central to Daunis' life and to the story. The author reminds us about the current real life situations with Indigenous woman and girls being harmed and going missing. The book is also a coming-of-age novel with a smart and engaging main character and a well described, rich list of secondary characters. It incorporates to many topics from medicine to politics to gender roles--even to ice hockey.

It's hard to believe this is a debut novel. I look forward to more work in the future from Angeline Boulley and look forward to purchasing this book for our library.

Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley is one of the most powerful and important books I’ve ever read. It made my heart feel so full and broken at the same time. As a Lingít reader, I appreciated how unapologetically Anishinaabe this novel was in it’s use of language, traditions, and culture that created such a rich world. The community was so real and visceral, I felt like I knew the characters, and I absolutely loved all of it. This book shines a valuable light on Anishinaabe people and issues, which many other Indigenous communities across Turtle Island will see themselves reflected in. Boulley has delivered a masterpiece of Indigenous literature. It’s one I’ll be revisiting many times, and pushing on everyone I know.

I would classify this as a young adult crime fiction, so I highly recommend going in as blind as you can. It added to my reading experience and had me gushing, screaming, and wishing I could talk to someone while I read it. And if you are usually turned off by a book being young adult, please don’t let that turn you away from this book. I highly recommend this to teen and adult readers.

CW: Meth addiction, murder, grief, mourning, kidnapping, mention of drug overdose

I genuinely and 100% believe that Angeline Boulley has written the most powerful and stunning book of the year; with unmatched wit interwoven with generational trauma and the pain of firsthand experiences, Firekeeper’s Daughter is the type of novel that will stay with you long after it’s returned to it’s place on the shelf.
This story focuses on the raw pain that Native communities face when it comes to drugs, addiction, and the corruption that allows these sicknesses to flourish on Reservations and poorly-funded Indigenous living spaces. It details the relationship between Federal Law Enforcement, Tribal Cops, and the citizens of this town. Daunis Fontaine is the type of Native lead that all Indigenous Girls need to read about. Strong and courageous, even when her fear is choking her with every second that passes; Daunis is a fighter and a woman that inspires me. With everything she faces, she never once backs down from her challenges. This novel had it’s hooks in me from the first line and kept me burning through the pages and to the twist I never even saw coming. If you get the chance to pick this book up when it debuts in early 2021, do not pass up your chance. You’ll regret it.

Wow! Just wow! I went into this book unsure of what to expect. The cover I felt was a little misleading … I thought it was a fantasy book. But I guess that is what you get for judging a book by its cover. Still… I loved the cover and this novel exceeded my expectations by leaps and bounds. Wonderful! I will honestly say it is probably one my favorite YA reads this year. I couldn’t put it down!

I don’t want to discuss too much of the summary, so read the published summary above. I think they did a great job summarizing it… concealing some twists, that shocked me a little.

The characters in Fire Keeper’s Daughter were fantastic! Each one was unique and well written. Daunis was a strong female lead; she is real. The other characters feed in to the storyline well. Although there are many characters, each has their part in the storyline. One of the things I love is the tribal stories, history, and traditions. I think this is what makes the story. It takes you to a different place and you learn about a new culture. The mystery and twists are good, but the setting really makes it all work. Interweaving the Ojibew stories and traditions makes this novel stand out.

The only thing I struggled with was language. I loved the use of Ojibew tribal language, but sometimes I couldn’t remember what some words or phrases meant. But it didn’t take it away from the story and I will still give it five stars because the story and characters are so well done!

Congratulations Angeline Boulley on your excellent, debut novel! Thank you Netgalley and Henry Holt and Company for an ARC. I look forward to adding this book to our library shelf and for other books by Boulley!