Angeline Boulley proves she’s not a one hit wonder with Warrior Girl Unearthed!

The main character is a niece of Daunis Firekeeper. I loved returning to the island, and learning more about the Ojibwe culture. Her writing is educational in an engaging way, while demonstrating a mastery of storytelling.

If you enjoyed Firekeeper’s Daughter, you’ll enjoy Warrior Girl Unearthed. While categorized as a YA novel, it will be enjoyable for YAs and Adults alike.

Another fantastic read from Boulley, who is quicky becoming one of my favourite authors. She has such a gift of crafting a story to make you feel like you're there. I can't wait to read more from her in the hopefully near future!

3.5 stars

After a rave, 5-star review of her Firekeeper’s Daughter, I had high hopes for this follow-up novel. Unfortunately, it didn’t hit the same high notes for me.

I think the #1 issue I had with this book was the pacing. It was a slow, slow burn story with many convoluted storylines and plot points that I found difficult to follow. The main character was also extremely impulsive and, at times, hard to root for. It’s complicated, because while I understood her motivations, her actions often read as childish and immature. I know she was only 16, but some of the decisions she made really grounded me squarely in the “young adult” nature of this book. Not necessarily a bad thing, just not a personal preference.

But, where this book really shines is the conversations around NAGPRA and MMIW. I learned so much and felt the anger and grief that Perry was experiencing for her people throughout the story. I am obsessed with the way Boulley incorporates her deep love of her culture into her books and is so unapologetic about centering Native American experiences. I will continue to read everything she writes, because I just love and appreciate learning from her.

I was thrilled to see that Angeline Boulley had a new YA novel coming out, and when I learned that the main character was the niece of Daunis Firekeeper, the MC of Firekeeper's Daughter, I could hardly contain my excitement! Returning to the UP of Michigan, Warrior Girl Unearthed cements Ms. Boulley in my list of authors I recommend to just about every reader, particularly those who, like me, enjoy reading books that take place in my home state.

Warrior Girl Unearthed, like Firekeeper's Daughter, is as educational as it is entertaining. I finished this book with a greater understanding of Ojibwe culture, especially with respect to honoring the deceased ancestors. While I was not comfortable with some of Perry's 'repatriation' efforts that skirted the law (I would side with Cooper on this one), I could appreciate the strong emotions that were involved, and also her final goal. Layered in with the story is the mysterious disappearance of several young women, which I felt could have been eliminated from the story entirely with little change to the outcome.

Warrior Girl Unearthed is technically a YA book, but will be enjoyed by readers of adult fiction, as well.

Thank you to Netgalley and Henry Holt & Co. for the digital ARC of Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley. The opinions in this review are my own.

Perry Firekeeper-Birch is comfortable with life as it is and eager for a quiet summer spent fishing with her dog, Elvis Jr. Perry’s twin, Pauline, has different summer plans, with an ambitious schedule that centers around college and her internship with the tribal council. Before summer can even start, Perry crashes her car and Aunt Daunis (Yes! THAT Daunis) agrees to repair the car if Perry agrees to join her sister as an intern too. Slowly, Perry’s outlook begins to change as she learns more about her tribe, herself, and how her story is inextricably linked with narratives and laws that affect native people and their history in the United States. Boulley again blends genres, combining a coming of age story (with a touch of romance) with a thriller. Perry’s journey is wrapped around questions of cultural appropriation, the repatriation of human remains and objects that are sacred to native cultures, two-spirit people, and missing indigenous women. The language of Ojibwe is central to the rhythm of Boulley’s writing and by highlighting Perry’s connections to her culture, from the pull that she feels from her ancestor’s baskets to the solace that she finds when fishing, Boulley guides her readers to a better understanding of the culture and values of the Anishinaabe people. Perry’s story takes place ten years after Firekeeper’s Daughter and readers of Firekeeper’s Daughter will be relieved to learn that Daunis’s story get an update here. Slow to get started, yet impossible to put down, I find myself thinking of Perry and her Band of Misfit Toys often. This is a story that will stick with readers long after its mysteries are solved. Like Perry, once we learn about our connections to the injustices of the past and their relevance to our present, we must act.

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co. for an advanced reader copy supplied for review

*special thank you to netgalley, angeline boulley & henry holt books for an ARC of this book inexhcange for an honest review

WOW. Angeline Boulley delivers an amazing story AGAIN. I absolutely loved Firekeepers Daughter. I actually still think about that book to this day. With that being said, I had such high hopes for this one and boy did she deliver. Perry is probably one of my favorite characters I've read (just like Daunis was). She's young, yet so brave & so determined. Not only are the characters great, but so are all of the important lessons. We learn so much about the importance of bringing back ancestorial artifacts and remains and I loved how Perry was willing to go to any length to do just that. I highly recommend reading Firekeeper's Daughter first. While not necessary to the story, it helps you understand the other characters - particularly Daunis. It also gives you a greater understanding of the Ojibwe Tribe.

5 shiny bright starts from me!

In Warrior Girl Unearthed Perry Firekeeper-Birch, a bi-racial (Black and Anishinaabe) teen whose twin Pauline is the achiever, hopes to spend her summer fishing and slacking off. However, after trashing her aunt's car, she finds herself working with Pauline in the Sugar Island Ojibwe Tribe's summer internship program to pay for damages. She is assigned to work at the tribal museum where she discovers remains and artifacts from deceased Anishinaabe tribe members are being claimed by the local university. Determined to return them to the tribe, she comes up with a heist plan and in doing so uncovers a mystery involving missing Indigenous women. Always headstrong, Perry gets into trouble by acting before she thinks. Adding first love, sexual harassment, and colorism issues to this thriller makes for an engaging and thought-provoking read. The author, who is an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, includes a great deal of information about repatriation of cultural artifacts and human remains, as well as missing Indigenous women, both pressing issues for Native Americans.

I’ll admit I didn’t really know much about this book when I asked to review it. Mostly, I knew the author’s name, because her debut, FIREKEEPER’S DAUGHTER was all anyone was talking about for a while when it came out in 2021. So I wanted to read it on the strength of that praise.

And… all I can say is that no one who was blown away by Angeline Boulley’s writing exaggerated. I mean, wow.

The story has a lot of moving parts. Perry and her sister are doing this summer internship (Perry only under duress). Girls keep going missing from their community. Perry begins learning about laws and processes governing the way that ancestral remains are identified and (ideally) returned to tribes and decides she must help return the remains of a woman knows as Warrior Girl. There’s the possibility of romance for Perry with one of the other interns.

So there’s a lot going on. The beginning builds a little bit slowly. I remember not being sure what the story was going to really be about. It took some time for me to feel like I got oriented within the story.

Once I did, though, the story took off. Roadblocks, and setbacks, and raised stakes, and twists kept coming one after another. And every single one seemed to pull the story more into focus.

All those pieces came together to show a more complete picture, and all of it illustrated a powerful theme about the value of life and the need to honor community and ancestry.

I loved this book. I’ve already got a copy of FIREKEEPER’S DAUGHTER, and I am really excited to read it. Some of the minor characters in this book are in FIREKEEPER’S DAUGHTER, so I’m curious what blanks reading that one will fill in. I hope there are more stories about Sugar Island and Perry’s family in the works, because I will definitely read them.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.

Warrior Girl Unearthed - Review
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
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NOTE: I highly recommend reading Firekeeper’s Daughter first.
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QUICK LOOK: Indigenous Culture, Thriller & Mystery, Heist, Critiques of Archaeology and Museums, Unpredictable Twists
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WHY 5/5: This book is beyond incredible. Boulley is a master storyteller. Her characters are full of heart, beyond brave, and endlessly curious. Through these characters, readers will not only learn about the mistreatment of Indigenous remains and artifacts, they will be swept up in the mystery of the missing women and feel true fear as they root for these teens when they take matters into their own hands. The twists of this mystery were so well crafted, I was left guessing until the very end. This book isn’t just incredible. It’s important. Read with caution - It will change you.
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Miigwech, Angelina Boulley.
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Thank you @netgalley for my eARC copy. I was given this eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Warrior Girl Unearthed was a solid second book after Boulley’s incredible debut, Firekeeper’s Daughter. I was very excited to see that she written another book and I’m so thankful to Henry Holt and Co., MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for advanced copies so I could read it early! I’m hearing rumors of a third book and can’t wait for that one as well!

Warrior Girl Unearthed takes readers back to Sugar Island, but this time the story follows Perry Firekeeper-Birch, one of Daunis’ nieces, who is now at the end of high school. During Perry’s summer internship, she learns that ancestral remains and other sacred items that belong to her tribe, have been stored in the museum archives. The university has been using loopholes in federal law to hold onto them, but Perry is determined to get them back where they belong. As if this challenge isn’t big enough, young women start disappearing and Perry and her team of Misfits find themselves caught up in more obstacles and secrets as they try to bring peace back to their community.

I enjoyed the book, but found myself comparing it to Firekeeper’s Daughter, which probably wasn’t fair. The first half was slower-paced and I had a hard time getting invested in the plot. It also read more like a young adult book and I didn’t feel as connected to the characters. Looking back on the book as a whole though, it was very well-written and I learned even more about the Ojibwe tribe. I love that their language and culture was a huge part of this story and that characters from Firekeeper’s Daughter made appearances again, even though the two stories are loosely connected. The last 25% of the book had me at the edge of my seat and it really brought the whole book together even though I struggled at the start.

I can’t wait to see if there is a third book in the works!

Miigwech to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book!

Warrior Girl Unearthed takes place in the same community as Firekeeper's Daughter, only ten years later and following Daunis's niece, Perry. A series of unfortunate circumstances led Perry to having to work in a summer program, even though all she really wants to do is fish and lazy away the hot summer days. During this program, Perry learns about “Warrior Girl,” an ancestor whose bones and knife are stored in a museum's archives, and how long and tedious the repatriation process is in getting ancestors' remains back to their community. Mystery ensues.

Boulley does a wonderful job again with characterization, particularly within the familial and friendship units, and with describing the Ojibwe community that Perry lives within. It's so rich and detailed. It's special, for me, as someone who is an enrolled citizen of the same tribe as Boulley, and who has family who lives in Michigan's UP. Reading these books feel a bit like home, which I deeply appreciate.

I loved Perry as our main character. She's a spitfire who isn't afraid to do just about anything for the people and community she loves. And I love that we get to see Daunis again.

I do have a couple criticisms of the book, mainly in its plot. Where the characters and world are so rich, the plot suffers from having way too many things going on. I wish some plot points had been cut and there had been more of a focus on Perry learning more about repatriation and delving into that rather than some of the (many) side plots that come and go so quickly it feels a bit like whiplash. The ending also wraps up very quickly--I wish it had a bit more time to end.

I was also a bit confused at the timing of the book. It takes place in 2014, but some things feel very 2020s. That may be a bit more smoothed over in the finished copy, though.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book. Not only is it full of so much cultural beauty and explorations into Anishinaabe people, but it's also an important reminder of what has happened and continues to happen to our people. MMIW is another big topic in this book again, and the book also highlights how institutions in the United States keep our ancestors and the history behind NAGPRA.

I was lucky to get to read an ARC of this book and let me tell you… it’s unforgettable. It is so emotionally raw from the start. I found it difficult to process my emotions while reading, just as the characters experience all kinds of emotions. Rage, sorrow, pride, you feel them all for Perry and all the indigenous people across the country who are facing horrible injustice. The quote from up above resonated with me as someone who doesn’t know a lot about indigenous culture. This book taught me that it’s okay to learn and become mindful of things I may not have known before. This book is not just a thrilling heist story, it’s a cry for change.

I loved how this story was both informational and entertaining to read. The stakes just kept getting raised and I was on the edge of my seat for the last 1/2 of the book!! The characters made me laugh out loud and I loved getting to see how all my favorites from Firekeeper’s Daughter are doing 10 years after their story. Daunis has a special place in my heart.

I think Warrior Girl Unearthed lacked the more serious plot that Firekeeper’s Daughter had, but I contribute that to the age difference of the characters. Daunis was 19 and Perry is only 16 so of course everything felt a little less mature & not completely thought through. I know when I was 16 I wasn’t making well thought out decisions. Overall, despite not enjoying the mystery & heist plot as much as I enjoyed the plot of Firekeeper’s Daughter’s, I found the message to be equally as powerful.

Good not great. I SO wanted to love this follow-up to Firekeeper’s Daughter, but the plot felt too busy for its own sake.

I liked our new MC, Perry Firekeeper-Birch. She was feisty, loyal, and clever. And it was fun getting to see badass Daunis again, even as a side character!

There was just too much going on, to the point that I was confused come the end and had to check with @paperbackbish that I’d understood the reveal correctly.

All of the themes are critically important and absolutely need to be written about, but it might’ve benefited from diving deep into just one area (ie. MMIW or NAGPRA) and focusing on others in subsequent books (which I would absolutely still read).

You never know how a second book will go when the first was fantastic, but Warrior Girl Unearthed was everything I hoped and wanted it to be. Not a true sequel, the story follows another family member from Firekeeper's Daughter living on Sugar Island and dealing with the difficulty between native and non-native communities as they deal with the traumas inflicted upon the Ojibwe. This story was action packed and Perry was a wonderfully connectable character.

Warrior Girl Unearthed was an exquisite sophomore novel from Angeline Boulley. Her first novel, Firekeeper’s Daughter, was my pick for my book group #terrifictravelingtales so I was able to reread it this year! You do not need to reread Firekeeper’s Daughter - or even read it at all - to enjoy Warrior Girl Unearthed, although there are many familiar faces. This book follows Perry, Daunis’s niece, about 10 years after the events of FD.

Something I love about both of these books is the amount of humanity that is brought to tough issues while reading it. This also makes me feel a bit guilty - like why do I need fiction to empathize with real issues human’s face today? But it’s the truth, and it is also human nature right?

Warrior Girl Unearthed focuses on NAGPRA, the federal law that allows tribes to request the return of ancestral remains and sacred items. I knew a little bit about this issue going into the book, but nowhere near the scale of both the amount of items held in museums or the feelings that Indigenous people may have around those items. We also continue to hear about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, & 2 Spirit People (MMIWG2S). This is a tough plot line but is so important.

I loved Isabella Star LaBlanc’s narration for WGU especially since Perry is bilingual and frequently speaks Anishinaabemowin. (Don’t worry - you can follow along easily, she translates herself in her head for those of us who don’t speak Anishinaabemowin.)

Feel free to reach out if you want more details/spoilers for any of the content warnings listed here or on StoryGraph - no questions asked!

Thank you to @fiercereads , Macmillan Children’s publishing, and @librofm for my review copies! All thoughts are my own.

Brilliant, Expressive, Meaningful and what not! Angeline Boulley knows how to articulate her thoughts into a book that makes an impact.

Top 5 reasons to read this book~

• The Native Americans life detailed here and the richness of the history.
• An intriguing YA thriller that has you questioning things and feeling anger against the injustice.
• Characters you will never forget.
• A powerful story that needs to be read.
• Tribal language Ojibwe with its translation.

Perry was strong, flawed with vulnerability and journey full of teachings. I enjoyed being part of this with her. Her emotions got through to me.

The diversity, friendship, cultural details are amazing in this book.

This story was informative and there was so much going on, I liked how it was written to have readers hooked though it was bit difficult. The story telling is beautiful.

This was unique to anything I have ever read before and the experience was good.

I haven't read The Firekeepers Daughter and plan to do it soon. I wouldn't say much other than go ahead and add this to your TBR.

Rating ~ 4🌟

Thanks for the netgalley review copy! @angelineboulley @fiercereads and @coloredpagesblogtours

When Perry Firekeeper crashes the Jeep she and her twin received as a gift, her care free summer days become ones fraught with fear, anger, inspiration, and hard work. She is forced to join her twin, Pauline, working various jobs for the Tribal Council. She learns about the slow and cumbersome process for repatriating her ancestors remains and belongings. She learns about her violent Aunt Daunis,’s past. And she learns what she will do to bring her ancestors home where they belong.
Throw in a tender romance, murder mystery, and the sad truths behind the MMIWG2S, and you have a beautiful complex story that will speak loudly through the ages.

When I heard @angelineboulley had written another book, I think my mouth dropped and I may have made some unintelligible noises. Warrior Girl Unearthed (swipe for a synopsis) is set several years after the events of Firekeeper's Daughter. Don't worry, our badass Daunis is around in this one too. Our main character is Perry (niece of Daunis) who finds herself in the unfortunate situation of having to work rather than the mass amounts of fishing she had originally planned. Over the course of 10 weeks, Perry finds friends, a mystery, a new found passion and even a little romance.

Part of the reason I love Boulley's writing is the education that comes along with the story. I love a book that teaches me something in addition to providing hours of entertainment. I also was completely wrong about the villain in the story which automatically makes this an amazing read. It's hard for me to enjoy a mystery story because I usually find them predictable. While some of the story was a well duh, I saw that coming moment, most of it was not and on that fact alone, I recommend you read Warrior Girl Unearthed.

Thanks so much for the advance (free) copy of the book, @fiercereads and @coloredpagesblogtours and to @angelineboulley for sweeping me up in the Sugar Island world again.

Warrior Girl Unearthed publishes on May 2 and is available for pre-order now wherever you buy books!

In the two YA novels that Boulley has written so far, there are two experiences I have had -- 1) I learn a lot about Native American culture and traditions, as well as the social issues, racism, and stereotyping they face; and 2) I am always hooked by the true crime and thriller elements that run throughout.

In her second book, Boulley's character, themes, and plot structure are familiar, but she has taken a much heavier handed with the social commentary. It's less a traditional "murder mystery" and more a nuanced investigation of the laws that minoritize communities like the main character Perry's. In addition to passively investigating the disappearance of young women in her community, Perry sets out on a quest to reclaim ancestral remains and cultural objects from a local university who has found loopholes to maintain their "museum" of property rightfully belonging to the local tribes, including the remains of a "culturally unidentifiable skeleton" named the titular "Warrior Girl". As Perry attempts to bring her ancestors home, she struggles to adhere to the laws and regulations which she finds inane and egregious.

If you're looking to learn more about the US and all its flaws when making atoning for past and present wrongs, or if you just loved "Firekeeper's Daughter" this is the book for you.

Perry would love nothing more than a nice relaxing summer fishing with her dad, but when a small accident leaves her in debt, she is required to work her summer away instead. Her new experiences aren't always pleasant, but she does come to learn and appreciate those who are doing their best to preserve her heritage and reclaim her ancestor remains. Perry finds ways to get herself in and out of plenty of scrapes. The last one, however, may just prove to be her undoing.

While not quite as strong of a character for me as Daunis, but Perry was still a relatable character with plenty of flaws. She spends time finding herself and discovering what she really wants out of life, and ultimately learns to work with others to achieve her end-goals.

A strong companion to Boulley's first novel, this is a great read for those who are looking for more.

I received a DRC from the publisher via Netgalley.com