I'm loving the mystical mysteries of both Elatsoe and Sheine Lende. It was a delight to see Ellie's grandmother, Shane, in her own coming-of-age story. And the epilogue was *chefs kiss*.

Sheine Lende is set in the same magical realistic version of the US that Elatsoe is. Sheine Lende follows Shane as she searches for a young boy who has gone missing as well as her mother who disappeared while searching for the boy.

Darcie Little Badger does a fantastic job at writing this accessible fantasy mystery. I am not a huge fantasy reader so I love when things are set in a fairly modern/familiar setting, this makes it so much easier to follow along. If you’ve read Elatsoe, this story was a lot less direct action but I felt this fit the story much better. We had more questions that needed to be solved and a bit more of a journey that was made rather than fight scenes and subterfuge.

I was fortunate enough to receive the audiobook for this and I thought Kinsale Hueston did spectacularly. I love listening to Fantasy on audio (it really helps me visualize the world), and I especially appreciate books featuring language and culture not my own in audio format as well. Hueston really brings some of the indigenous language and stories to life with their narration.

I also really appreciated where and how this book stands in the Elatsoe universe. Sheine Lende could probably be read before Elatsoe if someone was interested in reading chronologically, only the end/epilogue mentions Ellie, the main character of Elatsoe. Reading these in publication order though allows the reader to make little connections while Sheine Lende unfolds. Darcie Little Badger still uses the epilogue to bring things full circle though if you happened to miss some of the connections yourself.


Things that (especially) worked for me:
- the world building! I love learning more about this universe and the various types of magic within it
- during Shane’s journey, there are some POV changes from the third person that is used throughout the story and then some first person POV. I loved this and thought the first person really brought an extra layer to this part of the story

This is a solid sequel/prequel. It feels like a new story while still feeling very true to the original world building that was set up, and this is truly one of my favorite speculative worlds of all time. This book is just as stunning as Elatsoe, but it feels a little more hopeful and a little less sinister that I think Elatsoe does. I would probably be comfortable giving this to a little bit younger readers.

My only real complaint was that it was a little hard to place the story in time. I understand the story in comparison to Elatsoe, but for a world based on our own I wasn't quite sure what decade it was supposed to be and kind of kept waiting to find out. This is a super trivial thing and doesn't matter for the book, but I was personal curious.

I hope she continues to write books in this world!

5/5 stars with a warming ghostly glow... (I would've given 6 stars if I had them...)

"For us, it’s easy to mistake The Below for home..."

In my very first review of Elatsoe back in 2021, I named it “one of those magical books I wish had been around when I was a child”, as it would’ve been a foundational book for me. Luckily, that never stopped me from adoring it all the same as an adult, and joyfully adding it to my all-time favourite list. Since then, I’ve reread it a number of times and have been well on my way to considering Darcie Little Badger a favourite author, sheerly based on my love for this one book.
Then came the announcement I didn’t see coming; a new book in the same world, functioning as a prequel to Elatsoe. After finishing Sheine Lende, I can confidently say that I’m no longer “considering Darcie Little Badger might become a favourite author”; she is an all-time favourite for sure!

The Story:
Sheine Lende is set in the same world as Elatsoe, and functions as a prequel to Ellie’s story. Although there are references to the first book throughout, the story follows a completely new cast of characters and can be read as a standalone as well.
We follow Shane, Ellie’s grandmother, whom we already know has lead an interesting life, and shared the same talents of communicating with (animal) spirits. Shane works with her mother and their ghost dogs, tracking down missing persons even when their families can't afford to pay and authorities don’t seem to care. When her mother, alongside a local boy, is next in line to disappear after a strange interaction with a fairy ring, Shane takes it upon herself and her ghost dogs to return her home safely. Together with her brother, her friends, and her lone, surviving grandparent - who isn't to be trusted - set off on a journey to find them. But they may not be anywhere in this world - or this place in time.

What I loved:
I’ve mentioned before that Elatsoe is one of those quintessential comfort books for me. There is an almost indescribable quality to the writing that radiates comfort, warmth and whimsy, despite not shying away from heavier subject matter. Sheine Lende, carries forward that same atmosphere through its shared themes. Both stories are essentially about family and generational-love (covering both biological family and found-family alike), and how these connections to our supporting networks can carry us through the darkest of times. The worldbuilding is rooted in Lipan mythology, from an own-voice perspective of the author. I deeply admire how the author manages to honour her culture and history by intertwining threads of generational- and cultural trauma specific to the native America experience, whilst also writing about themes universal enough to be relatable for readers from a variety of backgrounds.
None of this was a surprise of course; I knew full well that Darcie Little Badger was capable of this kind of writing from reading Elatsoe. What díd surprise me was how invested I got in the new cast of characters from page one. I didn’t think Shane would be able to hold a candle to my love and investment in Ellie and Kirby, yet I think I loved both protagonist equally in the end. Ellie and Shane are distinctly different, strong characters, but share a very important quality. They both are strong as individuals because their community allows them to be. They stand on the shoulders of giant and know themselves to be backed by the ghost of the generations that proceeded them. That powerful sense of connection is the backbone to anchor of the story and the beating heart of my love for it.
This is where I’d usually include my “what I didn’t love”-section, but I honestly have no points of critique to give here… Elatsoe did something truly special for me: it’s the kind of book that feels like a strengthening and encouraging hug from a loved one. I didn’t think Sheine Lende, would be able to match that, but it absolutely did, maybe at times even surpassing it! This is a gem of a novel, that I cannot recommend highly enough.

A note on the audio:
This is one of those books where I can't decide whether to recommend the physical book over the audio, or the other way around. I read both, and adored both for different reasons. On the one hand, the physical copy has the benefit of the stunning cover and illustrations by Rovina Cai. On the other hand, the audiobook reflects the nature of spoken-word legacies and storytelling, and Kinsale Drake's exceptional narration and pronounciation of the original Lipan language makes for a truly special experience.

Many thanks to the author and Levine Querido for providing me with (yes, I’ve said it!) my most anticipated ARC of the year. All opinions are my own.

This book was the prequel to Elatsoe that I didn’t know I needed. Following Shane, Elatsoe’s grandmother, who is on a mission to find her missing mother and the two kids that went missing with her. With a great cast of characters, beautiful integration of Lipan Apache culture and history and of course a ghost dog this book is perfect for any age. This was a slower book focusing on building characters and their backgrounds. I loved the seamless, unexplained existence of magic that is in this world that felt so real and all the friendships and family bonds that were shown on page. The ending was perfect in my opinion and very satisfying tying a lot of the elements of the book together.

I didn't even know we were getting an Elatsoe prequel until I saw this pop up on netgalley and thank goodness I did because I think I might have liked this even more than Elatsoe, and I LOVED Elatsoe.

So this follows Ellie's grandma Shane as she searches for her mom and a missing boy in the underworld. It does feel a little bit long but in the best way like you get excited every time a new plot development happens because you know you're getting more story if that makes sense. I loved the characters and the representation and the setting. I feel like we get more of an insight into the magic system of both Ellie and Shane's ability to resurrect ghost animals as well as the magic system regarding the mushrooms and fairy rings.

This is technically a prequel but it's listed as number two in a series and I think I can genuinely say it doesn't matter if you read this before or after Elatsoe. You get enough information in this book to understand everything that's going on without having read the first but it also provides really great contacts and information for Elatsoe.

If you can't tell, I loved it and am here for it. Please give me more from Darcie Little Badgers.

Lipan-Apache MC, queer secondary characters.

**I was provided an early audio copy from the publisher through NetGalley.**

Darcie Little Badger returns to the world of Elatsoe with the prequel, Sheine Lende. Shane is mentioned in Elatsoe's story as Elatsoe's ancestor who could raise wooly mammoths. This is Shane's story. Shane and her mother Lorenza work with their ghost dogs to help find missing people. When Shane is told her mother went missing on a search, she quickly determines there is more in play than simply getting lost in the woods.

I'll be honest; prequels make me skeptical, if not outright nervous. I find they rarely match up to the original book and are frequently unnecessary. I should have known better than to worry. Little Badger handled Shane's story with every bit as much care as Elatsoe's. I would say I wished a few things got more explanation as far as the lore and magic in play, but I found Shane to be a compelling protagonist with a drive to never give up.

The narrator, Kinsale Hueston, did an admirable job. Her performance was youthful without crossing into cheesy or obnoxious, as was appropriate for 17-year-old Shane's perspective. I fully enjoyed the audiobook. That being said, I would recommend either immersion reading (physical/ebook with audio) or reading with your eyes if possible for this book, as I regretted missing out on Rovina Cai's undoubtedly stunning illustrations.

I was pleased to have the opportunity to experience this book early, and would not hesitate to recommend Sheine Lende or any of Darcie Little Badger's other books to any reader whether young or young at heart.

Elatsoe’s prequel?! Yes please!

This follows Ellie’s grandmother, Shane, when she was a teen and also coming into her power. Her mother is a tracker and finds missing people but one day goes missing herself and Shane will go to the ends of the earth to find her.

I love this world of magical realism/maybe it’s just fantasy I’m not quite sure. But it’s a gorgeous coming of age story that is simultaneously comforting with whimsy and strong familial love while not shying away from heavier topics (namely grief and trauma). I wish I had this series as a kid and am glad that it will be on my shelves for my kids.

Thanks to netgalley and Recorded Books for an advanced listening copy

I was so incredibly into this that I listened to it all in one go. That is rare! This is so beautiful! The narration was lovely. I was really into the mammoths and the ghost dogs. The ending made me so happy!

E-arc provided by Netgalley

I'm not usually a fan of supernatural mysteries but I love Elatsoe so much that I was excited for book nunber two (technically book .5). This was just as good as the first one and it seemed there was room left for a book 3?

I was not prepared for the whirlwind this book took me on. I haven’t read the other book, so this was a good test of new readers finding this world. And what an amazing, unique world it is. I absolutely adored the concept of indigenous folklore and culture being so interwoven into the newer developing technological world. It’s set in the 1970s-ish. But I loved how much the folklore beings and concepts are a critical part of the way the world is developing as an alternative earth.

This was such a beautiful story that had so many lessons and characters growth even. I literally finished this book in a day. I could NOT stop listening to the audio. The narrator brought it to life and made me feel the creeping paranoia or the worry or the heartfelt moments.