K. A. Cobell

I received an early copy from Follett; this book will release in June of 2024.

Mara moves to a Blackfeet community after her family had an incident in their former city, only to find themselves dealing with missing indigenous teenage girls. No one treats her well; the students tell her she doesn't belong. Afterall, they've all grown up together on the Blackfeet reservation. One Blackfeet citizen--a teenage girl--is missing. To honor her sister, Loren includes Mara in the traditional giveaway, which surprises Mara. Loren says that she feels badly for the way Mara has been treated; her sister told her they should be nicer to Mara. On this same night, Samantha, another Blackfeet girl, is found murdered. Now, everyone involved is a suspect. The tribal police and a federal agent are on the case, but the teens want to find the truth because missing tribal women are rarely found and the kidnappers/murderers usually get away with the crime.

There's a small group of people who are suspects. No one knows much about Mara or her family, but they were at the giveaway and are, therefore, suspects. Eli First Kill possesses many secrets, cutting most people off from his life. The most important person in his life is his little sister, whom he babysits or takes care of 24/7. Brody and Jason are brothers whose father left them a dying business and a mother who has little to do with them. Jason returned home to take care of Brody, as his mother spends her time with her new family.

Loren finds she can talk to Mara and discuss the suspects, wondering who she has grown up with and is friends with--could actually murder someone. She worries her sister is also dead. Two girls investigating a murder can be dangerous, as Native American women disappear at alarming rates. Mara finds herself drawn to Eli, but his secrets and rudeness make him hard to draw out.

It took me a while to read the book because I was reading in bed at night and had to stop to go to sleep. I always wanted to keep reading. I know it's an interesting book if I want to keep reading. Sometimes a book lives with you and you can't think about anything else and you only want to read. This book wasn't that emotion. I could pick it up a couple of days later with no problem, and I didn't find myself obsessed or thinking about it. I liked it very much and, like I said, always wanted to keep reading. I didn't want to stop. I don't think the title is a good title for the book--it's forced, as is all of the diction referencing smoke. Overall, it's a good book and a solid murder mystery with a bit of a surprise at the end.… (plus d'informations)

Wow. That is the feeling I have about Looking For Smoke. Firstly, a wow because this is K.A. Cobell’s debut novel. She did an awe-inspiring job of writing a mystery that keeps the reader guessing until the book’s end. She did an incredible job presenting the Blackfeet culture to readers who likely know little about it. The book dynamically depicts their culture – the beautiful ceremonies that are so significant for the Blackfeet, the immediacy and fidelity of their kinship, and the bleak lack of hopefulness about their future. And her characterization! A huge wow. The characters became well-known and understood, and I felt great compassion for each. She was also phenomenal at bringing a critical issue to light; it is so often ignored. The underlying theme of the novel is the horrifying number of Indigenous women and girls who go missing or are murdered each year. Eighty-four percent of Native women have experienced violence. The murder rate of Native women is three times that of white women. The MMIW, or Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement, is attempting to draw attention to these shocking statistics. The issue is something everyone should investigate; even young people should be aware of the problem. This is a breathtaking debut novel; its message is not just for young people. Thank you to Harper Collins for creating Heartdrum, an imprint for Native American writers, and to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.… (plus d'informations)