This was a solid 4-star YA read for me, featuring an Ojibwe teen and her struggles as her community suffers from the predation of methamphetamine on the reservation. ( )

3.5 stars. This was a great debut. The problem for me I think was that it was a bit too long and I lost interest in the middle. There were so many things I loved about it. I’m from Michigan so I recognized many of the places that were mentioned and the overall mood. I also loved how the author brought in her own background and shared with us the Native American culture. Daunis was a strong female character and I appreciated her struggles with her identity and who she was. I also enjoyed the banter she had with Lily, as well as the Elders. I just felt that the author had so many great ideas and tried to cram them into one book. I think a few story threads could have been removed and the book would have read better. I would love to see a prequel with Grace and Levi’s story and more about their parents and siblings. ( )

While listening to this story, there were times that I felt it became repetitive or lacked depth. Not until the end credits did I catch that this was a YA book, ha! Not a diss on the genre, I just don’t read much of it so was intrigued that I noticed a difference.

A good story…a lot of culture, some mystery and a flare drama. I would go with 3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️’s. ( )

Maybe it was because I listened to the audiobook, but I just couldn't get sucked into this. I will try reading it in a few weeks and see if that changes my thoughts. ( )

“Wisdom is not bestowed. In its raw state, it is the heartbreak of knowing things you wish you didn't.”

Firekeeper’s Daughter is a contemporary YA mystery by award-winning debut author Angeline Boulley who is an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and brings us a story about her Ojibwe community.

Boulley describes her protagonist, 18 year old Daunis Fontaine, as an Ojibwe Nancy Drew. Daunis grows up in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, the daughter of a wealthy white mother and her father’s Firekeeper family of Annishinaabe from Sugar Island. As she struggles to find acceptance from either community, she embraces her passions of science, hockey and the Ojibwe culture. Daunis is soon thrown headlong into a mystery, as tragedy follows tragedy with methamphetamine tearing apart her community and dear ones winding up dead. Daunis is taken on by the FBI as a community investigator and finds herself searching for answers to who is behind the destruction. As Daunis searches for answers she also finds herself fighting an attraction to the mysterious new stranger in town.

I found this an enjoyable read. It was wonderful to read a positive contemporary story with a Native American lead which gave insight into the beauty of the culture and its practices. I loved her badass Aunt Teddie. The story does highlight the tragedy of both physical and sexual violence against Native American women but still shows them as strong and resilient. There were a few YA moments for me, with the instalove and fake boyfriend tropes and a definite “I’m not like the other girls” tone to it, but overall an engaging story which will make a riveting watch when it makes it to the big screen.

Jingle Dresses. Good Morning America. ( )