
Release Date: March 16th 2021
Publisher: Rock the Boat
Pages: 496
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review
Rating: 4.25/5 stars
Synopsis
As a biracial, unenrolled tribal member and the product of a scandal, eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. Daunis dreams of studying medicine, but when her family is struck by tragedy, she puts her future on hold to care for her fragile mother.
The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team. Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, certain details don’t add up and she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into the heart of a criminal investigation.
Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover but secretly pursues her own investigation, tracking down the criminals with her knowledge of chemistry and traditional medicine. But the deceptions—and deaths—keep piling up and soon the threat strikes too close to home.
Now, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she’ll go to protect her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.
Review
Firekeeper’s Daughter is a book that caught my eye because of that absolutely beautiful cover. The story follows Daunis a young biracial woman who struggles to fit in with her community. She hopes to go off to college and study medicine, but with recent family tragedies, she decides to stick around for another year to help her family grieve. When she meets Jamie, the new star of her brother’s hockey team, Daunis feels there might be a light at the end of the tunnel but when she witnesses a murder and becomes tangled up in a criminal investigation, Daunis finds herself becoming a confidential informant for the FBI. As she attempts to uncover who is bringing drugs into her community, what she finds could tear her world apart.
This book has been everywhere recently and it absolutely deserves the hype. This own voices story is incredibly gripping and I loved following Daunis as she attempts to protect her community and the people she loves. I really enjoyed learning the history and traditions of the Native American people. There is a strong sense of community in the story and there were a whole host of fascinating side characters. I particularly liked the Elders and Aunt Teddie. The characters in the story are all really well developed and I definitely found myself rooting for Daunis. She was a brilliant protagonist. She’s smart and determined, but also struggling with her identity and place in the world.
As Daunis delves deeper and deeper into the mystery of who is bringing the drugs into the community, I found myself coming up with lots of different theories as to who was responsible. They all ended up being wrong and I definitely did not see that ending coming. The story has a really hopeful ending and I am so excited to see what happens in book two. If you’ve been intrigued about Firekeeper’s Daughter I would absolutely recommend picking this one up.


C. L. Taylor is one of my favourite thriller writers so I always go into her books with the highest of expectations. Once again I was completely sucked into this fast-paced tale full to the brim with suspense. The story is set around a Soul Shrink retreat in Gozo that went horribly wrong: two people died and another committed suicide. We follow Tom Wade, the man behind Soul Shrink, who has just been released from prison, his wife Kate as they attempt to put the past behind them and Fran the sister of the girl who committed suicide. Fran is trying to uncover the truth behind her sister’s death, so when Tom and Kate announce a new Soul Shrink retreat, Fran signs up. But what she uncovers might be far more than she bargained for.
The Lore of Prometheus is the dark story of John Carver, a soldier struggling with memories of his time in Afganistan. Struggling to pay off his debts, he agrees to take a security position in Kabul. When he returns to Kabul the memories come flooding back of the event he has so hard to forget – the day he felt magic stirring within him. But Carver isn’t the only one with these magical abilities, and some people will stop at nothing to get them.


The Holdout is a gripping thriller that follows Maya Seale a young woman who ten years ago was part of the jury that found Bobby Nock innocent of the murder of his fifteen-year-old student Jessica Silver. Their decision rocked the country and it has changed the lives of every person on the jury. When the jurors are asked to reunite for a television show Maya reluctantly agrees, but when one of the jurors turns up dead Maya is the prime suspect – but who is behind it and did they make the right choice all those years ago?

The Imposter is an expertly woven tale that tells the story of Chloe, a quiet girl who spends her time working as an archivist and looking after her Nan. She becomes obsessed with the story of a missing girl and the parents that never stopped hoping for her return. When her Nan is moved to a nursing home and she finds herself with nowhere to live, Chloe answers an ad for a lodger with the missing girls’ parents. When she moves in she learns there’s much more going on with the couple than she ever expected.


Empire of Wild is one of those books that you read the premise of and are immediately desperate to know more. The story follows Joan, a woman struggling with the disappearance of her husband Victor. When she stumbles across a revival tent one more she heads inside to find her husband is the preacher. When she approaches him she discovers he does not recognise her at all. With some help from her nephew Zeus and Ajean – a woman in the community with knowledge of the old ways, she must fight to rescue Victor and remind him of who he really is.


I am an absolute sucker for a fairytale retelling, so when I heard about Malice – a sleeping beauty retelling where Princess Aurora falls in love with the villain – I was immediately desperate to get my mitts on it. This story was everything I wanted and more – it was an incredibly dark and compelling read.

This is my first time reading a book by Karen Maitland and it was a rollercoaster ride. The story is set in 1606, the year after the gun powder plot. As a giant wave destroys much of Bristol, Daniel Pursglove is freed from a London prison and sent to Bristol to investigate a Jesuit conspiracy. As Daniel delves deeper into the conspiracy, Pursglove uncovers far more than he ever suspected.


The Iron Raven is the first in an all new series from Julie Kagawa, following the infamous trickster Puck as he embarks on an adventure. When he learns of a threat that will destroy all of the Nevernever he must embark on a epic quest with the Iron Queen and Ice Prince Ash, as well as a mysterious assassin. Will the group succeed in fighting off the terrible threat, or will they uncover something even more deadly?

The April Dead is the fourth heart pounding instalment in Alan Parks’ Harry McCoy series. This time we’re following Harry as he investigates bomb explosions in Glasgow. When Harry learns there might be more bombs on the way, he knows he’s running out of time to find out who’s behind it. As Harry digs deeper he finds way more than he bargained for.
