thequeeraunt's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I enthusiastically recommend Bad Cree to anyone who enjoys a bit of supernatural flavor with their narratives of family and racial trauma. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading works by Indigenous authors. Honestly, I recommend it to just about anyone. This is probably going to be one of my favorite books of 2023.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Animal death, Blood, and Grief
blacksphinx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
It was also wonderful to see the treatment of a piece of indigenous folklore that is often misused and cheapened by outsiders being handled by someone from that culture!
If you're looking for something that will chill you to the bone and keep you up at night, I don't think this will do it for you. It is eerie and disorienting, focusing more on untangling a mystery than being scared. A peak atmospheric read.
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Animal death, and Injury/injury detail
Moderate: Death, Body horror, Death of parent, Addiction, and Alcoholism
Minor: Racism
sarah984's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Raven Reads has not steered me wrong yet. Highly recommended.
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Blood, Addiction, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Death, and Injury/injury detail
Minor: Gore, Cannibalism, and Colonisation
savvylit's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The best aspect of Bad Cree is in the characterization. Johns' portrayal of family dynamics is so beautifully rendered. The love and understanding that Mackenzie's female relatives have for one another is palpable as the story progresses. Mackenzie's aunties are such a strong, guiding force in her life. My only criticism would be that I wanted more of their story! I'd love to hear more about the aunties as they grew up and about their kokum.
Highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in reading about family dynamics in the face of immense loss.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Addiction
wetdirtreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Grief, Animal death, and Gore
Moderate: Cancer, Vomit, and Alcoholism
2treads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Johns' Bad Cree is an affecting novel that not only traces how grief impacts a family but how the unacknowledged loss and distance further affects a family. When Mackenzie begins dreaming and holding on physically to certain dream inhabitants, she seeks help from those who care for her the most.
But all is not well within the home or between sisters and mother and daughter. The lack of observance and communication around what and who they all have lost weighs heavy and has left a broken family in its presence. This is a story about healing within a unit, facing the heavy and unspoken that paralyze us, and coming through the other side the better for it.
The details of Cree life and worldview that are depicted here allow for the reader to become even more attached to this story and family. The undertones of fear and a looming darkness are subtle yet leave a sense of anticipation and impact as we get closer to what it means to walk these dreams.
Moderate: Death, Blood, and Body horror
lbelow's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Body horror, Grief, Violence, and Injury/injury detail
bookishcori's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
It’s about family and sisters and aunties and community and dreams and so much grief - the unspoken, lonely, engulfing kind.
Plus it’s pretty creepy [maybe not horror, but definitely cringy]. It crescendos with a final reckoning, which highlights the importance of familial connection and speaking your truth.
P.S. High Prairie minutes are now part of my vernacular. I will accept no other.
Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Gore, and Grief
mk_loisirs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Body horror and Violence
Moderate: Death
ceallaighsbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“You can always tell the time of day in Vancouver by the crows… They move through the sky like a thunder cloud, collecting more kin as they fly home. I stand and watch from the entrance of my apartment as a murder forms on a thick, old cedar, much too early for the crows to be roosting… The crows’ calls slice in from all directions, from the city and the ocean, as they take over every limb of the tree, their bodies black out all the green of the leaves. A swarm of warnings. If I didn’t know any better, I would swear it was the reckoning.”
“I never learned how to swim but I still wonder what it feels like to be held by another body without fear.”
“I feel a hand on my back, and I know by the pressure it’s Kassidy’s. ‘Plus, whatever bad is passed down, the good lives in our blood, too. We’re fucking magic, man. Look at all we can do with our dreams.’”
- THE SENTENCE, by Louise Erdrich—TBR
- TAAQTUMI, compiled by Neil Christopher
- FIREKEEPER’S DAUGHTER, by Angeline Boulley
- WHITE MAGIC, by Elissa Washuta
- ROOT MAGIC, by Eden Royce
Graphic: Body horror, Grief, and Animal death