A review by sunnymashi
The Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • 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

I am utterly speechless. This book covered so many themes and effectively showed how interconnected seemingly disconnected different topics and areas are (I am aware this is very vague but there’s just so many topics this book covers- particularly with respect to the cultural context of the Ojibwe community). Additionally, Daunis was such a thoughtful, brilliant, and passionate character who was constantly surprising me with her insight and cleverness. I also admired how real she felt and how perceptive she was about the world and events around her- it was so clear with how she made sure to humanize the people around her rather than only seeing them for flaws. From the writing to the plot to the characters to the themes, it is so clear that Angeline Boulley put all of her heart and soul into crafting this… also for this to be a debut novel astounds me because this was so expertly created. 
Although I had slight difficulty keeping up with all of the lore dropped as the narrative progressed, I think that was the point. You can’t just jump to conclusions based on one string- you have to consider the whole system at play. Just another thing to add to this book’s captivating quality- you have to read it and sit with it before you truly grasp the full meaning.
Also small side note- I do wish we got more clarity about the way the Sault Superiors team works and that the romance with Jamie was more gradually built up because at some points in the middle I was slightly confused about how Daunis and Jamie got to that level of closeness and trust- however it did get remedied by the moments they had together and the tension of the fast paced third and fourth parts of the book testing their connection and bringing them close together.

All in all, this has to be one of the best thrillers I have read and I’m ecstatic to know that there is a second book to this one1 THOUGH I MUST NOTE THAT BEFORE YOU PICK THIS UP… This book does cover a lot of potentially triggering topics and themes, so I would suggest reviewing those and evaluating your mental space before diving into this book. I might add/edit this more as I reflect, but to wrap this up… truly one of the best books I’ve read this year.
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