Reviews with content warning for Suicide attempt - The Only Good Indians

I struggled in the beginning with this book, the writing style was different than everything I've ever read. At first it felt like the narrator wasnt sure what they were trying to say, and that was off putting but then I realized it was purposeful. Everyone in this story, except for Denorah, is an unreliable narrator. Every part not from her perspective is written in that way. Her parts are smooth and easy. Everyone else's a little choppy, a little distracted, a little unsure. Once I got the hang of it, it was better.

Each character's voice was unique. The story was nothing that I've ever read and it was dark as anything. I was not prepared for so much death. I'm going with a 4 only because the writing style was so hard. I found skipping to the second person for stuff in the second act (don't wanna spoil) to be really rough and kind of jarring.

I do really like how important Denorah, the fourteen-year-old daughter of one of the originally introduced characters became. I liked following the plot through characters so that it felt character driven but still moved by the plot.

I'll definitely be reading this author again.

Content Warnings

oyonok's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense fast-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

Content Warnings

particledamage's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Not typically a horror fan but I found this book to be quite compelling, though it came in much, much stronger than it finished.

The overall commentary on guilt and grief, passed on from generation to generations, creating a cycle of pain and loss was gripping and felt all the more realized by the explicitness of the text--not just the violence and gore but also the point blank comments on alcoholism or the expected failure of Native men. This book shied away from nothing, whether it be the exposed brain matter of the many victims or just the bleakness in what these characters expect for themselves.

The stakes always felt high, though perhaps they petered out towards the end when it became clear to me exactly how this story would end, the only way it could end. And it did end up as expected, perhaps even more on the nose than anticipated and perhaps rushed in a way (though I suspect things were jumped over to say that the details don't matter, the end result does) but it never made me regret the journey.

A worthwhile read, if only for the slick way "You" was introduced and then further incorporated into the story, a great twist on narration and perspective I did not expect but would love to see used more.

Content Warnings

vaguely_pink's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

rb8985's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

More...