I wasn't sure how Boulley was going to follow up her debut- "Firekeeper's Daughter" is one of my favorite books of all time. but this book does an excellent job of doing so- Boulley packs the same punch in this book.

A powerful and interesting young adult mystery abou the importance of family and reclaiming your history. Ten years after the events of Fireeeper’s Daughter, Perry Firekeeper-Birch was ready for summer of fishing, but after a fender bender she is stuck working to pay back her Auntie Daunis (yes the same Daunis from Firekeeper’s Daughter). She works as an intern and becomes involved in an investigation to find Indigenous women who have gone missing while also trying to reclaim her ancestors’ remains which have been taken.

Much like Firekeeper’s daughter I could not put it down. I was engaged in the story the entire time. Perry was a likable but flawed character. She felt strongly, was caring, compassionate, and loyal but she acted based on her emotions and didn’t always stop to think about the consequences of her actions. Her impulsivity caused many issues.

I loved the way that Angeline Boulley works so much information about the Objiwe tribe, their customs and the importance of honoring their ancestors. It is so good to read storys about people who have marginalized in our society for so long. Everyone’s story should be told! I learned so much about the injustice that Indigenous people face. Especially indigenous women, although this was covered a lot in Firekeeper’s daughter. This book delved deeper into the world NAGPRA, or the repatriation of native items and remains. It is beyond wild to me the nuances of this and why collector's and museums wouldn't give these back to the communities they belong to.
I cannot wait for more from Angeline Boulley! With this book she has officially been added to my must read list.

I was very excited to get an ARC of this after reading Angeline Boulley’s debut, Firekeeper’s Daughter. I was ready for the same great storytelling, mesmerizing characters and beautiful writing. Unfortunately for me, Warrior Girl Unearthed didn’t have that same pull for me that Firekeeper’s Daughter did. I felt the characters were a little flat and the plot was scattered. I enjoyed the discussion around returning native artifacts and remains to Indigenous communities, but that wasn’t enough to get me through the book especially since I couldn’t get invested in the characters or the multiple plots.

Unfortunately, this second book did not capture me in the way Firekeeper’s daughter. Overall I enjoyed it, but I wanted a little bit more of a fast paced mystery.

I found this to be a bit slow to begin with. There was a lot of information and character development but I couldn't help but wonder where the plot was. However, once it was at a 50 percent I was drawn in and it captured my attention the way Firekeepers Daughter did. I love the stories Angeline creates and what I can learn from reading them. She has such strong female characters and a lot of culture and history in her stories.

This is an incredible author who weaves so much into her stories. I liked Warrior Girl Unearthed ever bit as much as her earlier book. Thank you, Netgalley, for the ARC -- I was so happy to have the opportunity to read this book!

After the fantastic first book of Angeline Boulley's, I could not wait to read about Sugar Island again. Headstrong 16 year old Perry Firekeeper-Birch and her very different twin Pauline are the focus of this book. I loved reading this empowering book about stolen art and repatriation. First you will be enraged, then vindicated.

After a bear and her cub cause Perry Firekeeper-Birch to get into a fender bender with a metal gate, she’s had to kiss her chilled out Summer of Slack goodbye in order to pay her Auntie Daunis back for the repairs. Now, she’s working in The Kinomage program, at the museum with Cooper Turtle. It’s not all bad though, she’s with the other outcasts in the group, Team Misfit Toys. Together they ace obstacle courses, plan vigils for missing women in the community, and make sure summer can still be fun.

While working with Cooper Turtle, Perry attends a meeting at a local university where she meets the “Warrior Girl”, an ancestor whose bones and knife are stored in the museum archives. After finding out how her ancestors are treated, Perry is determined to help return Warrior Girl to her tribe. She learns everything she can about NAGPRA, the federal law that allows tribes to request the return of ancestral remains and sacred items. The law was passed back in 1990 and museums all over the United States have found legal loopholes to hold onto remains like Warrior Girl and others. The college has twelve other Anishinaabe ancestors’ remains and Team Misfit Toys are determined to bring them home through a heist.

I absolutely adored Firekepper’s Daughter and am constantly recommending it. This book is no different. This is another powerful and beautifully written story that really focuses on the injustices that happen within the Indigenous Communities both here in the United States and around the world. I always learn so much reading these books. Like, I know America has a horrible relationship with Indigenous and Native tribes, but to hear just how badly and cruel museums are handling the NAGPRA is so horribly sad. This book is set in 2014 and talks about how long it was taking museums to do something that was issued into law 20 years ago - it’s over 30 now and it’s probably not any better.

Perry is a bit impulsive and immature, but so works so well for this story. She loves her community and culture so much and will do everything she can for them. Perry grows so much in this story and I adore her so much.

This book is a 10 year follow up to Firekeeper’s Daughter but could totally be a stand alone too. Though I would highly recommend reading both because you really get the depth to the community, history, characters, and practices mentioned.

*Thank you NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co for a digital advance copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review

This was a lively view of native Ojibwa life in current times and the consequences of tragic historical actions. I loved that it told the story through the eyes of a sixteen-year-old who was struggling to find their place in the world. Peppered with native language and numerous cultural references, this novel was able to educate as well as entertain. I could see this novel as a comparison piece with those exploring historical atrocities and their impact on today's society.

While this novel is not exactly a sequel, it does reference a few of the characters from Boulley's earlier work.

The protagonist felt real, and the novel exuded familial love and community, providing a solid base for the fast moving plot. I appreciated some of the plot twists that I didn't see coming, and I appreciated the character flaws present in the secondary characters and the way that those flaws added depth but were not disabling.

While there is not explicit sexual activity, there is reference to sex happening off scene. Overall, this is a solid novel that is worthy of classroom discussion. Enjoy, my friends.

Thank you to Net Galley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

For those that have read Firekeeper's Daughter, this book serves as a sort of sequel/companion to it, existing within the same universe and featuring many of the same characters you've already been introduced to. While it's not completely necessary to have read its predecessor, I highly recommend it, as it gives you a better appreciation for the references made.

Perry Firekeeper-Birch is Daunis' rebellious and unfiltered younger cousin (though their dynamic is described as being more aunt/niece). She and her twin sister, Pauline, couldn't be more different in demeanor, despite their close connection. At the start of the story, a lapse in judgment and resulting car accident leave Perry in Daunis' debt. To pay it off, she's asked to go work in a summer program, where she meets a fellow crew of "misfits" and her equally quirky boss, Cooper.

While there, Perry learns about NAGPRA, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which is a law that allows tribes to request the return of ancestral remains and sacred items. It is her work with Cooper that allows her to see exactly how slow and arduous this process is. Eventually, she stumbles upon sacred artifacts and remains that are being sold for profit, rather than handed back to their original tribe, prompting Perry to take matters into her own hands. While this is being advertised as a YA mystery, there is a little bit of a heist element, as well (which I appreciated). Boulley proved with Firekeeper's Daughter that she is capable of genre-bending a bit... this was no exception.

Like her previous work, she does an excellent job of showcasing the horrors and brutalities that occur against indigenous women... and how unhelpful law enforcement can be on these matters. Mirroring real life, we see a growing number of native women within and beyond Perry's community go missing. The Author's Note made it clear that the author wanted to emphasize the dehumanization native bodies endured, both in life and after death. I appreciated all of the research that clearly went into the book and how careful the author was in presenting these issues. I knew very little about repatriation and imagine I was not alone in that. Boulley does a seamless job of spreading awareness contextually within her stories, which is something I appreciated so much about Firekeeper's Daughter, as well.

I have only two small grievances with this book, neither of which feel all that significant in the grand scheme of things (but were similar grievances I had with the prequel, as well).

1) The ending felt rushed. This was a long book, but I don't feel like enough time was spent on wrapping things. The "plot twists" were hastily revealed... and then the book was essentially over. I don't know if she's setting herself up for another book (I could see her easily writing another from some of the other characters' perspectives) or if she simply lost steam, but... I wanted the pacing to feel a bit more organic.

2) Some of the writing felt more "tell" than "show"... which I think is fine, given this is for a younger audience.

Ultimately though, there's so much good being accomplished in these pages. Definitely recommend!

Firekeeper’s Daughter was one of my favorite books I read last year, so I was so excited to read this one.
It takes place 10 years after Firekeeper’s Daughter, in 2014, and the main character is Perry, Daunis’s niece. She joins a summer program and becomes involved in planning vigils for missing indigenous women and the returning of ancestral remains. Along with other members of the program, they plan a heist to take back some of the remains being withheld, and Perry finds herself in the middle of events even bigger - and darker - than she had thought.
While it kept me interested and I learned a lot, it felt a little long and got very confusing at parts. I enjoyed it, but didn’t love it like I did with her first novel.

A haunting, thought provoking second book. The story continues with Danuis's relative, Perry. All she wants to do is fish over her summer break. But, she ends up having to do an internship that leads her down the difficult struggle of reclaiming ancestors and tribal artifacts. The story explores how difficult the process can be, and how choices are not always black and white. The characters are all realistic and beautifully fleshed out. It is a must read!

I so loved Boulley's first novel and was incredibly excited to see this sequel-but-not-sequel. And Boulley didn' disappoint at all. The story centers on Perry Firekeeper-Birch and her developing interest in the missing and murdered indigenous women from her area, which also develops into recovering ancestral and sacred items that the NAGPRA laws are purported to force the return of, laws which fall terribly short of their intended outcome.

As with Firekeepers Daughter, I learned so much about the norhern indigenous peoples and how America is still failing in its promises to the tribes people. This is such a rich text and I have and will continue to recommend Boulley's novels to my students, many of whom are Pechanga and Luiseno tribal members. I can't wait to see where Boulley's next book takes me.

I loved Boulley’s captivating first person narration and writing style in Firekeeper’s Daughter, which happens to be beautifully showcased again in Warrior Girl Unearthed. Taking place about 10 years after Daunis’ story, this time we follow Perry, one of Daunis’ twin nieces who is now in high school. Through a forced internship, Perry discovers the horrors of how some museums and archives collect, steal, and keep indigenous ancestral bones and sacred artifacts – not to mention the roadblocks in the way of requesting items and remains be rightfully returned to their tribes. Perry and others in her community vow to get their ancestors and items repatriated one way or another, no matter what’s at stake.

Even better than Firekeeper's Daughter, I fell in love with the twins and learned so much. I really connected with the MC and loved the setting as well, which is an area I've spent time in.

Angeline Boulley, Anishinaabe author of The Firekeeper’s Daughter, once again strikes gold with her latest young adult novel, Warrior Girl Unearthed, set in the region of Sugar Island, Michigan. Warrior Girl Unearthed represents the happy marriage of a thriller, “what I did during my summer vacation” story, and a coming of age narrative about Pearl Mary “Perry” Firekeeper-Birch, a teen with fierce affection for her Anishinaabe cultural heritage, language, and traditions. Fans of The Firekeeper’s Daughter will recognize Perry as the second cousin of Firekeeper’s protagonist, Daunis Fontaine. Precocious, plucky, outspoken and daring as a child, a stark contrast to her more circumspect, reflective, and academic twin, Pauline, Perry has continued to be the family renegade. The novel starts in summer; both rising seniors, Perry and her twin, the straight-laced Pauline, will be doing tribal internships. While Pauline relishes the prospect of working for the Tribal Council and gaining college preparatory work experience, low-key Perry has been grudgingly roped into working, when she literally would rather be fishing and enjoying time off from school. While Perry initially dismisses her internship as a snore-fest, things rapidly change when her internship brings her into contact with several important artifacts, including the remains of a Native American girl – the warrior girl referenced in the title – which have been illicitly procured (can we say grave-robbing?) and commodified. Outraged, Perry resolves to do the right thing by her culture and seeks to reclaim the tribal treasures for her people via vigilante justice. To add to the chaos, the summer has also ushered in a series of disappearances: Native American women are being abducted. As with Firekeeper’s Daughter, Boulley creates a wonderfully immersive and engaging world–I really appreciate her commitment to using Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe language) and seamlessly weaving Native American practices and traditions into the storyline. Boulley also addresses serious Indigenous-relevant issues, like cultural loss and reclamation, Native American grave protection and remains repatriation, the conflict between Native tribes and white archaeologists/scholars, domestic violence against Native Women, and the disproportionate number of missing and murdered Indigenous women into her storyline. As a reader born and raised in Hawai`i, I saw a lot of parallels between the issues faced by Native Americans and Native Hawaiians. While it’s hard to top Firekeeper’s Daughter, Boulley has given readers another terrific, satisfying book: entertaining, to be sure, yet also educational and thought-provoking. Warrior Girl Unearthed stands on its own merits; no knowledge of Boulley’s previous novel is required to enjoy it, and readers, no doubt, will enjoy journeying with Warrior Girl Perry. Highly recommended! Chi miigwech to NetGalley for the ARC!

I really enjoyed this story and Perry, the main character. She's so three-dimensional and human, I feel like I know her and have spent time with her.

I read the author’s debut novel, Firekeeper’s Daughter and was nervous to see if her second follow up novel will be as good. Unequivocally, the answer is YES!!

This novel focuses on Perry, an angry teenager who’s life leads her to constantly choose between right and wrong. Something we can all relate to. Like the author’s previous novel, we are given exquisite and fascinating details about Native American tribes, NAGPRA, and a better understanding why missing and unsolved murdered indigenous women don’t get the justice they deserve.

Bonus: we do have Daunis reappear in this novel but as Perry’s aunt.

Simply brilliant!

3.5/5 -- This is by no means a bad book, it just didn’t capture me in the same way that Firekeeper’s Daughter did. Like many others, I was blown away by Boulley's first novel so of course I was expecting another compelling novel.
This story picks up 10 years later and is centered around Perry Firekeeper-Birch, Daunis' cousin/niece. I wouldn't consider it a sequel but there are definitely overlapping characters from the first book. Perry's story is her own, just like Danuis's, and it is just as important. She is a tough, puts up with no BS, kind of girl. I admire that she is brave and is so committed to protecting her culture and history but I did struggle connecting to her. She was almost too jaded and mature for her age.
Overall this is a very impactful book that taught me a lot about the ways in which indigenous people are still wrongly treated and how important it is for Perry to right these wrongs. I learned about a few topics I knew little about, such as NAGPRA and MMIW, but a lot of this knowledge felt more like an information dump rather than a story. I felt it way too easy to not pick this book up again in between readings. I just didn't feel the same fire I felt while reading FKD.

Loved all the culture in this. Beautifully written. Plus murder, bone heists and mystery?! Yes, please!! A must read!